Maz's debt free madness!From one extreme to another!

mazy_m

OK here goes i've never said my full story up until now...to be honest my head was in the sand for so long.

I've always been a huuuuuuuuuuge spender....when I first started working and lived at home my rent was so cheap (in comparison to reality with rent, bills, food etc....I never knew I had it so good then!! ha ha!!) Anyhoo due to two jobs (one was more of a social life than a job..it was the best job ever it go me into my favourite club free....free Gym to David Lloyds and cheap and sometimes free drinks!!!) I always had enough money to pay my rent and do whatever I wanted when I wanted (within reason I mean I didn't go out buying boats !! ha ha!!)
If I wanted to buy a new top for every night I went out I did and I pretty much was out every night well if you got into somewhere free with being able to have free drinks if you wanted wouldn't you be out every night!! ha ha... if it wasn't the pub it was our favourite bar or club good old Eros!! To be honest though I didn't drink a lot when I went out then! If I wanted to go on holiday I did it was the good life so to speak well it wasn't reality was it!! I even managed to save over £3000 for getting a laptop and to get my through my first year of uni so I didn't have to work through it.

So I left both my jobs to embark on an exciting new life at uni...SO goodbye to just over £1000 for a laptop and a couple of other uni bits before i'd even got into the car to get there....

Then after a MONTH and a bit of uni basically it was like being on holiday for all this time eating out all the time..going out every night...shopping....doing everything I wanted....I realised I'd spent not only all the last of my wages in my bank but also ALL of the money I had saved....My loan was only going to cover my rent and then some.......I was kinda screwed all this money I had saved had been completely and utterly squandered!!

My mum (who is very sensible with money and level headed but still likes to spend it too!!) suggested I apply for a student credit card just in case I needed to get things but to make sure I paid it off and that as I could save well when I need i'd be able to pay it off when I got my loan as I could be sensible..

Well after that the sensible girl seemed to fall off the face of the planet and I literally maxed out this credit card and ended up with my overdraft being to it's full £2000 but the time I was in the second year...I did get a job in February as I couldn't afford to live like that and not work....However after a few mishaps, upsets and crazy times at uni not to mention many changes of home (including one where I couldn't even afford to put electric on the meter as my friend had told me to sign the tenancy agreement as she couldn't be there then she pulled out leaving me to have to rent it alone!!! grrrr!!

So fast forward to finishing uni it was hard getting through being skint and knowing I still owed all this money so I worked my !!! off at uni and at work too so I could live basically I theorectically went from one extreme to the other...so I got my first full time job right after uni and my car went and blew up....I really needed it to get to work so I had to ask for a loan....I ended up taking out £3000 ekkkk not including PPI when I only really needed £1000 for the car... but I did owe a months rent (actually my new housemates hadn't paid in a month or two so I had to keep us up to date but I did get it back..) So I sorted all this out and ended up going on holiday ( I was actually pretty frugal on this holiday!!)

Anyhoo I came back and this car that I relied on for work decided to blow up on the way back from seeing my parents in London and then again on my way to work... it was a nightmare..... so I know I shouldn't have but I brought a care on finance....ekkk for all in all costing something like £7200... this was OCT 2008...

Since then I've just been like debts something that is always going to be with me....I took out another credit card and maxed that out stupidly....then I took out yet another one to put my boyfriends driving lessons on it....at this time I had to pay for everything as he could only get temp work then ended up being out of work for a month or so but he said it was money he owed me once he was paid.....but they amount they let me have was 3X what I needed...so no need to guess what happened to that...then they upped it!! It was in around November and I was sat in work reading a text having to reply yet again saying sorry no I couldn't go out as I was skint ...
So I thought just how much debt do I have and I added it all together
and I was shocked and thought no...it can't be.....so I ignored it and kept my head in the sand....then it came to buying christmas presents and I realised that I literally couldn't put anything on anymore credit cards...so I actually wrote it down and kept it in my diary the debt I had was
£13,688........ I was gobsmacked so I decided there and then I would have a budget for everything I've stuck to this completely been very good and the OH has got a decent perm job now and has nearly paid me back everything he owes he's only got a couple of months left then so now I can proudly announce my debt stands at ....
£8018 as of today....I'm going to use this as a sort of diary to record everything I spend and pay off of my debts...then hopefully save!!!
OMG I just realised how long this is ...if you've read it thanks and I hope it helps you see It can be done a leopard can change it's spots!!
....I'm not there yet but I will get there and I imagine it will feel so good!!

Maz Xxx

elaine12022

Hi Maz, well done for facing up to things,and for making good progress, I'm sure a lot of people can relate to what you say.

If you feel like you're flagging a bit, there's a list of challenges at the top of the thread.

mazy_m

Debts breakdown.... : ( (at least it's lower than in December!! )

Settlement agreement amount from car £3571 (not that I can afford that right now) but this is what's effectively left including the interest.
Laptop £658.10
CC 1 @ 24.9% (Ekk) £125
CC2 @ 15.9% £669
CC3 @ 0% (June 12) £1025
Grad Loan @ 8.5%(approx) £1023 (waiting for around £600 PPI back for this!!)
Overdraft @ 16.5% £2000

Just realised my figure from before was wrong I forgot to add something then I'd spend on my LA (ekkk but it was presents!!)
So the total now is £9071...... Ekkk
But it can still be done!!!!

Maz Xx

kdenty

I know that feeling. Well done for having the honesty with yourself to realise your situation. It's a long path ahead but you already sound determined to get there. As a reformed spender myself I can really recommend the No Spending challenge as a starter. I don't partake now but it was hugely inspirational to me.

mazy_m

Thanks kdenty i'll check that one out!! : ) x

mazy_m

Woo just remembered I get paid tomo!! so can pay off some of my debts wooo wooo!!! x

mazy_m

Thanks Elaine just saw your post will def be checking that out I get bored very easily!!
So payday and I paid off the balance on my sainsburys CC and the balance on my LA CC....but I know there's interest to be added to Sainsburys so have to wait to find out what that final payment is....also know I still owe a fiver on LA just hasn't appeared yet and it won't let me overpay....but i'll be using this card for my petrol and food this month and will pay off as much as I can...just so more is paid off at the start of the month so theorectically I should end up paying less interest....woooo!!

So Debts as of today 27/05/11 Settlement agreement amount from car £3571 (not that I can afford that right now) but this is what's effectively left including the interest.
CC 1 @ 24.9% (Ekk) £0 but.... £4.99 still to go on and using to get through month (Will have to make me think about what i'm buying as i'm spending on it!!! )
CC2 @ 15.9% £0 but interest due to go on then est £9.86 but think it's poss lower!!
CC3 @ 0% (June 12) £1025
Grad Loan @ 8.5%(approx) £1023 (waiting for around £600 PPI back for this!!)
Overdraft @ 16.5% £2,0000
Laptop @0% £658.10 if paid before Sept!! If not it's a stupidly high APR and total is £1377 Ekkkkk!!

So debt technically stands at.....£8291.95

Debts paid off since Dec...

Very
Littlewoods
Dorothy Perkins
Natwest CC
Sainsburys CC
Laura Ashley CC

6 down ......5 to go.....

Also pleased to report I haven't spent a penny today!! I think that's my first ever NSD on a payday since I started working!!

Maz Xx

mazy_m

There goes the NSD just booked a coach ticket to Amsterdam!! woooo!! but I don't have to pay for the hotel so a great deal really!! x

mazy_m

Update for the weekend!! ekkkk!! so yesterday I was very good indeed...I gave myself one of the biggest challenges ever I was helping my friend do a collection for GOSH (she's amazing she's almost rasied £10,000 as she was there as a child and wants to thank them so is climbing Mt Kilimanjaro i'll add her website at the bottom if you want to take a look at all she's done!! i'm so proud of her!! )

Anyhoo the collection was in lakeside...those of you from the South, Essex and London probably know this is a huge shopping centre that shopaholics absolutely adore!! So the big challenge was to spend NOTHING at all apart from lunch as I had nothing in to take with me..
I brought my Credit card and Debit card to make myself NOT spend even though they were in my pocket...

So the day started and we were a little late and very hungry at the start plus it was quite slow...so we decided to get a Mac Ds brekkie (naughty I know!!) that was the first £3.39 gone...ekkk but hey it's within my food budget....then come lunchtime we were marvin again so we decided to treat ourselves to Nandos....my friend tried to pay for me coz I was helping her out spending the day collecting for her but I felt bad so another £6.95 out of the food budget but was def worth it!! nom nom nom!!! That now means I've £90 left for the food budget for the month!!

However that was all I spent and it was part of the food budget so I spend not a single penny on shopping etc!!! yay!!!

Saturday night was a quiet night in with the girls so the cupboards were raided for a bottle of wine and anything else we could find to make some funky sangria....yum yum....then they were raided again for some goodies...not to mention the pizzas and goodies galore they brought around with them....a fun laughter filled night was had by all.....fab! And not a penny spent again (love the fact I pile up the cupboards although they're getting a bit bare now lol!)

So onto Sunday we decided to go to the car boot and me and my OH have devised a cunning plan to try to save money....so anything I want to buy during the week I have to then think about if I need it or really want it for a few days...then if I can get it cheaper for a little shop around etc...my challenge then is to go to the boot sale with the amount I was gonna pay for the product and see if I can get it there for cheaper than the original price ...then I can either spend the extra on a treat or put it back in the pot....

So looked around the bootsale and nothing really caught my eye wanted some new cushion covers but the stall holder didn't want to haggle over 50P so I walked away..I think i'll probably just give mine a good wash I love those ones anyway...

As I went with the guy who lives above me and my mate they wanted to go for lunch....ekkk I thought ok seen as I didn't spend a penny at the bootsale and it was wetherspoons!! he he!! So I brought the first round by no one was drinking... ha ha so was only £3.50. Then when I went to pay to pay for the meal the guy who lives above wouldn't let me or my mate pay at all so that was really nice of him a lovely roast dinner and pudding nom nom!!

So over the whole weekend i've only really spent money from the food budget wooo now that's a HUGE achievement for me especially on the weekend I've just been paid, especially a bank holiday weekend... i've resisted going the pub and going out!!

woooo so a great weekend....i'm proud of myself this weekend!!!just need to continue with the NSD days tomo!!

xx

http://www.goshwhataclimb.co.uk/climb/

So proud of her!!!

mazy_m

Bank holiday update....was good again....went for a walk to a local park with a friend had a good old catch up then we went to the cinema.....so technically it didn't cost me anything as I pay per month for it (I do go often so it works out a better deal as when you've gone twice you've already saved money!!)

Anyhoo was good as cut up a melon and brought a drink from home so wasn't tempted with anything at the counters!! was rammed in there tho and also I really wouldn't rec the Hanover 2 it wasn't as great as I thought it was gonna be was kinda dissapointed!!

Plan for today i've been tempted to online shop a bit but i've stopped myself looking any more : ) he he !! so going to the gym in a bit....that's free too as again it's monthly (and I get a good deal for working in a school!!) after the gym off to Belly dancing (free as it's with the leisure centre! so all in all a NSD the OH is picking up some milk and maybe some cakes (ekkkk!!) on the way home but that'll come out of the food budget so it's all good no overspending here!!

Maz Xx

mazy_m

Oh yeah and paid off that £4.99 that went onto my CC today !! Out of the debt budget!! woo on track!! Xx