Another newbie with a SOA

wobblylemon

Hello Have been a lurker on these threads for quite a while and thought it was time I started posting.

I have done an SOA which admittedly is not 100% accurate so I will add a new one once I have a bit more time.

I have been keeping a spending diary and have a spreadsheet set up to monitor my finances (I have been updating the spreadsheet every day for over a month) but cannot see a way to get out of this vicious circle. I am open to any thoughts, advice and opinions if anyone has a bit of time to look.

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 1
Number of children in household.........
Number of cars owned....................
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1169.95 My tax code changed in April as I owe the tax man approx £900. Once this is paid off I should go back to getting 1330 after tax (no doubt I will have to chase to get my code changed back though)
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 1169.95
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 220.3 10 months into a 3 and a half year contract. Car needed for work
Rent.................................... 500
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 86 Single occupier rate
Electricity............................. 36
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 26
Telephone (land line)................... 14.6
Mobile phone............................ 45 Called to try and lower but would only save £5 a months and included very few texts, so I would have ended up going over my allowance and spending more anyway. Contract ends Oct so will look into going PAYG
TV Licence.............................. 12.12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 0
Internet Services....................... 0
Groceries etc. ......................... 100 Approx - I don't do a big food shop every week/month and tend to 'eat as I go'
Clothing................................ 0
Petrol/diesel........................... 80 I spend more than this but claim mileage through work so this is about the amount that doesn't get refunded
Road tax................................ 0 Due end of July £115 and will use bonus money so didn't put on here
Car Insurance........................... 0 Due in a few months. Again, aiming to put aside bonus money and pay off in one go
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 10.4
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 7.68
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 0
Haircuts................................ 0
Entertainment........................... 0
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 1138.1

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 0
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 0

Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 0........(0)........0
Hire Purchase (HP) debt ...... 12446.8..(220.3)....8.6
Total secured & HP debts...... 12446.8...-.........-
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Credit Card 1..................1294.7....100.......0 0% ending in September
Credit Card 2..................1750......50........0 0% ending in Feb 2013
Credit Card 3..................1488.5....100.......00% ending in Aug/Sept 2013
Total unsecured debts..........4533.2....250.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,169.95
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,138.1
Available for debt repayments........... 31.85
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 250
Amount short for making debt repayments. -218.15
Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 0
Total HP & Secured debt................. -12,446.8
Total Unsecured debt.................... -4,533.2
Net Assets.............................. -16,980
Created using the SOA calculator at www. makesenseofcards .com
Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission, using IE browser.

sistafromanothermista

Can i just ask why you decided to buy the car 3 months ago knowing you were already in a - at the end of each month? could you not have bought a cheaper car? (Not judging just asking as just curious:))

As for the rest, it doesn't look as if you can cut much else. Rent seems a little high but i guess it depends where you are Any chance this can be reduced?

Barbeduk

Sista, did you start the petrol thread on here recently and was there some way for employees to claim extra tax back through inland revenue? It'll be on the last 6 or so pages. Might be worth a look.

Spending diary, sell stuff through eBay? It does look tight but I'd pay off the 0% that finishes first (sorry if that's blindingly obvious). Trouble is you've got nothing in for stuff like entertainment and you can't become a hermit!

Can you earn any extra money thru overtime, 2nd job? Just short term til the debts cleared.

Good luck.

rising_from_the_ashes

wobblylemon wrote: »

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 1
Number of children in household.........
Number of cars owned....................
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1169.95 My tax code changed in April as I owe the tax man approx £900. Once this is paid off I should go back to getting 1330 after tax (no doubt I will have to chase to get my code changed back though)
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 1169.95
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 220.3 10 months into a 3 and a half year contract. Car needed for work Agree with Sista's comments - when can you get out the finance agreement as you should be able to get a reliable car for a lot less money / month
Rent.................................... 500
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 86 Single occupier rate
Electricity............................. 36
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 26
Telephone (land line)................... 14.6
Mobile phone............................ 45 Called to try and lower but would only save £5 a months and included very few texts, so I would have ended up going over my allowance and spending more anyway. Contract ends Oct so will look into going PAYG Yup - switch to PAYG ASAP
TV Licence.............................. 12.12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 0
Internet Services....................... 0
Groceries etc. ......................... 100 Approx - I don't do a big food shop every week/month and tend to 'eat as I go'
Clothing................................ 0 Never?
Petrol/diesel........................... 80 I spend more than this but claim mileage through work so this is about the amount that doesn't get refunded
Road tax................................ 0 Due end of July £115 and will use bonus money so didn't put on here You need to include the figure so you can budget for next year
Car Insurance........................... 0 Due in a few months. Again, aiming to put aside bonus money and pay off in one go As above
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0 Really need a figure in here .....
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 10.4
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 7.68
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 0 Need something here
Haircuts................................ 0 And here
Entertainment........................... 0 And here
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0 And here
Total monthly expenses.................. 1138.1

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 0
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 0

Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 0........(0)........0
Hire Purchase (HP) debt ...... 12446.8..(220.3)....8.6
Total secured & HP debts...... 12446.8...-.........-
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Credit Card 1..................1294.7....100.......0 0% ending in September
Credit Card 2..................1750......50........0 0% ending in Feb 2013
Credit Card 3..................1488.5....100.......00% ending in Aug/Sept 2013
Total unsecured debts..........4533.2....250.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,169.95
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,138.1
Available for debt repayments........... 31.85
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 250
Amount short for making debt repayments. -218.15
Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 0
Total HP & Secured debt................. -12,446.8
Total Unsecured debt.................... -4,533.2
Net Assets.............................. -16,980
Created using the SOA calculator at www. makesenseofcards .com
Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission, using IE browser.

You SOA is on the light side IMHO - there is a lot missing from it and I'm afraid it's not realistic for all these to be at £0 and for debts not to mount in the future (as you'll not have money to pay them & they'll end up going on a card .... been there!)

You need to add figures in for all the missing things and get a better picture of where things really are - once these are in, you will be in a negative each month, which could part explain where things are going wrong (and may be in part why the debts have accumulated)

The car is the obvious thing - although I suspect you may not be able to get out the finance agreement yet which could be the stumbling block. Plenty of cheaper, reliable cars around I'm afraid - and, although that may seem harsh, you need to free up money somewhere to start being able to pay the debts back.

Other alternatives are 2nd job, a lodger (if you've a spare room & landlord agrees). Is the rent reasonable for where you live? Could you downgrade?

Best of luck

FireWyrm

The petrol...are you claiming your full allowance of 45p per mile? If not, you should be completing a P86 at the end of the year and claiming what you are not re-embursed for through work.

With regard to the rest, clearly you arnt going to make much headway at this rate. Any chance of overtime or even a change of job?

wobblylemon

Hi sistafromanothermista, thanks for your reply and don't worry, I can understand why it may seem silly getting a new car. I got it 10 months ago, not 3 and this was because I had a company car in my previous job and literally had my 4 week notice period to get a car for my new job. I had no savings so the best option was to get a pay-monthly deal. As I travel loads for my job I need a reliable car so a cheap old banger was not an option. At least I don't have to pay for an MOT or road side assistance with a new one

I'm lucky my rent hasn't gone up since I've lived here as I have a nice landlord. If all works out I will be moving in with other half at some point so this will make things easier.

sistafromanothermista

Barbeduk wrote: »

Sista, did you start the petrol thread on here recently and
.

:wave: Barbeduk i did OP if you search threads started by me at the top you'll come across the thread about claiming tax back on the fuel. I've done mine and am just waiting to hear... should hopefully be about £500 though

Plus agree with the 2nd job thing is this an option??

FireWyrm

wobblylemon wrote: »

Hi sistafromanothermista, thanks for your reply and don't worry, I can understand why it may seem silly getting a new car. I got it 10 months ago, not 3 and this was because I had a company car in my previous job and literally had my 4 week notice period to get a car for my new job. I had no savings so the best option was to get a pay-monthly deal. As I travel loads for my job I need a reliable car so a cheap old banger was not an option. At least I don't have to pay for an MOT or road side assistance with a new one

I'm lucky my rent hasn't gone up since I've lived here as I have a nice landlord. If all works out I will be moving in with other half at some point so this will make things easier.

Hmmm...a birdie in the HMRC told me once you can claim tax relief on HP payments for a vehicle used primarily for work....worth a call to the help line to investigate I think?

sistafromanothermista

I've bumped the petrol thread...

FireWyrm

sistafromanothermista wrote: »

:wave: Barbeduk i did OP if you search threads started by me at the top you'll come across the thread about claiming tax back on the fuel. I've done mine and am just waiting to hear... should hopefully be about £500 though

Plus agree with the 2nd job thing is this an option??

'twas me who pointed sista in the right direction....search for my posts also....

rising_from_the_ashes

wobblylemon wrote: »

Hi sistafromanothermista, thanks for your reply and don't worry, I can understand why it may seem silly getting a new car. I got it 10 months ago, not 3 and this was because I had a company car in my previous job and literally had my 4 week notice period to get a car for my new job. I had no savings so the best option was to get a pay-monthly deal. As I travel loads for my job I need a reliable car so a cheap old banger was not an option. At least I don't have to pay for an MOT or road side assistance with a new one

Sorry but if the car is the outstanding (just shy of) £12,500 ..... then you can buy brand new cars much cheaper than this and 2nd hand ones (not old bangers but a few months / year old) a lot cheaper than this

Although you don't need an MOT - you will need to get it serviced to maintain the warranty and this cost needs to be factored in (and is likely to be upwards of £150)

How long is the breakdown cover included for? (varies between 1 and 3 years with new cars)