Art_student's SOA

art_student

Hi guys! I've been on this site for a while now - here's my SOA for you to cast your eyes over and tell me what you think.

Do your worst!!

Monthly incomings

Husband’s salary – 1677.14
Husband’s on call allowance – 117
My student loan (until July) – 500

Total – 2294.14

Monthly Outgoings

Mortgage – 797.83
Service charge – 93.51
Payment to housing company for unpaid service charge - 100
Council Tax – 74
Gas – included in service charge
Electric - 26
TV License – 34.12
Sky - 16
Home Phone - 30
Food – 220
Car Insurance – 27.85
Petrol – 60
Water (April – November) – 50.03
Broadband – 14.99
Denplan – 26.86
Interest on husband’s overdraft – 12.63
Overdraft protection on husband’s account – 16
Charge for husband’s account (Barclays) – 11.50
Husband’s pension – 50
Charge for my account – 25

MBNA Credit card – 328.79
Lloyd’s loan – 78.86
Barclay’s loan 1 – 147.58
Barclay’s loan 2 – 52.51
Co-Op loan – 99.13
IKEA card – 17.15
Clysdale Financial – 9.61
Tamarisk debt management – 10

Total – 2429.95

Income – outgoing = -£135.81

Debts

Co-Op loan (in my name) – 2968.37 – end date 27/05/2010 – 12.08%APR
Lloyds loan (hubby) – 1577.2 – end date 14/11/2008 – 11.9%APR
Barclays loan 2 (hubby) - £353.28 – end date 27/10/2007 - ? APR
Barclays loan 1 (hubby) - £4,070.32 – end date 01/02/2010 - ? APR
MBNA Credit card - £12,683.15 – 18.9% APR
Ikea store card - £343.09 – ? APR
Hubby's overdraft - £1500 - 15.9%APR
My overdraft - £300 - ?APR

Total debt - £21456.99:eek:

art_student

Notes on my SOA

I have no job but it is my final year which will be really busy, especially in the build up to the end of year show in June. At the beginning of the year I worked 4 8 hour shifts a week in the pub for a few months which meant that I didn’t have to use my student loan then so I can have the time now to focus on my studies.

The payment to the housing company for unpaid service charge was due to the council not giving the company our name when we moved in so the housing company sent bills for the service charge in the previous owner’s name which we therefore didn’t open. The first we knew about it was when they finally got the name right they sent us a bill demanding over £1000 in unpaid service charges, some of which were unpaid by the previous resident. Thankfully she coughed up quickly so we are now paying it off monthly. I have some money set aside for this but don’t want to pay it all in one go until I get a job as then we won’t be able to cover the payment the next month.

I know Sky is a luxury but having it does mean we can not have a life thus not spending money. I intend to switch the broadband to the free Sky broadband but haven’t so far because of the £40 initial cost.

I have been attacking the food shopping. I reckon I will be able to get it down to about £35 per week - £150 per month but I wanted to make sure this was realistic before writing it on the budget (I am keeping a diary of my weekly food expenditure).

Water is high because it includes the months since we moved in to the property (September) as well as the charges for the coming year.

My husband is going to the dentist next week and then we have an appointment to register with an NHS dentist so the Denplan will be cancelled.

I think the payment protection on my husband’s overdraft is cancelled :T – he went to the bank yesterday to do it but I check next month’s statement to make sure it had been before I took it off the SOA.

I don’t think my bank charge is every month. I saw it on a statement a while back but I haven’t seen it since. I will phone them to check.

MBNA Credit card payment should now be approx £228.79 as hubby has cancelled PPI :T which had crept up to £100 per month.:eek:

The debts have generally occurred due to petrolheaditis. Motorbikes and jetskis are to blame – they told us to buy them!:o

We no longer have any of the offending items – jet ski paid for wedding and bikes were sold as we each got worried about the other riding (lunatic car drivers etc!) so decided to stop. The money from the bikes went towards a deposit on our flat.

stokegal

Monthly incomings

Husband’s salary – 1677.14
Husband’s on call allowance – 117
My student loan (until July) – 500

Total – 2294.14

Monthly Outgoings

Mortgage – 797.83
Service charge – 93.51
Payment to housing company for unpaid service charge - 100
Council Tax – 74
Gas – included in service charge
Electric - 26
TV License – 34.12 - Does this include arrears, as it's only normally £11/month
Sky - 16 - Can you cancel this?
Home Phone - 30
Food – 220 - This seems a lot, is it just you and your husband?
Car Insurance – 27.85
Petrol – 60
Water (April – November) – 50.03
Broadband – 14.99
Denplan – 26.86
Interest on husband’s overdraft – 12.63
Overdraft protection on husband’s account – 16
Charge for husband’s account (Barclays) – 11.50
Husband’s pension – 50
Charge for my account – 25 - Can you change to a different account where the charges aren't so high?

MBNA Credit card – 328.79
Lloyd’s loan – 78.86
Barclay’s loan – 147.58
Barclay’s loan 2 – 52.51
Co-Op loan – 99.13
IKEA card – 17.15
Clysdale Financial – 9.61
Tamarisk debt management – 10

Hope this helps, as I'm fairly new to this website (but a HUGE fan of it) I'm sure there will be loads of other people who will be able t help you further

BTW Sky Broadband have a couple of options, £40 initial set up then free each month, £20 initial set up then £5 each month or no initial set up with £10 each month

art_student

Hi! Thanks for the quick response!
Interesting what you say about the TV license. I will look into it. I know Sky is a luxury but it stops us going out alot! (see my notes!). I agree with you about the food and am working on it (also in notes!).
I am slightly confused about my bank charges. I don't think that's per month. I need to investigate!
I'm also fairly new to this website - it's GREAT isn't it!
Thanks again for your post!

CLAPTON

just a few things.

you seem really to have a temporary problem... basically until you can get a job in June/July and until you have paid off the Barclay loan in October freeing up 353 which should then allow you to really attack the debts.

Which is just as well as the SOA is not really a long term budget as it leaves out most of the annual / one off spends e.g. car tax/servicing/MOT/RAC, clothes, xmas/presents etc
and no socialising etc isn't viable longterm

so how do you live until then:
can OH supplement the income with a part time job until the summer ?
do you have any savings that can help tide you over?
otherwise and i hate to say it, the only other solution seems to be to live on CCs until june/july

by the way i think the TV license may be because you only started paying it recently... usually they charge double the normal amount for the first 6 months and then it drops back.

have you tried the override phone companies e.g. https://www.call1899.com ...you can talk for hours for only 3 p per call (thats per call not per minute to landline phones)

art_student

Thanks for the post!
As you say, the situation is a temporary one - thankfully! I have already filled in my application form for a job - I am applying to be a prisons officer! If I get the job then I will be able to throw £500 per month extra at the debt. £353 is the balance left on that debt - not the payment per month. Is the SOA unclear? I have enough of my student loan saved to pay me £500 per month up to July. I haven't included my student loan in my SOA - I will when I start paying it off. I am not as bothered about this though.
I think that we should be able to scrape by for now - there are a couple of things in my outgoings which should be lower (see my notes!) which should bring us in on budget!
And, yes, I am hoping to be able to have more of a life at some point in the future!!

art_student

stokegal, I checked and I think the figure for the TV licence I have given is quarterly! Duh!

art_student

Oh, or maybe what CLAPTON said.

cherry_snaps

hi,

Have you thought about applying for a studnet hardship fund.

http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/scotland/family_parent/education_scotland/the_hardship_fund_scotland.htm

each unoveristy manages it own and criteria, contact your student union or student support

hope this may help

Andy

art_student

I have thought about it but don't think I can get it as my husband's salary is £28000 and apparantly they don't count things like credit card debt as they think you have frittered your money away!!!!

cherry_snaps

Hi,

Each univeristy has its own criteria, and if you can clearly show you are in hardship. (you already have a lot of facts a figures) i would present it to them...Hardship funds are there as a safty net to enable people to finish thier course and not pull out becuase of short term financial hardship.

the extra loan is sometimes added to your existing studnet loan,

I would say spend a little time on this option

Andy
CC problems dont always mean you have been frittering away