advice on life situation!

samsam89

First post, so go easy on me as I might have put this in the wrong section!

I'm after a bit of advice in relation to my money situation/goals in the near future. I'm a 23 year old bloke and live at home with my mother - rent free.

I work part time for The John Lewis Partnership and am unable to get any extra contractual hours. So my basic income is just over £400 a month - which isn't a great deal.

My only monthly outgoing currently is £40 Vodafone bill.

I was recently punished for drink driving, which was my own misjudgement by thinking I'd be ok to have two drinks instead of one (or none!) with sunday lunch, and I was banned in February for 9 months and fined £625!! It was an honest misjudgement and I took it on the chin, but that's another story that I've learned from!!

I live 12 miles from work and have to cycle there and back in order to hold down my job.

It would make more sense to move closer to work and my girlfriend and I have been wanting to move in together for quite some time. However, I earn so little that it doesn't seem to be possible.

Home life is getting stressed because of the lack of space and at the age of 23 I really should be getting out because frankly I outgrew home years ago.

I have had to take out a credit card for the first time ever and am going to have to put my fine costs on that because I simply don't have the money to pay it in one go.

I feel at a complete dead end because I earn fairly little each month, and now am going to have quite a few hundred quid on a credit card (I'm not used to owing money) and I am being hurried into moving out by my family because of the space issue.

Any spare money I have goes on food/doing things with my girlfriend like cinema every now and again. She is quite high maintenance but we take it in turns to pay. It gets quite frustrating because she always wants to be doing something.

She works full time for an insurance company so has no problem with money and as the man, it's quite soul destroying to not feel as though I can be the provider/protector.

Any thoughts or ideas to how I can improve my situation are greatly welcomed!

Thanks.

cymrumam

The court will normally take your payment in installments if you speak to them and that will save you interest and the debt on the credit card.

lostinrates

Can you take a second job to make up your jours to full time hours?

Your phone contract is obviously out of sinc with your income atm too, when is your contract ending?

lowlitmemory

I'd be applying for every full-time job I could in your situation! You've probably thought of that though.

You also need to have a frank and honest chat with your girlfriend. If you're talking of moving in together then it sounds relatively serious and you should be able to say to her that you cannot afford to be constantly going out. As a couple, perhaps she could take on a little more of the costs of going out - especially if you'd be just as happy to stay in. I'm not saying you have to completely pool your money but perhaps you could have more movie nights at home rather than paying huge prices for the cinema.

Pollycat

Hi and welcome

I understand why you've had to take out the credit card but do be aware of the risk of starting on the slippery slope of debt.

Don't start seeing your credit card as a way of improving your standard of living.
Even if you put a meal or whatever on it, it's still money you're spending (even though it might not feel like it at the time as you just stick your card in the machine and put 4 numbers in).

With your income can you really afford to move out?
Just how much pressure are your parents putting on you to move out?

Might be worth seeing how much rent is in the area you want to move to, then putting utility bills etc on top and see if you can afford it.
Would your girlfriend be willing to pay more than 50% of the living expenses?

Is there any chance of getting another part time job - bar work etc?

samsam89

cymrumam wrote: »

The court will normally take your payment in installments if you speak to them and that will save you interest and the debt on the credit card.

Have had to get 12 month 0% card as the Court said it had to be paid by end of June...

samsam89

I have looked for full-time employment but JLP are a fantastic company to work for so I'd like to increase my contract with them. The problem is that with the way consumers are spending at the moment, our business is cutting back on the biggest cost: staff hours.

I'm probably about 9 months away from the end of my contract with vodafone - so that's something I'm going to look at.

I am given overtime at JLP but it's few and far between.

I also do the odd bit of work with my girlfriends dad as he is self-employed and maintains/carries out work on the exteriors of houses. But that work is weather/season dependent.

My girlfriend and I would always split any rent/bills down the middle but I worry that on a bad month I would only just have enough money to cover outgoings.

We have looked at rental prices and utility bills/costs of living and could just do it on an average month for me.

I won't be using my credit card for anything other than my court fine because I am aware of the slippery slope that can occur when it's used to meet the end of the months shortfall.

samsam89

Also it's difficult to get another job because of the unemployment crisis (are we calling it a crisis yet?). But it's also a problem because I live in a pretty rural location, (12 miles to nearest small town) and have no transport for the next 6 months or so.

samsam89

lowlitmemory wrote: »

I'd be applying for every full-time job I could in your situation! You've probably thought of that though.

You also need to have a frank and honest chat with your girlfriend. If you're talking of moving in together then it sounds relatively serious and you should be able to say to her that you cannot afford to be constantly going out. As a couple, perhaps she could take on a little more of the costs of going out - especially if you'd be just as happy to stay in. I'm not saying you have to completely pool your money but perhaps you could have more movie nights at home rather than paying huge prices for the cinema.

I agree - and we do have nights at home.

I guess I'm just paranoid because of the credit card.

I've never been in debt or had to use a credit card before and I hate the idea of owing money.

Gigglepig

You may have checked this already, but might there be a possibility to relocate somewhere that JLP would need someone - just in case there are vacancies elsewhere in the country?

lostinrates

samsam89 wrote: »

Also it's difficult to get another job because of the unemployment crisis (are we calling it a crisis yet?). But it's also a problem because I live in a pretty rural location, (12 miles to nearest small town) and have no transport for the next 6 months or so.

You cope as it is, can you not get something near by so you cut down on cycling trips? So evening work if you work full days, or other part time work if you are cycling in for part days.

Tbh, while i can see the huge appeal in working with jlp, (i would like to as well) you are in a position where what you would like is a nice ideal, and what you need maynot corelate with that in the very short term. If you get a sedond job when more hours become available at jlp you can drop hours or give up second job.

Its very easy to work out the why you cannot do things, working out how you can its harder! Good luck.