Six year retirement plan

Ninno820 · 14 July 2014 at 7:08PM

its a hope lol x

Seasidegal58 · 14 July 2014 at 10:56PM

You're on a roll ninno - keep up the good work!

Ninno820 · 15 July 2014 at 5:28PM

So - another rambling update. I am loving YNAB seasidegal - have set up my budget and am still trying to be frugal until payday next Tuesday. However I have also watched a couple of the webinars - great help to anyone starting out - and I have added my purse contents to the budget so am tracking it on the iphone app.

My desk is nearly sorted - no treasure chest I am afraid - I just need to file some receipts / statements and get myself a system that is workable to deal with post / bills / reconciling accounts.

I have a couple of items which should sell - possibly for pennies - on ebay in the couple of days so am starting to build up a small sum of money and am amassing half a table's worth of goodies for the table top sale on sunday - that's the £5 stake split between the two of us. I am also booked into a sewing workshop (my downful) and it would be nice to raise the £20 fee through the small sales - the fund is at £12.90 so far so its doable.

In terms of YNAB I have also added the cc debts to the plan - thought about not doing so but need to face up and be honest - if it gets too big a mountain I can always move their position so that I don't always see them.

Thanks for all the help and advice - I'm enjoying that initial challenge / fun phase which I am sure will pall after a while.

Ninno820 · 16 July 2014 at 3:20AM

Okay - so further to yesterday's ramblings - and, btw, who on earth is up at this time of night sorting their budgets out!!! - I have taken another look at YNAB. My budget is now broken down into weekly amounts and I have fessed up about all the debts / cc etc. However, and for those who are au fait with YNAB this would make more sense than to those who aren't - I have changed the location of the pre YNAB debt category. Normally these debts appear first in bright red - presumably so that you can never forget about them - but the mountain was seeming insurmountable. So I have created a second pre YNAB debt category and moved it to the bottom of the budget list. That way I can keep the debt that I am reducing at the top and focus on this whilst servicing the others.

I feel happier now - my mind just wouldn't settle thinking about how to manage this.

Off now to collect some nectar adpoints - sadly don't feel very tired but a hoping to get back to bed for a couple of hours if I can - although a bacon sandwich might just deter me lol

Ninno820 · 16 July 2014 at 6:28PM

Evening - just rushing in to report my first ebay sale - only £3.50 but it all helps. I have also signed up to a review site so am hoping to pick up some points there - points mean prices / cash after all.

My first green redeem voucher arrived today - very impressed with the speed of that one - only claimed it on sunday. Its a £5 off a £25 spend at M & S but I have also claimed a £10 voucher from the mail rewards online and am nearly at another £5 voucher so that should give me a total of £5 for a £25 spend if I manage my totals right.

I've updated my signature to reflect this additional funding plus the £5 argos voucher that I've found in my purse (won it a few weeks ago but forgot that I had it) will have to investigate what I can get for £5 and put it in the Christmas box!

in_need_of_direction · 16 July 2014 at 10:32PM

Well done on the sale.

Ninno820 · 17 July 2014 at 4:20AM

Thank you INOD.

Another early start - so its another chance to do something productive.

I am working my way through the YNAB webinars and am watching how to handle the credit cards - through budgeting and the software. This time of day is also a chance to earn some more nectar points. Its pretty boring stuff but every little helps - right?

Only 7 days until payday - and I can evaluate how my meagre efforts have started to chip away at the first debt - the overdraft.

Ninno820 · 18 July 2014 at 7:30AM

I can't believe how much my attitude and behaviours are changing. I went out last night to the cinema and duly entered the cup of coffee and the lolly into my YNAB budget via the phone. I then popped into Tesco, kept my spending to essentials after checking the grocery budget, entered the spending into YNAB and then wombled a couple of receipts and entered everything into receet to generate some points which can be changed into cash.

AND I slept in until the alarm went off - any connection do you think between a good nights sleep on the hottest night of the year and a clear mind?

I had a couple of cc bills yesterday which have also been recorded into YNAB - along with scheduled interest payments. I think that I have also sorted the concept, in my mind at least of my salary having to straddle months - YNAB only works in distinct months. I have entered the income on a split basis for budgeting purposes.

All in all I may not have generated much extra income but I am creating systems which will help in the tracking. I am hoping that the tracking will result in surplus cash in some of the categories which can then go towards the debt repayment.

Ninno820 · 19 July 2014 at 6:50AM

Morning - another good nights sleep!

Only 4 days until pay day and I can truly start this budgeting lark! I've had a quick win with some overpayments to Barclaycard refunded - but put against my account so it reduces the total. Truthfully I would rather have used it to pay towards my OD but its a debt repayment so I'm not complaining too much.

This weekend is really busy - a sewing workshop today and a village horticultural show tomorrow. There's the cost of the class today (£20) but we bring a packed lunch and its 6 hours of fun and laughter so its money well spent. Tomorrow should be a low spend day and may even earn me some funds - I have a table top sale with spare crafting things that I came across last weekend when I tidied up the craft room - here's hoping!

Seasidegal58 · 19 July 2014 at 5:13PM

Your positivity is wonderful ninno and lovely to hear you are sleeping so well.

I split up my months on YNAB as well as I get paid on the 25th of each month. Seems to work for me. I think you find out by tinkering what works best for your individual circumstances

Your sewing workshop sounds great fun. Wish I could sew -I'm useless. In my first year of secondary school we had alternate weeks of needlework or art. I ended up getting booted out of needlework and just did art for the rest of the year! Am ok with buttons but even my hemming isn't that great!

Six year retirement plan

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