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Debt free diaries

A place for MoneySavers to share their journeys towards debt-free living.

Win Some, Lose Some (Debt Free At Last!)
I started a diary back in 2017 when I was nearly £50,000 in debt, but didn’t keep it up. I have been beavering away at getting the debt down and now I have just £11,955.71 to go. I want this gone by the end of 2022 as I want the freedom of choice to drop down to either part time hours or to go self employed. I have a well…
Getting started getting sorted
Hi, I wanted to pop on here so that I can record my journey for my own personal reflection mainly but also for anybody in a similar situation so that hopefully this can help. A little background, a couple weeks ago now, my debts and excessive spending finally caught up to me and I realised the trouble I was in with around…
Debt is destroying my life - please guide me.
Hi everyone, It’s taken me a incredible amount of courage to post this. Ever since covid made me lose my business I have been spiralling into debt and my mental health is worrying, I cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel for the first time in my life…. Before I go into this, please understand I KNOW the debt is not…
How quick can I clear my debt
Hi all long time lurker first time poster on this forum. Hoping it helps me keep focused and looking forward to any advice that helps me on the way. Currently on a DMP with PayPlan but really want to take the steps now to get it cleared as soon as possible. I was paying 125 a month but have lowered this to just over 20…
Negotiating Settlement Figures and Keeping on The Straight And Narrow!!!
UPDATE! I have paid my Barclaycard and most of Tesco CCs off. This leaves me with about £5000 to manage. I must not f%*£ this up! I have been given a lifeline and I'm gripping on with both hands. *** Hi Fellow DFWs and Other Very Helpful People.... I have been in some sort of debt since before I turned 18. This amounts…
Saving Christmas, literally
Hello, I have been a Forumite for over a decade to varying success but especially over lockdown etc things got out of hand again, husband got hit with a massive tax bill (which I still don't quite understand, but I think he hadn't been saving for tax from the earnings the year before covid and then obviously didn't have…
Back again
I was very active on the forums quite a few years ago. Our debits on credit cards have been at 104k at the highest but now with a lot of hard work they are down to 26k. The trouble is I've just had enough now. I can't find the motivation to keep clearing it. I'm feeling the urge to spend on the house and get new stuff all…
Let the Journey Begin…..
So here we go, first step in the right direction - I’m determined to get my finances sorted once and for all. A little bit about me: I’m a mid 40’s mum of one, living with my OH and son. I’ve been in debt on and off since I decided the student overdraft being offered to my naive 18 year old self was a good idea. It really…
The Best View Comes After the Hardest Climb.
Hello, Welcome to my new diary. I have one big goal to own my own place, preferably a house but more likely a two bedroom flat. With this in mind I have so far saved 12,000 pounds. In case you didn't already know I am pretty old ;) and live with my mum - she used to go abroad a lot but no longer does, initially due to…
The Ultimate Incentive muddles along
Part 12. I have now been limping around these forums for the best part of a decade. I cleared it all, it all came back. It was nearly gone again, and it's grown almost to the max again. Somehow nearing that £16k debt figure always signals a change in the winds, something happens to make our finances go in a better…
Biting the bullet
Like many others have been a lurker here for a while. A great place for support! Want to finally clear what has been hanging over me for some time. I feel like I'm finally beginning on the right track, but need to see it through. A few diaries have made me understand how I got into a mess - mainly living the life I want…
Expensive times
Single mum with young family trying to avoid the dreaded debt. Starting a diary to hold myself accountable for my financial decisions. Hope this is the right place. Am currently out of my overdraft and hoping that posting here will help keep things that way.
Becoming debt free is HARD WORK
And soo boring! I'm hoping a diary will help me to keep motivated. I'm a nurse and my husband is a post and we have two children aged 4 &5- they keep growing and I've just had to buy them new clothes! I'd like to clear my debt by December but I'm not sure if I can do it so I need support to stop buying things! I'll do my…
Pennyapple - lone parent, 1 income, trying to get debt down ahead of price rises to come next year!
Hi Everyone I've been using Moneysavingexpert for years and years but this i the first time I've joined the forum. It's me and my two kids, older one just turned 18, the younger is a teenager. I Mortgage own my home and have a relatively small mortgage (£33K). I have 19.5 years left on the mortgage and the current fixed…
Virgo In Pursuit
This is my first DFW diary on my journey to become debt-free. For those who don’t really follow the zodiac, Virgos are known for being perfectionists and control-freaks, I tend to tick the boxes except when it comes to my finances. A little bit about myself, I am over 30. I think I enjoyed the freedom of my twenties too…
It's not my first rodeo
Hello everyone, Welcome to my diary. I ve titled it "it's not my first rodeo" because, well... it's not. I have been here before. About ten years ago. I managed to pay off that debt and live relatively debt free for a few years with the help of these forums and diaries keeping me focused and on track. However, I started…
Little by little, and with love
The title is both a reminder and pretty much what I've learned from *ahem* years on here! There's been a lot going on recently and I think it's finally time for a fresh start diary-wise as well as with some other parts of my life.
Parking fine Bailiffs and breathing space
Hi all. I'm back on a debt free journey after being ridiculously bad with finances for most of my adult life. my current situation though is worse than any I've found myself in and i wondered if any of you wise lot can help me make sense of what to do. or if there is anything I can do even. I have just applied for…
job offer
I have been trying to get a job with a certain company for over two years....Its hard to get into this company. In the mean time, my uncle had a friend who is a supervisor of another good company and it is my second choice. Well, I got an offer at the job my uncle's friend works at.....The job description says temporary,…
Statement of Affairs - help me not let 2k grow back to 15k debt!
Hello I'm 40, single. Net income after tax, minimum pension etc is £2200/month My mortgage is £50k on a 200k place. 6 years to run. Fixed for the next year at 1%. I own an old-ish car outright. 8 years ago I was in 15k credit card debt following living in an expensive area then a rship breakdown and job loss. Plus general…

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MSE News

Winter Fuel Payments to be reinstated for millions – Martin Lewis explains how it'll work, what it means and if it's an improvement
All State Pensioners in England and Wales will receive a Winter Fuel Payment this winter, though those who earn over £35,000 will see it clawed back through the tax system. It means nine million pensioners will get the £200 or £300 top-up. Here MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis shares his instant response and analysis, and we include answers to your key questions.
Winter Fuel Payments to be reinstated for millions – Martin Lewis explains how it'll work, what it means and if it's an improvement
All State Pensioners in England and Wales will receive a Winter Fuel Payments this winter, though those who earn over £35,000 will see it clawed back through the tax system. It means nine million pensioners will get the £200 or £300 top-up. Here MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis shares his instant response and analysis, and we include answers to your key questions.
Which NatWest and RBS branches are closing from 2025? Here's the full list – and banking alternatives
NatWest and Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), which are both part of the NatWest Group, will shut at least 108 of their bank branches in 2025 and beyond, after the Group announced a further 52 NatWest closures.
Winter Fuel Payments to be reinstated for millions – Martin Lewis explains how it'll work, what it means and if it's an improvement
Winter Fuel Payments will be reinstated to all pensioners in England and Wales this winter – but will be clawed back automatically from those earning over £35,000 a year, the Government has confirmed. It means nine million pensioners will get the £200 or £300 top-up. MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis shares his instant response and analysis.
Car finance mis-selling update: regulator prepares for compensation scheme – and warns against using claims firms
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Winter Fuel Payments to be extended to pensioners earning £35,000 or less – here's what we know so far
Winter Fuel Payments will be extended to all pensioners with incomes of £35,000 or less this winter, the Government has confirmed. It means nine million pensioners will get the £200 or £300 top-up.
Winter Fuel Payments extension confirmed for this winter – watch Martin Lewis' instant response and his message to the Chancellor
Winter Fuel Payments will be extended to more pensioners this winter – though not to everyone – the Chancellor has today confirmed. However, exact details of who will now qualify still remain scant. Watch MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis give his instant response, as well as his key message for Rachel Reeves.
Nationwide Fairer Share: Free £100 bonus confirmed for 2025 – here's who will get it
If you bank with Nationwide, you could get a free £100 paid into your account in June or July as part of the building society's 'Fairer Share' scheme. The bonus will be paid to millions of its current account customers who also have savings or a mortgage with it.
Forced onto a prepay energy meter? You may be due money back as 10,000s to be compensated
If you had an energy prepayment meter forcibly installed or your smart meter was remotely switched to prepay mode without your permission, you could be entitled to compensation of up to £1,000 and may even be eligible to have your energy debts written off.

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Debt free diaries

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