I can't beleive how easy it can be

louby40

Wow! Just been reading your diary and so much rings true for me! I have a constant overdraft (only £500 or so) but by the 16th/17th month I'm nearly at my limit and dipping into the credit card to pay for groceries.


This has to STOP and it is going to! Inspired that you did it in 2 months! Well done!

Bonglecat

louby40 wrote: »

Wow! Just been reading your diary and so much rings true for me! I have a constant overdraft (only £500 or so) but by the 16th/17th month I'm nearly at my limit and dipping into the credit card to pay for groceries.


This has to STOP and it is going to! Inspired that you did it in 2 months! Well done!

Exactly louby40 back in the day BLBM (before light bulb moment) I honestly thought there was no way out without someone suddenly dropping £1,000 in my hands. I've had a lot of ups and downs over the years but finally starting to feel in control. Shopping Lists and spreadsheets they are my two best tips. Good Luck xx

louby40

I have a spreadsheet and a spending app on my phone. I've moved current accounts so just waiting for that to kick in when I get paid next week. I've only got a £250 overdraft with my new bank (it's with First Direct) and any over that I pay charges.

But I do believe it's a mindset. I've been to a hospital appointment with my 13 yr old son this afternoon. He asked for a drink from the WHSmiths there and I told him no, we'd be home in 15 minutes. A few weeks ago I would have spent a £1 on a drink. No more.

It's not the big things, it's the little spends, £3 here, £4 there that makes me overdrawn. It's just going to be hard through July/August but I'm determined to get it down

Bonglecat

I totally agree, it's amazing how £20 in your purse can vanish on tiny bits of nothing. :-D

I really need to start sorting out my lunches for work spending up to £5 a day in the canteen really adds up. See I'm still no angel.

louby40

I take my own lunch, always have. I spend £20 a term on coffee/biscuit fund. I drink about 3 coffees a day at work. And eat biscuits.

Bonglecat

It's all gone a bit wrong but not too bad it just means the paying off the car early is put back.

I booked 5 days in Venice for our anniversary in March, it wasn't too bad £700 for both of us. Fly from Birmingham on the Monday, share water taxi to the hotel and a nice hotel close to St Marks but because it doesn't overlook the canal (and being March) the cost is right down. We've both been to Venice before but not together so this will be great. I anticipated next months saving and banged it on the credit card. I know naughty, naughty.

So far so good then the rabbit insurance didn't pay out all of the claim so I had to fork out another £45 for that, Clyde the cat needed another blood test and medication £200, but on the plus side his thyroid is now stable, the car needed MOT ans service £240 and they recommend we replace the water pump as it is making a noise. That's something you can't leave but I told them I'd wait until this week so I've been paid again.

I tried to keep shopping down to compensate and found some fabulous bargains in Adsa I think they are withdrawing Thai Taste from stock so it was all really reduced, and DH LOVES Thai food. Sticky Rice was reduced from £2.50 to 43p a box and the curry kits were 57p down from around £3 I think. Needless to say I cleared the shelves :-)

I start my new job in 2 weeks, how that will effect my salary I'm not yet sure as it does now bring me up into the next tax bracket. Bit concerned about DH though he's still not well and off work. He gets paid full pay for 6 months and then insurance kicks in to cover but I'm not sure how long that pays out for. I just hope he picks up soon.

Bonglecat

So where was I? Lots of things have been going on DH is still off work it's been over six months now so November payday will be his last, he's signed off for another 3 months already. We have an income protection policy through work and that will pay him 60% of his salary but since it is from the company it will still be taxed as income where as if it was a stand alone income protection policy it would have been tax free.

But I've had my own pay rise so that covers some of the shortfall. I have managed not to dip into the monthly savings for the last 2 months which I am very proud of. There are 10 days to go until pay day and I still have £400 in my spending money account. I am going shopping tomorrow and hopefully do all the Christmas shopping I need to do, thus making November and December more manageable than normal.

The new job resulted in a change of building for me, so I lost my free parking space. For 2 months I tried using the discounted NCP at £4.50 reasoning that a return on the bus would be £4.40 anyway. But I finally had to admit defeat and since the monthly travel card is actually only £54.50 per month it works out a LOT cheaper. I really was just being a snob, "Hey I'm a high rate tax payer, shouldn't have to travel by bus." As it turns out especially when coming home the bus is actually quicker than the car due to some sections with bus lanes, so bit of bonus. Also the office is a bit in the middle of nowhere so other than a Co-op for sandwiches etc. nothing to spend my money on at lunchtime. I'm back to taking teabags into work so that hot water and milk from the canteen is only 55p instead of £1.15 for tea. A friend also showed me the College of Food shop just down the road where you can get fresh bread, cakes etc for great prices, loafs from 35p.

Still haven't managed to pay the car finance off, not sure if I am going to be able to now. If DH was at work I could have had enough before the end of the year and then quickly replenished the savings but as it is I'm not sure how much I can save on a monthly basis now.

But hey let's not get depressed I've come a really long way since the LBM :idea: The small amount on my credit card is the deposit for the Christmas Party at work that I am organising and so the rest of the team owe me and I will be paying that off shortly. I have broken the draw of the catalogues and trying to think more before buying things. Let's keep going!!!!

Bonglecat

Quick update - might actually be able to pay off the car finance on Tuesday, it should be around £3,700. That might leave me a little short for the month but January isn't going to be expensive, we have no New Years plans and all of Christmas is already bought and paid for.

But I am going to need to pay for the girlie holiday in Sicily in August which is £1300 and we desperately need a new mattress. But not paying out £200 a month for the car will better in the long run I think.

louby40

Oh I wish I could pay my car off. After my small current debts are paid this will be my only debt (apart from my mortgage)

I desperately need work doing on my house so my car will have to wait.

Well done for being able to pay it off!

Bonglecat

OMG so I actually did it, :j on Tuesday no less I called Santander and paid off the car. Lucky DHs insurance rather than salary doesn't actually kick in until next month, so we had a full wage again. Bit of a relief otherwise we might have been left a bit short.

But there it is I really, really am now (unsecured) debt free!!!!! :T That is £200 a month less to go out, which is fab because we will have at least 4 times that less coming in once DH is no longer being paid.

On that front some good news the doctors have given us a proper diagnosis now inducible ischemia. First call is an angioplasty, we are currently trying to see if the company BUPA will cover this or if he'll have to wait for the NHS. If they can't do it (he has a funny right angle in his artery) or it doesn't work we are on to by-pass territory. In other news his line manager has indicated that they may consider him for early retirement due to ill health, but what that would mean financially I don't know. But I'm much more chilled about that now, we only have he mortgage which is 64% LTV and I can cover all household bills with my salary it may just mean less money for household stuff (we really need the living room re-decorating and the porch door replacing), savings and holidays. Although ssshhh let's not say this too loud he has actually said he might consider giving up smoking in the new year especially if it is a condition of the heart op :eek: and that would save us around £350 per month.

Anyway Merry Christmas to all you money savers out there and a happy, fruitful and debt free New Year:xmassign::xmastree::santa2:

Not sure if I will continue my diary next year now given that I am debt free. But thank you Money Saving forum for all your advice and support over the years :grouphug: