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Living Large, on a Small Income, by the Sea.
I am living by the sea in a beautiful house. (I can’t believe that sentence is about me) I have spent two years living in other people’s homes. I ended up on a sofa for several months. The joy of my own home, my own key, my own bed…it is indescribable. I had to go to the top of my budget to buy the house, but it is exactly…
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Plodding Along
I've been on here for a good few months now so it's about time I start my own diary. I have been in debt since I was 18 when I got my first credit card and I'm 41 and a half now. The debt has fluctuated over the years with the highest being around the £20k mark, but my head was firmly buried in the sand then. I started to…
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Onwards and the debt goes downwards!
Hi All Old diary is here https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/1000559 I can't do the posh linky things. Things are all changing in the Lucielle household. DS1 arrived back from New Zealand and has moved out to start his new job. Spent most of last week building flat pack furniture from the well known store. DD1…
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Seasidegal's Scrimpy Retirement Diary!
Hi there!😀 Having finally retired from work last Friday as my State Pension kicked in, I have decided to start a new diary as I begin the next stage in my life. I began my first diary on these boards in 2014 when I was 58 and in £31,000's worth of debt!😱 I realised time was fast approaching to retirement and that I needed…
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YNAB robber needs help to execute the plan
Right, I am going to finally start a diary on here. I am being supported financially by my OH to allow me to help my sister care for my 90 year old father. I have an expensive event in Feb that I need to save for. I have been using YNAB since Feb so I have an accurate record of my spending for 6 months. It's not pretty. I…
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Should itsthelittlethings spend less on coffee?
Hopefully this works as an all new diary for me. Will add my debt into my signature and keep track of how I do going along.
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Keeping afloat till I can get round to the debts!
So here goes with a brand new diary. With the financial situation across the country as it is I'm going paycheck to paycheck and debts seem to be going up not down. It's time to take stock. Focus on the money actually lasting the month and forming a new plan. I've never been one for following the American debt fella but I…
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I'm back, still struggling along, still frugal
H everyone, It's been ages I know and the forum has changed, but my posts were getting really boring as nothing really changed very much and to be honest I was getting bored writing the same old things. Anyway I thought I'd start another thread as its coming up to winter and like most basic OAP's I'm expecting this winter…
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A whole new world, for now
So, here’s the new thread I’ve been promising myself for a few months. My old one, that served me so well, is https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4855808 A potted history of me. I’m 49, live in NI with OH, DD and dog and DS is London based. Have been in debt for a lot of my life and came here post personal debt…
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Milann’s mutterings through retirement
I thought it was about time for a new diary. Ive been a member of MSE many years now and got my debt down from £20,000’s to a big fat ZERO. I kept the debts to myself as I was the one who built them up. Dh would have been ok and we’d have worked through them together…..but it was my mess that I wanted to clear myself and…
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Sashybo - Back Again
Hi all, has been a good long while this time since I've had a diary, think this is number 4 overall. My last diary can be found HERE. Current debt now under 10K. :j This is mostly made up of loans we had to take out to cover the negative equity of the flat we sold a couple of years ago. I must admit we have slipped…
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Reining it in for retirement and sanity
Hi all No idea why I got booted out last time - don't think anything in my thread was inappropriate - but then lost my email password and couldn't get back in so back again(!). Background - Female, mid 40's with 2 young DC (6&4). One has additional needs. Live with them and DH. Work full time as does DH. Previously lots…
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The Mental Debt Struggle...
I've known that this diary needed to be started... But I've run away from the idea as the accountability made me nervous and I didn't think anyone would want to read it. But then I realised it would be financially and mentally therapeutic for me, and that's the whole point after all. I've read other diaries and gained so…
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The hurrier I go; the behinder I get…
Alice in Wonderland is full of the best quotes, isn’t it? We’re all mad here. I knew who I was this morning, but I’ve changed a few times since then. Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast! If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there. However, the title of my…
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Giving every £ a job
I've decided to be brave and continue my journey from lurking on these boards, through posting on these boards and I now feel ready to start my own diary. I don't actually have any debt anymore but I am very bad at saving so I've decided to set myself savings goals and treat them as debts to my future self. I was…
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2026: The Final Year
Hello debt free wannabeeees! It's been a while since I have been on this board. We paid off our debts a few years ago. I then started a Mortgage-free diary of which I have since paused, as we then decided life was a bit too short and wanted to do some other things first. Well, we now both want to get going towards…
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The Frugal Hearth: Stories of Simple Living and Living Well
Hello, and welcome, one and all to my new debt free diary! My Journey I started my old diary at the beginning of 2020, a couple of months before the pandemic hit the UK and we went into lockdown. That diary can be found here…
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2026 - The year I sort my finances and declutter my life!
So, I am feeling a bit fed up at the moment - no real reason in particular, but somehow over the last year I have amounted a total of £8032.20 in debt. Various things have happened to contribute to this, but I think 2026 is my year to wipe this out. And I only live in a small house which feels a bit overwhelmed with stuff…
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Redemption - The journey of a recovering gambling addict.
Ok. Here goes. This is my journal on my journey to redemption. First post is to outline my current situation. Salary- £75k + Married Two Children Personal Debts Bank Loan 1 CAR - £20433 - £352 4.3% Debt Consolidation Loan £10,344 £153 5.2% MBMA - £4300 - 0% 14 months NatWest £3000 - 0% 12 months I have told my wife…
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Starting the journey...the road is currently bumpy.
My debt has always been there, nothing major - the odd holiday on 0% which is dutifully paid off then rinse and repeat. Then things changed, 5 years ago I lost my mum to Cancer - she loved life and was taken too young. From this my attitude changed, holidays booked, things bought, paying for friends - I wanted to live in…
