SOA - any help would be appreciated

nomorespending

Hi All,
I've done a SOA using the tool- its not quite right as i've shown below as its taken the full amount of my partners income into account but I've not included his spending in outgoings- he gives me 700 per month towards bills etc.
I know i could save a lot without my pets but I love them...I only feel the sainsburys or asdas own meat along with biscuits. We buy them treats ( the dogs) like chews for when they are left in the house alone. this is why the figure is high. We also have a big tropical fish tank and buy frozen bloodworm which contributes to the cost.
We spend very little on clothes, I;m pretty sure I've only spent £40 this year on clothes ( well work shoes actually) .

I should say that i don't have the amount of money it suggests here left over each month....I have been working on a £40 week grocery bill but every few weeks need a big £100 shop hence the 300 per month.
I really want to be debt free and my partner is giving me £200 per month ( his share of the bills is 500 and he gives me 700) to help clear it faster ( as some of the debt is shared).. I seem to be working every hour god sends, i don't feel that we live extravagantly - but I know we could be doing much more - I just need to focus and any ideas woudl be really appreciated.
Please see below...

Household Information[/b]
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 0
Number of cars owned.................... 2

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 2400
Partners monthly income after tax....... 1100 [COLOR="Red"]( He transfers 700 to me of this the rest is his for petrol etc)[/COLOR]
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 400 ( from 2nd job- this is after tax)
Total monthly income.................... 3900

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 535
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 156
Electricity............................. 60
Gas..................................... 60
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0 ( my partner pays the water)
Telephone (land line)................... 10
Mobile phone............................ 70 ( this is for me and oh)
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 30
Internet Services....................... 10
Groceries etc. ......................... 300
Clothing................................ 20
Petrol/diesel........................... 160
Road tax................................ 20
Car Insurance........................... 68
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 20
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 50 ( 2 cats 2 dogs)
Buildings insurance..................... 30
Contents insurance...................... 20
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 50 ( this is over estimate)
Haircuts................................ 25
Entertainment........................... 50 ( usually 2 take outs per month we don't do much else that could count as entertainment)
Holiday................................. 0 ( we've agreed no holdays til we ar debt free)
Emergency fund.......................... 50
pet food................................ 80 2 cats and 2 dogs plus tropical fish
Total monthly expenses.................. 1886


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 210000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 4000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 214000


Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 183000...(535)......0
Total secured & HP debts...... 183000....-.........-

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
sainsburys cc..................6541......131.......17.9
tesco cc.......................1300......26........17.9
loan santanda..................4647......288.......7.9
santandar cc...................4644......130.......0
rbs............................883.......211.......0
barclaycard....................10885.....215.......0
mbna...........................10252.....106.......0
Total unsecured debts..........39152.....1107......-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 3,900
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,886
Available for debt repayments........... 2,014
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 1,107
Amount left after debt repayments....... 907

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 214,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -183,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -39,152
Net Assets.............................. -8,152

Created using the SOA calculator at https://www.makesenseofcards.com.
Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission, using other browser.[/font]

MFWannabe

Hi

If your oh gives you £700 then you need to edit your soa to read £700 as his income so that the figures will read correctly.

nomorespending

Thanks Freez.. update below

Household Information[/b]
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 0
Number of cars owned.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 2400
Partners monthly income after tax....... 700
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 400
Total monthly income.................... 3500

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 535
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 156
Electricity............................. 60
Gas..................................... 60
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 10
Mobile phone............................ 70
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 30
Internet Services....................... 10
Groceries etc. ......................... 300
Clothing................................ 20
Petrol/diesel........................... 160
Road tax................................ 20
Car Insurance........................... 68
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 20
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 50
Buildings insurance..................... 30
Contents insurance...................... 20
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 50
Haircuts................................ 25
Entertainment........................... 50
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 50
pet food................................ 80
Total monthly expenses.................. 1886


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 210000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 4000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 214000


Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 183000...(535)......0
Total secured & HP debts...... 183000....-.........-

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
sainsburys cc..................6541......131.......17.9
tesco cc.......................1300......26........17.9
loan santanda..................4647......288.......7.9
santandar cc...................4644......130.......0
rbs............................883.......211.......0
barclaycard....................10885.....215.......0
mbna...........................10252.....106.......0
Total unsecured debts..........39152.....1107......-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 3,500
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,886
Available for debt repayments........... 1,614
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 1,107
Amount left after debt repayments....... 507

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 214,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -183,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -39,152
Net Assets.............................. -8,152

HappyMJ

You are paying interest only on the mortgage at 3.5%. Do you have any plans to pay the capital back? How many years to go? What happens with the £507 excess per month? Do you actually pay more than the minimum repayments on the credit cards...if so I would put the actual amount you pay so it doesn't look like you have an excess.

There isn't a lot you can do to reduce it without making drastic changes like getting rid of the mobiles and sky tv and reducing spending on the pets. You say you have a £50 a month contribution to an emergency fund. How much is in that fund? That should be suspended for the time being. You can use the credit cards if needed in the future for any real emergency's. Cut the £50 a month presents spending to at least half that. Why £25 a month on haircuts? That's quite a lot.

nomorespending

yes its interest only... its a long story involving having to buy out my previous partner out of the house and get loans etc to do so.. I do need to plan to start paying it back but i figured for now to use all the money I have on high interest debts..
I don't actually put £50 per month into an emergency fund but practically every month this year there has been something unexpected that has cost at least £50... my grandma took il last month and We had to drive to south wales - £50 petrol ( hadn't planned for).
My partners car needed new tyres and he didn't have enough money so I lent it him this month £120 - will get it back but prob 40 per month for 3 months.
My dog suddenly had a personality change and decided to have a go a a dog on the field the other day... hes never done anything like it before but to be on the safe side ( and because it was such a shock) had to go and buy him a muzzle. last week my house alarm started showing error signs.. hurrahhh I should imagine that will be at least 50 this month.. probably more . bit of a long explanation - sorry - but thought it best to include it as an expense!

The amounts that I have put against my cards and loans on the soa are what I pay by direct debit each month. When I can I try and make additional payments and have been doing on my overdrafts which are both now clear... for the first time since... 2001! a little progress

HappyMJ

nomorespending wrote: »

yes its interest only... its a long story involving having to buy out my previous partner out of the house and get loans etc to do so.. I do need to plan to start paying it back but i figured for now to use all the money I have on high interest debts..
I don't actually put £50 per month into an emergency fund but practically every month this year there has been something unexpected that has cost at least £50... my grandma took il last month and We had to drive to south wales - £50 petrol ( hadn't planned for).
My partners car needed new tyres and he didn't have enough money so I lent it him this month £120 - will get it back but prob 40 per month for 3 months.
My dog suddenly had a personality change and decided to have a go a a dog on the field the other day... hes never done anything like it before but to be on the safe side ( and because it was such a shock) had to go and buy him a muzzle. last week my house alarm started showing error signs.. hurrahhh I should imagine that will be at least 50 this month.. probably more . bit of a long explanation - sorry - but thought it best to include it as an expense!

The amounts that I have put against my cards and loans on the soa are what I pay by direct debit each month. When I can I try and make additional payments and have been doing on my overdrafts which are both now clear... for the first time since... 2001! a little progress

OK that explains the £50 emergency fund but where is the £507 every month that you have spare considering you are only making minimum repayments only.

nomorespending

I don't know:( i guess until now its been reducing my overdraft each month. I had approx 5k in overdrafts so for the last few months it will have been reducing that. I guess I need to monitor my spending really carefully this month and see how much i can make in additional payments of my credit cards and then ill have a better idea.

merlot123

Go through your bank statements and add up the debit payments to the supermarkets and add up the withdrawals from the ATM machines, it may just surprise you.

Well done on posting and the weight loss in your signature.

merlot123

nat21luv

For me the only thing that jumps out is your grocery bill, £300 for 2 adults is quite a lot. I thought this included pet food which would then be reasonable but then I noticed you added that seperate. How about downgrading the food you buy by one brand, you could save 20% on your food bill. Or how about setting a challenge of £300 per month to include pet food, giving you £220 a month for 2 adults. Still quite a lot, but you'll get there, experiment with different brands. I dont like cheap bread so if I buy Hovis then I make sure something else I buy is cheap to balance it, like crisps. I buy value crisps, the kids like them and it stops me reaching into the cupboard, which cant be a bad thing...!

MFWannabe

nomorespending wrote: »

Thanks Freez.. update below

Household Information[/b]
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 0
Number of cars owned.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 2400
Partners monthly income after tax....... 700
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 400
Total monthly income.................... 3500

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 535
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 156
Electricity............................. 60
Gas..................................... 60
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 10
Mobile phone............................ 70 - Cut these to lowest packages possible
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 30 - See if you can get landline and internet cheaper with this combined
Internet Services....................... 10
Groceries etc. ......................... 300 - Should be able to shave approx £50 off this if it's just for the 2 of you
Clothing................................ 20
Petrol/diesel........................... 160
Road tax................................ 20
Car Insurance........................... 68 - Check comparison sites to see if you can get cheaper
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 20
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 50
Buildings insurance..................... 30 - Check comparison sites to see if you can get cheaper; you should be able to get cheaper combined with contents insurance
Contents insurance...................... 20 - See above
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 50 - Cut this in half; there's only the 2 of you and family will understand if you tell them you need to make cutcbacks on presents
Haircuts................................ 25 - This is a lot; try using trainee at the salon or ask if they need models; also try local colleges
Entertainment........................... 50
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 50
pet food................................ 80 - Check out how much these would be online; it's usually cheaper including delivery than buying from a shop
Total monthly expenses.................. 1886


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 210000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 4000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 214000


Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 183000...(535)......0
Total secured & HP debts...... 183000....-.........-

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
sainsburys cc..................6541......131.......17.9
tesco cc.......................1300......26........17.9
loan santanda..................4647......288.......7.9
santandar cc...................4644......130.......0 - Is this really 0%? If it is what is your limit? Do you have enough credit available to move some of the higher debt to this?
rbs............................883.......211.......0 - Is this really 0%? If it is what is your limit? Do you have enough credit available to move some of the higher debt to this?
barclaycard....................10885.....215.......0 - Is this 0%? If not then you need to find out the APR
mbna...........................10252.....106.......0- Is this 0%? If not then you need to find out the APR
Total unsecured debts..........39152.....1107......-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 3,500
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,886
Available for debt repayments........... 1,614
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 1,107
Amount left after debt repayments....... 507

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 214,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -183,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -39,152
Net Assets.............................. -8,152

Hi

I've made some comments above where you could make some cutbacks.

Also well done for already having paid back 5k in overdraft. :beer:
Shows you it can be done and you've made a good start.
When you check comparison sites remember then to always buy through a cash back site to buy insurances etc.
Start paying off your debts by paying off the highest interest first; you need to find out what the APR's are on the cards where you haven't put anything; unless they are really 0%
If they are 0% pay just above the minimum on those and put as much as you can towards the higher rate debts.
You should be able to clear the RBS and Tesco cc in a few months; then you will have cleared 2 debts which will make you feel better.
Like you said in another post the £500 per month that your soa says you have left over has been paying off your overdraft so now you can pay it off your other debts.

foxgloves

I think your grocery spend is high. Ours is £250 for 2 adults & include pet food for one cat. If we need to free up money for something else, we can drop this to £200 & still eat pretty well. We always cook from scratch & not buying any ready meals certainly helps the budget. We shop around a lot too. Mobiles could come down too. You can get a perfectly good contract for £15 a month.