Newbie looking for help!!

weelini22

Hi all,

Been contemplating writing a post for ages now, finally decided money worries were getting too much. although i am just managing to meet bills, im worried as its gradually becoming more and more difficult and im having less money to actually live on each month. just want to get a grip on things and stop ignoring stuff before it gets out of hand completely.

Looking at advice to previous newbies, i have completed an SOA as follows:

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 1
Number of children in household......... 0
Number of cars owned.................... 1
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1290
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 1290
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 370
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 0
Electricity............................. 20
Gas..................................... 45
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 30
Mobile phone............................ 90
TV Licence.............................. 10
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 0
Internet Services....................... 0
Groceries etc. ......................... 100
Clothing................................ 50
Petrol/diesel........................... 40
Road tax................................ 10
Car Insurance........................... 0
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 20
Other travel............................ 5
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 40
Contents insurance...................... 15
Life assurance ......................... 10
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 10
Haircuts................................ 10
Entertainment........................... 50
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 925

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 72000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 74000

Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 72000....(370)......0
Total secured & HP debts...... 72000.....-.........-
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
virgin Credit card.............2000......25........0
Cap 1 credit card..............200.......15........0
RBS bank loan.................4600......110.......7.6
river island...................80........5.........25.5
new look.......................130.......5.........25.5
Total unsecured debts..........7010......160.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,290
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 925
Available for debt repayments........... 365
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 160
Amount left after debt repayments....... 205
Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 74,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -72,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -7,010
Net Assets.............................. -5,010


Really looking forward to some replies,

Lynne

WASHER

weelini22 wrote: »

Hi all,

Been contemplating writing a post for ages now, finally decided money worries were getting too much. although i am just managing to meet bills, im worried as its gradually becoming more and more difficult and im having less money to actually live on each month. just want to get a grip on things and stop ignoring stuff before it gets out of hand completely.

Looking at advice to previous newbies, i have completed an SOA as follows:

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 1
Number of children in household......... 0
Number of cars owned.................... 1
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1290
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 1290
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 370
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 0
Electricity............................. 20
Gas..................................... 45
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 30
Mobile phone............................ 90-:eek: YOU NEED TO REDUCE THIS, IF THIS IS A MONTH USAGE IT WAY OVER BOARD
TV Licence.............................. 10
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 0
Internet Services....................... 0
Groceries etc. ......................... 100
Clothing................................ 50
Petrol/diesel........................... 40
Road tax................................ 10
Car Insurance........................... 0 if you have a car, you must pay insurance?
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0 again, something must go in here if you have a car
Car parking............................. 20
Other travel............................ 5
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 40 - gosh, thats really high, I live in a four bed detached and only pay £25 per month combined buildings and contents, get on the comparison sites and check this out.
Contents insurance...................... 15
Life assurance ......................... 10
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 10
Haircuts................................ 10
Entertainment........................... 50
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 925

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 72000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 74000

Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 72000....(370)......0
Total secured & HP debts...... 72000.....-.........-
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
virgin Credit card.............2000......25........0
Cap 1 credit card..............200.......15........0
RBS bank loan.................4600......110.......7.6
river island...................80........5.........25.5
new look.......................130.......5.........25.5
Total unsecured debts..........7010......160.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,290
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 925
Available for debt repayments........... 365
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 160
Amount left after debt repayments....... 205
Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 74,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -72,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -7,010
Net Assets.............................. -5,010


Really looking forward to some replies,

Lynne

Welcome Lynne,

I've added comments in above.

What are the limits on the 0% cards?

If you reduced your mobile phone bill to a reasonable level of £20 per month, you could repay river island and new look within 2 months.

Your debts aren't too bad, you came here at the right time, start a spending diary, meal plan, and take lunches to work.

niksyg

weelini22 wrote: »

Hi all,

Been contemplating writing a post for ages now, finally decided money worries were getting too much. although i am just managing to meet bills, im worried as its gradually becoming more and more difficult and im having less money to actually live on each month. just want to get a grip on things and stop ignoring stuff before it gets out of hand completely.

Looking at advice to previous newbies, i have completed an SOA as follows:

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 1
Number of children in household......... 0
Number of cars owned.................... 1
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1290
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 1290
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 370
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 0
Electricity............................. 20
Gas..................................... 45
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0 is this corrrect or do you have a private water supply?
Telephone (land line)................... 30
Mobile phone............................ 90 very high...see if you can get this down, don't have to cancel contract,just talk to current provider.
TV Licence.............................. 10
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 0
Internet Services....................... 0 if you don't pay for internet is it covered in landline bill then?
Groceries etc. ......................... 100 This could be reduced given that there is just you in the household, we pay £120 a month and my OH eats 4 meals a day due to his training.
Clothing................................ 50 Do you think this is really the case ir have you grabbed a figure out the air? I know I tended to do that when I first started budgeting,and the real amount id often much higher!
Petrol/diesel........................... 40
Road tax................................ 10 Do you consciously spread the cost of your road tax or do you panic when it's due and scrabble around for the money?
Car Insurance........................... 0 If you have a car....
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0 same here....
Car parking............................. 20
Other travel............................ 5
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 40 Very high for a month - needs to be reduced!
Contents insurance...................... 15
Life assurance ......................... 10
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 10 Again, like clothes, do you think this is realistic or and underesimate?
Haircuts................................ 10 Do you really spread the cost of haircuts? Or do you find some months you pay much more and then are skint?
Entertainment........................... 50
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 925

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 72000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 74000

Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 72000....(370)......0
Total secured & HP debts...... 72000.....-.........-
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
virgin Credit card.............2000......25........0
Cap 1 credit card..............200.......15........0
RBS bank loan.................4600......110.......7.6
river island...................80........5.........25.5 these (RI and NL)could both be cleared in one month - get rid!!!
new look.......................130.......5.........25.5
Total unsecured debts..........7010......160.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,290
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 925
Available for debt repayments........... 365
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 160
Amount left after debt repayments....... 205
Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 74,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -72,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -7,010
Net Assets.............................. -5,010


Really looking forward to some replies,

Lynne

Hope that has been of some help - I think the biggest help would be to make yourself completely realistic about your spending - write down absolutely every penny you spend and you'll soon realise why your soa and real life aren't matching up. Personally I think store cards are an absolute no no, especially for clothes shops as they create too much temptation, if I were you I'd pay off the River Island and New Look cards and close the accounts.
Good luck with you debt free journey. x

confused76

hi do you pay council tax??

niccatw

Hey

I agree with what folks have said already, really. Your mobile phone bill and buildings insurance seem especially high for the month and you haven't included council tax - do you have an exemption?

A spending diary really helped me - I saw all those little "bargains" (I'm a charity shop addict) adding up... once I got into the swing of it, it became a challenge to see how little I could spend in a week.

Sitting down and going through a years worth of bank statements helped too - I couldn't belive the amount of times I had gone to the cash line and taken out money with nothing to account for it - in 1 month I would easily have cleared your River Island and New Look debts if my cashline outgoings had gone to my debts!

I found I had to be very strict with myself initially - i.e budget and checking how things were going weekely, but I'm feel much more in control now and have relaxed a bit, checking everything monthly!

If you decide to make a concentrated effort, you'll have it all under control in no time

Good luck

weelini22

thanks all for the replies! i have reduced my mobile to 40 per month so that will help, and going to clear my store cards and get them out of way! My buildings insurance is in with my factors bill which works out at £120 quarterly! and i dont pay council tax at moment as i am a full time student! I think i need to write down everything i spend, as i think you are all right and i underestimate my spending! just dont seem to be able to catch up every month!!
thanks for all the sound advise folks, am definately going to take it all on board!!
x

savingmummy

weelini22 wrote: »

Hi all,

Been contemplating writing a post for ages now, finally decided money worries were getting too much. although i am just managing to meet bills, im worried as its gradually becoming more and more difficult and im having less money to actually live on each month. just want to get a grip on things and stop ignoring stuff before it gets out of hand completely.

Looking at advice to previous newbies, i have completed an SOA as follows:

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 1
Number of children in household......... 0
Number of cars owned.................... 1
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1290
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 1290
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 370
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 0
Electricity............................. 20
Gas..................................... 45 is this cheapest?
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 30:eek:
Mobile phone............................ 40 go patg!! even 40 is high
TV Licence.............................. 10
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 0
Internet Services....................... 0
Groceries etc. ......................... 100 try and cut back!
Clothing................................ 50 use what you have
Petrol/diesel........................... 40
Road tax................................ 10
Car Insurance........................... 0
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 20
Other travel............................ 5
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 40
Contents insurance...................... 15
Life assurance ......................... 10
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 10
Haircuts................................ 10
Entertainment........................... 50
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 925

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 72000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 74000

Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 72000....(370)......0
Total secured & HP debts...... 72000.....-.........-
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
virgin Credit card.............2000......25........0
Cap 1 credit card..............200.......15........0
RBS bank loan.................4600......110.......7.6
river island...................80........5.........25.5 - priority to go
new look.......................130.......5.........25.5 - priority to go
Total unsecured debts..........7010......160.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,290
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 925
Available for debt repayments........... 365
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 160
Amount left after debt repayments....... 255 throw at debt
Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 74,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -72,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -7,010
Net Assets.............................. -5,010


Really looking forward to some replies,

Lynne [/QUOThi welcome!!
you have room for reducing which will help you.
Clothing isnt nessesary every month, £40 mobile is too much too! Groceries - stick to a list of what you NEED, drop brands. I shop for 4 and spend £150-200.

beanielou

You have had some great advice.
As has bben said you could get rid of New Look & River Island really soon.
Anyway you could work a few more hours?
Anything you can ebay or put on Gumtree?
Could you get a lodger?