New here, feels like confessional :-(

medman

Hi BA-UK

Sounds like you're on a role!! keep it going it becomes more addictive than spending.

Ref the MBNA cheques even though they say the amount is interest free for a period they are normally still treated like a cash advance and some interest is added immediately. It may still be worth using them provided it is less than 3% which is the normal balance transfer fee.

Good luck it can be done (from one who has done it)

MM

teecee152

Hi Blackangel

Just wanted to say welcome and Well Done.

You have acheived an amazing amount in a very short time. Keep up the good work.

teecee xx

blackangeluk

Wow :j Thank you so much for all those wonderful replies.

I came home to a lovely tea by DH, he told me to go and exert my energy at the gym and we have sat down and worked out exactly what is being paid, he has made out and signed the Credit Card cheques and told me how proud he is of me I have quite truthfully hidden the extent of the debt from him and kept them in my name, I don't feel half as scared of him opening the post etc anymore. I was really worried he would be really angry with me but I have apologised and shown him these posts and he has been very supportive.

I have checked the credit card cheques more carefully and it says:- You can transfer a balance or write a cheque up to 95% of your available credit limit at a rate of 0.0% per annum until your May 2008 statement date. Thereafter it will revert to your standard contractual rate. Interest will accrue from the date a cheque is presented to us for payment. You will be charged a handling fee for balance transfers unless we have told you otherwise of up to 3% of the transaction" Does this include cheques and it will be a one off handling fee that I pay interest on? What does it mean about interest accruing from date of cheque being presented? (thank you MM for suggesting I look)

I naively thought I was paying about 6% on credit cards but it is in fact approx 15.9% and the Next account is a whopping 26.4% - :eek:

I have never checked the interest rates in my life!

I am going to sort the cheques out now and just tot up the insurance policies etc and cancel unnecessary direct debts.

Tomorrow I plan to get quotes for other policies and see if I can combine some policies and cut the costs down. (was it Quidpro site to check as well?)

Then next week I am going to sort out some clothes that I have probably never worn on Ebay. I was in need of a pair of trousers for work, have some but zip was broken, not long enough etc and so I have bagged them up and taking them to a cheap seamtress tomorrow to have them altered for £10. I have also checked the offers on A&L and got £10 by signing up to their mobile banking (which I never intend to use).

I absolutely love this board and I love snowballing! My only problem will be holding down my full time job AND checking this board as I'd love to get involved in the other posts.

(p.s. I was 22p short for my train fare tomorrow so instead of going to the bank I raided our whiskey jar of money which is going towards holiday spending money - DH called me resourceful - yay!):rotfl:

hypno06

The credit card cheques seem ambiguous and well worth checking out a little further I think. If it is allowing you to basically do a balance transfer, can you not do this over the phone, transferring balances to whoever you want, and at the same time clarifying the rate of interest?

blackangeluk

Morning, I'm back again.

Have now cancelled DD's with Avon, Lottery and Gym giving me a monthly saving of £65.10 to pay off debts.

Am going to look at policies tonight, but my mortgage is starting to bother me now!

We have fixed rate mortgage with the Halifax for £174k until 1st October 2007and we have a second charge taken out March/April 2006 for £55k (although it will have reduced but not sure how much redemption figure will be). I want to lump this together in September to save money over a 20 year mortgage.

My problem is I will have approx £17k of credit card debts then as well as £300 monthly loan repayments (am going to deal with loans once credit cards are paid off).

Our joint income is £69,800 (why oh why am I in debt), I do not want to lump my other debts into the mortgage and I only want to get the necessary money to cover mortgage and 2nd charge, but undoubtedly my debts will count against me in deciding how much they will lend. I have looked at the Chelsea and they will lend 3.75 x our salary, I have calculated min credit card payments and £300 loan payments and deducted this from our salary and it might be just enough to get us what we need. The alternative is to stick with the Halifax and switch to another 2 year fixed deal and find an extra £300 a month to fund it :eek: Hopefully I will have a salary increase by then, but the childcare is also deducted direct from our salary so that will also affect our lendability (is that a word)

Can anyone help re this, it is not urgent until October but I really want to research it and be organised. Felt a little down this morning whilst researching mortgages, but I will not get down about this

Thanks in advance

Seaxwyn

HI blackangel

You may get better advice on the mortgage question on the Mortgage forum here - try posting there if you haven't already.

I was really interested to read your post as I face a similar decision when our current mortgage deal expires in a year's time.

Obviously it's not so urgent for us, and i want to focus on reducing the other debts before that time, but it is very much preying on my mind now that we are not at all 'lendable' (a good word even if you did invent it). Please post your findings here and I will read with interest.

Good luck with everything - your progress is very impressive!

blackangeluk

Hi thanks for your suggestion, I have posted over there now. Will let you know my progress.

blackangeluk

albertross wrote: »

Have you actually cancelled your membership with the gym?

Hi, yes I gave them a month's notice today to leave. Our daughter was having swimming lessons there and couldn't without us being members, so we looked elsewhere and found cheaper ones today.

Have also looked at Insurance policies and I am (unsurprisingly) overinsured, I have £170k life insurance, £150 decreasing term insurance on the mortgage and four different sickness/redundancy policies which won't all pay out anyway(!!) so I've wasted my money there.

Am fed up tonight though, DH has got angry about my mess and now is making me feeling like c**p, I completely understand why he is angry and I am accepting everything he has said, but it is just making me feel 10x ashamed than I already do about the mess I am in.

Originally I would probably go out shopping or visit internet shops after a row but not this time - so progress I guess.

We were also due to go out with friends for a curry tonight but I have totted up £10 for babysitter and approx £25 - £30 for meal, drinks etc so I've cancelled it and that can be money for weekly shop instead.

Have a bottle of wine in fridge, will sample that instead of spending.

Sea78

How about you search for some nice curry recipes and invite them over for a curry & wine next week? Then no extra babysitting fees etc.

Sorry to hear you've had a ro w- hugs to you - well done for not rushing to spend though!

LookingAhead

Really sorry to hear that your DH is making you feel bad.

Without being inflammatory, I just wanted to say, bite your tongue and remember (and be proud of) all the steps you have taken in such a small amount of time to put things right. Don't let it put you off.

Hug to you!

LA x