SeriouslySeekingtoSave strongly strides straight into slaying her mortgage!

Spiggle

Hi SSTS,

Welcome and wishing you determination, consistency and motivation! Your diary is certainly motivating.

SeriouslySeekingtoSave wrote: »

... It sounds like the food budget is a common woe, glad I'm not alone :-) Well done you for managing to reign it in :T I've just started on this part of my 'makeover' so I'm aiming high for me (£150 a month) but I know that that would be considered laughable by many others standards. Got to start somewhere though right? Once I've got some cheap and easy recipes down pat I can hopefully see about pulling it in further. I still like my Thai though so I'm not planning on a Beans on Toast diet regardless

... I've never been able to budget, my 3 month record of every penny I spent before I applied for my mortgage is the closest I've ever been. I am able to not spend money though if I know I don't have it or I need to save. I'm just quite erratic and hate the thought of saying 'ok £20 this week on going out'. Sometimes I'll go out 4 times a week and not for the next 3. Or if I do I won't spend anything. I've always had a life like that so I've never found a budget to fit in with the sort of person I am. ...

I agree that Weezl's thread is brilliant but it sounds like you do like your food and on the front page of the January GC you will see three posts containing recipes. They are delish and some to die for and aren't all restricted to minimum spend dishes so you might find a bit more variety there.

On the budgetting side, I highly recommend Martin's budget planner on the main site (I haven't used budget brain) which is a spreadsheet and allows for budgetting weekly, monthly or annually. I find it's really flexible especially for those things that you are at the moment uncertain of total spend on. It might just provide a start point for you which you can amend as you record more of your actual spend.

SJ1 wrote: »

... What I am starting to do now is divide up what we have after the budget spend left into different pots, which has led to the question of whether I use a piece of that to pay what I can on the mortgage. I want one pot for one off expenses like car tax, Christmas and our holiday and an ISA for longer term saving and then maybe repay the mortgage but the question is which do I go for first? That's the question in my mind at the moment. ...

SJ1 have you looked at Martin's page on piggy banking on the main site? I do my annual things like car maintenance, etc on monthly budget. I've set up a savings account with IF (not best buy at 2.5% but good for this purpose) as within the one account you can have 'jars' to which you can send specific amounts each month. So I have SOs that send amounts to the Christmas jar, Birthdays jar, car tax, ins, etc you get the picture. Anyway for people like me (*n*l and yet not! ) the flexibility of this is very useful.

SeriouslySeekingtoSave wrote: »

... I've actually taken the advice of one of the earlier posters and I've tried to open up an account with First Direct - that will give me £100 straight off and then I can open a saving account with them with a maximum amount of £300 a month and at 8% for a year.

So far that is the best I've found. I'm trying to find a decent ISA; if I get one at around 3% that will be worth more than my mortgage repayments even if it's not by much. I'll keep at my repayments though as I want to hit my £10,000 target.

I sooo want a FD account for that reg saver - must get myself sorted out with it. Well done on getting yours organised SSTS. There are a couple of threads on cash ISAs on the forum. One is kept up to date by kazza and it's called Mini Cash ISAs: The Best ISAs currently available List and frustratingly is not stickied on the forum so I hope my linky works!

Ooooh, almost forgot. To subscribe to a thread use the Advanced post and below the Submit Reply button there are Additional Options and you can subscribe using the Notiofication drop down. Alternatively, if you're in a thread you want to subscribe to, scroll up to Thread Tools (in green bar just below the page numbers at the top) click on that and subscribe to thread. You'll get the same notification options to choose from. Hope that helps.

Anyway, good luck, much consistency, deep determination and keep up the motivation!

Take care,
Spigs

SeriouslySeekingtoSave

Things to do:

• Ring NatWest Credit Cards and ensure that my card has both been cancelled and the two months worth of charges have been removed so I’m not going to have problems regarding my non payment. (they didn’t tell me when they tried to convince me to stay with them that it would cost me £3 a month to sign up on the Advantage Points :mad: – was not happy when I found out as I hadn’t bothered to use the card. Was VERY firm when I rang them, demanding the card be fully cancelled, I didn’t want to hear another sales pitch, and the charges were removed)
• Ring nPower and provide my electric meter reading as they take over from British Gas from tomorrow. Gas is apparently set to move on the 17th.
• Ring British Gas and let them know that I have done this and what the final meter reading is. Repeat that I don’t want any more of their ‘estimated’ bills when I’ve provided them 3 actual meter readings in the 3 months I’ve been their ‘customer’ and they’ve totally ignored them! (bunch of incompetent monkeys) :mad:
• Look at ISA’s and find one to apply for.
• Look at 0% vs Cash Back CC’s and work out which one is better. Any suggestions :question:
• Find out how much money I will be paying off my credit card by Direct Debit full payment and when exactly that leaves my account.
• Decide how much money I want to take on my holiday to NZ at the end of Jan. I’ll be paid a few days after I leave but I want to make sure I don’t go into overdraft with all of my deductions from credit cards and anything else out there that I don’t know about. That is one of the main reasons I’m doing my ‘daily spend’ sheet. I will soon actually be noticing when my money comes out of my account and be able to plan! With luck I can move everything into the first few days of the month as I get paid at the end of the month. With all of my monthly payments coming out at the beginning I’ll have the knowledge of how much is left until I get another payment in a months time. My mortgage comes out at the start of each month already and that’s my biggest expense by far.
• Send off my new address details so I’m correct on the electoral role

I’ve already applied to First Direct regarding opening a basic account (and if I get accepted for that then I’ll open that 8% savings account) so, all in all I’m going to sitting pretty well with regards to getting my finances sorted once I’ve done all of the above

I’ve also managed to make my 3 x exercise target this week and I’ve still got more to go after work and anything I do in the weekend. Go Me! :j

Megadebtor

SeriouslySeekingtoSave wrote: »

I've actually taken the advice of one of the earlier posters and I've tried to open up an account with First Direct - that will give me £100 straight off and then I can open a saving account with them with a maximum amount of £300 a month and at 8% for a year.

Ah thanks for that. Have just opened a regular saver with them. That shall go towards my 10K challenge towards the end of 2011:T

SeriouslySeekingtoSave

1. [STRIKE]Ring NatWest Credit Cards and ensure that my card has both been cancelled and the two months worth of charges have been removed so I’m not going to have problems regarding my non payment[/STRIKE]. Done - Rang NatWest and confirmed that my balance is now 0. I still have a credit limit of £3,000 but have been assured that it is closed and that this should drop off the system at the end of the month. Which hopefully also means my credit record.


2. [STRIKE]Ring nPower and provide my electric meter reading as they take over from British Gas from tomorrow. Gas is apparently set to move on the 17th[/STRIKE] Done. Very quick and easy


3.[STRIKE] Ring British Gas and let them know that I have done this and what the final meter reading is[/STRIKE]. Done and what the blooming nightmare that was. Hopefully I will NEVER have to ring them again! Even if they were the cheapest company I would dump them as soon as I possibly could, they are just so so useless.


4. [STRIKE]Look at ISA’s and find one to apply for.[/STRIKE] DONE! Just applied for the Santander ISA. I’ll be starting out with a £2,000 payment and hopefully I’ll be able to increase that very soon

5. Look at 0% vs Cash Back CC’s and work out which one is better. Any suggestions? - Not yet. Still looking…

6. [STRIKE]Find out how much money I will be paying off my credit card by Direct Debit full payment and when exactly that leaves my account.[/STRIKE] – Done. 13th of Jan - £170.60


7. Decide how much money I want to take on my holiday to NZ at the end of Jan. – Still thinking about it

8. [STRIKE]Send off my new address details so I’m correct on the electoral role[/STRIKE] - Done

Right. That was a very productive hour. Time to grab something to eat, head to the gym and then off to the National Gallery with some friends for one of their friday guided tours on some of the artwork. These are absolutely wonderful if anyone is living in London, is even slightly interested in art and doesn't already know about them. Totally free and wonderfully interesting and entertaining. Learning the stories behind the artwork that hangs on the walls.

Feeling very determined and motivated!

abouttimetoo

SeriouslySeekingtoSave wrote: »

* Credit Card 0% This is another one I've been considering and I'm wondering whether I should go for the 0% CC or the cashback. Seeing as I don't have any debts to move onto this I'm leaning more towards the cashback credit card. One question I had was, the 0% period that you get, is that a set time period at the start of the card and 18months later any debt that is on it you have to pay off or does it keep extending depending on when the debt was placed? So if I bought a sofa on the CC 10 months in and it was an 18 month free credit, would the debt for the sofa need to be paid off in 8 months or 18?

Hi again

Just been catching up on your thread, you are making great progress, well done you!

Re your time period question, yes, it's a fixed time period so in your example if you bought the sofa 10 months into the 18 month time frame it would need to be repaid 8 months later. I do however, like your thinking about it keep being extended but I'm afraid that would be a licence to print money and I don't think the card provider would be too happy with that :rotfl:

Have a look at the credit card forum on here as there is usually lots of good advice about card types and offers etc. If you do decide to do anything on 0% make sure you are disciplined about it and know the various terms and conditions so that you don't get caught out.

Obvioulsy a lot depends on your credit limit but this is the sort of scenario you could look to do

• month one e.g you spend £200 on your 0% card, arrange a direct debit for the minumum payment (don't forget to do this as if you miss a payment you will probably invalidate the 0% arrangement) Lets say the minimum payment is £5 so you then put the other £195 into a savings account to earn interest
• month two, you spend another £200, d/d/ goes out for £10 you put the £180 into the savings account so you are now earning interest on £375
• etc, etc
• do this until the end of the 0% terms then fully repay the balance when it due

Re the cashback cards, assuming you don't get too high a limit on your first card this may not generate that much money and they tend not to pay out too much anyway though some offer initial higher rates, e.g. recently american express had 5% cashback on for the first three months capped at £100 then 1% thereafter but they need to be repaid in full each month.

When you do apply for a card remember to check topcashback, quidco etc first as they will often give you cashback just for getting the card e.g. I've just had a quick look at them for you and the Post Office is offering £18.18 for an accepted card of theirs, Amex up to £60 depending on what kind you get, Halifax £10 and there were loads more.

On the subject of casback sites, I know you mentioned you were moving utilities but have you arranged the others as the sites are also making offers for telephones, gas, electric , buildings and contents insurance, appliance cover etc as well as any holiday things you might need like currency, insurance etc.

I would also look at Groupon - an amazing site with loads of fab offers e.g. I've just booked 2massages for £26 instead of £44, paid £5 for a £20 off voucher at an indian restaurant that I ate at last night and my brother-in-law (and then his father as well) have just bought two £80 golfing packages for £19.

SeriouslySeekingtoSave

Did a good but very cheap shop at ASDA today. Not quite the monthly shop that Martin recommends (not sure how people fit that much food in their freezers!) but I should be mostly ok for a couple of weeks and it only cost £30. I have a feeling I am going to kick the £150 grocery budget challenge out of touch. So the next time I do it I'll cut it right down, maybe to £100? Hmm, £120 might be better...

Also my First Direct bank information arrived today so I just need to fill all that out an send it back to them for, fingers crossed, a new bank account with a nice £100 to welcome me into it. One thing I've noticed is they've sent me CC details. I am going to have to put big lines through it and say 'no credit card please'. I'll apply for either a cash back or an interest free one probably when I'm back from NZ.

I also need to remember to take a payment holiday from my LoveFilm so I'm not charge for 3 weeks while I'm away and not using it!

Well it's late and I'm tired, so that was just a quick update to my diary.

SeriouslySeekingtoSave

abouttimetoo wrote: »

Hi again

Just been catching up on your thread, you are making great progress, well done you!

Re your time period question, yes, it's a fixed time period so in your example if you bought the sofa 10 months into the 18 month time frame it would need to be repaid 8 months later. I do however, like your thinking about it keep being extended but I'm afraid that would be a licence to print money and I don't think the card provider would be too happy with that :rotfl:

Have a look at the credit card forum on here as there is usually lots of good advice about card types and offers etc. If you do decide to do anything on 0% make sure you are disciplined about it and know the various terms and conditions so that you don't get caught out.


Obvioulsy a lot depends on your credit limit but this is the sort of scenario you could look to do

• month one e.g you spend £200 on your 0% card, arrange a direct debit for the minumum payment (don't forget to do this as if you miss a payment you will probably invalidate the 0% arrangement) Lets say the minimum payment is £5 so you then put the other £195 into a savings account to earn interest
• month two, you spend another £200, d/d/ goes out for £10 you put the £180 into the savings account so you are now earning interest on £375
• etc, etc
• do this until the end of the 0% terms then fully repay the balance when it due

Re the cashback cards, assuming you don't get too high a limit on your first card this may not generate that much money and they tend not to pay out too much anyway though some offer initial higher rates, e.g. recently american express had 5% cashback on for the first three months capped at £100 then 1% thereafter but they need to be repaid in full each month.

When you do apply for a card remember to check topcashback, quidco etc first as they will often give you cashback just for getting the card e.g. I've just had a quick look at them for you and the Post Office is offering £18.18 for an accepted card of theirs, Amex up to £60 depending on what kind you get, Halifax £10 and there were loads more.

On the subject of casback sites, I know you mentioned you were moving utilities but have you arranged the others as the sites are also making offers for telephones, gas, electric , buildings and contents insurance, appliance cover etc as well as any holiday things you might need like currency, insurance etc.

I would also look at Groupon - an amazing site with loads of fab offers e.g. I've just booked 2massages for £26 instead of £44, paid £5 for a £20 off voucher at an indian restaurant that I ate at last night and my brother-in-law (and then his father as well) have just bought two £80 golfing packages for £19.

What a great post, wonderful information.

Firstly thanks for clearing up the 0% credit cards - I was hoping Ah well.

I moved my elec/gas through a cash back site but unfortunately I didn't take note of which one! It was back in the 'old days' when I was careless ie a couple of months ago... I'll do some checking and see if I can find out but I may have to accept that I've 'lost' that cashback and do better the next time.

Regarding other utilities I have set up a PlusNet Phone/Broadband package. I moved away from the Virgin that I think the last people used. I didn't use a cash back site for them but I think I got a good deal; did my research and picked up the cheapest (but with good reviews) company. As I had to get a phone line installed as well before I could get broadband PlusNet worked out the best. They've been really good as well. I haven't actually bought myself a phone yet, I only needed (and I do mean needed - living without broadband is no longer an option) the internet side of things. I'll pick up a cheap one from eBay at some point.

Insurances are basically all done. Work actually covers nearly all of them. At some point though I'll be getting new Home and possibly contents insurance so I'll check then.

Do you need to have an account set up for these cashback sites? If so, I didn't get one when I clicked whichever link it was for my power supplier.

Groupon I have just signed up for. What a wonderful idea, thank you sooo much. Just bought myself the 5 session for hair reduction lol. Goodbye shaving! £119 which even I will admit is a bargain!

CathT

From reading your diary I'm sure you'll be mortgage free in no time at all with your detemination!

SeriouslySeekingtoSave

Two NSDs in a row . They've been pretty quiet but I'm currently working early shift (5am start) so I've been getting to bed very early; no raging out on the town for me . Instead I've been working my way through the complete series of Agatha Christie/Hercule Poirot that I bought for myself over Christmas. And a Love Film movie was waiting for me when I got home as well. The Barbarian Invasions which was excellent, although a bit of a tear jerker.

I've managed to stick to eating what I have in my fridge, although I forgot to buy a few important ingredients in my last shop so I had to improvise a stir fry, still, was very tasty

I've also been sticking to simple porridge or cereal for breakfast at work rather than buying it from the cafe downstairs and lunch is either pita bread pockets or left overs from last nights tea. My appetite has been going through the roof again with going to the gym so much so I'll have to be sure I bring plenty to prevent me running out and then having to buy something. Food forward planning, hmmm, not really my strong point...

I have a work collegues farewell drinks tomorrow so both the healthy diet and the no spend days will probably die a death lol.

SeriouslySeekingtoSave

Just noticed a rip on the side of my top at work this morning. Gave it an annoyed little pull to tug it under my dress to try to cover it up and the little rip got a little bit bigger! :eek:.

Thank goodness for a work colleagues handy sewing kit. I’m trying to save money but not by having my clothes so rickety they are literally falling to pieces!