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iwillgetthere_2

Hi everyone,

I have been veiwing this board for about 2 months now! And it has done me the world of good, its fantastic, you are all fantastic!

My status is:

Living with my fiance, not really paying him much because of my debt, his been so good to me, been with him 8 years in sep!! Met him when i was 16, young and niave, got myself in trouble with cc and catalogues, then a loan to clear, oh i wish i found this site years ago!

Im 23 (24 in sep) now and this is my situation:

Income £1000

I pay gas and phone and internet bill which works out £45 a month
The food shopping us my responsibilty normally £200 a month, need to cut this down
My mobile bill about £35 a month, tied down til october and then im going on PAYG

My Debts

Halifax CC 2150 - currently paying £250 a month
NW loan - 1800/fixed @ £75 P/M - FINISHES FEB 2008
A and L - 5000/fixed @ £175 P/M - FINISHES FEB 2008
Overdraft £350

So Halifax CC should be finished about march by snowball calculator, then my plan is to save that money up to get married in 2008

My CC should of been £1000 less but sadly my dad passed away recently and that £1000 was gone on funeral expenses.

So i am getting there, i know where im going and i will get there!

So thats me, i will keep you updated on my progress, can't wait to clear that halifax card, i will feel much better then

Tondella

thanks for posting, looks like you have made some moves to get your expenditure down - sorry to hear that you dad died.

Have you been on a comparison site to check that you have the best deal on your gas and electricity? I eventually did it and it was really worth the (little) effort, got my bills down from £35 per month to £27 per month.

£35 a month is a high phone tariff, as i understand it you can downgrade your tariff to the lowest one until your contract runs out.

I'm sure you can get your food bill down, start by making a shopping list, and trying to menu plan. Don't try and cut it too drastically all at once, just keep shaving £20-£30 a month off, the grocery challenge will offer you some support.

After adding up your outgoings above i calculate £220 left over - where does this money go? Remember to budget for dentistry, prescriptions, etc etc.

I bet you're desperate to get saving for your wedding, but you are probably paying alot of interest on your overdraft that will more than counter any interest you gain on your wedding savings - maybe you should try and get that down to an acceptable amount first?

Good luck!

iwillgetthere_2

Hi thanks for your reply.

I have just switched over to equigas that switches today, was with BG so should def save some money there.

I didn't know I could change my phone tarrif i will definately look into that one thanks alot!

The spare money is going towards my o/d and i have £100 tp pay off BG at end of the month,then thats them done, then once thats done i i will have that extra cash to go to my CC.maybe i should do my CC and then pay o/d? I hate being o/d.

And the thought of saving for my wedding is a HUGE incentive to sort my money out, 2 weeks in jamaica, getting married on the beach, would be nearly ten years then so about time!!

highguyuk

:hello: Hello and Welcome to the site.

There isn't alot there to be improved on, is this truely all your expenditure?

Echoing previous posts, ring up your mobile phone provider and ask to downgrade the contract for the remaining time. ;-)

For shopping, make a list. Possibly shop on the internet instead of instore, that way there is less incentive to spend extra? If you use Tesco Online there are loads of promo codes on the site to get extra clubcard points etc. You could then use these points on a clubcard deal towards 2 weeks in Jamaica for your honeymoon ...

Good luck with everything

beanielou

Hi & welcome to MSE
Hope all goes well for you

Lady_S

Sorry to sound mercenary but have you checked to see if your dad's funeral costs were covered by the social fund? When my dad passed away we had £2000 towards funeral expenses because he died when he was 55.

Hope this helps.

iwillgetthere_2

Thanks for all your replies, my dad was 46, my brother signed the certficate, he is on jsa and he applied for the funeral payment but it was denied, the letter stated that there was a close relative that could afford the costs,the only thing i can think of is that my uncle kindly paid the deposit for us so maybe thats the reason, we are going through the appeal at the moment, but i have the £1000 ready just in case, we should hear by july 7th.

iwillgetthere_2

I get paid on 23rd june so not long and its going to be:

1000 - takehome

75 NW loan
175 a and l loan
300 to last the month, food travel any other expenses
35 mobile bill ( will get this cut down)
20 gas
25 phone and BB
100 - last BG bill
250 to halifax cc

Then when i get paid in july that 100 extra will then go on my cc so will be paying 350 a month on that, that should clear a bit quicker then.so looks like my o/d will have to wait

I feel so stupid for getting in this mess, but least i have realised now rather then another 10 years later i spose. feel like kicking myself sometimes.:mad:

In_Search_Of_Me

Just waned to say welcome...agree with comments above...debt diary really helps me keep abreast of my spending..also starting with a blance & deducting money as I go ends to stop frivellous spending (most of the time!!)...good luck & welcome to the boards!

iwillgetthere_2

I have just been told that i will be getting a bonus with my pay at end of june, so that will be £800 going towards my halifax CC, so it will be paid off by november now :j

Im so pleased, christmas will be easier now!