Advice please for a debt free novice

LookingAhead

Oooh well done you getting your MP involved! Nice work!
OK well, as long as you are eating well. It's all very well having debt free targets (and rightly so) but your health always comes first....

bargainbetty

The buyer should pay the postage - or arrang to collect larger items personally. When you put the item up, you can specify how much you want - and make sure you weigh the item and check at the online Post Office how much it will be!!

Maybe the kids pocket money could be tied into chores - not saving much, but you'd get the hoovering done, freeing up your time for work/study...?

I personally love Lidl - couldn't care less if snobs look at me sideways for buying there. The cheese, parma ham and sausages are easily as good as Waitrose, and less than half the price. I go in there after work, suited and booted from my city job, and wander round filling up my old carrier bags quite happy with the world.

Build up points on Pigsback, and send all the kids a piggy bank - get them in good habits early. Apply for all the freebies, mystery shopping and online research you can - it all mounts up!

Well done on being clear of it - I'll catch you up soon hopefully!

bonnie_2

The minimum spend on food for a family of your size is £75, (national debtline figures). No point in going short.
Weekly figures.

msmicawber

Snagglepuss wrote:

Hello & welcome!

Well done for getting yourself debt free, you've done really well (did that sound patronising? Sorry ).

Your post made me giggle (Donald Rumsfelds lol). And as for calling Lidl '!!!!!!' - how DARE they, how VERY DARE they hahaha! Just goes to show that you are more financially savvy than you realise, and they sound to be a bit too far up their own bottoms if they put you down like that without even listening to what you had to say (no offence....okay maybe a little bit of offence....:D). Not much advice to offer I'm afraid, as you seem to already be pretty well on top of things, but I'm sure some of the others will have some good suggestions for you. Good luck, Love Snaggles xx

How VERY DARE they indeed! I console myself by thinking that they'll all crash financially in the end (I know how much they earn as I work there too, so know they can't afford those flashy cars and holidays without borrowing), so will be looking out for them in Lidl's and at the car boots (they'll be the ones wearing the headscarves and the dark glasses .. but I'll know them :rotfl:

SAP_Saver

Firstly well done. I am also recently debt free but a little nervy about changing products!!! But manage to do it once I weigh up the benefits.
On eBay the winner of the auction pays for the postage on top of the winning bid.
I must admit your SOA was impressive the only thing that jumped out at me was the;
Car breakdown cover: £6.25 (£75 paid annually)
considering the AA advertise at £39 a year on the TV all of the time!

well done and good luck!

P.S TREAT YOURSELF!!! and smile your great for getting debt free and getting back into A-Levels and wanting to go to Uni - I am amazed now go out and get yourself a 'little' something to celebrate!!!

msmicawber

Thank you so much everyone - I think I've worn out the thanks button as it's not responding now. I'm off to read the Ebay board and jiggle with my budget. Hmm might even have some lunch.

msmicawber

SAP_Saver wrote:

Firstly well done. I am also recently debt free but a little nervy about changing products!!! But manage to do it once I weigh up the benefits.
On eBay the winner of the auction pays for the postage on top of the winning bid.
I must admit your SOA was impressive the only thing that jumped out at me was the;
Car breakdown cover: £6.25 (£75 paid annually)
considering the AA advertise at £39 a year on the TV all of the time!

well done and good luck!

P.S TREAT YOURSELF!!! and smile your great for getting debt free and getting back into A-Levels and wanting to go to Uni - I am amazed now go out and get yourself a 'little' something to celebrate!!!

Thank you - I might just go and see what's in the bargain wine section at the Co-op (get myself in training for being a student, eh?!)

I know the breakdown cover's higher than the AA & RAC advertise, but for that I get: home start, relay from anywhere with whoever's in my car and a hire car while repairs are being done, if necessary, and some other stuff (can't remember what all) whereas the £39 deal only gives you very basic cover. With a 20-year-old estate car, two children and no credit card to pay for repairs or towing, I thought £75 wasn't a bad deal since the equivalent cover from AA/RAC is £135 annually. What do you think?

Snaggles

The breakdown service payment doesn't sound too bad for the full service that you need, although it's always worth shopping around(it sounds like you've done this already though from what you said?). Some car insurance policies have breakdown cover as an add-on, which can sometimes work out cheaper, so this might be worth looking into next time your insurance is due. Although saying that, we have it on our insurance policy (full homestart/breakdown/drag the ageing car to the garage service), and it cost about £75 extra, which is what you're paying anyway.

Sven67

Well done you for doing great so far, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with what you’ve said and you should be proud for wanting to better your life etc.

I agree with the food bit, I think you should budget a little more. I’m no expert but your car break down seems a little high to me, it might be worth shopping around? As for your water it’s a bargain almost too much, are you sure it’s right even if it is metered? Following on from Bonnie’s comment it does seem very low but then £40 a month seems the opposite! Are you sure you don’t have a leak Bonnie, that seems way too much? I pay about £17 a month unmetered and from what I can tell is about average.

Ebay, yes the buyer pays for the postage but obviously you have to pay it when posting the item once they’ve paid you. Therefore, its often best to over estimate the weight (but not too much) than under estimate as posting the item will eat into any profit you make. If the post office is quiet you could try weighing the items before trying to sell them (to see how much it would be). Personally, I had to sell quite a few things on Ebay before I managed to correctly guess the postage for those that don’t have scales etc. It is possible to sell things on Ebay where the ‘buyer collects’ when the item is too heavy but I’d just sell your sofa in the local paper, I suspect you’d have more luck there.

msmicawber

Thanks, Sven,

I was astounded at how much cheaper metered water was, and nervous that it was wrong, but they've read the meter and say it's correct. I don't have a dishwasher, do have an energy saving washing machine that I only run when full, and we tend to shower rather than bath; I rarely wash the car, never water the garden and don't overfill the kettle, which all seems to reduce our usage quite dramatically. Oh yes, and I've got a 10-year-old son who has to be poked into the shower with a pointed stick once a week! Hopefully, that'll be encouragement for other novice DFWs who are nervous to change.

Thanks for the Ebay advice too, I'm feeling braver by the minute.