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The Three C's - Coffee, Clothes & Credit Cards
I'm back again and I thought I would start a new fresh diary. Life has been hectic for me in the last 6 months with some unexpected expenses that have sadly led to me getting into some more debt. Fortunately it is all on 0% credit cards and I plan to tackle it £1 at a time. Technically I do have enough in savings to cover…
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How thrifty can a thrifty forumite called ThriftyMissus be?
I’m starting a diary…I’m good at stating the obvious. In January 2024 my debt was £19,546 to HMRC after massively messing up amid repeated and intensive trauma, I may feel more comfortable sharing at some point. I also owed £4,000 to Amex. As of today, my total debt is at around £5,600. For the last little over 12 months,…
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Stopping the backsliding… a family of four no longer living beyond their means
Some of you may know me from my last diary, which was on Mortgage Free Wannabe. The truth is, I’ve not paid anything extra off my mortgage for years, I’ve not saved like I meant to, and I currently have £1,000 on my credit card 🤦♀️ 🤦♀️ 🤦♀️ I plan to have this paid off in under 3 months, so I could have stayed on my old…
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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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Flying solo
I previously had a diary (well actually I've a few) but in June I had a big life shift which meant I disappeared for a while! I've had a few attempts at trying to pay off debt, made great progress and then progress stopped and the debt increased again. But this time I seriously mean business and I am determined to get this…
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Fall too Pieces
Hi Guys i am starting a new journal i am in the process of closing my former journal/account down. I will post on my former debt free diary so people know who i am soon. I recently went through a separation so things are not great at the moment. Alot of the guys will know me as the survey guru lol I will post again soon
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The Cutting Down Alcohol challenge for December & 2025 :)
Welcome to the Cutting Down Alcohol challenge for the month of June and for 2025! This challenge is all about helping people cut down or even give up on their alcohol consumption, mainly for health reasons, but it can also save a lot of money, because the cost of buying alcohol really mounts up over time and sometimes you…
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All change for 2025
I thought I'd start a new diary to have a fresh start. After almost 21 years in my job, I've recently been placed at risk of redundancy. I'll find out for sure in the new year. If I manage to successfully challenge the redundancy, things will be very different at that employer next year, and if I do go, there will be a…
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2024... Debt no more🤘
Hi all, here I go to ridding myself of debt for the final time. I don't want to work forever and would like some good savings before I reduce my working hours. I'm not getting any younger and suffer with various ailments so instead of borrowing I need to pay off what I owe and save instead. Previous borrowing was always…
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Moved: New Leaf for 2026 - Dire Debts
This discussion has been moved.
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Reset 2026
So 2026 is going to be my reset year. Started September 2024 with 32000 in debt, cards & loans. By the end of December I will be down to 8995 - gotta add the extra just to get to a figure starting with 8! Hoping to clear the lot by the end of September 2026. I have a tax bill to pay by the end of Jan and the car MOT at the…
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I can do this...step by step
Hi all, I've been lurking on the forums on and off (mostly off) for sometime now and had "that moment" when I have come to realise I'm really over my head and hiding behind yet more loans and further debt won't help. I feel I have got to this stage by each time taking a new loan to consolidate the last while spending more…
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Spendy Wendy to Saver Savvy
After lurking for what seems an age, I have finally created an account and started to interact this forum :) For years I feel that we have been flying by the seat of our pants, not planning in advance, using savings and investments to pay for holidays and other luxuries and just not really having control on our finances.…
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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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Small Business, Big Debts
Hello all Debt free wannabes! :) I posted on these Forums over 10 years ago, and it made such a huge impact on my (successful!) attempt to get debt free, but a LOT has changed in the last 10 years, so I’m back again! The accountability and kindness I received back then was invaluable to me, so I hope to bring some of that…
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The Final Bite of the Cherry- Journey to Clear £66k
I have been here so many times, but I am determined to make this the last. This is not my first diary but the other attempts haven't worked so I've gone for a shiny new one. A bit of background. I have been in and out of debt most of my adult life. I was doing well staying out of debt until this summer when we completed on…
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2020++ - smiling and waving and looking so fine
Hello welcome to my shiny new 5 years (I hope) diary. The title is based on my favourite lyric from the Bowie song 5 years - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bcnO3VQ_fc - I commend you to go and have a listen - its the live Old Grey Whistle Test version and is hauntingly beautiful. Why a 5 year diary - well its is…
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Moved: Missing payments between step change and British Gas
This discussion has been moved.
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A space for my thoughts - tackling debt once and for all!
Good afternoon all, I've spent the last three weeks lurking and very much enjoying reading other people's diaries, seeing their journeys - the ups and the downs - really resonates with me. I like the idea of this being a safe place for me to write down my journey. A few things have led me here - our fixed rate mortgage is…
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Are we nearly there yet?
I've been on these forums for nine years (according to all the messages I got from MSE Badger when I signed back in after a few years break), so it's been nine years that I've struggled with money. DH and I entered our 'living together life' with £2k worth of debt, and I remember thinking we'd never get out of it. It…
