Time for me to grow up...

allym464

Right o, I have a fresh cup of coffee beside me and will lay all my cards on the table. I am a 26 year old who had some idea aboutt her finances but fell in the category of 'will deal with that later'. I moved to the UK four years ago and the only debt I really had was an overseas credit card (approx £3000). About three years ago, my mother got made redundant (she lives overseas) and needed my financial support to top up the dole which I did. All my savings (about £900 went home) That lasted for about a year where I sent about £400 home. I decided that living in London was just far too expensive and looked to move outside but to do that I got a £3000 loan which covered moving costs, bond and furniture as my london flat was fully furnished. I moved out and still work in London so the cost of living is cheaper but I obviously have to pay of the loan. Mum got made redundant again so I was back to supporting her financially for about another six months or so. Mum managed to find work but my savings were gone, I had my loan to pay off and my overseas credit card. Mum told me about a month ago that she was made redundant for the third time but she didnt want to tell me as she felt bad that I had to support her. Long story short, she has sinced moved to NZ to live with my aunty. I guess my biggest lesson was that you just dont know what is around the corner and no job is guaranteed so I need to get my act together and get my finances in order so I have something to fall back on. I have always been one to learn things the hard way and this lesson was epic! Since my 'light bulb, time to be a big girl' moment, I am four months away from paying off my loan and have about £2500 left to pay off on my credit card. The money that I would have used to pay off my loan, half will go on top of what I already pay on my credit card and the other half will go in my savings account as what would I do if I ever had to be in my mum's shoes? I would be so far up the creek without a preverbial!
I feel alot better after writing this down - sometimes you forget your reasons why you are doing something.
x

allym464

Saturday 12 November
Well I have had a pretty good day after starting a new chapter to get more financially in control. Sold 8 things ion ebay and made a whopping £60. It does get quite addictive when it is less than one minute and you see your items jump up in price. I think my cats thought I had lost the plot as I was cheering at my laptop!
I re-started my budget from scratch as well I think it was just an excel with numbers before but I have properly looked into and rang various companies to see if I could get a better deal on things and whether there is something. I managed to save £30 with Sky which I am quite pleased about as that was going to be a last resort cancellation as I just couldnt cope with normal telly! Properly looking at my budget resulted me in actually being able to pay more on my credit card and put a little bit aside for a rainy day or if something happens at work. A few years ago they had asked for 'volunteers' to go down to four days a week so I want to be prepared for that.
I only spent £32 on groceries and made up most of the meals last night and today. I almost made enough for the next two weeks which means next week's grocery bill will be really low!
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