I have written about warning signs people experience that may show they are headed for a financial fall, but what I read recently is a huge sign: using credit cards to pay your mortgage or rent.

A charity’s study showed that up to one million households or 6% of households have used a credit card to pay their rent or mortgage in the past year.

That is a shockingly high figure and a clear sign of a problem.

In the hierarchy of what bills to pay first, your rent or mortgage is the one that has top priority.  If you are struggling to meet that payment you may be in a house and/or mortgage you cannot afford.

Also, by paying the rent or mortgage first, if you are experiencing money issues, your unsecured debts would be last to be paid, if they could be paid at all.

Secured debts such as a mortgage need to be paid or you face the risk of repossession, eviction and becoming homeless.

If you cannot pay your unsecured debts, you do have some options such as some repayment schemes or even bankruptcy.

If you have used an overdraft, credit card or credit line to pay your rent or mortgage, the first thing to do is to take a good look at your monthly income and expenses and prioritise them; your rent or mortgage payment being first on the list.

Another thing to do is to look at what the percentage of your monthly wages is your mortgage or rent payment.  An example is if you bring home after taxes and NI £800 and your rent or mortgage is £400, and you have no other sources of income, your rent or mortgage payment is disproportionate to your wages, meaning it is high.

You are paying 50% of your wages to your rent/mortgage and for most of us that is too high and could cause issues.

Keeping this in mind may be helpful should you find yourself looking at using a credit card to help pay for your rent or mortgage payment.