help with budget

Kantankrus_Mare

Hi Surreybloke and well done on realising you need to do something!

I see you shop at Tesco? Make this work for you and make sure you use your clubcard vouchers to best advantage by using them on deals where you get four times the value.

We never seem to have spare money for hols but with good use of tesco vouchers we have been to london a couple of times, York another time and various weekends away for me and OH over the last five years.

Vouchers can be used for the cinema and also blockbuster film rentals.

Also dont write off the Sun's £9.50 hols.

Don't know how old your kids are but we went all over on these when the kids were younger. Excellent value!

Keep up the good work and once the debts start getting paid off, you will have more money to play with.

Its hard...........i've been there. Ours are now paid off and now hoping to make inroads into paying off the mortgage.

Good luck
x

Oh and also look into camping!!

Young kids love this and its cheap!

dancingfairy

The things that stood out for me were gas and electric :eek: - you should be aiming for 90 a month or less combined.
House insurance - what's that for? if contents and buildings it seems very expensive.
Bank account fees - not sure what the overdraft fee protection is for? and 16 for extras as well? - can you cancel the extras? or buy them cheaper elsewhere if needed?
Also have you looked at getting cheaper credit say life of balance deals and transferring the higher interest debts to lower rate cards? or perhaps you have space on some of the cards and they can do a balance trasnfer for you at a cheaper rate that you are paying on some of the other cards?

df

surreybloke_2

a lot of good advise coming from every one.
have just got a deal from EGG to do a balance transfer for 6mnths at 2.9% fixed(moved £9000)
cancelled the life insurance that was not attached to the mortgage
shopped at Lidls this week and saved £40
also found out that as I use my car for work and am PAYE I am entitled to claim 40p per mile(9p per mile paid from my company and another 31p per mile allowance from the tax man) will be filling in my expenses this week for end of last financial yr so I can submit claim to tax office, should get back about £1000+ £350 from my company
got confirmation from O2 that my tarriff is now £10 a month
am also shoping around for cheaper home insurance this week.

and for all those that have asked my daughters are aged 12 and 9