A Thread for After Debt?

QueenB.

mustbemad68 wrote: »

I hadn't realised how much I had changed during my DFW journey. I would previously have been at the sales by now ordering my new carpets and sofas and worrying about paying them later because I 'deserved' it! I am now saving for carpets and looking around at 2nd hand sofas - I have rediscovered our local auction house and I am hoping to pick up a bargain there.
I received a lump of back pay last month that allowed me to become debt-free sooner than expected and I was seriously tempted to buy lots of new things for my house rather than pay off my last loan, luckily we came to our senses and quickly paid off the loan before we could change our mind. I now can't wait for this months pay ( 19 days to go) as it will be my first pay since becoming debt free and I am looking forward to paying a decent amount into my savings - and updating my spreasheet of course:)

The first sofa I ever brought when my OH and I got our own place cost over £1000 and that was about 15 years ago:eek: After my DF journey i think back and cringe at that, my latest sofa, brought 4 years ago, came from a second hand shop. I got a matching medium and large sofa for £80:D. It has removable covers which is fab for house full of kids and cats and lovely carved wooden details. I even got 2 wooden wardrobes and one of those massive 1940s dressing tables/chest of draws (all matching in beautiful maple wood) for £80 from a second hand shop:D. But i have found that most of the second hand furniture shops are closing down in our area:(

For the last few years of DFW when my OH would ask me what i wanted for my birthday/christmas i would always answer that i wanted the money to make an extra payment towards our debts. I got so much pleasure from that simple thing........but he thought i was mad:D

JulieGeorgiana

QueenB You’ll only get WOW posts while I’m bored and have an active mind! Now when Roo is here I will be AWOL a lot more! I think I may have to do a Car Boot from time to time, we love charity shops and DS likes to spend pocket money there rather then anywhere else! But the only one I know of charges for parking! Kind of negates the fact that I am going, doesn’t it?

I love second hand furniture shops too… not many left here either!

Mustbemad68 I think you kind of HAVE to change during your debt free journey, or you’ll never see the end of it. A couple I know in their 50’s and although they are having trouble with debts again, the way they treat money still hasn’t changed much. They pay the debts and then spend what’s left! They never save! My point is they have been debt free from an inheritance once, but always get back into debt. They say ‘everyone’ has £10-£20k of debt nowadays! The mentality needs to change in order to have debt free for life!

Findingmyway Welcome! Come and join in… I hope you can find some way of using your disposable income without going crazy… I highly recommend giving yourself a savings goal and doing something you have always wanted with the money. I personally am saving for my first home and gave up work to expand my family, this makes me much happier then a big holiday... but that's me and what makes me happy

rising_from_the_ashes

I know you guys will appreciate this ..... silly how excited I am - I've opened an ISA.

I've also opened a monthly savings plan account (only £25/month but it's a start) - and I feel a bit better putting the "new boiler" money into that rather than just a pot .... as I can't get at it (well I can, but not nearly as easily:o).

I've redone my SOA in the past few days and I "should" be able to put away another £50/month if I'm really careful - thought the ISA would be best for this so it's separate from the pots and getting a bit more interest ...... ohhhhhh, I feel like a grown up (about bloomin' time;))

A warm welcome to findingmyownway congrats on your DF status :j and here's to the future & keeping our MSE ways intact!:T

JulieGeorgiana

rising_from_the_ashes wrote: »

I know you guys will appreciate this ..... silly how excited I am - I've opened an ISA.

I've redone my SOA in the past few days and I "should" be able to put away another £50/month if I'm really careful - thought the ISA would be best for this so it's separate from the pots and getting a bit more interest ...... ohhhhhh, I feel like a grown up (about bloomin' time;))

:j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j :j

Yay you! So you should be excited about making the most of your money!! I'm glad I am not the only one 'tweeking' my SOA! £50 a month is a good incentive to be careful each month! :T

rising_from_the_ashes

Just wanted to say to everyone (especially BiB for starting it) :T ..... this thread is great - I feel so much more positive now .... like others, I've found it a bit overwhelming and also felt a bit lost without having a goal to aim for.

Although I'm pretty sure my MSE ways are pretty ingrained now ... it's so easy to fall back into debt again (have done it twice now)..... however, I think both times before I'd still not grasped the value of money / that the ever increasing amount on a bit of plastic was actually real money that had to be paid back - think I've finally realised that now!:)

backinbusiness

Aw Rising - thanks.

Your excitement about opening an ISA did make me laugh. I felt exactly the very same - actually I felt like a proper grown up for the first time ever (reckon I was about 41 at the time!). Now I run 4 accounts; monthly (salary and other credits in - all DD's out); weekly (my weekly budgeted spend transfered from monthly every Sunday night); ISA (what I consider to be my untouchable account) and surplus (overtime, unspent weekly budget, etc. I use this as a treat fund and this sits anywhere between £250 - £1000). I also have a holding account where I transfer money to cover the credit card spends, but this too is untouchable. All the accounts are with the same provider and accept instant transfers in and out.

Needless to say all these accounts, plus credit card balances, plus sealed pot balance (I cheat and count it as it goes in!), plus cash in hand etc are all reflected on my lovingly created, tweaked and daily updated spreadsheet!

(God I need to get a life!)

Taken a lot of tweaking, but that's what works for me!

QueenB.

Rising :T:T its scary when you feel so grown up i still feel like i'm 20 most days so get a shock when I look in the mirror:eek: (is 35 middle aged these days?). You have made me think about the whole ISA subject. People keep talking about them but can't say i have ever thought about them seriously. So that will be added to my January to do list.

JulieGeorgiana We are quite lucky that parking isn't really an issue around our area, some car boots ask for a small charge to visit but my favourite local one only charges 20p an adult, kiddies free so well worth it.

My bit of Df news for today is that i took the brave step of looking at and playing with a spreadsheet:eek: i am so bad with these kind of things but all your talk of spreadsheets has encouraged me to take a little trip into formula and cell world. Nothing fixed yet, still learning the basics but maybe by the end of next week I will finally have my own, tidy, complete spreadsheet. Though not sure I will ever feel the love connection most of you do with it, it will be more of a friendly howdy kinda connection.

rising_from_the_ashes

QueenB. wrote: »

You have made me think about the whole ISA subject. People keep talking about them but can't say i have ever thought about them seriously. So that will be added to my January to do list.

Neither had I given them much thought before (never had any money to put in one) - but even when I became DF it never occurred to me as I thought they were only for people who could afford to stick £5k+ away each year & not touch it.

I thought you had to stick £x amount in at the start of the tax year .... and that was it - no withdrawls or no more payments into it:o - didn't even occur to me that you could transfer money into it every month until I'd read JG talking about them!:T

JulieGeorgiana

I opened my first ISA 4 years ago... I had no idea what it was or why I wanted it...! I closed it each year and re-opened a new one for a better limit! Wasn't until last year I worked out what it was all about and about transfering balances (which i've not done yet) and last year was the first time I got to the limit! This year I am going to try and transfer the whole thing to another bank (and i'm terrified!)

BiB you make me feel normal. Not many people make me feel normal when it comes to my spreadsheets! Thank You!

QueenB they charge £5 for parking here (it's in a field!!!!) No way I would pay that!

I was thinking of something you said earlier too, about how we need an online forum because you can't tell people in your life when you're in debt! Or celebrate that you are no longer debt free. My life is slightly different, everyone I know is in debt so it's not taboo for me... but being debt free is, talking about saving money is, and talking about my spreadsheets is... I can't tell anyone what I am like... I have tried but get critisised for being to 'anal'! This is why for me this thread is a great idea! I can be a MSE Nerd and people don't mind

JulieGeorgiana

rising_from_the_ashes wrote: »

I thought you had to stick £x amount in at the start of the tax year .... and that was it - no withdrawls or no more payments into it:o - didn't even occur to me that you could transfer money into it every month until I'd read JG talking about them!:T

Careful about taking money out... although it's not really a huge issue... but you have a £5k limit... if you put in £3k and then take out £2k... you are only allowed to save a further £2k that year! I have no idea why but it's not the balance that counts but the amount going in!