lilmissmups moving on and hopefully upwards diary!

lilmissmup

Well I feel its time to start a new diary, the last month has been quite rough for me emotionally and I need to concentrate on being MSE again as it will help me whatever the outcome of the next six months brings.

I have just turned 25 and am throughly sick of renting, been doing it for last 5.5 years with my OH and have worked out that have we spent £33150 on rent over this time which makes me sick actually, thats money I could have saved or paid off my own mortgage so I am now determined to do something about it.

I have been debt free since Sep 08, still have an emergency credit card which gets used for big holidays, car insurances, any emergencies obviously and I did have an overdraft for 2 months which I used when I went to New York and beyond that but its been paid off now and cancelled.

In that time I have only managed to save £1600ish though which I now realise is very pathetic as I paid off £7000ish debt in about 18 months.

I don't know where my money has gone really apart from New York which cost about £2500, so I should still have saved another £2000 by now!

I need, not want, to get myself on the property ladder and so I have to buckle down and this diary is to make me do that.

lilmissmup

Heres a nice list of my current outgoings that have to be paid each month

Rent £550
Council Tax £118
Sky £20.50
Electric & Gas £49.50
Cat Insurance £14.91
BT approx £15
Water £41.65
Broadband £7.34

Total: £816.90 so £408.45 each

I also have to pay my phone bill which is approx £40 a month and my braces which is £100 per month so mine is nearly £650.

I bring home just over £1000 each month, OH about £1120. He smokes which is where most of his spare cash goes :rolleyes: I want him to quit but he doesn't and I can't make him!

Before people ask about where the other monies go, tbh I haven't got a clue at the moment so am planning to keep a spending diary.

If I need to buy presents I try and buy them with vouchers, don't go out for fancy meals, bit of a home girl, prefer to stay in so don't spend lots on leisure.

I need to work out a food budget, bit stuck in my ways with Tesco due to the clubcard scheme but thats not as good as it was anyway, I may have got a half price holiday out of them but that would take years now to do again!

hypno06

Why not set yourself a savings target as a short term challenge? It doesn't need to be a huge amount - say £1000 by a certain date? Or a dooyoo challenge - make £200 by the end of the year (achievable without churning) or something like that?

lilmissmup

So out of this months wages I paid off £533 in debt to clear credit card and overdraft.

I would like to be saving at least £500 a month but I am slightly wary of saving mine and OH's money together now which was the original plan due to the current circumstances so will have to see on that front.

So anyway heres the new diary, I hope I don't bore anyone with rambling, feel free to not read anyway! LOL!

First step today is to at least do some reading on dooyoo if I don't manage to write a review.

lilmissmup

hypno06 wrote: »

Why not set yourself a savings target as a short term challenge? It doesn't need to be a huge amount - say £1000 by a certain date? Or a dooyoo challenge - make £200 by the end of the year (achievable without churning) or something like that?

Thanks hun. Thats a good idea, I must must get back into dooyoo!

Now what date to pick

dreamer40

Hi lilmissmup :wave:
I have kept a spend diary since the begining of the month and I am shock as to where my money goes.
You could also try the NSD Challenge, I have manage 6 NSD's so far this month.
Dx

SarahNeedle1872

Hiya:hello:

Don't post very often, but always keep up with your diary

Sorry that you and OH still haven't sorted out the 'C issue' its a shame when two people don't see eye to eye with such a sensitive issue.

Hypno's idea about a savings target is a good idea, but I think saving yours and OH's money together might not be a good idea just now. Maybe you can get two accs, just to keep 'yours' and 'his' separate for now. OH and I don't save together because of our differing views on money, so I make sure I only save mine (and he spends his!).... thats not a reflection on our relationship (we have a two yr old so don't plan to be apart any time soon) but it makes sense for us.

Anyways, congratulations on the new diary

Sx

ClootiesMum

Hi there,

Good luck on the plan - and the idea of SarahNeedle1872 of having 2 seperate accts seems a good one to me - that way there can be no recriminations if money is withdrawn... once I can get to savings I'll be doing this

CM

yukkibear

Ooh shiny new diary.

Dawn you know how good Dooyoo is for you when you get into it. I want to get my OH a xmas pressie so am using Dooyoo and bport to achieve this. I know how many reviews I need to write at approx £1 each and I can knock 5 reviews off for every £5 bport I gain etc.
Tracked in a spreadsheet might sound a bit anal but I know I can get my oh this pressie without spending money.

You could almost do the same for the cheques from there.

As for other money making I'm a bit stuck at the mo myself, but I'm sure ideas will come.

I do think it's a good idea you save your own money though at the mo rather than joint.

lilmissmup

Thing is OH won't save, he spends it all.....:rolleyes:

If we do end up buying a house together then I know I will end up having to get something written out by a solicitor that I put all the deposit in so I get that back if it was sold out of any profits.

I don't mind this so much but just means its going to take years to save and more rent money down the drain

He needs to clear his credit card and then I want him to set up a weekly standing order of say £40 into a savings account, don't think it will happen though!

mariagti

New diary! Yay!

You sound very determind hun! Go for it!

A spending diary sound a good idea, or collect up all your receipts for the month.:)