Time for a change

WelshKitty85

Sold another Facebook item today for £10

WelshKitty85

Had an absolutely lovely day today and didn't spend a single penny!

Local attractions are taking part in the heritage scheme so they are free of charge on certain days. So, we took advantage and went to one of the national trust places this morning. It was really good fun and the sunshine was an added bonus!

This afternoon we went to a local produce fair. We had lots of free tasters of various food and MIL bought us a cake as we had invited her to stay for tea.

It was a roast chicken tonight, and even with having the extra guest I managed to have enough meat left to make a pie for tomorrow plus some for the freezer to use at a later date.

WelshKitty85

Had a busy few days between working and studying, but it am pleased to report that the last 3 days have all been NSDs.

Student finance has come through and I have sent a cheque off straight away to pay off my biggest loan.

I have seen a few books that I really want for my degree, but am going to see how many I can borrow from the library for now and only buy new books if I really have to.

WelshKitty85

Weekly shop done tonight as I am working tomorrow. Spent £53, meaning this months total is now at £173.55. That leaves less than £30 for next weeks shop!

I will have to do a detailed inventory of what I have in stock and try to make it stretch as far as possible if I am going to stay in budget.

WelshKitty85

Well, it has been a year since I posted my soa and there's been a few changes - some good, some bad. I am pleased to say that the Santander loan only has £420 left and I am planning to pay this off in full with January's student finance payment. But, on the other hand my credit card debt has almost doubled! I am debating whether to pay off a lump sum in January using some more of my student finance, or whether to just increase my monthly payments incase something unexpected occurs and I need to make use of the money elsewhere. I don't have an emergency fund as I just can't justify putting money aside while I have so much debt!

We are living off left overs at the moment and still have plenty of Turkey and gammon in the freezer plus a few bits of meat from the last butchers shop. Today I have cut up what's left of the Xmas cake and my daughters gigantic birthday cake (all homemade) and have Frozen them in small portions so they don't end up going to waste.

Tonights meal is stew using all the veggies that were about to grow fur in the bottom of my fridge!

WelshKitty85

Had a fairly productive morning. Decided to join 2 MSE challenges - £2015 in 2015 and debt free by Xmas 2015. Have sold a few items on Facebook so got a head start and have £19.14 towards my target of £2015.

Once I have a decent amount saved it can either be used to pay a lump sum off my credit card or used for living expenses once I finish my degree if I don't manage to find a full time job asap.

Our hallway is pretty cold at the moment ( it has 2 rooms off it that were part of the garage and have been converted but have no heating) and there is a really cold draught every time we open the living room door. I have cut up a pair of old jeans and turned the legs into draught excluders. I have also made a fabric cover for the letter box to stop the draught through there. Hope it all helps a little.

Spending this evening at home and have a friend joining us. Have plenty of food in the freezer so will use it up to make a little buffet.

Happy new year everyone. I'm hoping mine will be a frugal one!

WelshKitty85

Lovely night last night seeing in the new year. Only used half of the buffet style food I had planned so have plenty left to use up through January (should save me a little from my shopping budget).

Christmas is officially over in our house now and we have taken the decs down.

Sold another Facebook item for £1.

Had an email from eBay offering 30% off final value fees for items listed in the next 2 days. So I decided to list a few bits that won't shift on Facebook. My first item sold immediately on buy it now for £30 plus postage. So once I have paid the fees and postage I will add the remainder to my savings.

Still have lots to sort through to de clutter and sell but I think I need to prioritise my uni assignments for the next few weeks. Once these are done I can get back to selling.

WelshKitty85

Back to work this weekend and it hasn't been too bad. Have stuck to meals plans and managed to stay in budget with all spends so far. Got some bargains to put away for birthdays & next Xmas but spent less than £10 on them altogether.

Have had a detailed look at my budget planner today and have decided I will be paying off my loan in full this week and will be upping my credit card repayments to £400 pm. From April I can up the cc payments to £500 per month and will have it completely paid off by September, which is before the 0% ends. I will also have enough left over from student finance to see me through to the end of the year without having to dip into the money I am saving (hopefully I will get a fantastic paying graduate job as soon as I finish uni in May/June....but living in the real world I am planning for worst case scenario!). Now....this is of course all dependent on me sticking to my budgets and I haven't included much in the way of days out and entertainment in my budget but I am feeling determined and DH seems to be on board which makes things easier.

WelshKitty85

Had a fairly productive week...

Paid off the loan in full!! :j :j

Am now concentrating on the credit card which I still plan to have paid off by the time 0% ends.

Have taken lunch to work every day so there has been no need to pop out to the shops and have resisted the temptation of bacon baps

Also managed to get savings upto £110, plus am waiting for payment for a few items that will bring it upto £135.

WelshKitty85

Well, overall I am pleased with the progress I have made so far this year. After paying off my loan in full, I have made an overpayment to my credit card and so far have paid just over £852 towards debts. I have altered the direct debit amount to my credit card so that I automatically make an overpayment each month.

I have also taken out the M&S credit card as featured in Martin's email. Will pay for shopping and fuel with it and pay it off in full each month. I should qualify for the £30 voucher plus points each month.

DH bought a second hand car late last year. He has had numerous problems with it and our local garage have told him it's an uneconomical repair. We have been back and forth to the garage he got it from and they have refused to repair or refund it claiming it was sold with no warranty. We have managed to claim charge back through the visa debit card he paid with.

DH has found another car to replace this one and is picking it up next week. He needs a replacement as there is a high probability of him staring a new job in the next week or so which he will need the car for. So, he is using the money that has come through the chargeback. However, we are still within the timeframe that the garage can dispute it, so I am hoping that they don't!

I am hoping that the new credit card will turn up before he needs to pay the balance as we will use this so that we get the M&S points, plus the added protection from paying with credit card. Providing the garage don't successfully dispute the chargeback we will be able to pay it off in full. If they do manage to dispute it then it's going to take me quite a bit longer to clear the debts (although hopefully DH will get this new job which will help).

On another positive note, I have been putting all extra money earned through overtime, paid surveys, selling items etc into savings. It is already adding up nicely and we have £235 saved. I am not using this money to pay off debts as I think it is important to save an emergency fund.

I have managed to stay in control of budgets in January, and although I have overspent a little on groceries, it has been deducted from February's budget as that's when most of the last shop will be used.

February will be quite tight financially as I have a job interview to attend. It is 200 miles away from home, so I need fuel, accommodation and food. However, it is my dream job so I just have to do it and hope for the best. Other areas of my budget have been altered to allow for it.