Dipping in savings

dottyanne

Anyone else save money even with debts but find they are constantly dipping in ? If so what is the best way to eliminate this ? Any ideas - the account is instant access so I lf I want or need I just transfer over to current account !!!!

Savingforsomeday

What are you dipping into it for? Is it to pay the debts or just general spending? It may be that you just can't afford to save just now - as the debts go down it should get easier though.

DCFC79

An ISA thats locked in for a year but as already mentioned can you afford to save ?

dottyanne

Not for debts just general spending - always something to buy! Helping one teenager through college daily spends there for travel and now almost Christmas - I really need to drill my savings down rather than just have one pot I think - maybe in January start a pot for Christmas and one for birthdays and another for car expenses then have another for general savings - also withdraw a certain amount each week n when it's gone it's gone ! How do u guys do it?

unimaginative_user_name

I have two types of savings one for very long term goals/retirement and one for general one off expenses such as Christmas, car servicing, insurance, road tax, holidays..... I transfer a set amount each month into an easy access savings account and on a simple spreadsheet I divide the sum into various categories. When I need to pay road tax I transfer what I need back to current account and record it on the spreadsheet. Sometimes I shift amounts from one pot to another if something unexpected happens.

The long term savings I try not to use though I have used it in certain situtations such as when my car engine blew and the car wasn't worth repairing. I have a separate spreadsheet where I record money I have taken from long term savings and gradually 'pay myself back'.

I'm not sure the long term savings are a priority if someone's in debt as the interest rate you would pay on your credit would almost certainly be lots less than they interest rate you would be paid on savings. Even the short term savings may not be the best idea if it means your debts are reducing more slowly and you are paying more interest than necessary. Have you tried taking a break from saving and throwing all the money you would have saved at your most expensive debt? A really determined effort to reduce debt would mean lower interest payments and might mean you could start saving more effectively.

Perhaps you could post your SOA using the sticky at tne top of the board so people could give you more specific ideas.

Savingforsomeday

I have the same sort of idea as above - a limited access savings account for the longer term savings (I can only withdraw from this a limited number of times per year or I lose the interest rate, so look at these savings as 'off-limits' - a great way to stop dipping in to them!)
I also have an instant access account which I use as my emergency pot and for things like birthdays/holidays/Christmas etc
I move a set amount to my long term savings every pay day, and move whatever I have leftover from wages each month into my 'emergency' savings

[Deleted User]

I don't do Christmas or Birthdays, so that saves me some money.

Ilona

I don't do the separate pot thing, my pension goes into my current account, my only account. I have never saved long term and I'm too old to start now. I save up for what I need to buy and pay cash. I know how much money I have in my account and I know what large payments are looming, so I save up for them. I have very good self discipline and only buy what I need.
Ilona
And I don't do Christmas or birthdays either.

[Deleted User]

rule of thumb is you should have at least the equivilant of 3 months salary put away for a rainy day,that you dont "dip"in and out of

owen_money

Bedsit_Bob wrote: »

I don't do Christmas or Birthdays, so that saves me some money.

Now Bob tells me, just after I bought him a Christmas present :mad: