Please help, feeling very low here...

LolStevo

hey every1 and thanks for your replies!

Firstly, i do sort of live with parents, some nights at my parents house and some at my boyfriends parents house! The £80 is for my own food as i dont pay any rent to any of them!

I am not eligible for a student account until September when i go to uni but hopefully i can transfer the overdraft to 0% or sumthin!

I have changed banks to Halifax and am so glad! It actually feels good paying with my own money and not credit like i have lived on!

I did claim a large amount of charges back and stupidly for the 2nd claim i done on my Natwest account and visa i signed the form that they sent (accepting future charges) so i dont think i am allowed to claim these charges back anymore???

Any more advice for me?! thanks xxx

tesuhoha

Youve got lots of small amounts outstanding. I would pay them off as quickly as possible so you can concentrate on the main debt. Pay off the avon first, then chip away at your 2nd overdraft. See if you can economise on the £80 food bill.

ladysparklexx

hi, with your food bill is this an amount that you pay to your parents to help out with food, or is this money you yourself go and spend on food?

if this is money you spend yourself then you should be able to try and reduce this down a bit, my budget for 4 people is 40.00 a week and although we dont always manage this most of the time we do, mae sure you always take packed lunches to college as this can help to reduce your food bill, also when you cook a big meal try and save bits for the freezer or recyce left overs into another meal

clothes wise i know that ou said in an earlier post to ignore this but sometimes you will need new clothes so you need to beable to treat yourself sometimes, its worth having a good hunt at carboot sales for clothes often you can get topshop/next etc jeans for about 1.00 that are fine, same with future college books these are a great way to find the bits and pieces you will need in the future

lynzpower

you might not be able to get out of your contract, with your phone, but youlol certainly be able to downgrade your contract to the cheapest tarriff. this would look more like 15 a month on most networks, so a saving of 20 quid. with this in mind your avon bill will be cleared in 2 and a half months.

Perosnally, Id be looking to sell stuff. If youve been overpsening on clothese theres likely to be something worth selling.

Ebay for everything
amazon ( books csd etc)
greenmetropolis ( books)
loot (furniture & other big stuff)
envirophone ( old mobiles)

Do pigsback clicks for topshop/man vouchers

have you joined quidco? ive got my quidco money going into an account Im closing, it just ticks along clearing the overdraft monthly with about 30 quid maybe more

Are you taking full advantage of the reduced stuff going at asda and your discount? You should be able to pick up cheap meat veg before the rest of us get there

Are you getting your petrol at tescos this will increase you Clubcard vouchers, which saves you money on food. Join all the tesco clubs as well ( food club, wine etc) and reuse carrier bags for extra vouchers.

lindsaygalaxy

Hi

I was a student until last year and had a baby mid wy through degree so i know a little about student finance.

If you live at home u can still get a student loan but not the full amount, and some of it depends on your parents income.

Start shopping around in june july time, chose one with thr biggest interest free overdraft over the 3 years years and the best ofer for u, dont be fulled by the free £50 or mp3 player, look at the long term stuff.

Once at uni, you can apply for the access fund, where you can get money if you prove you need help, with course fees, books, travelling expenses etc. Make sure you show them on the form about your debts as they will know you have to pay them back.

Stop worrying! This is not that big a debt. Some could be cleared in one go, do a car boot or ebay, then use the money directly onto a debt. Also with the summer coming im not sure where you live, but you could try looking around for Pick your own places or babysitting, both pay cash and although may not be much, its cash.

The last thing I would say is it looks like you need to budget and look at your spending as you are not sure how much you are spending and where. Keep a diary of what you are spending everyday! I know when i was a student if i added it up i would bet i spent a fortune on convinience ood and pub lunches! So nows the time to prepare.

If you go onto the student finance website you will be able to get a rough idea of what your student loan will be.

Oh, and dont forget to get every loyalty card you can! Boots, tesco, whsmiths, (join all the clubs online too for extra discount), the freebie websites, quidco, pigsback, mystery shopping sites and get a bite card(gives you dicount to food places at train stations.

slowlyfading

Is there anything you can sell on ebay/amazon? You can downgrade your phone contract, so try and get that down a bit. I'd pay off the Avon first, so that's out of the way. Also, do you really need to spend £50 a month on clothes? I'm a 20 year old student as well, and have not bought hardly any clothes since starting my degree two years ago.
Good luck, you're in the right place
Nicola x

GirlRacer_2

Hi Lolstevo, there's not much more I can add to what's already been said on the posts above.

Your young and you seem to have had your lightbulb moment early on in life (not like some of us oldies who had their LBM in their 30's and 40's). Keep ploughing away at the smaller debts, maiking only the minimum payments on all others. It will soon come down.

Keep your chin up hun x

mo1_2

Are there any charges on your bank account or cards or loans,that you can claim back?

ratty2601

Maybe you could sell some of your old clothes/books/cd's on ebay?
It may cost you 30p to list them (bump up your postage costs to account for this) but you could make up to £4 for a cd, £5 for a jumper, £5 for a book.
If you have designer wear you could make a bit more, just ensure the stuff is clean and in working/wearable condition, take a good picture and list it!

Start you auction at 0.99p to encourage bidders and only sell what you don't want otheriwse you'll be dissapointed when something you like goes for peanuts!

Always ensure your postage costs include the price of packaging!!

Happy selling!