I Wanna See the Light

Mysteek

Thanks Seasidegal, its nice to know that someone is there.

Mysteek

1st of October already! In one way I’m glad to see the back of September as some days I didn’t know which planet I was on! Firstly I was glutened by the office drinks machine, then caught a cold/cough and yesterday I pulled my back, all whilst trying to hold down a full time job, take holidays to child mind my DGD for 12 hours a day when needed, keep the house ticking over, visit my DF to make sure he’s ok and debt bust at the same time. I haven’t had much time with DH as, on a good note, he’s had the best September for quite a few years now so we’ve been like ships passing in the night. Only a few more days of child minding during October and then my DD’s last placement finishes. I’m not complaining at all, just exhausted and feel my diary deserves an explanation as to why I have neglected it of late.

One thing I’m certainly not neglecting is the ‘First of the Month Balance Roundup’ which I will be doing tonight when I’m home. I’m hoping that we will have broken the 20% barrier but will find out for definite later.

Sold DH's old phone for £40 so that's gone to CC1.

Have just relisted 20 items on Ebay that didn’t sell last month, hope I get better luck this month.

Thinking of selling all my craft stuff, machines and everything. Feel quite panicky when I think about it as me and my crafting addiction have been friends for 20 plus years, but thing is that I don't get much time any more so its all just sat there and they might as well generate some cash to throw at the debt. I can always buy anything I really need when I'm debt free and can spend my own money, thats if I decided I want to carry on crafting. Who knows when I get used to not crafting anymore I might not miss it. Its all just 'stuff' anyway and am trying to think differently about 'stuff'. I have my sewing and knitting (mostly for the little'un) and if we want to have a retirement where we can get out and do things then we don't need 'stuff" Will have to give this some serious thought cos I think once its gone, its gone for good hmm.

TTFN

Mysteek

Just a quick post to record progress so far as at 1 October 2014. Been trying to get on my diary for a few days but DH has been around quite a bit and helping me as I'm still suffering with my back, and he doesn't know about my diary.

Unsecured Debt
14 May 2014 £36,017.73 - 1 October 2014 £27,449.87 (-23.79%)

Mortgage
14 May 2014 £62,951.46 - 1 October 2014 £58,985.26 (-6.30%)

In the end we decided to transfer the Buy it Now Pay Later purchase onto CC1 when it became due for payment at the beginning of September but have managed to pay that off this month so I can say that this is now ***GONE*** :T.

Can't wait till I can cast adrift CC1, waving it a definite final goodbye!! 2 more months hopefully, fingers crossed.

banwa

Hello Mysteek, I have never told my husband I had a diary either, and I don't think we're alone, I think there are loads of 'secret' diaries out there. Even though we share the debt and he knows all about it, I still wouldn't want him reading it. I think it's because I don't want him to know how geeky I can be I think!

However he is more committed to cutting back than he has ever been, he is actually quite angry with me that we are paying overdraft fees (not angry enough to do anything about it himself I might add:cool:)

Anyway, good luck, you're paying it off at lightning speed, keep up the good work

Banwa

Mysteek

Hi Banwa

I know what you mean about men lol
My DH is fully aware of what we owe as he is half responsible for it but I have to keep prodding him to keep him motivated. Its like anything he does, he's enthusiastic at the beginning but then starts to get bored so I need something to keep 'prodding' me and my diary helps with that. If I get any low moments I come on here and read other people's diaries which always gives me a lift and helps me to keep plodding through the difficult moments.

The debt is coming down quickly but not quick enough for me as I'm soooooooooooooooo impatient

Mysteek

CC1 balance today around £1,800 which I am aiming to clear by the end of November (my wedding anniversary! so good time to celebrate this milestone). I know the money that is due to come in between now and then that I can throw at it will be around £1,400 so just another £400 to find and its all paid off. No money from DH last week as he had to have new disc pads and something else this week (bit complicated to explain but not major) so that's around £200 gone on car maintenance. That's the trouble with doing a lot of mileage, the parts wear out quicker! His work has started to drop off quick noticeably now so not a lot coming in anyway but he should be able to find the remaining £400 in 6 weeks (fingers crossed) to achieve our goal. He has car tax next month though

My DD is struggling to finish her nursing course, due to the fact that any time they have off during the course they have to work at the end of the course. This is quite a bit of time and cos we've all had our holidays we've had to sort out another solution. Her OH has been able to arrange to work 4 long days a week to have a day off each week to look after DGD, DD doing 2/3 long days per week (14 hours). I have also asked at work if I can do the same and they have agreed!The won't let her work every weekend, which would have solved the problem without me having to arrange my hours. Its only for a few weeks and early December (hopefully) it will all be done and she can qualify. She has already been offered a job and going for an interview for another one next week. If we couldn't have worked anything out she would had to quit her course and it would have been a waste of 5 years work! Not good so something had to be done to find a solution.

E*ay been slow of late but found somewhere else to sell my craft stuff which has been good and have sold loads. The money I've generated this way is in the £1,400 total above so all going to CC1. This is where it came from in the first place anyway so I look at it that its going home for good as I don't want it back!

Right, just gonna eat my lunch and then back to work ...sigh!

banwa

Clearing £1800 by the end of November would be incredible. V impressed Mysteek

Mysteek

Thank you banwa. We're actually on target for paying it all off by the end of this week! As we were so near to the end, we decided to go all out and try to pay it all off by the end of October, 2 months less than the original target that we set. Everything has gone towards it, coin jar, paypal, selling craft stuff etc. Have around £75 left to pay on friday when some of my money is due to be paid, then a bit of interest and its done!
We need the next 2 months to pay all the other stuff off re DH car that he needs doing, car tax, car service, car test, insurance renewal etc. etc. and then of course there is christmas to get over. And I'm also aiming to pay off the rest of the catalogue by the end of December. So all in all, looking good but boy am I tired lol

Mysteek

I thought today was an appropriate time to wake my diary up from itshibernating slumber as it’s exactly one year since I started my debt freejourney. Yes, it was 14 May 2014 when Ihad my LBM!! Can’t believe it, what happened to that year!!

I haven’t been too far away from the MSE forums, I usually pop in mostdays to get my fix, but haven’t been updating my diary with all the boringdrivel lol, but I now want to do a recap of the things that have happened sinceI last posted and an update of my debt busting efforts so far to date. Could be a long one (sorry :cool:) but need to documentprogress for my own records if nothing else.

PERSONAL

Well we had to say goodbye to our rescue dog in December last year, she was old and got to the point wherelife wasn’t fun for her anymore and the vet suggested that her time hadcome. I know it was the kindest thingfor her and I kept telling myself that, but it was a horrible thing to have todo and I was absolutely distraught. Wehave decided not to get another dog. So now, after years of having rabbits,guinea pigs, gerbils, hamsters, rats, chinchillas and finally a dog we are nowPet Free! I know it’s not exactly Debt Free but sounds very similar

My granddaughter is now 14months old, walking and into everything and loving life and I love spendingtime with her. Although I have to admitthat I have been spoiling her somewhat so have not been very MSE where she hasbeen concerned. Oh well, she won’t always be this small and I don’t want her tomiss out because I’ve been stupid with money in the past. I’ve had a passion for buying her clothes onmy Next card but have managed to get it down to about £50 now (daren’t say howmuch I’ve spent though :mad:) so thatshould be paid off this month. I’vegiven the card to DH and he’s hidden in the garage with instructions to not letme have it back until the CC’s are paid off.

My DD2 completed her nursingdegree and is now working as a neo natal nurse, she’s enjoying it but findingit tiring with a baby who doesn’t always sleep too well.

We’ve gotten through all the ‘first’ events since mum died and I thinkwe’re all settling down to just getting on with things now.

Think I may split post and put the financial stuff on another post

Mysteek

FINANCIAL

We did manage to pay CC1 off at the end of October last year. Woo hoo! :T

Then had quite a spendy period on DH’s car, tax, test, tyres, insurance,accountant etc., then early this year about £1,000 on a DP Filter, service andsome other bits. Cars eh?

Then of course we had Christmas! Spent more than I had planned (mostly on the little’un) but not as muchas I have previously, but all in all it was an improvement on past years.

In January CC1 offered me a free balance transfer with 4.9%interest. Stay with me now this gets alittle complicated

I transferred CC2 onto CC1. ThenCC2 offered me a 0% balance transfer (3% fee) for 9 months.

I transferred CC3 onto CC2. ThenCC3 offered me a 0% balance transfer (2.9% fee) for 20 months.

I transferred CC1 onto CC3. Inow have the two remaining CC’s on interest free!! :rotfl:

In January I had a letter from my bank saying that I had paid PPI on aloan and that I may have been missold. I couldn’t remember which loan it was asthey didn’t actually give me any specific information but I couldn’t rememberagreeing to any PPI. So I completed the form, posted it, got a reply saying thecomplaint had been upheld and offering me a settlement figure. I accepted andsent the signed form back and the money was in my account within a week! Can’tbelieve how easily and quickly that happened. Anyway I got nearly £7k which paid off the overdraft (£3,500), flexiloan(£2,500) and the remaining £1,000 went to CC2.

Now a little about this flexiloan, its one of those loans that’s thereall the time and you can borrow and pay back as many times as you like. This debt is not actually mine, its DD2’s,but has been lingering around for years. It was when she split up with her partner and she was left with somedebt and was still at university at that time. I had to lend her the money to sort her out, but then I needed the moneyso had to use the flexiloan. Got a feeling I will have to write this off eventuallyas I don’t think it will get paid back any time soon, but at least its off mycredit score.

Have also got rid of the car loan. Quick history: was taken out in my name and my previous car used in partexchange. Was to be a joint car with DD2as she needed it for work but it quickly became apparent that I didn’t reallyneed it but she did so she took the car loan payments over. She has now insured it in her name and is nowthe registered keeper. I used a fee freecash balance transfer from CC1 to fund this. Then paid half of it off and transferred the rest to one of the interestfree CC’s, I saved nearly £700 in interest by doing this. DD2 doesn’t know I’ve done this and thinksthat the loan is still running as she now owes me the money and I still wanther to continue to pay it regularly. Soher monthly payment goes off the CC debt till it’s paid off. She will get a surprise when I tell her it’spaid off 6 months before she’s expecting it to! Another thing that’s not my debt but is now off my credit score.

We had a sofa on DFS with about £1,200 (I know!) balance left on. Saved up and paid it off in April. Woo hoo!

DH has his car insurance on monthly payments which started in February,so decided to save up and pay that off too, saving interest. Woo hoo!

I’ve been thinking that we’ve not done a lot this year but when I writeit all down I realise that we have been moving along nicely. I think its cos I’m too impatient.

My original debt total has increased to include the stuff I’ve paid offwhich weren’t strictly my debts but were in my name.

So as of 14May 2015 we have paid of more than 55% of our unsecured debt. :j

I have opened ISA’s for myself and my DH, the bank will give us £10 permonth for every monthly payment of £25 or above we make. £240 free money over 12 months, plus the moneywe save attracts tax free interest of 1.5% pa, so a no brainer I thought.

Have also purchased a copy of YNAB, tried the free trial and decided Ilike it and want to get into good budgeting habits for when I retire and don’thave my salary coming in every month. I like that I can have my mortgage etc.as ‘off budget’ but I can still havethem there and record the balances coming down.