How much do you live on per month?

getmeooutofthisdebt

There is no interest to pay for 18 months if we do the transfer. It will cost us £80 fee but at the moment we pay between £30 and £31 per month on overdraft fees.

Thanks for your answer

RuthnJasper

getmeooutofthisdebt wrote: »

There is no interest to pay for 18 months if we do the transfer. It will cost us £80 fee but at the moment we pay between £30 and £31 per month on overdraft fees.

Thanks for your answer

GMOOTD - It's a good plan. IF you can take advantage of the benefits and save up that £30 per month to pay off the additional balance once the 18 months are up (unless you plan to then transfer any remaining balance to another card) - otherwise the card-keepers will stack-up the interest rates!. But, for where you are now, it sounds like a good plan. Just make sure that you are prepared for a hike in interest on the card after 18 months.

Keep smiling! xx

getmeooutofthisdebt

Thx alot for the good advice

frugalqueen_2

Originally Posted by Lucy1010
Don't you guys ever feel depressed at having to make do the whole time or does it just become a way of life?

I've learnt to live without. I go for walks, I go to the library, I've dug up a bit of the garden to grow veg, I pick blackberries and make jam, I use freecycle to give away and get what I need, I use charity shops and car boot sales, I don't buy anything new, I have shunned consumerism and materialism. I make my own food, I knit for a hobby, I make quilts from recycled material from the scrap store, I have friends round for dinner and we eat homemade food and drink homemade wine. I'm living the best days of my life!!!! I have also paid off almost £30K of debt since 2009!!! This is my greatest and proudest achievement!!!! This makes me feel elated and not depressed.

RuthnJasper

frugalqueen wrote: »

Originally Posted by Lucy1010
Don't you guys ever feel depressed at having to make do the whole time or does it just become a way of life?

I've learnt to live without. I go for walks, I go to the library, I've dug up a bit of the garden to grow veg, I pick blackberries and make jam, I use freecycle to give away and get what I need, I use charity shops and car boot sales, I don't buy anything new, I have shunned consumerism and materialism. I make my own food, I knit for a hobby, I make quilts from recycled material from the scrap store, I have friends round for dinner and we eat homemade food and drink homemade wine. I'm living the best days of my life!!!! I have also paid off almost £30K of debt since 2009!!! This is my greatest and proudest achievement!!!! This makes me feel elated and not depressed.

I tend to agree. I still find it very miserable when I have to struggle to meet my basic needs - and am very, VERY fed-up at times. But, on balance, I know that I am a LOT happier since getting my IVA nearly four years ago (just over a year left to go!!), than I ever was before.

Going for a good walk with Jasper-dog, enjoying the world around me and taking delight in Jasper's happiness when he's out and about with me are joys that I wouldn't exchange for any money.

I know it sounds naff, but I'd rather be poor and happy than rich but lonely and miserable. Hopefully, when my IVA is finally cleared, I'll be able to find some middle-ground. But I've certainly learned to appreciate what I have, rather than getting myself into a pickle by overspending on a lifestyle I cannot realistically afford. x

kerri_gt

Hey guys, sorry had a busy couple of days, haven't totally been MIA but not had time to post anything worth writing (although some may argue nothing new there )

gosh! didn't mean to spark of a whole benefits debate *note to self - keep soapbox in the cupboard under the stairs* what I really meant to say I guess is that the current system doesn't seem to work fairly for those who really do need assistance versus those who are happy to take all they need and more because it's virtually offered to them on a plate.

I won't say any more after this, but my point about making people do voluntary work wasn't meant so they can't look for jobs etc etc or take the place of paid work, but I do think there is a middle ground where people could (should?) be made to do some kind of community service while looking for work / receiving benefits to give something back to the community. Don't ask me how it would work...that's a whole other matter.

Frugalqueen - your approach and outlook sounds quite inspiring, although I do also understand where Lucy is coming from when she says about having to make do all the time. I guess its that age old thing of the difference between having choices and not having choices to a greater or lesser extent. Money certainly doesn't buy happiness, but life's a darn site harder when you don't have any at all.

MerseyLad

At present I live on about £200 a month. That is for food, social events and any clothes!!

Not a lot out of £1800 p/m wages, but I've been clearing things in a frenzy and so I am happy to see light at the end of the tunnel.

Miss_Scrooge_2

Me and the OH only live on the bare minimal. It's not that we're tight, we just don't see the need of mindless spending. He's a bit better at it than me. Sometimes I like to treat myself but only sometimes!

So for just the 2 of us we spend almost £500 a month. Now that seems like a lot and I'm unhappy that we are spending this amount but most of this is on rent and the rest on food.

miggy

RuthnJasper wrote: »

HELLO Miggy!!! :j

I DO remember you; how could I not?! I think we met first on an anti-troll-warning thread and then again on Mike's thread just after the DIY-SOS programme (how is Mike doing by the way? Hope he and his two boys are OK).

Cheers for the greeting - MUCH love to you. I'm OK - am in a 'grim-bit' just now - but nothing like the pre-IVA days! Definitely much happier since then. Jasper-dog is well and still blogging (see our homepage - link under our name to the left of our posts) - he's been a bit poorly of late; high possibility that it could be The Big C. But he's generally well - and still capable of being naughty - always a good sign in a man of any description, I think!!

MSE has really kept me going over the past few weeks. I had a REAL low moment two or three weeks ago and, if it hadn't been for the lovely folk who responded to my little rant, goodness knows where I'd be now!

love and hugs to you Miggy. You're one of life's REALLY good ones. xxx

P.S. The latest Jasper-Joke; for all who might need a smile:
Why have African Elephants got Big Ears?
'Cause Noddy can't afford to pay the ransom...

Keep smiling! xxx

Aw, thanks Ruth - it's nice to be remembered! Mike's making progress, and his thread has been stirring again recently. I believe he's been working on the garden and if the hanging baskets were anything to go by it will be lovely.

I'm sorry you and Jasper are going through a rough patch. It sounds as though he's feeling chipper, though, which is a good thing. I'm glad there was someone around when you needed to rant. A bit of moral support can make a huge difference. Unfortunately when I'm struggling I tend not to communicate, hence Iwent through a quiet spell last year when I was under various pressures, but life's a lot better now. Keep chatting - it's a good thing!

One of these days I might find my way back to the anti-troll thread: there are some great people over there, but I'm not savy enough to spot trolls myself. I just cheer from the sidelines as they get 'dealt with'.

Look after yourself. I'm sure I'll keep bumping into you again now it's happened once!

t.b_2

I'm 28, i live with my brother in a house my family own, we pay them £250 each a month, my household bills are £115 a month, thats gas/elec/water/sky/tv licence, my brother pays the council tax, my phone is £35 and my Credit Card i pay £30 Direct Debit, my car insurance is £30 and i get around 1400 a month in wages after tax at the moment (not a huge wage), leaving me with £690 approx, i do overtime sometimes which gives me an extra £150.

I don't know how anyone can live on 250-300 a month, i would look at getting a new job or re-training, i'm a builder and my money is as low as it's ever been, when i was 21 i was getting £500-600 a month! Those times have gone but i consider a career path if they dropped lower.