Help me :( Im young haha

21yrold

Hi,

Im new and young (21), i learned to drive at 17 and passed and got a car ..... 6months down the line i wanted a new one i got a 4k loan with my mom as back up on the loan, all was fine.

Then i wrote my car off but was fully comp etc ....

Bascially i have debt stemming from cars ......

Now im 7k in debt and dont want to get any deeper!

i got a 6k loan in nov to cover my old loan and go to newyork with my mom as no1 could afford to go with her and it was here dream before she was 50 and pay for my lpg conversion!

So i have a 6k with halifax at £213 a month and a 1k overdraft, which i can not get out of for the hell of me!

I bring in about 1100 a month and my outgoings are....

£150 mom - rent
£215 loan - loan
phone contract - £50
Car insurance - £75 (down from 100 two months ago)
RAC - £11 for me and mom

= £501

Now in theory that is fine, to live on for the month

I need gas for car, £80 a month and things like car repairs and tax keep coming up every month!

I get left with about 200 a month to socialise and so on, my best mate does not drive and has no commitments and has like 1k free a month to do what he likes but i have to drive him everywhere,

He does buy me food at the pub and stuff when we are out to compensate for driving him around but i would prefer the month, but im to proud/stupid to ask for the money instead?

Am i being stupid or should i be able to live off that?

I've allways been poor with money but its got to the point where i have borrowed £100 off (1monthloan people) this month!

How can i cut down and try and get out of debts?

I read yours stories and makes me think .. why can i not get out of it if everyone else can!


Thanks, Neil


Ps. sorry about the grammer

wendz86

Hi,

That is quite a good amount to have a month really. You could try doing an SOA and then people can let you know where you need to cut down.

If you don't know where your money is going try a spending diary and write down everthing you buy, you will soon see where money wastage is going.

LittleCharlie

Sell your car... buy a cheaper and more reliable one to pay back the loan. It's not nice having a "boring" car, but it's not the end of the world. I have an escort convertiable, I've been driving three years less than you, and my insurance is only £50 a month fully comp with bonus accelerator.

Then tell your mate to either start giving you some petrol money, or you can both take the bus for a change.

Write down everything you spend for a few weeks, you'll soon start figuring out what you spend money on. Take packed lunches instead of eating in pubs. Have a few drinks less every time you go out, or just don't go out a couple of times each month. My food bill per month is grim for "eating out", well over £100 a month. I should really avoid all those trips to nice restaurants with my friend.

I've been in the same situation as you for a long time (mine was a laptop though, not a car!) and it's hard.

ejt87

Could you possibly cut your phone contract down? £50 a month seems quite high, i'm 21 too and in about 5ks of debt but I'm a student too which makes life harder.

Can you overpay on your loan each month?

Caroline73_2

Firstly well done on realising the situation at such a young age.

Basically you have £200 spare. STOP BEING NICE!!!!! Say to your mates - I can't come out, I have no money. What's spent has gone so you can't get it back. You did a great thing taking your mum to New York so realise how nice you have been.

Cut down your phone bill. £50 is loads! Even if you are in contract you can negotiate something. I have £25 a month with Vodafone, I get 600 minutes, unlimited texts and internet access. I reset the timer each month so I can see how long I have been on the phone that month.

Most people can keep a family on £1100 and still pay off debt so there is no reason why you can't. You are paying of your debt now and just want it done quicker so I'm sure you can manage that.

Sell anything you don't want, look on the Up your Income thread. I have an aversion to working with people, I'm not a fan of people, so try to earn money without having a boss. I've done ok this year so far! Every little bit helps.

21yrold

Quick replies haha

I work on the motorway and its 50miles from home, so getting rid of my car just wont help lol Its not as bad as i made it to be, insurance it 900 now, its just cuz im 21 its only a 1.6 mk4 golf.

Just things like tax MOT service and so on are allways there!

I have packed lunches for work (motorways services are £50 for a sandwhich haha) and i have started going out and drinking water ... but driving to save on taxi's

Im doing things to help cut the costs but nothing seems to help


EDIT:

It finishes in 2months so im hoping to go on payg as they have become more competitive! Thats what was annoying me, seeing people feed familes and im there broke with just me to pay for!

I have all my DD's coming out on the 1st so i can get them out the way and i have upped mom's rent to 150 from 100, as i was just wasting money and felt guilty!

Is it just will power more than anything? just wanted advice and to get it off my chest so to speak!

4littleone

It is about will power but also being able to budget properly. It took me until i was 30 to learn that !!:rotfl:

There is a fantastic budget planner on here that you can download.
Best advice i can give you is to download it and spend an (long!) evening going through your incomings and outgoings so that you know exactly what you can and can't spend each month.

Also grow a bit of backbone and say no to going out so much. You don't have to go out each weekend, if you look as well there are plenty of free events that go on locally. Or you could do some volunteer work to stop you going out and spending?

You're not in a dire situation by the sounds of it, you have a good income at 21 and your debt is not massive (although it may feel like it).

:beer:

LittleCharlie

21yrold wrote: »

Quick replies haha

I work on the motorway and its 50miles from home, so getting rid of my car just wont help lol Its not as bad as i made it to be, insurance it 900 now, its just cuz im 21 its only a 1.6 mk4 golf.

Wow jeez! No wonder your insurance is so much, same engine as mine!

Sell it to pay back your loan... buy a fifteen year old 1.1 fiesta! Cheaper servicing, cheaper petrol, cheaper insurance, and cheaper fuel because your mates won't want to go cruising with you!

It's a car, it gets you from A to B. If mine wasn't given to me by my dad, I've have something that cost me less to maintain!

And you're only two years younger than me - youth is not an excuse!

21yrold

6months ago i had lpg fitted to it, £1500 so if i got rid of it now i would lose about £750 so far, its reliable in everyway apart from wear and tear and MOT's and servicing, i dont go crusing anyway, pick a mate up play computer and drop him home, im not a chav :P


:A

My insurance has been ....

1500
2100
1300
900

This is the price i have paid for being legal! if i could get rid of my car i would but i feel a older car would cost me alot alot more in the long run.

Horace

If you are chauffeuring your mates around - get them to contribute towards the petrol.

It makes more sense to drive a smaller engined car as it will be more economical in the long run. When you drive along the motorway instead of putting your foot down, drive at 55-60mph and drive properly using the middle and outside lanes for overtaking - this will also help you with your petrol consumption.

Gemmzie

Heck guys really do get a rough deal but then 1.6 is a fairly big engine. I'm 21 and have a 1.4 RT Clio insured fully comp for £305.
Do you shop around for your insurance online?