For many people, earning more money sounds like the solution to financial problems.
However, one Malaysian woman’s story about her cousin serves as a reminder that a higher income may not necessarily solve years of accumulated debt.
In a series of Threads posts, a woman shared how a married couple, whom she referred to as Mila and Jamali, allegedly spent decades taking out personal loans, using credit cards and refinancing their home before eventually entering retirement with debts still unpaid.
According to the woman, their financial troubles began when they were newly married in the 1990s.
Took RM50,000 personal loan to furnish new home
The woman claimed both Mila and Jamali were government employees and had a combined income of around RM2,000 when they first got married.
After having their first child, the couple reportedly bought a three bedroom terrace house.
Wanting their new home to look like a showroom, they allegedly took out a RM50,000 personal loan to purchase furniture, built in fittings, custom curtains and other renovations.
They later changed to a newer car as well.
However, the woman claimed that the couple soon began struggling to keep up with their monthly commitments.
Within about a year, they allegedly started refinancing or overlapping their personal loans.
When that was no longer enough, they began relying heavily on credit cards.
Borrowed money from siblings and colleagues
As their children grew older, the couple’s expenses reportedly continued increasing.
The woman claimed they began borrowing money from their siblings, with some family members even setting aside money to help them pay bills after they received notices warning that their car could be repossessed.
Despite this, she alleged that the couple continued spending on branded clothing during festive seasons and changing their curtains every year.
Their debts eventually extended to friends and colleagues as well.
After around 10 years, they reportedly purchased another house under the wife’s name and sold their first property.
However, according to the woman, the proceeds from the sale were used for new furniture, built in fittings, curtains and a kitchen extension instead of settling their existing debts.
Several credit cards and multiple loans
As their children entered university, the couple reportedly struggled even more with their finances.
The woman said they had several credit cards that were already maxed out, alongside personal loans and two car loans.
They allegedly refinanced their house, which caused their monthly repayment to increase from around RM900 to RM2,000.
“Every month, it was like digging one hole to cover another,” the woman wrote.
Another Threads user, who claimed to have experience handling civil servants’ salary documents, said she had previously seen workers earning around RM8,000 take home only RM400 after deductions for housing, cars, personal loans, insurance, cooperative loans and multiple credit cards.
The original poster agreed, saying this was the kind of situation she was referring to.
Received nearly RM600,000 in combined gratuity
Eventually, both Mila and Jamali retired from government service.
According to the woman, the couple received close to RM600,000 in combined gratuity payments.
However, she claimed the money was gone within just one year.
About RM200,000 was allegedly invested into a business that shut down within two years.
Another RM300,000 was reportedly spent on a homestay business located away from major tourist attractions.
The woman claimed the homestay failed to generate enough returns, while even some of the mattresses were purchased through a five year instalment plan.
Still struggling four years into retirement
Four years after retirement, the woman said the couple’s gratuity money was completely gone.
Their combined pension was initially around RM14,000, according to a later clarification by the poster.
However, she claimed unpaid refinancing instalments caused the bank to increase repayments, while several personal loans, credit card balances and car loans remained outstanding.
One of the couple’s cars was reportedly sold last year.
The woman said their remaining disposable pension income had eventually dropped to around RM4,000 a month, which she claimed was no longer enough to cover their expenses.
Their children were also unable to provide much financial assistance as they had commitments of their own.
Some questioned the timeline
Several netizens questioned parts of the story, particularly how a couple supposedly earning RM2,000 could have qualified for multiple loans and later received around RM600,000 in gratuity.
The poster later clarified that the RM2,000 figure referred to their combined salary when they first got married in the 1990s.
Their income gradually increased throughout their 34 years of service, with Jamali eventually reaching Grade 54 and Mila reaching Grade 48.
She added that their combined income was close to RM20,000 towards retirement, while their combined pension was estimated at around RM14,000.
Another commenter pointed out that the timeline made more sense after reading the entire thread, as the story spanned nearly two decades before the couple eventually retired.
The claims shared in the Threads posts have not been independently verified.
