My new SOA - need motivation

Ames

If you insist, although as I said most of it doesn't apply, and I put everything down in my fist post.

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 1
Number of children in household.........
Number of cars owned.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 0
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 920
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 920

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 0
Electricity............................. 41
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 28
Telephone (land line)................... 15
Mobile phone............................ 10
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 35
Internet Services....................... 10
Groceries etc. ......................... 120
Clothing................................ 0
Petrol/diesel........................... 80
Road tax................................ 0
Car Insurance........................... 0
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 12
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 10
Haircuts................................ 3
Entertainment........................... 65
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Cleaner................................. 50
Sister's food........................... 120
Total monthly expenses.................. 611


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 0
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 0

No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
overdraft......................1400......1.........0
cc1............................900.......1.........0
cc2............................700.......1.........0
Total unsecured debts..........3000......3.........-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 920
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 611
Available for debt repayments........... 309
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 3
Amount left after debt repayments....... 306

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 0
Total HP & Secured debt................. -0
Total Unsecured debt.................... -3,000
Net Assets.............................. -3,000

Created using the SOA calculator at https://www.makesenseofcards.com.
Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission, using Firefox browser.

spiderdijon

Hi Ames,

It sounds like you're doing really well! I like the idea of keeping a seperate purse, I might try that myself! I spend far too much money on food at work (greasy spoon cafe 15 seconds from my office...uh oh!) so I could set myself a "work food budget" and only take that purse to work...thanks for the inspiration!
I like the idea of buying a bit of food at a time for Leeds, too.
You'll be debt free before you know it! Keep up the good work

Ames

Thank you!

I've decided which of my 4 bank accounts are going to be for which pot of savings, and I'm going to open an ISA for the big savings, like the masters and redecorating. I thought about a normal savings account, but I want to be able to access the money if there's an emergency.

athensgeorgia

I'm having difficulty trying to word this in the best possible way but doesn't the government give you a set amount of money that it believes you need to live off. Surely the money you receive is meant to cover other expenses that a disabed person has, just because you live frugally doesn't mean you should be covering anybody elses living expenses even if it is just food. Can you not explain to your sister that your having to really budget as it and could really do with not buying her food at all. Seeing as though shes been living with no income when she does start receiving her jobseekers she'll be £50 a week better off and can now afford her own food. I know you say she has her own DD's but how important could these possibly be seeing as though shes on JSA. I hope this hasn't come across in a bad way it certainly wasn't intended to but i hope you can see what i was getting at.

ChocChip26

Hi Ames

I am a newbie to MSE but just wanted to say your SOA looks pretty good to me...apart from the sister thing! I have CF so I sympathise with you not feeling able to cook from scratch on bad days etc. Its a hard act to balance this sometimes with moneysaving I know!

I do agree with what 'athensgeorgia' said, that money is given to you, to help make your life that bit easier, whether that means having some money spare in the budget to afford ready prepared food for your bad days, or getting a cleaner in (which I think is a great idea), its certainly not to subsidise your sister and am pretty shocked that she & your parents expect you to pay for her food, irrespective of whether your mum/dad know the extent of your M.E! How old is she?

I hope this doesnt offend, as I know you've already taken on board the comments about your sister and taken steps to reducing her food budget, but I hope that once she recieves her JSA she will be taking responsibility for all of her own food!

Please take care of yourself

ChocChip xxx

moo2moo

I know you said you have ME and you can't cook but if you have a bit of a rethink you'll find you can, just not in the traditional sense of the term. If like most ME sufferers you have a good part to your day its generally mid morning once you've got going but before you've overdone it for the day. Thats the ideal time to lob dinner in the slow cooker. You can be as lazy as you like with the ingredients too. Pack of diced meat (you don't need to brown it first just chuck it in raw), lob in some frozen veg, a jar of sauce (anything from 16p upwards) or beer, stir and turn it on for 6-8 hours. Stick some bread or instant noodles or a microwaved jacket spud with it and you've got a pretty cheap yet well balanced meal. A slow cooker full will do 4-6 meals depending on your appetite at roughly £3.50 per batch. Eat one, stick one in the fridge and freeze the rest. On a good day cook the next lot and on a bad day grab one out of the fridge or freezer.

Horace

moo2moo wrote: »

Pack of diced meat (you don't need to brown it first just chuck it in raw),

I am glad its not just me that does that - I never brown my meat first because I am just too lazy:rotfl:

Well done Ames on the cutting back - with the power of MSE we will get your sister to sort out her own food and leave you to spend your DLA on you. Having separate purses is a good idea, I hadnt thought of that but I do have various empty coffee jars that I use to keep loose change in.

If your health advisor has said that your diet is fine then stick two fingers up at your sister - eating scallops for breakfast dinner and tea is not a healthy diet. I had to laugh when you said she wants to be a roadie yet claims to have bad knees - being a roadie is physical and hard work with lots of bending and stretching and lugging amps etc about, it doesnt pay that well either:rolleyes: Concentrate on you rather than her and make sure that you keep your purses and jars hidden from her.

Ames

Thanks athensgeorgia, you're spot on.

Chocchip she's 24. I'm going to speak to dad on monday (next chance I've got) and explain to him how the situation is.

moo2moo, thanks for that. I've got a mini one person cooker, and I've been on OS for ideas of how to cook more interesting things. They've given me lots of easy ideas, which I'll introduce gradually.

Horace, I don't need to keep my purses and jars hidden from her, she wont come round cos the place is so messy, when I get it sorted out I'll rethink what to do with everything.

I've had another message from her, the diet I suggested is totally inappropriate for her. She needs to eat more carbs once a fortnight when she walks into town to sign on and doesn't like cereal so needs more expensive things for breakfast. She has to have meat with sauce, which is expensive because she uses expensive brand sauces. She can't snack on fruit cos she doesn't like it so has to have more veg. And my pricing for meat was wrong - she gets sausages at £4.50 for two packs, seasoned chicken legs at £5 for two packs, and belly pork at a couple of pounds for two. And having an amount for food per week doesn't work because she needs to spend more one week than the next.

If I knew how to make smileys work I'd do the banging head against a brick wall one.

I think I'm going to have to stop subtlety and spell it out to her - she eats too expensively. After I've spoken to dad if she carries on I'll explain she's taking the p!ss, she eats more expensive brands than I do!

Floxxie

Hi Ames,

As much as you love your sister you have to stop paying for her life. She will continue taking the mick out of you. I know I have been there (and I'm one of five :rotfl:). It's emotional blackmail, whether it is coming from your sister or your parents. You are too old to be drawn into it and have your own issues to deal with. They should be helping you, not the other way around. You need to put your foot down and say no. If your father wants to support your sister, then let him but she needs to grow up and take responsibility.

I am feeling very cross for you but then I have escaped from the scroungers and only realise now that they were happy to take but not to give.

I wouldn't even get into a discussion about how expensive her eating habits are; the issue is that she cannot be arsed to get a job and pay her own way. At 24 she is getting a little old to be living like this.

Sorry to go on but your family's attitude to you brings back memories.

Hope you find the strength to deal with it.

Ames

Thanks Floxxie. You're right, I know you are, I'm just too soft. I'm going to try and keep talking to her and trying to get through to her.