Change in Circumstances

Thriftking

I have recently found myself being single and as my girlfriend has moved out I feel I will have better control of my finances.

I have £3600 debt which I would like to have paid off by March of next year. This debt is shared between two overdrafts and a credit card.

This is a huge saving for me and would leave me with around £200 per month for food and my own amusement. Is this do-able/realistic and does anyone have any pearls of wisdom?

I tend to but my groceries from Lidl and I do work out where the bargains are!

I do however want to get out and be more sociable (less of a hermit) and this can become very costly very quickly. Any other suggestion?

falldown7timesgetup8

Hi thrift king,

welcome!! - we are in the same boat - i split with my partner this year ......he was a sponge that my money vanished into, hence the debt which he kindly ran up in my name :mad:
I also have three debts - the first of which will be cleared tomorrow thanks to the help of this site and some hard work :T
And like you - my debt free date should (at this rate) be March!!

£200 is my monthly budget also, DEFINITELY do-able, and if you are careful with your food spend, youll have plenty left over for fun!.... Now if you tell the lovely people on here what you like to do socially, (party boy or homebody?) we should be able to come up with some suggestions?

Thriftking

Can I ask what things you have been doing to make such excellent progress?

I like going to workshops, learning new things and I do like the odd pint.

falldown7timesgetup8

oooh im definitely not the guru of all of this, so im sure there are people who would rip an SOA of mine to shreds, but I can make some suggestions and tell you things ive done...

1) DUMPED THE EX - he was the one spending all the money, so the moment he walked out the door - id made my first savings!

2) FOOD - I shop online - means no impulse purchases, i only buy what i need, and i make sure nothing is wasted - if i cook to much, i freeze down etc. I make packed lunches for work, and cook from scratch using "value" products.

3) CUT BASIC EXPENSES - Make sure youre getting the cheapest deal, and shop about.....making even minor savings can make a HUGE overall difference...its not about suddenly finding a grand you never knew you had spare!! Its about finding lots of little savings. Posting a SOA on here is a good idea - people can suggest areas where you can make savings.

** Check your bills online OFTEN so you know where you are.
**phone bills (make sure you understand your tariff, whats included, what isnt etc) Dont go over your allowance!
**gas and electric is a good one (turn the heating off if its warm enough or down a couple of degrees and stick a jumper on instead), dont be afraid to phone suppliers and ask where you can make savings etc.
** Travel - i spoke to my boss about my situation, and he was VERY understanding...I now work from home regularly, saving £200 a month on travel costs. AMAZING boss!! :A

4) BUDGET, BUDGET, BUDGET.... and know WHERE your DF journey could take you!!!.....im OBSESSED by my budget. I have a spreadsheet that tracks my budget on a monthly basis until January 2015 (im not kidding!)...it means not only do i know what i can afford etc, and what I need to pay off my debt each month but ALSO means that I can "look" to the future and see how GREAT my finances will look even in a year? I find that incredibly motivational :j

Theres LOADS of little things I do every day, so listing them all is hard, but its all about changing the little things I think. If you buy a top you dont like - take it back straight away, try cheaper brands, dont buy that newspaper/drink etc.

Does that help? :rotfl:

falldown7timesgetup8

Oh! and i tried to think of ways to boost my income too - i usually make about £150-£200 a month extra :beer: