My updated SOA, ideas please?

carlih1

Monthly Incomings:

My salary - £554.40
Benefits - £816.00
Child Benefit - £126.31 (paid into another account for car maintenance xmas etc)

Total - £1496.71 less child ben, this is for emergencies
£1370.40

Monthly Outgoings:

Mortgage/Rent - £250.20 (keeps changing see post under council benefits?)
Council Tax - £159.56 (*they say they have overpaid me, this will go down no payment next month and restarting in april)
Gas - £60 both on prepayment meters and on chepeast tarriff
Electric - £30
TV License - £11.05
Sky £52.00 tied into 12 month contract
Phone and internet - £25.00
Mobile £40.00 (down from over £100 changed tarriff)
Food - £200 (down from £350)
Car Insurance - £22.74(down from £35)
Petrol - £50 (down from £80)
House Insurance £9.87
Childcare - 231.67 on 4 week month
Littlewoods £60.00 (will be paid off soon)


Total: £1202.29

Leaves £168.11 for debts, how do i break this down, i would like to be able to remove the CCj from my credit file as i would lik to buy my house sometime in the future.

Debts

Underpayment of council tax last year £72.00 apprently! = paid

Overpayment of housing benefits - £1022.52 - £10.00 a week

Capital one - Interest frozen - £324.00 need to set up monthly amount. Just been sold to Lowell Portfolio?? Whover they are?

Littlewoods - £600.00- Limit £2650 some items on buy now pay later - don't know interest rate.

Topshop card - £132.86 - limit £150.00 minimum payment (roughly £5.00) Interest unknown prob about 26%, charges more than balance need to reclaim.

Argos Card - £280.00 interest frozen - trying to reduce due to unfair charges.

Unpaid childcare fees £752.01 - £20.00 per month they gave me a CCJ.

Comet - £276.75 - Interest frozen - trying to reduce because of unfair charges

Vertbaudet - £350.00 - No payment want to put on DD - Interest 2.200%

Additions- £125.39 - Interest Frozen - trying to reduce due to unfair charges

Diamond car insurance - £162.80 - no payments made as they do not answer my letters.

Onetel - £87.27 - no payments being made, as they will not respond to my letters.

£4185.60 Total?

Help please

vivaladiva

Is there any way you can come off the prepayment meters for Gas and Electricity? BTW what about water rates?
Will Sky let you reduce to a basic package?
Can you get any help with childcare - vouchers, tax credits etc?

carlih1

I am not paying water now until april, it will be about £25 a month then and yes i had totally forgotten about it. i get help with childcare through my tax credits, cannot reduce my sky as i am locked into contract.

Have to call bout changing the prepayment meters! Will put it on my list

(

black-saturn

You may only be locked into a contract to receive Sky. You might be able to reduce it to the lowest package which I think is about £18.99 a month (ish) at the moment.

carlih1

I have two children and i work they give me money towards my childcare and then i pay eveerything else mayself i hardly get a rebate on my rent and so all in all it works out that i am slightly more worse off than if i sat on my butt all day doing nothing, all i am trying to do is show my children it is good to work and do something for myself!

carlih1

black-saturn wrote:

You may only be locked into a contract to receive Sky. You might be able to reduce it to the lowest package which I think is about £18.99 a month (ish) at the moment.

Hi i did try just before christmas to lower my package and they said i couldn't!! Bloomin sky!

Cazzdevil

carlih1 wrote:

all i am trying to do is show my children it is good to work and do something for myself!

Bravo, I tip my bonnet to you (or I would if I wore one).

skintchick

Is it just you or another adult as well?
Here's my thoughts:

Mortgage/Rent - £250.20 (keeps changing see post under council benefits?)
Council Tax - £159.56 (*they say they have overpaid me, this will go down no payment next month and restarting in april)
Gas - £60 both on prepayment meters and on chepeast tarriff
Electric - £30
Utilities are high - as others have said can you change this at all?

TV License - £11.05
Sky £52.00 tied into 12 month contract
Ditch the Sky totally - it's a luxury you can;t afford right now

Phone and internet - £25.00
Likewise with this - get a better deal, or ditch internet and go to teh library for free, just for now

Mobile £40.00 (down from over £100 changed tarriff)
And this - it's a lot of money on calls. Stop using the mobi.

Food - £200 (down from £350)
Can you get this down any more? Not sure how many you're feeding. THis is £50 a week. I'm single and at one point spent a tenner a week on me, so there is definitely room to cut this down a tad

Car Insurance - £22.74(down from £35)
Petrol - £50 (down from £80)
House Insurance £9.87
Childcare - 231.67 on 4 week month
Littlewoods £60.00 (will be paid off soon)

SOrry I can;t help with the debt stuff. Have you thought about how you can MAKE some money? Sell stuff on eBay? Do people's ironing?

carlih1

I may be able to work an extra day (well five hours in total) but i am unsure if this will make me better or worse off, have to call tax credits tomorrow and ask.

Will get utilities down esp gas and elec, have found cheaper phone provider (post office and internet is free with mobile contract)

Mobile is on 18 month contract so cannot cancel.

I don't seem to be able to kep up with my own ironing let alone someone elses...lol. have been selling a few bits over christmas though.

CougarJo

Is there any way that you could manage without a car, even in the short-term? Selling the car could pay off some debt? Also, the money from child benefit you put into savings (abt 125 month) could be thrown into paying off debt. Saving for Christmas could wait til debts are paid off. I would talk to someone at Sky again though. A different advisor may be more helpful. Also, if it's just you and two little ones I bet you could get your food bill down further. My budget is about 40 for me, DH and 2 little ones. Good luck

joanne

carlih1

No way i could manage without a car i need it to get to work and without it i would have no social life at all just me and the kids, sometimes u just need to get out, the child benefit money is for car insurance tax servicing christmas holidays and birthdays so its not thrown on me at the time!

How do u only do a food shop for £40 i find it impossible, i thought i had done really well, although i do not buy anything processed which i thought was cheaper, will call sky again though.