Man manages to pay off £24k worth of debt in 18 months with simple side hustles

A man whose excessive debt prevented him from renting a flat or having his own phone contract has revealed the side hustles he used to get himself out of the red.

Sammie Ellard King racked up thousands in debt after being given a credit card and a student overdraft at university, where the temptation of alcohol and nights out are often difficult to turn down.

Like many other students, Sammie didn't want to miss any nights out but descended further and further into his overdraft, which ended up having serious consequences later in his life.

By the age of 25, he had racked up £24,000 of debt and was left unable to rent a flat as his credit score was so bad, something he described as a 'slap in the face'.

That slap certainly helped him to make a big change in his life and he dedicated serious time and effort into his side hustles, sometimes spending as many as six hours per night making money.

Sammie said: "I used my debt to keep up appearances, and make it seem like I had more money than I did.

"It got to the point where a third of my wages were going on interest repayments.

"The moment you start talking to people about it, it opens doors for you, because you realise you have options.

"I couldn't even get a mobile phone contract, my mum had to do it for me, because my credit score was so bad.

"That was a big slap in the face. I went on a mission to turn things around from there."

Sammie realised the extent of his problems when he was rejected for a flat (SWNS)

Despite progressing quickly with a marketing job in London which saw him earning £50k per year, Sammie was still struggling to make ends meet and he knew that he would have to generate some extra sources of income.

His evening side hustles included website testing, surveys, reselling and tutoring, all of which helped him bring in an extra £2,000 a month to help clear his debts and it wasn't too long before the 36-year-old was making profit.

He said: "I'd buy a new pair of Nike trainers on the day they came out, and then by the next day they'd have sold out, and I could sell them on eBay for four or five times the money.

"If I'm sitting on a train and I have 45 minutes to kill, I'll do a few surveys and make some money.

"For me, that's better than Netflix."

He now gives out financial advice to others who are struggling with money (SWNS)

Once his debts reached zero, Sammie was in no mood to stop and instead turned towards investment as a way of making some extra money, quickly saving his first £10k while using methods such as a stocks and shares ISA.

In 2021, Sammie launched Up the Gains, a website, podcast and social media channel where he shares financial advice with others and he claims to have helped over a million people so far, while his personal profits reached well over £100k.

Back in June, the money whiz launched a budgeting app which helps people track their spending.

He explained: "We've grown to over 13,000 users so far and had some really great reviews", he said.

"The app helps you to make conscious decisions with your money, which I think has really resonated with people, with the cost of living being so high at the moment."