**Update!** from me!! My diary!

**purpleprincess**

Income
Main job - £959 per month
Second job - minimum of £42 per week sometimes more depending on shifts

Outgoings
Rent £238.33 per month
Council Tax £57 per month
Loan no. 1 - £98.25 per month (not sure of APR, ends Nov 07 officially)
Loan no. 2 - £115.85 per month (not sure of APR, ends Dec 08 officially)
Loan no. 3 - £83 per month, interest free and ends Apr 07
TV Licence - £10.99 per month
Internet - £14.99 per month
Laptop HP - £18.57 per month (not sure of APR or when this ends)
BT - £11.26 per month (approx)
Mobile phone - £22 per month
Denplan - £16.07 per month
Pet insurance - £9.52 per month
Credit card - £33 per month (at the moment the minimum payment, this is about to be reduced from next month so more will go off the debt)

Food - £80 per month
Electric - £35 per month
General spending (or I'd go mad!) - £40 per month (tenner a week)

All my spare cash is currently coming off my debts, any other ideas to cut down further or ideas to bring in some extra money to bring my DFD closer?

Thanks in advance.

black-saturn

How many people does £80 per month feed? I think you could cut down your food bill considering I spend £43 every 6 weeks for 3 people.

Whats Denplan?

scottishspendaholic

Hi **pp**,

Well done on posting your SOA - I bet its really scary!

So you earn £1,140.86 (approx) and pay out minimum £883.83 which leaves you £257.03 (sorry if my sums are rubbish!). Do you use all this amount to overpay a loan or credit card? If so, which and if not, where does it go?

Here are a few initial thoughts:-

*I think your food bill is v. good - £20 a week for one person is not that extravagant if you are doing 3 meals a day from it.
*Could you cancel Denplan for the moment? I take it you can't get on an NHS list anywhere? Could you go for some dental work then leave and rejoin when you are in a better finanical situation?
*Could you cut down your mobile phone to a PAYG at £10 a month? I have a freebie SIM (brand new not opened) if you want me to send you one with 300 free texts a month if you top up x £10 a month?
*Could you find out APR and length of time on laptop loan and this is likely extortiante APR - maybe you could move this to a 0% credit card?
*Are you living in a shared flat (hence low council tax, rent and phone bill) - if so, why are you paying the full tv license - should this be halved?
*What about commuting to either job?

Apart from that - I think you are doing really well!

liney

Do you need both the land line and mobile phone? You could get a contract with loads of free mins and still be better off, or better still get PAYG and get rid of the landline

Definately try and get a NHS dentist. £6.00 for a filling at my local practise!!! Best of luck with that one heh.

£20 per week on food covers lunches at work too? If it doesnt then rethink your shopping to provide sandwich stuffs, but cutting back further would likely mean not eating fresh produce, which of course is vital.

Toothsmith

A filling on the NHS now costs £42.50 regardless of size.

A crown costs £189.

Stick with Denplan and your regular dentist.

Ditch the mobile instead?

happiness_fairy

What kind of pet are you insuring? Is it an old animal? I self insure my dogs - ie put the money in a separate account each month now have an emergency fund of £1800 - my biggest ever vets bill was for my old dog (now waiting at the rainbow bridge) for £1000 which included the vet hospital fees.
Do this and the money is there if you need it & more importantly still there if you don't (not in the insurance co profit account!)

liney

I have a reciept here. I paid £12.60p for 2 fillings. I did not have any injection or pain relief though, as my dentist says she thinks it shouldnt be used unless required by the patient. Perhaps that made a difference to the price?

Incidently, shes right. It was great not feeling like i was dribbling for hours after too.

http://http://www.whatprice.co.uk/health/NHS-dentist.html

Toothsmith

liney wrote:

I have a reciept here. I paid £12.60p for 2 fillings. I did not have any injection or pain relief though, as my dentist says she thinks it shouldnt be used unless required by the patient. Perhaps that made a difference to the price?

Incidently, shes right. It was great not feeling like i was dribbling for hours after too.

http://www.whatprice.co.uk/health/NHS-dentist.html

This was probably a treatment started before April 1st?

Since April 1st, the 'new contract has 3 prices. £15.50, £42.50 or £189 depending on the type (Not amount) of treatment.

The website you linked to has an extra" http:// " in it and doesnt work. I have hopefully corrected that in my quote.

This website does explain the new charges if you click on "NHS Dentist" link on the page.

The price comparisons later on on the page are very poorly researched, and highly inaccurate, and irrelavant now anyway, as the new charges are as above. For example it gives 2 "NHS" prices for tooth whitening.

Tooth whitening has NEVER been allowed on the NHS.

Nor have implants


EDIT - Your link now works in my Quote, but that wasn't the page I got to on that site.

If you go HERE you will find an explaination of the new system

**purpleprincess**

Thanks for your replies everyone!!

In response.....

Landline is predominantly just line rental as I need the line for the broadband. I try to just use my mobile in the evenings as I get free minutes as it's a contract. Just if I have to use it during the day I use the landline as it is cheaper than the mobile.

Denplan is an amount that I pay each month to cover all treatment at the dentist. Works out a lot cheaper as I have a scale and polish every 6 months and my check ups every six months and if I need a filling or any other work done Denplan covers it. Can't get an NHS dentist round where I live, trust me I tried!! Spent a whole day ringing every dentist in Eastbourne!!

The insurance is for my dog who is 9 yrs old. I like the idea of putting this into an account and using it when I need it. It'll just take a while to get it up to a decent amount, although he is in fantastic health so probably won't need to claim for anything now. Before anyone says anything my dog doesn't live with me in my studio flat as obviously it is too small!! He lives with my dad.

£20 a week for food is for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and most of the time that is for two people as my boyfriend stays alot. This also includes cleaning things and toiletries. I think it is a bit higher as I have a lot of fresh fruit and veg, I eat 3 bits of fruit a day and make my own veg soup and we eat a lot of salad and veggies for dinner too.

I can't get out of my contract at the moment with my mobile, is a pretty good deal though, £20 a month for 500 texts and 300 minutes.

Good idea about the laptop, only thing is I've been declined for 0% cards recently so not sure if I'll manage that. Might see how much is left and clear that first.

No, I live on my own in a studio flat. CTax is low as I pay it out of my wages each month as I work for the local council, rent is low as I have a fab landlord! So that's the reason I pay full TV licence.

I walk to both my jobs so no commuting fees there.

Good ideas! Thanks!! I think it'll just be a bit of tweaking perhaps?

liney

Thanks for the info Toothsmith. Looks like my work was done at just the right time

sad_and_mad

try my dentist. seaside dental health practise. 01323 723485. we're all with them