Is anyone starting from scratch??? 8 July 2012 at 12:55PM edited 21 December 2012 at 3:32PM in How much have you saved? 326 replies 87K views

davenport151

Needed a boost on my savings goal. I think where I am now is like starting right at the begining again.
An afternoon of re doing the budget planner has showed up a few things. Always a good idea to check on this now & again as amounts do vary/change. An example being a small change in monthly expenses. I did increase my wage amount to allow for increase in contract pay. I know its a good idea to put this extra aside but I just rounded up to the nearest figure for a bit of a payrise for me!

Now what I then needed to do was seperate the every month spend from the amount that needs to be set aside monthly for those other yearly expenses iyswim.

Having done that my put aside total is similar (£10 more). But I am now certain on what I have to spend (or save). To have it right in my head! I was putting aside but lumping the whole amount together.

I did also sneak an extra trip into Easter but have found myself low on cash for the rest of the month so spoke to my son and agreed we will not do the one at the end of the month that we were planning. This is all to his advantage as we have plans for summer hols in regards to outings.

Renewed to the saving challenge!

Brokeattheminute

I know what youre talking about Davenport O/T in work has dried up,everybodys used up their hols and nobody needs off this time of yr and im not doing as well as i thought i wouldve been at this point.Thinking £6000 was a bit ambitious.Have M.I.L 65th b'day this evening which involves a family meal out and a 40th b'day party next Friday which equals more money but it cant be helped.

davenport151

Yep, thats it Broke!

I was a bit luckier as I have had some overtime BUT our work is very hectic and i don't mind doing an extra day but any more is a no-no. My colleague always has at least two weeks left as she doesn't spread it enough throught out the year. That will change this year though as we now need to book a certain portion in advance!

Re doing my budget has reavealed that I hadn't quite got it right. Mind you as I said before most that i've saved has mainly come from not spending on food shopping anyway.

PHARR

This thread has interested me, i've followed along the way. Maybe for inspiration.

I currently have no savings, i did have previously but only a small amount and it didn't last. I currently have 2 Current Accounts, one a classic which i want to use for a saving's kind and one a silver where all my wages and Direct Debits from.

I move into my new place with the OH next week (Renting) however keen to start saving even if it means starting small.

I think those who even entertain the thought of saving needs a pat on the back, its not always easy and well starting off with nothing can be daunting.

I will be starting as of May so il still keep an eye out here and probably keep you updated along with seeing how well your going.

Best of luck.

davenport151

Hi Paddy H and welcome. Sorry did i get the name wrong or has it changed?
That's why I come on here for a bit of inspiration!

I used to go with the theory i'll start saving when ... I will start saving at the end of the year...
Then I realised what I could have saved in that time and got disheartened with it all.

Some good advice came from Teacher2's post further up about saving pennies they soon add up. Even a few pound is a good achievement!

Good luck!

Brokeattheminute

Council tax/rates bill arrived the other day there £564.89 but i have installments to be paid over the next 6mnths which isnt too bad!Have got Home ins to renew on the 27th June so gonna put £30 per wk aside for this.It was about £260 last yr.On a happier note recieved an offer for my assault in town at the beginning of last yr so have been adviced to take the offer by my solicitor.Got 5500 for a fractured jaw but solicitor gets 10% of that so have 4950 left of which ive put 4000 in the bank and am gonna spend some on imp to house and put 500 in an emergency fund just incase i need the money for car repairs/new fridge /vacuum cleaner.

davenport151

A new system is go!

Savings from wages not as much but this is going in the yearly spends pile. Extras are amount over contract pay and any extra.

Hope everyone else is doing good!

davenport151

Scuppered again!

Rac renewal due (which I was prepared for) have haggled price down a bit but still not happy so will have another go.

Holiday - Same area as last year. I have said I will pay deposit, OH will pay rest - this is just managable.

Car tax due end June (obviously knew about this)! But new savings plan has only just kicked in. Might just cope with this.

Dentist - need 2 fillings! Have got a reclaim sysyem with OH's work but one is right on 'smile line' so a private one may be best option for this. We get 1/2 amount back for this.

Other than that new system is working. I know exactly what I have to spend. I also have two extra days at work next week and am already over contract amount for this month! Should be good.

diamond_sky

Yep am a mature student and not able to work part time during term time as course is so much work, so am starting from scratch! Have got a one pound a day pot going and also saving any £2 coins I find, inspired by challenges on here. Good luck everyone, it's not easy.

vicki85

This is the first time I've ever posted on a site like this, but I've been inspired by all the hints and tips. Like most people I'm trying to save money, my husband and I have a few debts to pay off (2 credit cards with a total of £6k on them, store card £400, and we have a NR together mortgage with a loan attached) at the moment the I have a total of £1K saved but this is to pay for a holiday for my husband 30th, so really I'm starting from scratch.
I know I cant do it as we managed to save £10K in a year for our wedding. It's just frustrating, I want to pay off everything but I know I have to deal with the credit cards first. My husband gets paid weekly so I find that one of the things that helps me is when it gets to the end of the week any money left from his wages I place in to a savings account and then this money is used to pay the credit card bills, most of the time this works well but some months I find I can't save anything.
Thanks to everyone who have posted hints and tips, keep them coming.