Drowning!!

snickersgirl

Thats a great idea thanks - will start one - I managed to get in an extra shift last night at my second job - so that will be a few more pennies in when I get paid at the end of April

Verbatim

Morning snickersgirl,

You're really going it! Amazing rate of knots.

I wondered if you needed life insurance as you've got mortgage protection? If you've got dependants then that's no doubt different.

A previous poster suggested asking for cheques for items sold on ebay but I'd caution against this as cheques can bounce! I don't know if you can delay posting items until a cheque has "cleared" but even that will not guarantee payment as banks say that a cheque never "clears" and the funds can be clawed back at any time if the funds aren't there. I've had this happen to me, (not on ebay), told to wait x days by bank before drawing out the noney, did that only to seemoney disappearing a few days later!

highguyuk

Snickers,

Just a quick msg from me to wish you the best of luck with everything. Yes, you are in debt but you'e realised and your sorting it out and for that you should be proud.

You expenditures are a little excessive, but nothing major. Have you contacted CCCS or Payplan regarding your situation? There is a thread on here with a vote between the two - have a look at the comment on there.

All the best,

snickersgirl

I've just taken the plunge and have contacted CCCS who seemed very nice - my full chat with them is on the 16th March - so keep your fingers crossed for me.
I'm also looking at ways to cut down on my expenditures and have just received a Buildings & Contents quote for £22.54 a month instead of my current £34.97 saving me £12.43 a month. I have also just cancelled my payment protection on one of my cards which is £22.45 a month (saving me £418.56 a year) so far - yippee

**purpleprincess**

Yippee!!! Keep up the good work!!!

sanfrancisco

1. Mortgage £363.33 – CHANGE TO INTEREST ONLY
2. HSBC Pension £25.00 – STOP THIS
3. HSBC Life £14.09 – STOP THIS
4. Mortgage Protection £20.06 – STOP THIS
5. Northumbrian Water £10.87
6. TV Licence £10.99
7. Gas £27.00 – CHANGE SUPPLIER
8. Electric £27.00 – CHANGE SUPPLIER
9. British Gas – Drains £5.50 – STOP THIS
10. Buildings & Contents Insurance £34.97 - REDUCE
11. Telephone & Internet £36.00 – REDUCE BY USING 1899 AND STOP INTERNET
12. Mobile Phone £56.80 – CHANGE TO PAYG (SHOULD GET DOWN TO £5/MONTH)
13. Council Tax £60.00
14. Food, expenses & petrol £335.00
£60.00 - £80.00 petrol – WALK MORE - REDUCE
£10.00 food for my pet gecko - I am trying to sell him and the tank to cut this down – WELL DONE
£15.00 food for pet dog – BUY ECONOMY BRAND – COULD YOU GET RID OF DOG
£125.00 groceries - REDUCE
£105.00 incidentals – STOP THIS

I make this over £300 of savings per month.

All of the stuff that I have said change or stop is all unnecessary. It’s nice, but unnecessary. You need to change your whole outlook and question every single penny.

Could you rent a room out?

If you make all the changes I have said, you could avoid going to the CCCS. It is worth thinking about. In 6 months time you could have got rid of the small debts and be back in control again, without having to sacrifice your credit record. In 9/12 months you could get 0% cards and really start hammering away at it all.

aHullKingstonRover

Hi SnickersGirl

The life policy is interesting; could it be cashed in, I wonder? (Especially if you already have other life assurance, maybe provided by your employer?)

I realise that it is usually inadvisable to cash a life policy in, but if it has only been running a couple of years or so, the surrender / cover value might might be only be neglible; providing that HSBC don't penalise you on administration costs, there might be a few hundred pounds saved in it, which could be used to pay off a store card (?)

If, on the other hand, you've been saving into it for a while, could be well worth sticking it out and waiting for the policy to mature.

Just a thought... perhaps someone with financial knowledge could advise you on that one?

snickersgirl

Hi, I don't think it can be cashed in - I think it only pays out on my death but I will look further into that thanks.
I have suspended my payments to my pension as well so thats saving me £25.00 a month.
This has been a real wake up call (at last) and I am now watching every penny I spend and im always asking myself is it essential - do I really need to eat!!!

aHullKingstonRover

Hi SnickersGirl,

snickersgirl wrote:

I am now watching every penny I spend and im always asking myself is it essential - do I really need to eat!!!

I think this exercise is about not going to extremes! (One extreme is spending way beyond your means and the other extreme might be trying too hard to cut back: easy to say I know, but I think you’ve got to try to find some middle ground here, otherwise you’re soon going to find yourself back at square one again).

I personally don’t think that you can allow the pendulum to swing completely in the opposite direction as otherwise you’re just going to start punishing yourself for getting into debt… maintain a balanced perspective and be comfortable with yourself, otherwise things will just become too difficult for you once again.

I think you’re doing exactly the right things at the moment; firstly, by looking at what expenditure you might be able to cut back on and, secondly, by considering ways of generating vital extra income.

Why not draw up your own budget plan illustrating the areas in which you have made or intend to make future savings that you can present to CCCS when you meet on March 16th ?

CCCS cannot fail to be impressed with someone who has a business-like attitude and has taken the time and trouble to consider ways of becoming debt free on paper. Whilst I appreciate that being in debt has an emotional value as well as a monetary one, if you can present the facts of your case to them clearly and concisely, they’ll undoubtedly be in a much better position to offer you advice… hope it goes well.

sanfrancisco

aHullKingstonRover wrote:

I personally don’t think that you can allow the pendulum to swing completely in the opposite direction as otherwise you’re just going to start punishing yourself for getting into debt… maintain a balanced perspective and be comfortable with yourself, otherwise things will just become too difficult for you once again.

I disagree ... and agree!

I think it can be quite cathartic to go without when you first start on your debt free journey. It is when you have the most motivation. It is also just after you have done all the spending so you have your fill. It is a great time to go to the back of the wardrobe and wear things youve never worn, fix things that you would normally throw out etc etc.

But...after the first few months of keeness you need to allow your self little treats or you will go stir crazy!