Debts out of control and someone is always chasing me for another loan repayment.

Meet Steve: My credit cards and loans are out of control. The only way I find I can pay them back is usually by getting another credit card which then puts me into further financial stress. I am really very worried about my finances and due to this I struggle with any relationships and lately I have been finding it hard to concentrate at work. I am always tense and uptight as money is always on my mind. I worry about my future too.

Life has hit me hard recently and I am struggling to overcome an unexpected situation.

Meet Sandra: Recently my husband of 15 years left me and I have been dealing with the emotions and stresses that come from a separation. To be honest the finances have been the last thing on my mind as Rick always managed the accounts and investments. Now that I have had to deal with this on my own, I feel lost and don’t know where to start. To my horror I have been receiving some overdue statements in the mail. To keep the house in order it looks as though I need to change from part-time to full-time work and I can see that I need to educate myself on how to handle money.

Living on someone else’s money, robbing Peter to pay Paul and spending more than we earn.

Meet Cathy and Rod: We are both quite hard working, but no matter how much we earn we never have enough money to go around. We are always borrowing money from our family who bail us out of tight situations when our credit cards are full. We can’t wait until pay day, but usually when this pay comes in we have to give most of it away to pay people back. We are certainly spending more than we earn, but no matter what we earn it isn’t enough. We just don’t know where our money goes. We try and live on less but it doesn’t work out. We occasionally have fights over money which upsets us both.

Living from pay to pay with just enough to get by.

Meet the Smith Family : Matt, Susan, Jack and Chris: We are a young family so the bills keep coming along. However we always manage to just get by until the next pay comes in. We are both working to make ends meet but are careful to ensure the credit cards and other debts don’t get out of control. We would love to have that bit extra so we can save some for emergencies or to just give us some extra nice things. We worry how we will cope when the kids are older and need more.

Breaking even with the ability to build up a small amount of savings but I am not getting anywhere fast.

Meet Paula: I am doing okay with my money but like most people I wish that I could do better. I do save a little bit each pay but the amount varies and then there are the times when I do dip into my savings, often for a bit of retail therapy. I don’t feel that I will ever get on top of my finances and the thought of building up money for the future does scare me. The future doesn’t look too pleasant unless I meet a rich crusader.

Some money saved for a rainy day and we add to this regularly. We also enjoy living it up and spend big each week.

Meet Sienna and Byron: We have built up some savings and when we need to save more we do well with controlling our spending and somehow mange to cut back. That is when we usually start a budget. However, most of the time we just want to spend; that is what money is for. The credit card is used when we have to use it. We don’t worry about the future, although in the back of our minds we know one day we would like to have children. At the moment though, we never go without. If we want it, we buy it.

We save well and control our overall spending.

Meet the Brown Family : Kate, Pete, Jo and Ella: We are very disciplined with our money and stick to a budget. We have had to be strict with money to get ahead over the years. We have always saved money and prefer to pay cash for things that we want. If we don’t have the cash, we don’t buy it. We rarely use the credit card and if we do it is cleared straight away. Our savings build up regularly. We still have lots of fun in our family but ensure we do so within our means. That ensures we have a lot of love and happiness in our household. No stresses in our family – bills are always paid on time and the savings get us through any emergencies that crop up. The children are getting a great education around handling money which makes us satisfied as parents.

Kicking all goals and getting ahead fast.

Meet Wayne: Call me Mr Budget. I know where every dollar that I earn goes. I have a strong budgeting system in place and this has meant that I have achieved a lot in my life. I regularly set goals around my finances and I am building up my wealth so one day I can retire. I hope to retire years earlier than most people will. I never go without, I have what I want, but it is all done within my budget. Life is great. I couldn’t live without knowing where my money is going. I am really happy and live a fulfilled life.

Steve

Sandra

Cathy and Rod

Smith Family

Paula

Sienna and Byron

Brown Family

Mr Budget

Steve

Sandra

Cathy and Rod

Smith Family

Paula

Sienna and Byron

Brown Family

Mr Budget