I really want to fix everything...

**newstart**_2

ok i've edited my original SOA, i can't find the APRs of my student credit cards, haven't actually spent anything on them for years

i've put £900 for my car- this is an educated guess but i'm not sure who would buy it... and please don't make me sell it!

rising_from_the_ashes

OK a few comments from me

**newstart** wrote: »

Household Information[/b]
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household.........
Number of cars owned.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1750
Partners monthly income after tax....... 2000
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 3750

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 1020
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 100
Electricity............................. 66
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 15
Mobile phone............................ 35 How many? Are they on contracts? If so, when do they finish
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 0
Internet Services....................... 17.21
Groceries etc. ......................... 300 Pop over to the Old Style board & think about trying the grocery challenge. Many couples manage on £100/month & families of 4 on £220
Clothing................................ 20
Petrol/diesel........................... 45
Road tax................................ 18
Car Insurance........................... 57.13
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 30
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 220
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 0 You need to get this in place ASAP - try comparison sites to get the best deal
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 15
Haircuts................................ 0
Entertainment........................... 250 This needs cut - £50 max!
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
OH's overdraft interest ................ 30 Can't see this in the debts? How much?
gym..................................... 66 Is this a contract? When does it end?
Total monthly expenses.................. 2316.34


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 900
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 900

No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
capital one ...................2057.7....103.......38.08
tesco mastercard ..............189.64....12........19.94
natwest student cc.............375.37....10........0
rbs student cc.................429.22....9.69......0
Total unsecured debts..........3051.93...134.69....-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 3,750
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 2,316.34
Available for debt repayments........... 1,433.66
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 134.69
Amount left after debt repayments....... 1,298.97

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 900
Total HP & Secured debt................. -0
Total Unsecured debt.................... -3,051.93
Net Assets.............................. -2,151.93

OK so the great news is that you have a big surplus each month.

If this money disappears - you really need to find out where it's going as it's a lot to "lose" each month.

There are a couple of "easy" savings - £150 off your groceries & £200 off your entertainment budget. Other things to consider are the Gym - £66 is a lot each month!

Re your car, if you don't need it, you need to seriously consider whether it's worth the cost - around £150/month

Normally I'd say concentrate on the Capital One card first (it's the highest interest) - although we need more info on your OH's overdraft amount / rate etc.

However, as the Tesco card is less than £200 this should be easily cleared with part of month 1's payment (brings great satisfaction to get rid of a debt)

Make sure you pay more than the minimum on the other cards (even a few £s) or these will show on your credit reports with a big M beside them which doesn't look good to lenders should you need to apply for credit in the future.

With a bit of knuckling down you could have £1500 to put towards the debts - although it'd be a tough couple of months - just think, it could be gone by Christmas!:)

**newstart**_2

we both have overdrafts, mine is interest free, OH's is not i think total od is about 3k... not sure about this

i forgot the biggie that made everything alot tougher! OH was self employed for a period and messed up his tax, he is now on a payment plan of £450 a month til april- then it will be gone!

can't believe i forgot that one- i will double check the overdrafts

thanks so much for your help

pennypusher

Hi now you've worked out your Statement of Affairs you will be able to see where your money is going each month. Write down all your spending and update your SOA as necessary, you will soon be as in control as it appears others are.

If your partners debts come out of your joint salary write these down as well to see the whole picture.

Can you move any of the debt from the Capital one card onto one of the others - the rate of interest is crippling on there.

beanielou

You need to spending diary to see where all your money is going.
You need to redo your SOA to show the payment to tax.
Can you sell on ebay/car boot to raise some £££'s to pay off Tesco?
You really need to then concentrate on Cap 1 as the interest rate is so high.
A third of your balance is being added on every month in interest.

foxgloves

I'm going to come at this from a slightly different angle, having noticed your comment about having 'put on about 5 thousand stone'. It seems an odd one this, but this year, my partner & I became debt-free after 20 years of failing to budget while consistently overspending. Also, this year, after a lifetime of failed diets, we have each lost 3.5 stones. We have found it interesting that the 2 big things - money & weight - we'd always failed to crack, have now fallen into place. We've come to the conclusion that what was causing both problems was basically the same - non-existent planning & poor impulse control. Since having our LBMs a couple of years ago, we have got on top of the finances & now have no debt at all except for the mortgage. We decided to try & tackle our weight once & for all, starting New Year 2011 & for some reason, we have found it much easier than normal....I will have lost 4 stones by Christmas & am even confident about my target of losing another 3 next year. It certainly sounds odd, but I'm convinced that all the planning & carefully controlled spending we had to do to pay off our debts is now being applied to food shopping, menu planning & eating, and is having a knock-on positive effect on our weight. I wanted to post this because once you have got a really good handle on the money side of things, you may well find that the weight thing starts to right itself. Best of luck with it anyway, it can be done. We really were very naughty spenders right from university & for the next 20 years.....you can turn around even long term habits with clever budgeting & planning x

rdchick

heya!

You are kinda in a similar position to me, I have been here since May, knocked off a bit of debt but the big three still loom. I have about £7000 worth of debt, on 15K a year and graduated last year. I have also in the past few years gained a bit of weight (3 stone ) however since July I have so far lost a stone, which isn't a great deal in the time given but it's little and often and that's the way to think about it... little and often... I have lost about a lb a week roughly so it's pretty stable.

With my debts I know I need to get them down, I have got a second job, sold all my belongings (feels like it!) and still have a truck load of debt! Gotta keep on going though! Slowly but surely! xxx

natlie

Hi
I will say same as everyone else APR very high on Capitalone Card eek

Groceries are far too high we spend this on 5 of us, you need to meal plan - visit OS board or have a look at the meal plan on http://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/save_time_and_money/two_week_menu

I am assuming as you have said you have put on 5000 stone that you don't use your gym membership lol - can you cancel it? its very expensive

Car insurance is expensive - do you pay it monthly? shop around for cheaper and use cashback sites

Entertainment is too high too, use orange 2for1 for cinema on Wednesdays, print out restaurant vouchers e.g. Ask, La Tasca - always deals on the weekly tips email. Look for deals on Groupon and similar websites for entertainment and for haircuts and beauty treatments etc.

What is other travel for? is it taxis for nights out or is it work related? can you cut this down?
Nat

turbo.jet

foxgloves wrote: »

We have found it interesting that the 2 big things - money & weight - we'd always failed to crack, have now fallen into place.

Echo... same thing happened to me. Once I got in control of my money I also got in control of my weight. I totally think the things are linked, and not just because part of my money overhaul was not buying food every day and batch cooking instead.

ampafc

turbo.jet wrote: »

Echo... same thing happened to me. Once I got in control of my money I also got in control of my weight. I totally think the things are linked, and not just because part of my money overhaul was not buying food every day and batch cooking instead.

Indeed. When I have been worrying about money constantly, my weight has rocketed.

When I'm not worried, I don't fill my face with sweeties and cakes, and I go to the gym regularly.