Ultimate Challenge. 457 days / £16600!!!

NinjaSavingKat

Hello Kittens...

Bright and breeze in NSK land today and I am sat with my porridge..(1 third milk / 2 thirds water cause I am a skint flint and refuse to buy milk at work for 70p when it's 49p everywhere else..).. with seeds sprinkled on top and honey mixed in to mask the taste of paper paste!:rotfl:

Hello to LexieLou - where have you been!! I hope all is well in your part of the shire! Where are you in the game - "debt repayment ruthlessness" or "money scounging/penny-pincher saving"..? Great to have you lurking and thank you for acknowledging my dubious achievement.. I think it should be a lot less by now but I will take it as it comes!

HM - thats a lot of money to play with... where are you going on holiboobs and do you have a budget? I know you have this down but I guess it comes down to squirreling whats needed away for the holiday and stashing the rest .. you know what you need to do. I am just super proud of you!!.:T

Killer - There are not many ISA's offered to customers who are not already banking at said bank with ISA offer. Minimal still who offer "transfer" and accept £1 minimum since my current amount stands at a whopping great £150...:rotfl:Even my own bank that I have my current account with offer 0.50% of amounts under £20,000. Am I screwed which ever way I look at this since I have such a small amount? I like the look of Santander but don't want to change my current account location.... **groan**.. I am going to go through each one individually today as I only had a glimpse earlier..

So I am been thinking...again... so WATCH OUT!..:rotfl:.. With the impending doom of minimal overtime, I either sit back and enjoy my days off until I get loaded down in the summer ( fingers crossed ) OR I look to find other things to bring money into my measly little existance...

SO... I am curious about eBay and it's "stores" and will be looking more into this but since picking the brain of a legend who has done this for a good while it won't be easy money or happen overnight... then there is selling my ware and being even more ruthless on eBay but is it worth it with the postal hike in fees but there are a few of my 32 pairs of shoes I don't need...:rotfl:... but thats about it...

Once again I can only implore those that skim through my witterings to let me write for their magasine / newspaper / church newsletter / flyer etc and amuse the public with my witterings and henceforth pay me for my efforts.:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:.. but on a more serious note perhaps I need to look into this a little more... I have an angle that not many can reproduce so I just need to pitch it to the right kind of magasine which unfortunatly might mean some purchase in order to gain some research.(tee hee).. however this will be budgeted for next month or the one after - there is a lot I can do online for now...

There thats me all out of ideas....anyone else care to share..? I have too much time on my hands and feel a little weird and anxious...I need to be doing things.. hence why I am lethargic, headachey, and generally exhausted. Wouldn't have it any other way! :T

Onwards and Upwards...

P.s.. With deductions in June... I need to find £340 EXTRA to get below £7000. Thinking caps on....:T

liltdiddylilt

Good morning all!!

Killer, you're right. My flat is falling apart, faster and faster since Jellytot came onto the scene and started filling it with toys!! (It is the grandparents filling it really! Saves me money!) - I need to start getting things in order, so a new desk was a start... and then a new coffee table to replace the £16 IKEA one my sister gave me for free 4 years ago after she got a couple of years use out of it... Hahaha! I'm thinking a trunk to store some of the littlies toys...

Kat, regardless of the small amount there are some companies who will definitely do a better deal than what you are currently getting on an ISA. Just a bit of outside the box thinking, have you thought about opening a flexdirect current account with the nationwide? You can store up to £2500 in there, for 12 months at 5% AER. Granted it isn't tax free but it still by far beats your rubbish ISA for the year & then you can open a better ISA next year. Makes sense if it isn't going to be kept in the ISA allowance for donkeys years & is just paying off loans etc bit by bit? The only thing is, you need to transfer £1000 into it each month. Now all me & the OH are doing is transferring a £1000 lump of my earnings into his account and then transferring what I will need for bills back out at the start of each month.

Also, did you see the MSE email this week...? A smartphone app that you can download called field agent gives you little tasks to do... currently the ones showing on my app are checking that a poster is up in the pumpkin shop at the train station near me (£4) and checking that cheese strings and sausages are laid out in the right order in tesco! Hahaha, thats another £4 for that! Since I'll be going to both anyway, it is easy money really. Yours might be different...

Also the nielsen app which tracks your android (only android currently ) smartphone usage for about £5 per month. For doing nothing...

Killer, wowza on the clothes shopping!! £15 for the cinema isn't that bad! Myself & OH went to see Iron Man 3 last week for my birthday... £26 just for tickets!! And they charged us £0.80 each for 3d glasses and wanted us to recycle them again at the end! Screw that, if I paid for it, it's mine mate!

The budget you have sounds amazing. What interest rates are you working off to have £2500 income on your ISA's? Do you have Stocks & Shares ISA's or just cash ISA's? I work for an IFA so I should have an S&S ISA open really through them as I get excellent rates from the provider as we are big money spinners for them. I also get the best advice on where to invest! I didn't have any cash before mind you!

Kat - I should set up a transfer out of £500 a month to be honest and live easily off the rest. I just haven't knuckled down to sort it yet. I've spent FAR too much money in the last month, just on food/supermarket shopping. I genuinely have enough meat/frozen food to last me 3-4 weeks. Last night we had our first meat free evening meal in so long and it was beautiful. Must do that more often!!

his_missus

Hi all,

Kat - we do actually have a lot of "spare money" once bills and food are accounted for. Makes us wonder how/why we were ever in such debt in the first place. I guess we just didn't organise our money well enough.

We're going on a fancy 16-night Med cruise in September to celebrate turning 40 this summer (Sept is cheaper, a little cooler and kids are back to school ) We're hoping to do most trips ourselves and you have to pay for everything on board by CC so want to make sure there's plenty in the bank to pay off that CC bill when we get back. Haven't got a specific budget in mind yet but we're not scrimping on this holiday.

The holiday to Wales in two weeks has a frugal budget though

NinjaSavingKat

liltdiddylilt wrote: »

Good morning all!!

Kat, regardless of the small amount there are some companies who will definitely do a better deal than what you are currently getting on an ISA. Just a bit of outside the box thinking, have you thought about opening a flexdirect current account with the nationwide?

I have looked into this and was considering it. I just need to sit and consider the logistics as I have two flex accounts with Nationwide at the moment plus the ISA and realise that they aren't working for me much at all. I could continue with my current bank (Dankse) who have known me for years and who I would eventually get my Mortgage through so don't want to cut ties. I shall look more into the Flexdirect account though now that you have mentioned it again...

Also, did you see the MSE email this week...? A smartphone app that you can download called field agent gives you little tasks to do...

I have this already downloaded and there was never anything to do in my area. Then my phone died and I didn't reload the app. I think I will do it not on my way home considering most things are within walking distance and I love free money...:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Thanks for the advise though - I always need a wee prod now and then to see the jolly obvious!! x x x


Onwards and Upwards!!

NinjaSavingKat

his_missus wrote: »

We're going on a fancy 16-night Med cruise in September to celebrate turning 40 this summer ....................we're not scrimping on this holiday.

The holiday to Wales in two weeks has a frugal budget though

I think it needs to be a super duper joint Birthday! Can't believe you have to pay on CC onboard but I like your plan... I went to a campsite for glamping last year prior to MSE. Met my cousins who were already there and I stayed only for 2 nights... it was an Eco campsite only open for one month of the year... superb area... own bakery on site, fresh made pizza, loadsa animals running around, permission to light fires on site.. farm shop... this was not scrimping.... :rotfl:

Am tempted to camp again this year... maybe for one night somewhere... on the side of a road....and beg.....(kidding)..

Siouxsie32

liltdiddylilt wrote: »

have you thought about opening a flexdirect current account with the nationwide? You can store up to £2500 in there, for 12 months at 5% AER. Granted it isn't tax free but it still by far beats your rubbish ISA for the year & then you can open a better ISA next year. Makes sense if it isn't going to be kept in the ISA allowance for donkeys years & is just paying off loans etc bit by bit? The only thing is, you need to transfer £1000 into it each month. Now all me & the OH are doing is transferring a £1000 lump of my earnings into his account and then transferring what I will need for bills back out at the start of each month.

If you're going to do this, go through Quidco as they are offering £70 cashback if you open one of these accounts You could easily just transfer £1000 on payday to Nationwide to meet their criteria, then transfer t straight out again Transferring money on payday is easy, I do it every month...

1. Pay goes into BoS Rewards Account (gives me £5 each month)
2. I transfer £1000 into my Santander Account (gives me free annual travel insurance)
3. I transfer the £1000 into my Halifax Rewards Account (gives me another £5 each month)
4. I transfer it back to BoS.

It may seem a bit of a faff, but it's all done online, takes five minutes, and it gets me £120 a year (car tax!!) and free travel insurance

Talking of Santander, I paid off the overdraft :j:j My total debt is now under £25k (I know it's still :eek:, but it's about half of what it was a few years ago and will be gone in two years at the latest...no, I pledged to have it gone by the end of 2014 so there'll be no talk of two years!!!!). I do need to step up my game as I want the current debt of choice (Opus Mastercard) gone by October and then I'll get a head start on next year's mammoth challenge!

liltdiddylilt

OooH! Siouxsie you seem very well put together with all this money shifting. It is a shame you have the debt still, as you'd make a packet out of savings with all your knowhow I am sure!! You are flying through your debts, and doing amazingly. Just keep going, and keep 2014 fixed in your mind!!

OH has only £1k in his account currently (already had the flexdirect when they changed rates etc) but if he had the full 2.5k with my transfers in and out... That's £125pa.

I've just applied for & received bank card etc for a first direct account. (£125 too thanks to MSE!) My first new bank account in donkeys years. Am keeping the old one though, as having a bank account for a suitable amount of time helps your credit history somewhat & with the links to my ex, I need as much help as I can get!

Did you know that first direct have a 'internet banking plus' which doesn't require you to have any banking with them whatsoever...? What it does is take all the log in details for your entire banking history & add it all into one super screen, telling you what your balances are everywhere with one log in. You have to have a download on your desktop/laptop to make it secure so can't see it being available on browsers on iPads/phones etc. But if you have a laptop it is an excellent tool. You can even see your mortgage if you're lucky/unlucky enough to have one!

I'm still good at making sure everything we have is good VFM. I earn tonnes of little bits of extra cash everywhere... It's the shopping that seems to have gone out of the window. Have fed myself and OH giant 1/2 pound burger sandwiches with salad, pickles & cheese for lunch. So tea will be a small and easy affair tonight! The rest of the week is planned out in my head foodwise, so I just need to be GOOD!!!

liltdiddylilt

P.S I am so excited to see your thread (your personal challenge, not your HEEUUGE challenge threads) flourishing again.

It's this that seems to motivate me more than anything!

Siouxsie32

liltdiddylilt wrote: »

P.S I am so excited to see your thread (your personal challenge, not your HEEUUGE challenge threads) flourishing again.

It's this that seems to motivate me more than anything!

^^^ What she said

his_missus

My Hubby has just opened a first direct account to get the joining bonus (£125) I think. As long as his wage goes into it and two DDs come out each month, it's ok. He also has Santander 123 so he pays most of our bills through that to get the money back, it's only a few quid a month but still... He just pays in exactly what is needed to cover DDs then he knows what is left over in the FD account is his to spend/save.

In other news, he's just told me our DD for gas/leccy is being reduced by £6 a month as we're only £14 in debt to EDF AFTER Winter. Really impressed we've managed to stick to virtually £56 a month during winter