Newbies' 10K in 2010 Challenge!! :)

museumworker

Nottoobadyet wrote: »

Any tips for the rest of us?

Thanks for the good wishes . I see from your sig that you are also making progress with the finances, and doing very well on the packed lunches!

Tips are probably pretty old hat for most MSE'rs:
* cut out any unneccessary spending/treats as much as humanly possible. Being able to save is a big treat, not an overpriced coffee.
* Food budget - plan your meals for the week, write a shopping list, and stick to it. Batch cook, freeze any leftovers, and look at cheaper recipes and ingredients. Like you, I do packed lunches for myself and OH. Probably spend about £250 pm, about £100pm less than last year. I buy locally from the market, turkish shops, local butchers and Lidl.
* challenges on here - the clothes one has kept me on the straight and narrow (in comparison I probably had spent about £300 on clothes in the first 6 months of last year, possibly more ). the £10 a day challenge is great, although I've been v busy at work last few months so haven't had much chance to do much.
* say no - this has been a hard one for me. I don't go for every lunch or work drink. I have a set monthly budget for discretionary spends (mine and OH's 'pocket money') and any extras and socialising comes out of this. That way if I've had an expensive evening out, I balance it up by doing cheaper things for the rest of the month.
* keep a spending diary and check your account regularly - every day if possible. This in itself will keep your spending down.
* take cheap holidays - to see friends, camping... our family summer holiday will probably cost about £350 for a week (that includes petrol, accommodation, food, entrance fees, parking and ice-creams ). Book any travel in advance.
* pay yourself first. As soon as you get paid, allow enough to cover bills, food and discretionary spend. Then put the rest - all of it - into savings.
* any purchase at all, think if you can get away with not buying it, if you can get it cheaper elsewhere, or if you can get cashback.

I am very lucky in that I have had a bonus from work, tax back from last year, and OH found a better paid job. But setting up the discipline to save and not spend is worth doing, even if you are on the lowest wage or benefits. It means once you do start seeing more money, you will benefit from it so much more.

Lookingtothefuture

Amatheya81 wrote: »

I haven't been on here for absolutely ages!!!

After a realy promising start to the year I've slipped quite a bit. Not to a degree where I'm spending on my cards again but I haven't been putting as much effort into not spending and making extra money. The main reason for this is that it was making me really stressed not letting myself go anywhere or do anything... I'm still not going out and spending that much but I'm back to having a life instead of being a hermit!

The one thing that I am really happy about thought is the fact that my loan is now under £10k. I'll finally have it cleared in just over 2 years and then I can start living again... The loan (and the loan it payed off) has been crippling me my entire adult life so knowing that in 2 years I'll be free is a really inspiring though.

Anyway, glad to see so many people are still on the challenge and doing so well. Good luck for the second half of the year!! :T

Hi Everyone!! Another one who hasn't posted in ABSOLUTELY ages!!! oops! However I am still sticking to the challenge and desperately trying to paying the dreaded CC off! I am still on maternity leave and so feel that I am doing OK as I am still making overpayments of at least £100 a month (this month I have overpaid by £270! yey me!). I was feeling a bit dispondant to it all not so long ago but sat down with my budget and calculator and have worked out that I should have paid off the CC by March 2011! I did not take into account any e-bay or extra earns so hopefully if I try really hard I might just do it this year! Wont be easy but it sure has taught me a valuable lesson about money!

My gorgeous OH and I have been looking at moving house so that we can expand our family however until my CC are gone its only a dream. After the CC have gone we are going to make over payments on the mortgage to make sure that we can afford a bigger mortgage and I think we can (well we can on paper!). So it looks like I will be joining this challenge one way or the other next year too! I am just so motivated again, cant wait to get rid of this debt.

Everyone is doing so so well! WELL DONE GUYS! and keep it up! :beer:

t4mof

My usual large payment has gone to MBNA today - £143.34.

I managed to get HSBC's 0% for 15 months CC this week and Barclaycard1 will be transferred over next week.

That should be the last 0% card I need to be able to clear the CC debt over the next year. I might apply for another card in a year or so and move some of the MBNA balance onto it but I know once all the BT's have settled down that I can pay it all off my Dec 2011 or Jan 2012 without another 0% card.

Nottoobadyet

Great tips, museum worker!

ragstoricheswannabe

Hello, i am another one that hasnt posted in a very long time, but has still kept up with the challenge. Some of my payments havent come out yet but am a little behind with where i should be to be on track, only by a few hundred though. my total is in my sig............

Well done museumworker!!!!!! taking my hat off to you for doing it in 7 months!!!! and well done to everyone else, the totals are looking good!

lamarsi

Hiya everyone and thanks for the thumbs up! just made another payment to my loan 2day, bringing my total to £6,339.40 but still have money in bank for morgade next week so i'm hoping to get total to around 7k mark this month may struggle as i'm on placement (its mental health btw BM ) and my second job as a taxi driver is a bit rubbish at the moment due to schools breaking up and students having gone home.. summer is always carp for taxis here but i'll try... going to really tighten my belt for the next few weeks and work as much as possible catch up with everyone soon well done all

reigningin

please may i join? newbie to all-site-forums-postings so apologies! 6k cards 1500 o/d 3yrs left on 5 yr 5k loan all bar loan by xmas 2010! and have my sealed pot to fund crimbo.

dentonemma

Hi,
I have paid off another £95 to Egg. So far to date I have Paid off £7681.

t4mof

Payday tomorrow so have just paid £150 to MBNA. Not quite the £300 I was on track for but we've bought a new digital camera (our last screen went weird, like it had smashed but kind of behind it) and hubby spent his birthday money which I was hoping he'd forgotten about

The next month might be a struggle for any extra payments on top of what I normally pay - we're down in London this weekend, it's my wedding anniversary next weekend, got a work night out, my birthday and 4 weeks of the 6 week holiday all before next payday. Aarrghhh! If I manage to pay anything over what I've budgeted for it will be a miracle.

I will do a signature update once the statements are through at the end of the month.

lamarsi

paid another morgade payment yesterday so after taking £200 off me in interest it reduces the amount i owe by 280 or there abouts so new total is £6,614.98 i have reduced my debt by thus far well done to everyone else I think this is one challenge I'm going to achieve unlike my weight loss ha