More Singaporeans aged over 50 seeking help after gambling away money

ALL content used in this not-for-profit blog remain the property of their respective owners.
http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/more-seniors-seeking-help-over-debts

The Credit Counselling Singapore (CCS) said it has counselled 806 cases on credit card debt in the first half of this year. Last year, the association counselled 1,605 cases, up from 1,090 in 2011 and 1,066 in 2010.

According to Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, “about 31 per cent of those who sought help from CCS were 35 years old and younger”.

According to figures from the CCS, Singaporeans in their 30s have been dominant among those seeking help in the past four years. The average debt for this age group was between S$70,000 and S$80,000 over the past three years. Overspending, pay cuts or loss of job were leading causes behind their credit delinquency and defaults.

Among these is a debtor who has borrowed from 41 moneylenders with outstanding loans of over S$90,000. There has also been an increase in the number of Singaporeans aged over 50 seeking help after gambling away their money and getting into credit problems. The CCS counselled and placed 47 such individuals on debt management programmes in 2012 (24 in 2011 and 17 in 2010).

Although the new rules by the Monetary Authority of Singapore will help address problems faced by debt-ridden Singaporeans, CCS head counsellor Lim Cheng Boon is worried some will seek other means of financing themselves. “They may resort to other ways of borrowing, and go on borrowing until there is nowhere else to borrow,” he said. “Then, they may go to moneylenders, and once they start with one moneylender, there will be no end.”

Unlike monthly repayments for bank loans, moneylenders will demand weekly payments. “If (debtors) can’t pay the first one, they will borrow from a second. This will grow,” said Mr Lim, adding that a debtor in a recent case borrowed from 41 moneylenders.