30 months to no debt - an Optimistic Journey

Skint_but_Optimistic

Month 23 day 18

Thanks both – I am hoping we manage to offset the interest enough to remain that way until the end of the month and the figures are updated again. I still need to do the exercise of payments and balance reconciliation and make sure nothing has been missed – but as I tend to look at the bleakest picture I am sure we will stay sub 25… Will celebrate every thousand we pass!
The payback for being fed at mother in laws was the issue that no further work was completed on the house & I had not done any ironing or ebay related tasks either. I need to pick up an additional task every day and will ask DD2 if she can do the poop scooping for the next 2 nights, its only ten minutes a day with a long reach scooper but you would think it’s a highly skilled job the way she goes on about it.

Had a couple of phone calls yesterday about the house renting.

One was disconcerting. They wanted to pay £50 less a month than we want, they wanted a promise bond rather than an actual bond, and the person had a support worker. I feel really bad and I am sure there is a place for this young man, but I don’t feel its in my house. The support worker said, the local authority will not rehouse him. ( I don’t know why, lack of 2 bed homes or if there is another issue?)

At the end of the day as my husband said its not our problem and I know it isn’t. I am sure the support worker should be using his leverage with the council.


Anyway, I saw them emptying a local council house last night which is 2 bedrooms so I texted him those details. If the council are refusing to house someone should that fall to me and my husband? It could all go horribly wrong. I did a google and found out some gory facts about the individual.


Anyway I had another call, and I am showing a lady round tonight who is on benefits and on her own. Hopefully - no sinister history. However she doesn’t have the full deposit, I have found that the local council can help people out with that.

So we shall see. I have made some signs and will pop one in the post office.

Ebay is currently up to £14.50. Also there has been an issue with a buyer, who paid for a washing machine and asked us to hang onto it for a fortnight. This doesn’t really fit in with why we put it on Ebay in the first place! It can stay for now but its on borrowed time as we have three days for him to decide if he wants to get it on or before the 15th.

Argh.

Also, still no news on the CSA payment which was due on 1st of the month. If I don’t hear today, chances are we won’t have anything in before the weekend. Its ok but I would prefer to have something in. I have a bill which will end up overdue if I am not careful.


Other than that, I need to hold some money back to go on a course with work. Argh, etc. Might be best served loading up my credit card and then using that. Will mull.

Skint_but_Optimistic

£4.50 spent on groceries on spinach and beans. £10 grocery money remaining.

Skint_but_Optimistic

Budget Matters

We have decided on our budget. theres no breifcase involved, merely an edict from me to the husband.

A monthly limit of £550 for electric, coal, groceries and school dinners.

How that is spent, is up to him. After bills, he will be left with 15 pounds. He can use that how he wants to as well.

I will be free to get cards paid and provide any fripperies like birthday presents etc instead of propping up the living expenses!

Skint_but_Optimistic

Month 23 day 19

We have a tenant!! Tenancy agreement is printed and ready to be signed tonight and we have a moving in date of 22nd March!

Once that’s all signed tomorrows tasks will be to get the ducks in a row as far as changing the council tax- water board – gas – electric and insurance over. I am making a list of the snagging jobs we need to complete and I am rallying the troops for one last push!!

Ebay sales were a little bit pants. We made 12 pounds and by the time that’s split between us I got a measly 6 pounds. (this is to prop up the husbands overspend on groceries, hes been reprimanded.) We just need a little time to sort it all out, events are overtaking things a little and theres no money due in until Monday, and I had thought it was Friday.
We are revisting the financials and expect that my husband will have the capacity to put away / redirect 409 pounds a month.

This means we can finally start to chip away at what we owe our mams, and pay additional money off debt and create a nice little saving pot.

That’s just from his side of the fence.

On my side, I will no longer have to pay council tax and water rates. I am the main driver in the paying of the bills, so that’s an extra 200 pounds ish for me to redirect. I will split it between my debts but focus on the most expensive – it should give me some breathing space.


Feeling pretty happy!

please-let-me-be-lucky

Congratulations on the tennant :T Xx

debtfreewannabe321

Yay I got a tenant today too :T must be the day for it congrats! Let's pray we've got good'uns :T

millionaire_in_training

:j great news on the tenant. As DFW says, I hope it's a goodun. Seems as if life is moving along nicely now and BIG congrats on being sub 25k

PinotGrigio41

Fab news on the tenant Skint, things are looking up ! xxx

Skint_but_Optimistic

Month 23 day 20

Cheers all. It’s a blessed relief but testament to the work we have put in I think that everyone who has seen it has said its lovely, and once we had a sign in the window it was rented out in less than a week.

We sold a bed too last night, £27 being collected today. That’s pretty marvellous as well. That’s a whole 27 pounds we can use to keep us going.


So ebay is back in my good books.

The tenant signed last night so I spent my morning sorting the 2 bills which I am responsible for, one is the water and the other is the council tax. All is done and dusted and I will get a refund of the council tax following the month end as there is 9 days they will owe me. Then the direct debit will be finished for the new financial year and then I have the feted £169 to use on things.

I still have a 25 pound voucher which I can use in B & Q or somewhere. There are some snagging jobs to take care of at the house but I have signed over to complete them as the tenant is desperate to be in. I am so happy relieved and keen to get on with the next plan.

So – the plan is this: Sell, sell sell. Clear the decks and ebay the hell out of the loft. Use that money to get the debts even further down. Declutter – put the garden and veg patch to lawn, get work on the on the house we are in and then get it up for rent October / November time if possible. If not we can let it slip to December / January. Ive let things slide with the sorting and decluttering at home I need to clear my loft space, list on ebay, declutter and sort- and decorate and work.

So excited I am bubbling.

I will need boxes to package things in and will start to collect the photocopy boxes from work. I can tell already husband is going to be thrilled.

Tonights works – paint the little room – complete ebay sale of bed – go home and sit in loft and do a sort there and then have a sit and do the insurance on the laptop!

In a way I am doing a “gargrave” getting rid of anything and everything we don’t want use or need. If no one wants it I will declutter it. Its going to be brutal but its going to be really worthwhile.

So it looks like the next phase of the diary will be starting at month 22 – eight months to clear the decks more ducks in a row and the debt busting continues! Its all so very exciting!


I am looking forward to the next challenges – it will be MARVELLOUS!

HeadAboveWater

Fantastic news ref the tenant and fantastic news ref the sub £25k. These things come in threes, right?? :)

Have a great weekend