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DMP & Mutual Support Thread - Part 8

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  • Wow, I am certainly no where near that stage yet and dont think I ever will be. You are very brave!

    :rotfl: or just very irritable & impatient at having to say no each time i was asked anywhere :eek::rotfl:
    MORTGAGE BALANCE when we moved Aug 2024, £120,000. January 1st £118,267.06. May 1st, £116, 123, June 1st, £115,536, New mortgage added for extension- £165,000 July 1st!


    Mortgage Overpayments - September-December, £152.46. Jan £103.27, Feb £115, March £91.50, April £100, May £200, June £200. July £200.
    Total- £1162.23
    Goal to pay off 1% of current mortgage in one year. £1200. (96.83% there)

  • mon1o
    mon1o Posts: 749 Forumite
    hi all! Today i feel very positive. Ive set up my online banking with natwest and have cleared what is in my hsbc account. I was feeling very embarrassed and ashamed about the prospect of being in a dmp and i suppose i thought it shows a) i have no money sense and b) i cant be responsible. How wrong i was in my thinking. I was at work last night and the girls there were talking about debt and things and it was astonishing to me that one of them has taken out a gazillion pay day loans and not paid them back. Fair enough if times are hard but what made me "ping!" was when she said "i could pay them back but each time its due i say my cards been lost or stolen so they cant take the money out of my account. Theyll soon become statute barred after a few years anyway"

    Now i dont know whats worse, a) that she thinks like this or b) the PDL people keep on giving her these loans! she freely admitted to applying when shes drunk "just for a laugh" and then is shocked when shes accepted.

    So i now know that me being on a dmp IS me being responsible and i do have money sense! its the work colleague of mine who is a prime example of irresponsible! Sorry ive gone on but the moral of the story is, that although i wish no one misfortune i am so glad im not her when these companies come after her. At least im dealing with my problems and paying back what i borrowed (just over a longer time!)

    Its totally changed my thinking about what im going through. Again sorry to have waffled.
  • Yes I think peoples definition of poor can be vastly different!!

    I think for my son and I it is a total change for us. I have gone from throwing anything in the trolley and wasting loads every week to buying own brand foods and telling son he cant have that one but he can have the other one as its on offer! He was confused at first as this was not normal to him, now he looks for the offers himself!! lol

    I have read some of your posts BR and I know how much you are struggling. I hope your new budget gives you a little more breathing space. It is hard and a lot to think about especially when we are in it for the long haul. I hope things get easier for you. Try not to think about how long it will take to pay off, just that you will be able to afford to live while you are!! x

    Thanks hon.
    We've done things like cancel the milkman just cos milk is so much cheaper in Aldi. That was very upsetting cos we had a lovely relationship with him, but we just couldn't afford it any more. Also Mr BR has to pay a subs for something he does and it would work out at a minimum of £16 a month, sometimes more and we can't afford it - but he's had a word with the person in charge and they've said he doesn't have to pay, but I'm sure other people aren't happy about it.
    All I want at this stage is to feel more relaxed about money and no worry all the time that we're going to run out.
    Our LBM: Dec 2011. DMP started: Jan 2012. Debt at LBM: £41,568

    Oct 2012 = Current debt: £40,548.93
    Oct 2013 = Current debt: £39.054.70


    DMP Support number 424 - Long haul number 308
  • Thanks hon.
    We've done things like cancel the milkman just cos milk is so much cheaper in Aldi. That was very upsetting cos we had a lovely relationship with him, but we just couldn't afford it any more. Also Mr BR has to pay a subs for something he does and it would work out at a minimum of £16 a month, sometimes more and we can't afford it - but he's had a word with the person in charge and they've said he doesn't have to pay, but I'm sure other people aren't happy about it.
    All I want at this stage is to feel more relaxed about money and no worry all the time that we're going to run out.

    I am going to try and do the envelope thing in order to try and help me budget better. Anything left over will go into another savings envelope. I am hoping that will give me the incentive to question if I really need something or I can see the savings pot going up.

    I really hope this works. I am worried that like you, unexpected things come up which I cant afford.
  • Well, tonight we did a quick check on the account as we're in the last week of our pay month (roll on the 24th) and I wanted to see how the account looked.
    Answer? £10 short on what I had on paper. Hmmm....cue lots of thought, mutters and worries about where this £10 might have gone. Then it came to Mr BR in a flash - he'd taken me out for a birthday meal on money that he'd got from an extra bit of work, but we'd had to 'steal' £10 from the account to do it (it had all been a surprise to me) and that's where the missing money was.
    I couldn't believe how happy I'd felt that we'd 'found' this missing £10.

    This is now what our lives have become....I think it's a good thing. Is it a good thing? lol
    Our LBM: Dec 2011. DMP started: Jan 2012. Debt at LBM: £41,568

    Oct 2012 = Current debt: £40,548.93
    Oct 2013 = Current debt: £39.054.70


    DMP Support number 424 - Long haul number 308
  • ianmak
    ianmak Posts: 1,125 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker Debt-free and Proud!
    There's definitely a cultural shift changing to a DMP and budgeting. I discovered Aldi and my local 'ethnic' shops, when I used to turn my nose up at them, In fact most of the time the quality is so much better.

    I went shopping to a popular supermarket chain last week with the OH and was thoroughly depressed when I came out, everything is so expensive!

    Also what do people feel about shopping vouchers etc? OH gets lots of vouchers after shopping, normally £4 off £40 for your next shop. She feels compelled to use that offer, whereas I'd still say other places are cheaper, and that they don't do it for your benefit, as they're the ones making millions in profit every year.
    DMP mutual support thread No: 243
  • ianmak wrote: »
    There's definitely a cultural shift changing to a DMP and budgeting. I discovered Aldi and my local 'ethnic' shops, when I used to turn my nose up at them, In fact most of the time the quality is so much better.

    We shop at Aldi now although we still tend to 'top up' at Asda as well.

    ianmak wrote: »

    Also what do people feel about shopping vouchers etc? OH gets lots of vouchers after shopping, normally £4 off £40 for your next shop. She feels compelled to use that offer, whereas I'd still say other places are cheaper, and that they don't do it for your benefit, as they're the ones making millions in profit every year.

    Oh yes, we don't those any more as we never spend enough at the shop concerned to use the voucher - we can get twice as much elsewhere usually.
    Our LBM: Dec 2011. DMP started: Jan 2012. Debt at LBM: £41,568

    Oct 2012 = Current debt: £40,548.93
    Oct 2013 = Current debt: £39.054.70


    DMP Support number 424 - Long haul number 308
  • Good morning everyone. I have been reading all the threads over the last few days and now feel up to speed and pretty much prepared for what is about to happen, so thank you very much everyone.

    I already have people here that I aspire to be like, HH, SAAC to name just two. I hope that I will be able to contribute and help as I share my experience of entering a DMP.

    I actually had a partial LBM around a year ago, but was too terrified to do anything about it. So we carried on living on credit, but that has now run out and this is our only option. Now that I am doing it, I can't believe what an idiot I have been for not doing it a year ago. But hey ho.

    I do have a couple of quick questions if that's ok. Firstly, we're just in the process of opening our new bank account. I have received my pack from CCCS and have the template letter to send with token payments. I suspect that our DMP won't start until 1 April, and for some of my creditors that would mean making 2 token payments. Is this ok, or has anyone else done this? Or should we try to make the full payments this month so that the token payments are only made once before they are contacted by CCCS.

    Secondly, if we make token payments to all of our creditors this month before the DMP starts, for the first time in about 10 years we would actually have a few hundred pounds left over. Is this really ok? Can we have this as our emergency fund at the very start of our DMP? It seems a little too good to be true.

    Thank you very much in advance and for the support you've already given me!! I'll be around for at least five and a half years until we're debt free so I look forward to getting to know you all! :)
    LBM Feb 2012:hello::hello:
    DMP start date 1 May 2012
    DFD May 2018 :eek: 72 payments to financial freedom

    Update - DFD now 2020 - still a good 50 years earlier than if I was still making minimum payments on my credit cards! :D
  • Good morning everyone. I have been reading all the threads over the last few days and now feel up to speed and pretty much prepared for what is about to happen, so thank you very much everyone.

    I already have people here that I aspire to be like, HH, SAAC to name just two. I hope that I will be able to contribute and help as I share my experience of entering a DMP.

    I actually had a partial LBM around a year ago, but was too terrified to do anything about it. So we carried on living on credit, but that has now run out and this is our only option. Now that I am doing it, I can't believe what an idiot I have been for not doing it a year ago. But hey ho.


    I do have a couple of quick questions if that's ok. Firstly, we're just in the process of opening our new bank account. I have received my pack from CCCS and have the template letter to send with token payments. I suspect that our DMP won't start until 1 April, and for some of my creditors that would mean making 2 token payments. Is this ok, or has anyone else done this? Or should we try to make the full payments this month so that the token payments are only made once before they are contacted by CCCS.

    Secondly, if we make token payments to all of our creditors this month before the DMP starts, for the first time in about 10 years we would actually have a few hundred pounds left over. Is this really ok? Can we have this as our emergency fund at the very start of our DMP? It seems a little too good to be true.

    Thank you very much in advance and for the support you've already given me!! I'll be around for at least five and a half years until we're debt free so I look forward to getting to know you all! :)



    Morning and welcome

    DMPs need stability if they are going to work for you. So I would go for two months token payments and then start! May be worth trying to live off CCCS budget to make sure it works. That way if not at least you have the opportunity to tweak it before you start proper. You will need the emergency fund.

    Any questions no matter how small someone usually knows the answer.

    HHx
  • Morning and welcome

    DMPs need stability if they are going to work for you. So I would go for two months token payments and then start! May be worth trying to live off CCCS budget to make sure it works. That way if not at least you have the opportunity to tweak it before you start proper. You will need the emergency fund.

    Any questions no matter how small someone usually knows the answer.

    HHx

    Thank you HH. I really appreciate the tip, and the wealth of knowledge on the subject!! 2 months it is.

    Even though I'm admitting I got things horribly wrong, today I feel positive, as I feel like I am gaining back the control of our finances. I'm prepared for the letters/calls and have been practising the "you can't have what I haven't got" mantra, even getting my husband to repeat it back to me in case he has to deal with any calls!!

    Hope you have a fabulous day.
    LBM Feb 2012:hello::hello:
    DMP start date 1 May 2012
    DFD May 2018 :eek: 72 payments to financial freedom

    Update - DFD now 2020 - still a good 50 years earlier than if I was still making minimum payments on my credit cards! :D
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