advice on life situation!

Pollycat

samsam89 wrote: »

Funnily enough the first bill just dropped through the door. Very glad I got 0% as minimum payment is £5.00.

I will no doubt clear what's on it this month though (£160 for cost of DD awareness course).

Del_Astra wrote: »

That is what they want you to pay, so you do not pay it off within the 0% period. So please pay the balance, (or at least pay the balance into a savings account so you can pay it at the end of the interest free period). That is how they make money. Whilst I use a credit card, I do pay the balance in full each month.

NAR wrote: »

Sorry I didn't explain myself about the credit card very well. You very wisely have a 0% card for 12 months. What I was trying to say was avoid putting bills/expense on your card that you cannot clear by the end of the 12 month period.
I think everyone here has been trying to give you good advice and I'm glad you are seeing that life isn't easy when it comes to finances. Good luck with finding your way through this.

As Del Astra says, the money-saving idea behind 0% credit card deals is to pay the minimum each month until the 0% period is coming to an end then pay the balance off in full - thereby paying zero interest.

However, you need to be disciplined enough to put the money away (and not touch it) so that you can pay the final balance off at then end of the period.

I'd open a cash ISA (if you haven't already got one) if you pay tax or find a good rate easy acccess savings account if you don't and put £155 in this month and pay the minimum £5 off your credit card, continuing this over the year.
The interest won't be massive but it'll be something.

And do set up a direct debit for paying the credit card - whether you decide to pay the minimum or full balance.
If you're late with a repayment, you'll lose your 0% deal - and that will be bad news!

It might be worth reading Martin's piece on credit cards:
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cards/best-0-credit-cards

As NAR says, don't start putting day-to-day spends on your cards - it can soon get out of hand.

Janepig

samsam89 wrote: »

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

I haven't read any of the other responses to see if anyone has mentioned this, but if you are in any difficulty repaying your fines, you can go back to the Court and ask that you appear before a fines court (not as scary as it sounds) to explain your means, and set a more realistic repayment level according to your means. Obviously, the Magistrates may think that asking you to pay by June is still reasonable after that, but it may be something worth doing.

I don't know if you were represented at Court or not, but what would normally happen where I work is that a "means form" would be filled in by the defendant to state what their disposable income is, and then when the fine and costs are set, the defendant is asked to make an offer to the Court, usually through their solicitor, which either finds favour or doesn't. You really shouldn't have to get into difficulty when repaying your debt to the Court.

Also, did they offer you a drink drivers rehabilitation course when you went to Court? Usually you can complete the course (you have to pay) and then you get a quarter off your ban. (edit, just read back and seen that you have paid up to do that already - and that you've still got your car - whatever you do, please don't be tempted to take a chance and drive it until your ban is up. And don't forget that you have to apply to the DVLA for your licence back before you can drive again, so many people forget this. So put in the application afew weeks before the ban is up).

Jx

Lexxi

These two drinks, were they pints of vodka? I know that drink driving is a serious offence but the punishment seems very bad, did you have points or other convictions previously? I know it is different in different authorities too so it may be that yours takes an extra dim view of it.

Re moving out, you've worked out that you can just about pay your half of the bills on a normal wage, what about furniture? You need a settee, bed, fridge, cooker, washer as essentials, I'd probably throw in TV and wardrobe too not to mention something to put the TV on, crockery, pots, pans, plates. It's so much more than rent, utilities etc. I've pretty much lived without one or another essential at some point and believe me it makes life very hard and very frustrating.

Why are you offering to pay half the bills? If you're girlfriend is earning a full time wage she will be getting at least double what you get, she should be paying 2/3 you 1/3 or whatever the fractions work out at. My husband paid double what I paid to the bills but he was earning double.

Are you entitled to any tax credits or anything like that? You may get help with rent or council tax with your incomes, but don't rely on it until you have spoken to your housing department.

Could you study something whilst you aren't working full time if a full time job is not possible? You then make your chances of employibility/promotion much better.

Is your CV as good as it could be for applying for full time positions? Liking your job is just as important as having a job imho so don't just start going for full time becuase you want the money. Especially in this climate as you could make yourself worse off if a company is unstable/goes under

HTH!

Janepig

Lexxi wrote: »

These two drinks, were they pints of vodka? I know that drink driving is a serious offence but the punishment seems very bad, did you have points or other convictions previously? I know it is different in different authorities too so it may be that yours takes an extra dim view of it.

The legal limit for alcohol when driving is the same throughout the UK (35 in breath) and the sentencing guidelines are the same in England and Wales - the Magistrates have a range of sentencing powers and will sentence within that range depending on their interpretation of the circumstances. The one thing they have no discretion over is the driving ban. Someone convicted of drink driving MUST be banned for at least 12 months, and if it's the second conviction within ten years then they must be banned for 3 years. No choice. The actual length of the ban over and above that is usually determined by the reading. It seems to be the case that if you blow only just over the 35 in breath reading when the Police test you, they give you the chance to give blood or urine for a reading as that seems to give a slightly lower reading.

I suggest you google safe alcohol levels for driving as it can be quite confusing and it's something that people should find out for definite, rather than guess and hope for the best. My philosophy is always not to take a chance, and if I'm "Des" then I don't drink any alcohol. And of course, as far as the Court is concerned, ignorance is no defence .

Jx

nickj_2

can you really afford a £40 p/m vodaphone bill ?

marisco_2

Going by your first post OP you have a disposable income per month of £400. From this you are tied into a contract with Vodafone at £40 a month. Also you are clearing the dd fine.

I think you would find it a struggle to meet your living costs if you moved out and set up home with your girlfriend at this time. When you factor in your share of rent, utilities, council tax, tv license, broadband, insurance, food, entertainment, clothes, haircuts etc on top of your current commitments. Will your income stretch to cover all that?

I think communication is key here. Can you talk to your mum and explain that it would really stretch you financially at the moment to leave home? Maybe say that you want to clear your debt and try and gain more hours at your current job or find a new job that pays more, before moving out. So you can start off more financially stable and avoid getting into debt in future. There are few parents I know that wouldn't see the sense in their grown kids wanting to do that.

Can you discuss with your girlfriend how it would make things difficult if you moved in together now. This would impact on your social lives and what you can do.

I left home at your age and got my first palce with my partner. I was very fortunate to have a well paid job, as was he. The economic situation was far healthier at that time. Even with a good income, we found the first year or so living together a time of adjustment and learning to compromise. I think that if there had been the additional pressure of financial worries on us it would have been a far less enjoyable experience.

When you do eventually get your own place there are lots of things you can do to reduce your costs. Paying for utilities by direct debit reduces costs. You can pay for things like your TV license monthly so you dont get a big bill once a year. I have a seperate account for all my bills so each month a percentage of my income goes straight into the bills account and I cant delve into it. I keep a regular track of costs on utilites, insurance, broadband etc to make sure I am getting good deals.

Person_one

Del_Astra wrote: »

Would you like to to explain this to my dear OH?

I do agree, but I can just imagine the "discussion" if I said this to my better half.:rotfl:

If you plan to move in together at some point in the future you do indeed need to have the conversation about how to address vastly disparate incomes.

If one of you lost your job completely the state would expect their live in partner to support them completely.