Small Steps Out Of Massive Debt!
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Love a focus group! I've applied for a few but not been successful for one reason or another. Not done one for ages now but they can be good fun. I was hoping to do one yesterday but it fell through.
Oh that's a shame, it is really disappointing when they fall through. I've had a good week for making a bit of extra money but I bet that now I don't get another one for the rest of the year!0 -
I didn't realise that focus groups paid so well - can I ask what is involved?CC1: £4481.14/ £5031.14 (12% paid off, £600) | CC2:£3307/ £3807 (14.4% paid off, £550) | Loan: £10,528.20/ £15,792.30((33% paid off, £5,264))
July debt total: £24,630.44 | New debt total: £18,316.34 | Total debt paid: £6,414.10 (26%)
*My debt busting and savings diary*0 -
Usually its just sitting around talking! I've done some in the past where we have to do a little task before the group (bringing clippings of adverts we like; taking photos of makeup displays in shops; making a collage about a holiday destination) but most of them have just been turning up to take part in a discussion. Sometimes they show you an advert or samples of a new product, sometimes they want a more general chat about ideas for a new product and I did a couple at the beginning of the year that involved testing websites or apps and talking through what was good / bad about them. I'd say the average reward for taking part is about £50 but some pay a lot more (one of my friends took part in research about cars and he got paid £300! :eek: )I didn't realise that focus groups paid so well - can I ask what is involved?0 -
I think transferring the HSBC balance to 10.9% with mbna is a good move providing the fee is not too high. It depends obviously on how much you repay each month but that would halve the monthly interest from the present roughly £42 per month to £21 per month. Obviously this decreases as you repay monthly though so the most you will save is around £250 over the year. How much is the fee?
It is not the end of the world if you can't repay within the promotional period providing the balance is not too high.
Hope sofa repair not too costly.I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on the Debt free Wannabe, Budgeting and Banking and Savings and Investment boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com. All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.0 -
enthusiasticsaver wrote: »I think transferring the HSBC balance to 10.9% with mbna is a good move providing the fee is not too high. It depends obviously on how much you repay each month but that would halve the monthly interest from the present roughly £42 per month to £21 per month. Obviously this decreases as you repay monthly though so the most you will save is around £250 over the year. How much is the fee?
It is not the end of the world if you can't repay within the promotional period providing the balance is not too high.
Hope sofa repair not too costly.
Thank you for replying on this
I had a long chat with someone from MBNA yesterday and got some quotes, if I transfer my current HSBC balance (£2311.45) the fee would be £80.09
I've also had a chat with my mother in law and she said that sofa has been repaired before for around £20 ... however, that was in the early 90s because she said the reason it needed to be repaired was that my husband and brother in law had been jumping on it. I am assuming this was when they were kids and not just before we inherited it
We're going to the sofa place tomorrow so I'll find out then! 0 -
Goodness that has lasted a long time then. G Plan are good though. Fingers crossed you can nurse it through a few more years until the debt gone.
You can work out if it is worth it by going a forecast of interest over next 12 months. How much do you repay (or intend to repay) monthly?I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on the Debt free Wannabe, Budgeting and Banking and Savings and Investment boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com. All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.0 -
enthusiasticsaver wrote: »Goodness that has lasted a long time then. G Plan are good though. Fingers crossed you can nurse it through a few more years until the debt gone.
You can work out if it is worth it by going a forecast of interest over next 12 months. How much do you repay (or intend to repay) monthly?
We inherited quite a few bits of G Plan stuff a few years ago and I've really fallen in love with it. Even though we are the 3rd or 4th owners (it has done the rounds in my husband's family!) it has already outlasted some of the cheaper bits we bought from Ikea etc when we first moved in together.
If I move the HSBC debt over then I'm intending to pay £250 a month minimum off the total, together with the £1800 I'll be receiving at the end of January, so I should actually clear it before the end of the promotional period (even if I have to pay the higher rate on those tranches where promo rates ending in October & November for a couple of months). Hmm ... I think it is worth switching and paying the transfer fee. I think the promotional period will motivate me to pay off the debt sooner as well.
Thank you for your help with this! 0 -
Happy Monday everyone!
In good news, I had a No Spend Weekend, the first in probably my whole life! It feels a bit surreal looking at my bank balance this morning and knowing that is the true balance, I don't have any big transactions to clear or direct debits waiting to balance.
I put off food shopping yesterday because we still had enough bits to get us through the next couple of days and I want to defrost the freezer next week (my exciting life!) so will use up as much as possible before then.
I've transferred the HSBC credit card balance over to MBNA, I can't tell you how lovely it is to see one of my credit cards at a zero balance! I did have to pay a fee (well, the fee was added on to the balance) but on the other hand I made an overpayment on this account towards the end of April so it hasn't felt like a big set back.
In so-so news, sofa situation is still not resolved. The repair shop was closed at the weekend (despite website saying they would be open!) so the broken part is with my in-laws who will take it in today. Haven't heard anything yet so still don't know if repair is possible or if I should be looking for another sofa. To be continued ...0 -
My downfall is at weekends, I can have NSD's all week, then the weekend comes, husband and I are bored, and we go out to stupid places like ASDA, or into town lol... I really want to have NS weekends! well done !! xx0
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My downfall is at weekends, I can have NSD's all week, then the weekend comes, husband and I are bored, and we go out to stupid places like ASDA, or into town lol... I really want to have NS weekends! well done !! xx
That is usually the case for me too, I don't know what happened last weekend I will definitely spend money this weekend because we're away and will need to buy food (although keeping this as cheap as possible by bringing packed lunch for the activity and picking a chain that accepts Taste card). Also on a typical week I do my grocery shop on Sunday so I always have a fairly hefty transaction waiting to clear on Mondays. Maybe I'll aim for one NSWkEnd a month! 0
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