Angry With Payplan

singingsister

I get paid, all my bills come out of my wages and then I am back where I started! If that's not debt then what is?

OK - I may be "lucky" that I'm not spirilling out of control but isn't it a good thing that I'm trying to regain control now?

Yes, I can afford to meet the monthly payments (well not this month coz my egg one took me over my overdraft limit) but that's it. I pay the bills the same day I get paid but have nothing left to show for all my hard work!

What I am doing wrong?

I mean, if I went out shopping all the time spending money here and there I could understand it, but I don't!

It's really depressing me, I've been on antidepressents before because my finance issue was really getting me down and I don't want to go there again.

Willsnarf1983

singingsister wrote:

OK here goes.

This is my share of the bills per month:-
Rent £337.50
Water £13
TV Licence £4.10 a month
Council Tax £75
Sky £18
Phone and Internet £10 approx
NPower £17
Food £50 approx..I live with a hungry scotsman!

ok that doesn't = £600 soooooo either try and think of what else u spend or for the next month do a spending book and work out exactly where every penny goes by writing it down

Will

singingsister

The only thing I can think of to do to really see where my money goes it to open a new bank account, change my direct debits/standing orders up to come out the new account and transfer the money across as necessary...or something like that.

It's a bit drastic tho....seems a lot of hassle, especially if it doesn't go smoothly and payments are missed etc.

poppy52

It's not because you earn too much that Payplan won't help. I earn a lot more than that, and yet my debt means that I can't even make the mimimum payments. I am on a debt management plan with Payplan because of this.

Willsnarf1983

singingsister wrote:

The only thing I can think of to do to really see where my money goes it to open a new bank account, change my direct debits/standing orders up to come out the new account and transfer the money across as necessary...or something like that.

It's a bit drastic tho....seems a lot of hassle, especially if it doesn't go smoothly and payments are missed etc.

or as i said...write every penny down

Will

singingsister

yeh...think I'll have to try.

CLAPTON

I'm not doubting you have debt problems but I would suggest you read the link i posted above.
The reason you are struggling is probably is that you are under estimating your actual spending.

you need to work out absolutely everything you are going to spend in the next 12 months and add these to you SoA. so for 'normal' monthly expenses you just add the monthly figure but for yearly spend or one-off or your emergency fund you take the yearly figure and divide by 12. then you will have a better idea of where your money actually goes....and by the way, you have to save up each month for those yearly or one off costs.
so e.g. your list says you spend nothing on clothes, holidays, days out, friends weddings/hen nights, xmas, presents..its very often these type of spends that just get put on the CC...do you really only spend 50 on food a month? and by the way your 600 for rent actually totals to 524 ..where is the other 74 going?

start to keep a spending diary so you can really see where everything goes..also really think about all the other odd one off or yearly spends and add those in too.

also with the debts do you know the APRs so you can snowball more effectively with any spare money.

singingsister

The reason we pay a bit extra in the bills account is to be on the safe side. I'd rather we paid an extra small amount in than struggle to pay the bills when we don't put enough money in.

£50 for food is just MY share - my partner pays the same amount of money in the bills account as I do so £50 for food is actually £100.

My top posting lists my bills. The household bills are seperate.

singingsister

What about me setting up a new account for my bills only? As in have two accounts. Have all my bills come out of the one that I pay my wages into and have another account where I put a small amount aside for me things....ie clothes, going out etc. If I've run out of money in "my" account, then I can't spend the money I wanted to.

Do you think this would help?

singingsister

Here's my SOA.
Income
1500 approx (am paid hourly so varies between working 37.5 and 40 hours a week. Plus I don't get sick or holiday pay)
Expenditure
Rent and household bills = £560
Petrol = £35
Bus Fare = £36
Food = £25
Going out = £30
Shopping = £10
Egg Loan = £287.20
Co-Op Credit Card = £60
Cahoot Loan = £121.00
First Direct Credit Card = £40
Orange = £40
Car Insurance = £45
Car Breakdown cover = £8

---

Egg = £13,767.55 bal
6.7% apr
01/04/2011 paid off date

Cahoot = £5989.37 bal. Limit of £8000
9.5% apr
Rolling Loan (no end date)

Co-Op = £3000 bal. Limit of £3000
9.9% apr

First Direct = £700 bal. Limit of £1500
16.9