I went from being a realtor with $2M in sales to having massive debts

At the prime age of 27, I am now burdened with debts totaling over VND200 million.

Back when I was in university, I had to take on multiple part-time jobs, from serving at eateries and tea shops to beer bars, as my poor family could not afford my tuition fees.

By my junior year, I was hired as a security officer, earning VND6.5 million per month. The job required eight hours of work during the day and three 12-hour night shifts per week. The night shifts were rough but in return, I had enough money to cover several years of university.

In 2021, I graduated and returned to my hometown to work as a technician for a few telecommunications companies that offered VND9-10 million per month.

After a few months, the property market in my hometown boomed, so I became an agent for a real estate company as I had previous experiences working as a freelance real estate agent.

Either thanks to luck or my honest and friendly nature, I sold four luxury shophouses that were collectively worth VND48 billion just four months into the job. This figure was a record-breaking achievement, not previously attained by any of the other agents at the firm

However, I never received my salary and commission as the company went bankrupt by October of that year. All my efforts and hard work were for naught. My expenses for advertising, meeting clients, transportation and rent were also not reimbursed.

Upset at the hand I have been dealt, I tried to invest to recoup my losses. I ventured into cryptocurrencies, stocks, foreign exchanges, and even online gambling, only to end up losing even more.

I lost over VND1 billion, with VND800 million from my savings and more than VND200 million from loans I had taken out. For the past two years, I have been trying to make ends meet, but I have not even made a dent in that debt. Even with two or three extra jobs, I can barely pay the loan interest and my living expenses.

Earning money has become even harder this year, and having to pay over VND12-13 million in interest per month is making me truly exhausted and stressed. Sometimes I just want to give up, but then I would feel incredibly guilty as some of the loans were from those who are dear to me.

So I am writing this to share my story and remind myself to not give up. But honestly, what can I even do to make things better?

Reader Anh

*This opinion was translated into English by AI. Readers’ views are personal and do not necessarily match VnExpress’ viewpoints.