SOA...really need some motivation here!

littlepinkstars44

How much should i budget for a week then?

postingalwaysposting

Hi littlepinkstars, I have only found you/your diary todays so I have decided to post. Now I am sorry if this upsets/offends you but I too am 'young' and my living conditions mirrors you. I got out of debt twice with this site (minor/unneeded debt just like yours) and I did this while I was a full time student too. I cant say I am an angel now I have some debt but its managed and its all but 0%

If I can do it anyone can.... So.... I know others have posted this too but here goes.

* You need a spending diary, you can get one online for free. You need to write down everything you spend. Everything form debt repayments to 1p penny sweets. Once you start doing this you will start really thing *do I need this* when buying something in a shop.

* Entertainment is so much of your monthly spends even for a student. You need to limit this. Just go out twice a month, or maybe have your best friend over for a movie night (or go to hers) If you can limit this to £50 a month the excess could start clearing your debts.

* You need to get a budget together. I use word as I havent got excell. I simply list all the bills/prority debts that need paying and on payday/when they are paid they are deleated off. I have one as a master and then use one monthly and change accordingly.

* You need to set up direct debits. I know in your diary you said you dont like them but if you are being charged for not making the min payment because you forget you are just getting deeper and deeper into debt.

* On your diary you mention about buying food/getting stuck short for food. However you state your house keeping includes food. This is false economy, everytime you spend £2.30 down the chip shop that could be going towards your debt. If need be speak to your Mum and explain you need stuff for sandwiches/packed lunch, she should understand.

* You need to pay the minamum on each debt and then start overpaying the one with the highest interset. So this mean if you have (example) £30 and the min on 3 debts are £5 then pay them and the extra £15 you have throw at you highest apr debt ~ in your case Additions untill thats clear, then move onto the next, while still pay min on the remainder.

* You need to pay your debts before paying yourself. Therfore you survive on the bare min weekly and pay the remainder off your debts. When I was at college once my bus fares and bills (exactly the same as your minus the entertainment) I took £5 weekly to live on. This ment I had to budget for things, if I needed new shoes I saved for 4 weeks to buy them. This then freed up over £300 to throw at my debts. You wont be surviving on such a little amount for long as you will be debt free faster.

* You state on your diary you have nothing to sell yet to me it looks like you spend a hell of a lot on clothes and mac. Can you not sell what is second hand/new on ebay. Ok its not nice selling things that you brought/want, I know I sold my laptop a gift for completing some of my college course to get debt free. However what would you rather have a better quality of life (ie going on holiday/to gigs) or sitting in your room surrounded by 'stuff'. If you have purchased things from topshop they sell for a high price on ebay even secong hand.

* Travel, have you thought about walking if you cant get a monthly pass cheaper. I understand if you finish work late being female and all its not that safe. But if its daytime (you have been finishing college/uni at 3pm in the afternoon) can you not walk home? Free excercise too.

Other than those tips and untill you have a full LBM there isnt much we can do. We can't magically make the creditors go away and neither can we increase your income but we can help any way we can. I know you have a diary why not make it a daily task to post on it? I am telling you know when you immerse yourself in the MSE life by visiting everyday there is no way you will fall off track and you would want to get debt free asap...

Plus if you use more of the site (freebies board/comp board) you can actually pick up free stuff that you could use instead of putting your hand in you pocket.

I do hope this helps and doesnt offend but as I said before I was (and because of the credit crunch) and now back on a p/t wage and I earn far less than you a month. Yes I still live at home but I think my quality of life is just the same and Joe Bloggs down the road... and that includes paying off 0% debt and savings....

Remember anything is possible with the help of a few friends

pebbles88

postingalwaysposting wrote: »

Hi littlepinkstars, I have only found you/your diary todays so I have decided to post. Now I am sorry if this upsets/offends you but I too am 'young' and my living conditions mirrors you. I got out of debt twice with this site (minor/unneeded debt just like yours) and I did this while I was a full time student too. I cant say I am an angel now I have some debt but its managed and its all but 0%

If I can do it anyone can.... So.... I know others have posted this too but here goes.

* You need a spending diary, you can get one online for free. You need to write down everything you spend. Everything form debt repayments to 1p penny sweets. Once you start doing this you will start really thing *do I need this* when buying something in a shop.

* Entertainment is so much of your monthly spends even for a student. You need to limit this. Just go out twice a month, or maybe have your best friend over for a movie night (or go to hers) If you can limit this to £50 a month the excess could start clearing your debts.

* You need to get a budget together. I use word as I havent got excell. I simply list all the bills/prority debts that need paying and on payday/when they are paid they are deleated off. I have one as a master and then use one monthly and change accordingly.

* You need to set up direct debits. I know in your diary you said you dont like them but if you are being charged for not making the min payment because you forget you are just getting deeper and deeper into debt.

* On your diary you mention about buying food/getting stuck short for food. However you state your house keeping includes food. This is false economy, everytime you spend £2.30 down the chip shop that could be going towards your debt. If need be speak to your Mum and explain you need stuff for sandwiches/packed lunch, she should understand.

* You need to pay the minamum on each debt and then start overpaying the one with the highest interset. So this mean if you have (example) £30 and the min on 3 debts are £5 then pay them and the extra £15 you have throw at you highest apr debt ~ in your case Additions untill thats clear, then move onto the next, while still pay min on the remainder.

* You need to pay your debts before paying yourself. Therfore you survive on the bare min weekly and pay the remainder off your debts. When I was at college once my bus fares and bills (exactly the same as your minus the entertainment) I took £5 weekly to live on. This ment I had to budget for things, if I needed new shoes I saved for 4 weeks to buy them. This then freed up over £300 to throw at my debts. You wont be surviving on such a little amount for long as you will be debt free faster.

* You state on your diary you have nothing to sell yet to me it looks like you spend a hell of a lot on clothes and mac. Can you not sell what is second hand/new on ebay. Ok its not nice selling things that you brought/want, I know I sold my laptop a gift for completing some of my college course to get debt free. However what would you rather have a better quality of life (ie going on holiday/to gigs) or sitting in your room surrounded by 'stuff'. If you have purchased things from topshop they sell for a high price on ebay even secong hand.

* Travel, have you thought about walking if you cant get a monthly pass cheaper. I understand if you finish work late being female and all its not that safe. But if its daytime (you have been finishing college/uni at 3pm in the afternoon) can you not walk home? Free excercise too.

Other than those tips and untill you have a full LBM there isnt much we can do. We can't magically make the creditors go away and neither can we increase your income but we can help any way we can. I know you have a diary why not make it a daily task to post on it? I am telling you know when you immerse yourself in the MSE life by visiting everyday there is no way you will fall off track and you would want to get debt free asap...

Plus if you use more of the site (freebies board/comp board) you can actually pick up free stuff that you could use instead of putting your hand in you pocket.

I do hope this helps and doesnt offend but as I said before I was (and because of the credit crunch) and now back on a p/t wage and I earn far less than you a month. Yes I still live at home but I think my quality of life is just the same and Joe Bloggs down the road... and that includes paying off 0% debt and savings....

Remember anything is possible with the help of a few friends

excellent post there, lots of good advice, :T

littlepinkstars44

Thanks so much for the advice, i really appreciate it

As of tomorrow, i am going to start a spending diary, i'm going to work out the bare minimum i need for a weekly budget tonight.

Unfortunatly walking to and from uni isn't an option, it takes just over an hour on the bus, and if i walked it might take me about 3 hours. I used to walk to work over summer, as i didnt get a weekly bus pass, its about 30min walk from my house. But now with it being cold at night, and dark and working till 9:30/10:30pm. My bus pass comes in handy

I really have no idea how to make a budget thing on my computer. I've never done computing at school or college, and honestly have no idea about how to make spreadsheets or anything. So im just going to write it down on paper.

postingalwaysposting

littlepinkstars44 wrote: »

Thanks so much for the advice, i really appreciate it

As of tomorrow, i am going to start a spending diary, i'm going to work out the bare minimum i need for a weekly budget tonight.

Unfortunatly walking to and from uni isn't an option, it takes just over an hour on the bus, and if i walked it might take me about 3 hours. I used to walk to work over summer, as i didnt get a weekly bus pass, its about 30min walk from my house. But now with it being cold at night, and dark and working till 9:30/10:30pm. My bus pass comes in handy

I really have no idea how to make a budget thing on my computer. I've never done computing at school or college, and honestly have no idea about how to make spreadsheets or anything. So im just going to write it down on paper.

Hi again littlepinkstars,

Your spending diary doenst have to be that online one you can just use a book or something as long as they are recorded. Or why not post them on your diary each day. Once you go back over the month you can see how much you didnt really need and then improve on them the next month.

I totally understand regarding the walking, I didnt know it was that long. But try and get it as cheap as possible

You dont have to do the budget on your pc why not do it on your diary. Each time you pay something just copy it from the page/post above and change it as needed. Its just somewhere to keep track really.

So yours could be ~
£646 ~ Income

£150 ~ Rent
£18.50 ~ Mobile
£50.00 ~ Bus Card
£10.00 ~ Dorothy Perkins
£10.00 ~ Additions
£10.00 ~ New Look
£10.00 ~ Top Shop
£20.00 ~ Kays
£10.00 ~ BOS

Left = £377.50

4* £30.00 ~ Weekly spends (for everything entertainment/coffee/excess food/makeup/clothes/tolietries)

Left = £237.50 for overpayments

I am guessing the amounts you have stated is the min payments. If this isnt correct you need to pay the min on everything before you overpay. Now I know you may have gone into default on one of you overdrafts. You need to sort this. Then you need to factor in some type of repayment plan for these. I am guessing your RBS account is the one you use now so that gets you wage paid into it. You can repay that one of two ways, you can either pretend it has a min payment of £10/£20 a month and put it on your budget, then once you are payed tick that off as payed straight away and take it of you running total. Or you can get a savings pot (but you must be strict with this!) and save £100 pay it in and then reduce your limit by £100 the same day.

The only other alternative is to find a new bank however you may have it in your t&c that you will pay £x into the account each month. If you stop doing this you may default on it so that isnt a good option at all. Unless other MSE users can tell you different?

Good luck and please keep posting, even if its late at night telling use you have had a NSD its all good :j

Edit ~ Oh and remember christmas is just around the corner so you need to deal with that asap. So write a list of people you must buy for and try and get everyone something as cheap as possible. Think ebay/amazon (free delivery)/play (free delivery)/car boots etc. You could do that using the £30 a week money but maybe you could say a limit of £100 for all your xmas gifts/wrapping/cards this year and then use £50 in Octobers pay and £50 of Novembers pay? That way you still have money to overpay as well as getting xmas gifts. If need be you will have to stress to family/friends that you just cant afford it. I have this year and they are fine with it and we have all reduced the amount we are spending on everyone together....

Caroline73_2

I do my spending diary on paper. I bought a cash book from Wilkinsons for less than £1.

I tried a spreadsheet but found I forgot things as I didn't want to switch the computer on just to enter what I'd bought.

gfplux

NEVER carry your credit cards with you. Leave them at home. If you miss buying something as the card is not available maybe the next day you won't want to buy it or the “need” will turn into just a “want”




Good Luck

littlepinkstars44

Thanks for all the good advice everyone!

Yes the RBS account is my current student account, and i still have 2 years of it being a student account, then it will turn into a graduate account. So really i have 3 years till i need to start paying it back, so at the moment i would rather concentrate on paying everything else off first. Then once they are all paid i can worry about the overdraft then.