As a student, nurse and family breadwinner, Asanda found it difficult to resist the lure of credit. The debt piled up quickly until she was struggling to send money home – with nothing at all to show for it. Fortunately, her employer referred her to Summit. Now she's debt-free and excited for the future.
“My mom couldn’t understand what was going on. She knew I was working, but all of a sudden I’m sending peanuts.”
When she first moved to Johannesburg for work, Asanda was excited about all the loans and retail accounts she qualified for. She says she was too immature to realise she would soon be struggling to pay all the loans and would have little left to send home.
She felt most ashamed of having nothing to show for all the money she owed; no house, no car, and no savings. Luckily, her employer noticed her stress and referred her to Summit.
We helped her pay back her debt at a rate she could afford, by reducing her monthly debt payments from R4,600 to R2,000 under debt counselling, and her interest rates from 22% to 3% on average. Overall, her debt-to-income ratio was reduced from an unsustainable 104% to a far healthier 45%.
Now she's debt-free and excited about her bright financial future.
"Starting afresh feels good. I can answer each and every call – I'm not scared, I'm not owing anyone. I'm so free - my money is mine now."
