Do you know anyone who doesn’t have/ hasn’t ever had any debt?

I do count mortgage as debt as if you don’t pay it you get turfed out.
At aged 19 my first husband left me for a girl he worked with. We had just took on a mortgage based on his earnings and a % of mine. There was no way I could afford to pay it on my own and struggled to pay all the other bills as well.
As the housing market had gone down I was also in negative equity.
It was a very frightening time as it took eight months to sell (for less than it cost) and I was getting bailiff letters.
I am now 62 and struggling to sell my guest house so still have to carry on working a 7 day week as the mortgage has to be paid. So a mortgage is definitely debt.

My mother lived hand to mouth and every week robbed Peter to pay Paul. She always owed somebody money and I grew up hiding behind the sofa when the rent man came to call and she didn't have the means to pay the arrears. My fear of debt has given me a determination never to live beyond my means and the very thought of owing money would keep me awake at night. Cars are second hand and bought cash, the mortgage was overpaid until it was cleared and my (very few) credit card purchases are always paid in full.

Doesn't this depend on how you define"debt"? (I don't really count mortgages as such.) Many years ago we had a bank loan to upgrade the central heating. Once upon a time I did use a credit card and paid off the "debt", month by month, but not often. (Now DH & I use one and pay it all off, every month.)

The only debt I’ve had was the mortgage long since paid off. I do have a credit card but it’s paid every month before any interest is charged. Always hated the thought of debt.

I've only ever had a mortgage and DH paid it off early, but before I married I had a credit card which I tried to pay off each month and I owed a couple of hundred pounds. When I paid it in full I cut the card up and cancelled it. Credit cards lead to temptation.
I order a few items now and again with a mail order firm and get these on approval but pay as much as I can as soon as possible so as not to let it build up.

Saw my parents struggle with money so dont do debt and have always saved for saving’s sake rather than for a particular reason so if I want to buy something it’s a judgment call on how much I want it.

I have always bought a car on 0% finance leaving my money earning interest and paid mortgage off after 14 years so that we could be debt free and we prefer it that way. However I know lots of people who are totally unconcerned about their debts - they see them as necessary expenses!

When we were first married I earned about twice as much as my husband, so no problem when we wanted a small loan to buy carpets (we only had already saved up over half), but, I wasn’t allowed to sign the agreement, my husband had to sign even though there was no way he could afford it! This was about 45 years ago, but we were obviously still in the dark ages, can you imagine the outcry if that happened today?

I think this is almost a generational thing....my parents and my husband's parents never had any debt. However, once when my father in law wanted to buy a holiday, he had trouble because he had no credit card! In fact, I understand that having credit cards can be an indication of good credit score! Not sure how that works but there you go....things are so much easier with cards. I'm like the Queen...never use cash

I personally have never been in debt ... however, a few years ago I was lumbered with paying a huge debt off for my ex husband as he’d run my bank card up to it’s limits and refused to pay. Where’s this Karma when you need it ??

We have been in debt but it was a planned debt that we paid off over 2 years.
Now I use my credit card for almost everything and pay it off when due. I’m self employed and if I get a tax inspection they will be able to see that we live a lifestyle that matches our income!

Apart from the mortgage, no. We have had a couple of purchases that were interest free for 1 year and the full amount was paid off in month 11 before the interest charges kicked off. The money was earning us interest in the meantime. We have one credit card and that is paid off every month as it comes in so we never incur interest or other charges. We always pay for large items and holidays using a credit card rather than a debit card for the legal protection that gives if things go wrong.

I once bought a painting on hire purchase. I was still a student and couldn’t really afford it. That’s all, I think. I pay off my credit card every month, never pay any interest.

I do not owe anybody a penny and have not since I paid off my mortgage about 18 years ago. I always paid off credit cards each month and now only have debit cards.

I used to work with somebody who went on two exotic holidays every year but they were paid for by credit card. She could hardly pass a clothes shop without going in and buying something- always on credit.

We had a mortgage which was paid of with DH's redundancy/ retirement lump sum. 10 yrs ago.
DH did buy a push bike which he needed to use to get to work on HP for the grand sum of £1.50 per week when we were first married but we have never had a credit card.

My father. He never bought anything he couldn’t pay for, much to my mother’s chagrin. He never owed anyone a penny until the day he died.

Our parents generation didn't usually buy things they couldn't afford, credit was not so available as it is now. There was also a degree of shame if you were in debt to anyone.
People now have different expectations and want immediate gratification. I have had debts in my life and found it stressful to deal with.

My grandmother and mother, both widowed young, each, in their own time, left to bring up two children, did low wage factory work. Life was a struggle. I remember these two hard-working women having to get into debt when one of us needed a new coat or shoes most often paid for a Provident cheque and/or the tally man coming to collect payment. 1950s/1960s equivalent of pay day loans.

Only debt was a mortgage. Furniture etc was either saved for bought second hand, car saved for and paid on purchase.
I do use a credit card solely for online purchases (only small amounts) and is paid off as soon as I get the bill. That's only because I won't give my bank details to anyone.

I can honestly say I've never had any debt my whole life. But I've never owned a house or a flash car either - the two things most people put themselves into hock for.
My parents didn't agree with HP and I've never longed for anything so much I'd be prepared to pay the price plus interest. I am, after all, Yorkshire born and bred.

It astonished me how the whole world seems to live on credit. I'm just not that type of person - if I can't buy it with the money in my pocket, I just don't buy it.

I have only ever borrowed once, for a mortgage when I first married. Otherwise if I can't afford something I don't buy it. I don't have a credit card but if ever I did need a loan I would have a credit score which would cause them to refuse me. It is said that one should have a credit card and pay it off in full every month to avoid this situation.

My parents were never in debt apart from their mortgage and that has rubbed off on me. We do not owe anybody money. We have always saved up for the things we wanted or did without.

My brother. He was a postman all his life, always lived frugally, managed to save enough for one holiday and a couple of weekends away each year, and now owns two properties. If only some other members of my family were as prudent and resourceful!

My parents were never in debt for anything. When my mother received her weekly housekeeping money (how old fashioned that sounds) she would put money in jars to pay the bills and the reamainder was for food for the week. They would save up for holidays and major items. What they couldn’t afford , we didn’t have, and my husband and I have been the same.
I was amazed at the careless attitude of the young people I worked with. One young woman took out successive and concurrent loans to pay for her wedding, a new car and then a new kitchen.

I'm a wee bit like that , we were brought up to save for something . I'm still the same , but 13 years ago I was talked into buying a car ( by my modern thinking daughters ) on interest free credit . I worried about that purchase until the car was paid up ( 5 years later) and am still driving it yet .
That's the only credit/hire purchase/loan - they still terrify me .