This post has been written in collaboration with People’s Choice Credit Union
It was on a fairly cold winter’s morning in August when I went to put our ducted heat on to warm the house. I pressed the button and it wouldn’t turn on.
I remember groaning inside as we had spent quite a bit of money on our reverse cycle air conditioning unit over the past few years.
We shivered and put on layers of clothes until the AC serviceman came to visit. Thankfully they weren’t too busy as summer is usually their peak season for calls.
I knew it was going to be expensive to fix. Last time the bill was around $900 to replace the motherboard as a rat decided to fry itself while looking for a warm place to hide.
The news wasn’t good.
I was told our unit had run out of gas (which would cost approx. $1200 to replace) and there was a gas leak.
Depending on where the leak was on the inner copper coil, would depend on whether the unit could be fixed or not.
Our serviceman was the bearer of bad news again when he found the leak was further inside the unit which meant a new coil would have to be installed. The cost of getting the parts and labour, plus filling it back up with gas was going to be hefty. I had to seriously consider purchasing a whole new ducted air conditioning system to avoid throwing more money at our number one problem. I knew the estimated cost was around $15,000 to supply and install a new unit.
I told our serviceman to send through two quotes. One to fix our current unit and another to replace the system fully.
The quote to fix was $4,000 and the cost to replace was $12,000.
Jacob and I had to weigh up whether to spend more money to get a new system or just get the system fixed – not knowing whether it would belly up 12 months later.
We decided we would replace the system and I went about getting more quotes from other AC installers.
We were able to get the price down to $9000, which was still an unexpected household expense and was certainly a large amount of money we didn’t have lying around.
I knew air conditioning would be a necessity in summer. The hot sun beats down the back of our house and the girls’ rooms COOK in summer, even with block out sun blinds. I’m also used to sleeping in air conditioning during summer. It prevents me from getting migraines.
When faced with a large, unexpected expense, it can be a source of worry, working out how to pay for it.
For us, we had to consider our options. They were either applying for a personal loan OR seeing if we could redraw money from our mortgage.
Personal loans can sometimes be looked down on as another debt to pay off or a debt you can’t afford, which does hold some merit, but gosh they are convenient when you need a large sum of money to pay for a huge expense, like replacing a ducted air conditioning unit.
People’s Choice Credit Union is one of Australia’s leading credit unions, with competitive rates. They offer a genuine alternative to the major banks.
People’s Choice makes it easy for families to work out whether they can maintain the loan, through the use of an online calculator on their website. The personal loan calculator calculates repayments and the affordability of the loan for families.
People’s Choice offers a range of personal loans to suit your circumstances. Whether you are purchase a new car, need funding for a renovation (or in my case, replacing the ducted air conditioning).
Their loans have a competitive interest rate and have the choice of weekly, fortnightly or monthly repayments.
Personal loans make it easier to achieve your life goals quicker. They also give you the power to access necessary funds to pay for unexpected financial surprises.
And no one is immune from them in some shape or form.
Giveaway
People’s Choice Credit Union is member owned and they operate to serve their members who are also their customers. People’s Choice has collaborated with The Plumbette to give away a Prepaid VISA gift card to the value of $100 to help ease the financial burden that can often be felt this time of year.
In order to be in the running for the prize, you need to answer this question in 25 words or less:
What would you take out a personal loan for and why? The most interesting and creative answer will win the prize.
Terms and Conditions
This is a game of skill. Each valid entry to be judged on creativity and originality, not by chance.
There is 1 prize = $100 Prepaid Visa Gift Card
Entries open from 6am Brisbane time Tuesday 14th February 2017 to Tuesday 28th February 2017 6pm Brisbane Time.
Prizes are not transferable or changeable.
Prize sent out by third parties will not be replaced in the event they are stolen, lost or damaged in transit or virtually.
Entry is leaving an answer to the question.
A valid email address must be included in your entry. This email will be added to my newsletter, but will never be spammed or sent to third parties.
Entry into any giveaway or competition is deemed acceptance of these Terms and Conditions
Entrants must be Australian residents and aged 18 or over.
The winner will be notified by email and has 3 days to reply and claim the prize. The winner may be announced on Facebook. This giveaway is not endorsed by Facebook.
This post has been written in accordance with my disclosure policy.
