Help me my life sucks

elvis_bloggs

brisck1, don't worry, Martin will read this and come to your rescue.

nearlyrich

Hi Brisck1 just been looking at your numbers and as Martin said you have had some great responses to your dilemma.

I didn't see any mention of the following in your budget Car Insurance, MOT & Car Breakdown Fund, General Emergency Fund, Holiday Fund.

Do you buy the cheapest petrol or the most convenient ? do you use the car when you could walk?

Your housing costs are high in comparison to your salary.Could you cut down on your food and household expenditure maybe buy some lower brands for a few months and if you don't cook from scratch start to using the good advice on the Old Style Board. Maybe batch cook things like Spagetti Sauce and freeze it.

What are your life goals, do you want to stay where you are in Devon or could you transfer to another maybe cheaper part of the country where your money will go further?

Are you due a payrise? Ask for it if you think you deserve it.

Martin suggested keeping a spending diary, it is a great idea you can see exactly where the money goes. Also do a Budget using the planner as he suggested it's amazing how it looks over a year.

I think another thing to consider is that while your friends are off on holidays etc and seem to be doing better than you, are they using credit which will one day catch up with them? It is always dangerous to try to keep up with other people, the media makes you feel inadequate if you can't have it all now.

I think it is incredibly hard for young people to get on the property ladder with student debts to pay, and I wish you good luck in your efforts, keep posting and we will always try to help with suggestions and our experiences.

Sofa_Sogood

Hi briscks1

I've been reading this topic since you posted it but didn't have anything to contribute unfortunately.

But if you feel things aren't going too well, read this story sometime, it's awesome, and something I often read.

forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=16574

I hope the link works ok, if not can a guide reduce/change it please?

And nearlyrich had a good point. Ask for a payrise. A close relative asked for a free car parking space and ended up with an offer of a partnership in the law company that they work at!

Good luck.

ms_london

Hello. I just thought I would add a few things. Here is your SOA (Statement Of Affairs) that you posted:

Outgoings
Rent: £385
Car loan: £155
Mobile Phone: £30
Land line: £30 (includes internet broadband)
Food: £80
Petrol: £56
Car tax: £10
Council Tax £80
Electric £45
Gas £10
Social money £80 (drinks, cinema, etc)
Household(cleaners etc) £15
Contact lenses £10
TV Licence £10
Home insurance £15

TOTAL Left £61

Did you not mention that you had a student loan too or is the car loan your only debt?

I think that you are spending very little on socialising & even food, and this could be cutback further if you really wanted - but what kind of life would this leave you?

It looks as though your only option would be either to move into a smaller place, or rent out a room. I know you said you didnt want to have to do this, but realistically it is the only way it will "free up" any money - about £292 if you split the rent & all of the utlities down the middle. Wow!!! I know it might not be an ideal situation, but sharing isnt all that bad - I share a flat with two other girls, in London, i didnt know them when they moved in but we are all friends now, so it can be a great way to meet new people & increase your social circle. Even if you were to do it until the term of your car loan expires (how long is this?), or you could use the £292 to pay your car loan off quicker.

I know it must be hard when your friends are doing all of these things. Its bad that they have stopped asking you though, and they should try & involve you and make it easier. But like someone else pointed out, who knows what amount of debt they are in themselves? At least you are trying to sort your finances out and be financially responsible and its good to see that you are living within your means and arent relying on credit cards (you arent are you??) to get you through the month, that makes you a much better person already.

Get a lodger, widen your social circle, ask for a payrise at work, consider moving into a smaller place if you dont like the lodger idea, it wont be for long, and you will come out on top.

Good luck & let us know how you get on.

Ms_London

brisck1

Well thanks again for all the great feedback, and thanks Martin for taking notice.

I have decided to set myself some cost cutting goals to accomplish by the end of the monthso that I can draw up a more accurate budget.

My first goal is to try and cancel my mobile and move to pay as you talk.

Second is to research my idea about paying off my car loan with a combination of my interest free overdraft and a 0% credit card, finding out how much Cahoot charge for early repayment and whether or not its going to be worthwhile.

Secondly I'll be taking a long hard look at my food shopping bills, internet & phone bills and also find out about a pay-rise.

To those of you asking about my Car Insurance, I actually paid it off in full last october (when I had savings :P ) so im not paying it off monthly, but I think maybe I should be putting abit away each month for it anyway, what do you think?

Im thinking of switching Supermarkets from Sainsbury's to Tescos too, I hear they are much cheaper.

Anyway once everything's sorted out at the end of the month i'll report back here and let you guys know how I have improved my spending. (I'll be budgeting weekly and using martins budget planner!)

Thanks again guys!

Edinburghlass_2

If you post your internet and telephone costs on the Telephone Board you will get plenty of helpful advice there to reduce your costs.

Good luck

mel734

Brisck1, hope everything works out for you, I often feel that those of us who try to save and pay our bills are suffering for the people who live in the perpetual red ( a bit like paying tax and NI instead of people like that Wife Swap couple on £30 odd grand a year - infuriating eh?) Anyway - what I wanted to say is keep an eye on Tescos and Sainsburys as they both offer deals now and again on petrol if you spend a certain amount. Lat week it was 5p off every litre after spending over £75. OK if you're buying bulk or stocking up one month?

brisck1

Arg dont even get me started on that Wife Swap couple! or even the other 2million scroungers like them living off our taxes makes me so mad!

d726t9

Not sure if it's already been said but from April this year the threshold over which you have to earn before you pay back your student loan is going up to £15000. So, instead of paying back a percentage of your salary over £10000, you'll be paying a percentage of the salary over £15000.

I think the percentage is 9%, so currently, if you're earning £16000 a year, you'd pay back £540 over the course of a year, but that would only be £90 over a year after April. So, might make some difference to you.

Of course, it will take longer to pay it off but it's not worth overpaying, especially if you have any other debts at a higher interest rate.

I hope people can correct me if I got any of that wrong,
Steve

brisck1

That sounds good, I'd probably save £10-15 per month if that's true.

Will this be automatically adjusted in April?