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I Love Mse.com!!!!
madmalteaser
Posts: 301 Forumite
I may well have said this before, but this site has been an absolute lifesafer for me and I thank my lucky stars the day it was introduced to me. I'll just give you a little run down as to why....
When I first came onto this site in January, I was in a seriously bad place.
30k in debt (10k on credit cards, 10k on a loan and 10k on a car). I was right into my £850 overdraft all month every month, if not over it most of the time (gotta love those bank charges!!!:mad: ) and barely able to afford food for myself, let alone anything else.
Ten months down the line and.... I'm still in debt :rotfl: But it's ok, because I've finally gained control of my finances. I'm still in my overdraft at the moment, but haven't actually gone over the overdraft limit in 6 months. The credit cards are down to 8k, the loan is down to 8 and a half thousand and the car is the car. As far as I'm concerned, I no longer look at that as a "debt", because at the end of the day, if I can no longer afford it, they'll take it away from me, simple as that.
I've made some changes with the help of MSE, I found a car insurance quote with Tesco.com which took my premiums down from £45 a month to £23 a month! Not to mention the £25 in petrol vouchers they gave me. I finally cancelled all the unnecessary things I was paying and didn't even realise it... individual Payment Protection Insurances on all my cards when I didn't realise I had one that covered the lot, I closed down book club accounts that were costing me a fortune in books I don't even read and have not used a single credit card since January of this year. A big achievement for me, believe me.
So yes, I am still in debt, but as far as I'm concerned, this is a different kind of being in debt now. That might not make much sense to you all, but it really does to me. I finally feel like I've gained a foothold and taken control of what was spiralling crazily out of control. I haven't stayed awake at night worrying about money for over 6 months now, which is a fabulous feeling, it has to be said.
And it's largely thanks to MoneySavingExpert.com, not only Martin but all the members of the forums who have given me no end of advice and tips and you've gotta love those freebies too! Thank you so much everyone. This one's for you... :T :T :T :T :T :T :T :T :T :T :T :T :T
When I first came onto this site in January, I was in a seriously bad place.
30k in debt (10k on credit cards, 10k on a loan and 10k on a car). I was right into my £850 overdraft all month every month, if not over it most of the time (gotta love those bank charges!!!:mad: ) and barely able to afford food for myself, let alone anything else.
Ten months down the line and.... I'm still in debt :rotfl: But it's ok, because I've finally gained control of my finances. I'm still in my overdraft at the moment, but haven't actually gone over the overdraft limit in 6 months. The credit cards are down to 8k, the loan is down to 8 and a half thousand and the car is the car. As far as I'm concerned, I no longer look at that as a "debt", because at the end of the day, if I can no longer afford it, they'll take it away from me, simple as that.
I've made some changes with the help of MSE, I found a car insurance quote with Tesco.com which took my premiums down from £45 a month to £23 a month! Not to mention the £25 in petrol vouchers they gave me. I finally cancelled all the unnecessary things I was paying and didn't even realise it... individual Payment Protection Insurances on all my cards when I didn't realise I had one that covered the lot, I closed down book club accounts that were costing me a fortune in books I don't even read and have not used a single credit card since January of this year. A big achievement for me, believe me.
So yes, I am still in debt, but as far as I'm concerned, this is a different kind of being in debt now. That might not make much sense to you all, but it really does to me. I finally feel like I've gained a foothold and taken control of what was spiralling crazily out of control. I haven't stayed awake at night worrying about money for over 6 months now, which is a fabulous feeling, it has to be said.
And it's largely thanks to MoneySavingExpert.com, not only Martin but all the members of the forums who have given me no end of advice and tips and you've gotta love those freebies too! Thank you so much everyone. This one's for you... :T :T :T :T :T :T :T :T :T :T :T :T :T
PROUD TO HAVE DEALT WITH MY DEBTS
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Comments
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Well done... what you have made perfect sense to me, being in control puts a completely different perspective on your debt. Just make sure you stay on the wagon, as there is a long and sometimes tough road ahead.
Good luck!Personal ISA Contributions Challenge - current £0 (as at 1 April 2014) / target £15,000 (deadline 31 Mar 2015)0 -
pivotalgubbins wrote:Well done... what you have made perfect sense to me, being in control puts a completely different perspective on your debt. Just make sure you stay on the wagon, as there is a long and sometimes tough road ahead.
Good luck!
That's good advice and I'll try to remember that. I've definitely learnt the hard way that living beyond your means makes life very, very difficult, so I will be holding on tight and working very hard not to fall off that wagon!PROUD TO HAVE DEALT WITH MY DEBTS0 -
Cool.. Thats cool.... I came on here and couldnt say anytbing. I can preach till the cows come home now, Ive proper come out of mt shell personally and am a damn sight more educated than ever !!
Go MSE !!0 -
It feels different now because you're in control. True, it's still a long and winding road, but now you're travelling with company.
Stick to it and mind the potholes!:eek: What if the hokey cokey is what it's all about? :eek:Official "Bring back Mark and Lard NOW! or else (please)" Member 160 -
MinnieSpender wrote:It feels different now because you're in control. True, it's still a long and winding road, but now you're travelling with company.
Stick to it and mind the potholes!
Couldn't have put it better myself. Thanks!PROUD TO HAVE DEALT WITH MY DEBTS0 -
Only been on this site for a few weeks, but most of my sentences now begin with " Martin says"! Even my sons (who are aged 2 & 4) know who Martin is and get all excited when they see him on the telly!
I get such a buzz out of saving even the smallest amounts of money...it all adds up10 -
Congratulations on your fantastic start. It feels so much better whwn you actully DO something about debt. I know that after taking charge of my debts and DOING something about them I felt that I was managing the situation instead of the situation managing me. Having made the first step I started to feel it COULD be done and evn though it would b a long haul it was a fighti was going to win.Thank god for this site and all the wonderful pople who give their time and advice so freely. Good luck in your debt clearing effortsBlind as you run...aware you were staring at the sun.
And when no hope was left inside on that starry starry night.
:A Level 42- the reason I exist. :A0 -
Glad you're feeling in control and taking charge of your finances. Congratulations.CCs @0% £24k Dec 05 £19,621.41 Au £13400 S 12600 Oct £11,981 £9481 £7500 Nov £7250 D £7100 Jan 6950 F £5800 Mar£5400 May £4830 June £4660 July £4460 Aug £3200, S £900, £0 18/9/07 DFW Nerd 0420
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Congratulations to everyone who is managing their credit. I hate to admit, but I have JUST cleared everything I owed. So? So, I'm 75 next flippin birthday!! Hope others can do better. It is a struggle and I have had lots of "luck" - a few Premium Bonds (£2,000 to £3,000), a couple of small bequests (£7,000 to £8,000) and my missus worked until a couple of months ago until they "retired her" at age 69!! Rotten sods, eh? I'll have to get a younger model. No, just joking. We've done well together and I feel very lucky to have cleared all debts, even though it has taken over 50 years.Nice to save.0
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You know what they say Peedy....life begins at 75:beer:
:D stay wonky :D
....one-way ticket to Portugal booked !0
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