Heavily in debt with no end in sight

Memory_Girl

See I was about to write you off as a "whinging brat" and then you took it on the chin ............. that'll teach me LOL

There IS and end - now you have decided to be a grown up and face this head on. It simply about making better choices - you can have all the great stuff - you just need to get your finances clear FIRST.

To put it in perspective - I am on 2/3 of your income, but I paid of £10k of debt in 22 months whilst paying a mortgage and raising two kids on my own ................. it truly can be done.

So if you are serious - start getting honest and start getting clear - there is an SOA sticky at the top - fill that in as a first step and then grab a beer before posting.

The peeps on here are fabulous at making you cut through all your excuses and looking frankly at your finances - Oh but does reality hurt at first.

But equipped with that - you will be knocking these debts on the head and facing a future when ALL your income is yours to spend as YOU decide.

MG

TheLearner2008

Memory_Girl wrote: »

...there is an SOA sticky at the top...

Thanks for your post. What is this SOA and where is it? Can't find it.

Is there anyway you could post your budget? How on earth did you manage that!

I thought £200/month on food is really cheap.

TheLearner2008

Pinkpenguin wrote: »

I see that you spend £200 on food

Yes its just me £200 a month on food. I shop at Tesco's though and I don't buy ANY junk food, beverages or sweets as I am very into healthy living and fitness and keeping my body tight. Lunch and dinner for me would be frozen vegies, 250grams of turkey strips and wholegrain brown rice and breakfast is cereal (which costs £2.50 for standard sized box).

January20

TheLearner2008 wrote: »

Everyone needs to do things socially. I am single and live in London - you can't expect me to sit at home and watch 4OD

Actually, yes you I do! seriously, you have £11k of debt and you are spending £400 a month on your fun. That is £400 x 12 = £4800 a year.

If you want to get rid of your debt, you need to get rid of the attitude that you must have fun, that you are owed fun. You're not. You can't afford it.

Giving up fun won't be for ever. It will be for a while. When I got my lbm in 2006, I was a single mother with an unreliable wage. It took me 6 years to clear my debt but I didn't spend £400 on myself every month!

Now for the more useful stuff (I hope ):

- consolidation is a bad idea. It won't save you much money and it won't teach you to live within your means. You risk finding yourself back to square one with more debts in a few month.

- There is no sense in having £600 saved up earning you what? 2% interest when you have £400 on your tesco card at %22!

- I don't understand what you want to do with your iphone. Sell it in increase your monthly payment? Why?

- Surely you can postpone the laser hair treatment and the dj lessons until you can afford it?

- Write down every little thing you buy day to day: the odd coffee, sandwich, newspaper, magazine, bottle of water, etc. You will see where your money goes.

It's all about choices: you can choose to be sensible and do something about it now, when it's not too bad or you can carry on the way you are, think you can't do without things, and find yourself in a few months or years with a lot more debt and an uncertain future. Bankruptcy from what I have read here and elsewhere is not the easy path that you may think it is!

glasgowsaver2011

TheLearner2008 wrote: »

Thanks for your post. What is this SOA and where is it? Can't find it.

Is there anyway you could post your budget? How on earth did you manage that!

I thought £200/month on food is really cheap.

Its 50 quid a week.

Per person

tesco etc do 3 for 10 quid on chicken breast multi packs (turkey/pork)

thats the meat for 6 meals for a single person

Add in some veg/tinned tomatoes/sweetcorn.

A few loaves of bread some breakfast cereal (whatever is cheap)

Milk yoghurt butter cold meat

30 quid for a weeks food

glasgowsaver2011

http://www.makesenseofcards.com/soacalc.html

glasgowsaver2011

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3711157

I hate to be sneak...but this other post needs dealt with..(if you two are still together)

Googlewhacker

TheLearner2008 wrote: »

Hi All,

I am currently £ 11,291.55 in debt and I can't afford to pay more than the minimum payments. I just feel completely helpless and stressed out by all this debt - I just don't know what to do anymore.

I opened a new credit card with the money transfer option. I paid off the Tesco loan but I blew another £500 of it. The rest I put in a savings account burning a hole in my pocket but also there in case of emergency!

I just feel like if I cut every last drop of fun what is the point of living? I get so depressed if I just sit at home.

Should I declare bankrupt or what should I do?

Here are all my details details:

Debit, savings and credit available:
======================
Tesco savings: £600 Use this to pay of the tesco CC
Coventry savings: £150
Virgin money ~ £ 5,148.00 (£5.5k limit) ~ 0% till Sept 2013
Lloyds TSB credit card ~ £ 6,143.55 (£6.5k limit) ~ 0% till May 2012
Tesco credit card ~ £400 (£1.5k limit) ~ 22%Reduce the limit on this to £500 to use as emergancy only!!!
2 international cards ~ £0 (£3k limit) ~ 15% Close these

I have also committed £680 to do DJ lessons and £595 on laser hair removal Leave your cards at home, sounds like you are to impulsive, also look at trying to get out of these if you can

Income (I go over budget every month on food):
=====
£1870 per month income
£750 rent (including ALL bills)
£200 groceries
£200 entertainment
£60 transport
£46 gym
£144 personal trainerIf you really can't cancel this (and you should!!!) then look at cutting it down, maybe half as much
£25 regular savings Stop this
£20 mobile phone
£10 spotify music
£52 virgin card
£63 lloyds card

I know that I shouldn't have a trainer and gym and music but honestly gym and music are my 2 true joys in life!

How do I get here?
============
First it started with a £2k Thailand holiday, then a £1k macbook and £600 iPhone and then I lost my job and then it just spirally out of control.

Bottom line I don't know how to manage my money - I am very organised with budgets and spreadsheets and getting the 0% deal but then I just slip - I have tried hard not to use credit cards! but i keep them around in emergency and then I slip!

My ideas:
======
1. Sell my macbook. I could get about £700 for it and then I could use my works macbook as I can take it home when I please.
2. Get a Tesco loan to pay off everything with a smaller monthly repayment so at least I am building towards something.
3. Cut up and throw away all my credit cards and only use my debit card.
4. Sell my iPhone for £300 and get a monthly increase my phone contract to £29

Potential income generators
=================
Sell macbook £ 800.00
Extra income (next month) £ 300.00
Coventry savings £ 150.00
Tesco savings £ 700.00
Sell iPhone £ 300.00

What are your ideas?

You can sell whatever you want but its not addressing the problem of your impulsiveness for large purchases!

You are paying nearly £2400 a year on the gym and instructor, you really need to look at doing less with the instructor!

You have to make the decision, make some cuts and pay the debt back or carry on as you are.

You have a good wage, you need to make the hard decisions!

Googlewhacker

glasgowsaver2011 wrote: »

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3711157

I hate to be sneak...but this other post needs dealt with..(if you two are still together)

You earn a very good wage! If you are still with the guy you need to woman up and tell him straight that you can't do all he can all the time

Memory_Girl

TheLearner2008 wrote: »

Thanks for your post. What is this SOA and where is it? Can't find it.

Is there anyway you could post your budget? How on earth did you manage that!

I thought £200/month on food is really cheap.

If you trawl through the Memorygirl and Matrix threads you will see how the budgets get gradually trimmed.

BTW - £20 per week plus £5 for stocking up my storecupboard feeds me, a twelve year old and a four year old. Trust me, we eat VERY well, although we are mostly veggie apart from when we find bargains.

MG