Tales From Tumbledown Cottage aka Number 11

Tumbledown_Tammy

Hi

Just called in to introduce myself I'm Tammy from Tumbledown Cottage hoping to join all you lovley peeps on MSE and start attacking my financial problems with some help if possible.

Have lurked on the site for a few months whilst my life was on hold through bad health, volatile divorce and homelessness.

Now I have just rented Tumbledown Cottage:T aka Number 11 lol started a new job and shifted 17 stone of weight in my recent divorce woes (that's a reference to ex husband lol not my weight)

I have just picked up the keys to Tumbledown and have the enormous task of furnishing this lovley little 2 bedroomed cottage which has been unloved for many years, so my task is to bring warmth and a heart to this lovley little place on a £500 budget :eek::eek::eek: so let the fun begin...my kettle and cup have taken up residence, and the place is saying Welcome stranger come on in and make it your home.

So howdy all, me and my cat when I get him or her from the cat rescue folk start our new life as from now.....

T

Yargo1

Hi tammy, your cottage sounds nice - do you have a lot of renovations to do? Are you planning on doing one room at a time then?

Will subscribe to your thread -

wannabee_in_credit

Hello, and welcome along...

Tumbledown_Tammy

H

Thank you for the welcome...

Just when I thought life was getting better, up pops the hurdles to jump over...here goes..

Tumbledown Cottage is my potential dream home, the one we envisage through misty dreams and oh god Id love to live there...came across it quite by accident and it comes with a lovley Landlord but my job offer has fallen through:o:o and I sign for the tenancy on the 1st May when previous tenant moves out.
Landlord said he was prepared to let to a non working person provided I can show himI can afford the rent..now the fun begins.

At the moment I am on Income Support with a Disability Premium this gives me £105 per week and I have Lower Rate DLA of £20.55 per week giving me £125.55p per week to live on.

I have checked the LHA(Housing Benefit Rates) online for this area and it is only £90 per week for a one bedroom place (thats all Id be entitled to) the rent is £485 per cal month so thats a shortfall of £125 per cal month and the LHA is paid 4 weekly in arrears...I would have been fine if my job offer had not fallen through.

I have enough saved to pay the £485 deposit and my moving costs its the first months rent due on the day of signing the tenancy thats worrying me, where can I magic £485 from, even cutting everything to the bone in the next few weeks I have no chance of getting that sum of money together. I would have been fine if the job had started when it should have....still Im not one to run away from a challenge, some number crunching coming up and spending nothing except absolute essentials is on the cards.

I will see if there is some kind of rental bond scheme round here, someone mentioned laying my cards on the table with local council and see what there Housing Benefit dept says.....I cant borrow anything as I will have no spare money to pay it back...maybe a Budgeting Loan from DWP, have never asked them for anything, I will just have to swallow my pride and do so..

I stood outside that little place last night when I was taking my friends dog for a walk and just felt this vibe that it has been sitting there all this time just waiting for me to move in and love it (scuse my fanciful mutterings).

Now what can I sell, well I have a dishwasher that can go, and bought some Laura Ashley curtains many moons ago from Ebay cheaply noticed a similiar pair went for £90 on Ebay couple weeks ago, I have two huge pairs with valances and a large door curtain, right am off to see how you sell on Ebay, couple pieces of jewellery might fetch a few pounds, things look hopeful..and the car boot sale season is upon us hopefully my sister will lend me her car for the morning.

Right my challenge is £500 to be found by 1st May 2012 or even earlier, I had better check the store cupboard, trim down any shopping bieng bought..first saving walk into town thats £2.80 saved, good few calories used up and get a meal plan sorted, hey Im feeling positive now after typing this..if you want something so badly you can achieve it..do I dare dream...yes I can make it happen just watch this space..

Now wheres my comfortable shoes gone....hit the road Tammy its all in a good cause...:rotfl::rotfl:

Any ideas please feel free to give me some advice because I sure as heck need it..

Till next update in my epic drama of getting into Tumbledown Cottage have a pleasant day in this lovley window of sunshine we have..

Tammy:D

tanith

Welcome Tammy looking forward to see you rise to the challenge..good luck

Yargo1

Hi tammy
Sorry to hear about your job offer falling through :-( what happened?

Have you looked into selling your bits on e bay?

Hope you've had a god day today :-)

Tumbledown_Tammy

:jwoo hoo manged to get £120 for my Laura Ashley curtains from a curtain exchange shop today, sold a pink Fossil watch that my sister gave me for £20 and got a £5 for an old ring, managed to shave £20 off food shopping by meal planning and dropping down brands, went to A&di and L&dl amazing stuff in there and am most certainly going back there again,

Yargo the job I was offered was in the kitchens in the flats scheme where I live at the moment but due to cutbacks and I suppose folk pulling back on there spending the job position was withdrawn..so looks like its back to clacking away on the old computer in some office if there are some vacancies around. So over the last couple of days Ive managed to collect together

£167.80p so only a lot of pounds to go till I hit the £485 number, now seems achievable.

I need to think about some more ideas have put the dishwasher on Ebay, together with a leather coat and some shoes Ive never worn, and theres the Easter weekend car boots round here on the Sunday and Monday bank holidays, must smile sweetly at my sister and see if she fancies doing one with me.

I have an iPod and an iPod shuffle gathering dust must research what they can fetch, I keep looking at my flat screen tv maybe thats one step too far:D,

I also need some ideas for furnishing my dream place luckliy enough it is carpeted right through though it is in a terracotta colour:eek: and the kitchen has laminated flooring and theres curtain poles at most of the windows so dont really need much furniture, sofa, bed, cooker, fridge or fridge/freezer have pretty much the rest but can make do with what I have for the moment.

Money is such a horrible thing, but its the thing that oils how we live, not having any doesnt bother me, Im ashamed of the way I used to live and spend like there was no tommorow, well tommorow came along with a divorce, homlessness and bad depression that still floats in and out of my life at times but hey ho on we go, if we dont get up and brush ourselves off we will always stay in the same place.

So Im going to do some market research around the local boot sale tommorow and watch what people buy and there pricing policies and get ready for mine next weekend.

Tumbledown Cottage is just within my grasp, hang on in there baby place, mommas coming home soon...

Night all
T

Poosmate

Hi Tammy and welcome.

You really do sound quite potty! LOL I just know your posts are going to be very entertaining and an inspiration to many.

Good luck on the ebay sales and the car boots - remember everything you sell is money in the bank and one less thing you have to move into your new home. Regarding moving costs, was/are you planning on hiring a van or could you sell enough stuff that you'd be able to move with the help of family/friends in cars only?

I am really looking forward to following your adventures and wish you all the luck in the world to make your dreams come true.

Poo

DawnW

Good luck Tammy - we are all rooting for you x

piglet39

Hi Tammy and welcome:)

The determination shines through in your posts and I am sure you'll get your Tumbledown!

Life has this funny way of throwing up opportunities when you really want something and the 'something' is the thing that is right for you (I'm not talking about gorgeous new shoes here though :rotfl: ) Call it faith/belief or whatever. Congrats on the curtain sale. I can understand you looking at the TV. I guess it's a question of weighing up how much you'll miss it, you could always pick an old one up from freecycle once you move in.

Good luck

Piglet x

Tumbledown_Tammy

Well done Poo on realising Im a bit puddled ;) I used to be a right miserable scowling sourpuss, nothing was ever right, glass was always half empty not half full, but now I just dont giv;)e a damn, well I do within the constraints of bieng polite, certainly not politically correct
at all and dont ever mean to be again at the grand old age of ahem forty something odd Im begining to realise that life is for living and it will be lived when I achieve my dream to get into Tumbledown Cottage aka Number 11.

Im enjoying this challenge of getting my money together and moving...and then I can be the batty old bird at Number 11with her cat when I can get one from the cats home and he or she will be as bonkers as me too.
T:D:D