Slog away or slack up?

longtermplanner

FinanciallyUnsavvy wrote: »

At the minute I can see both sides of the story and currently whichever decision I make is making me uneasy and feeling like the wrong decision...

You need a different mindset! Whichever decision you make is a good one and your previous actions have put you in a place where you are in control of how you clear the rest of your debt

FWIW I would say slack up a bit but not a lot.

triple_choc_chip

I would say pay just above the minimum and save the rest (that ensures it is paid at the end of the 0% period), earning a bit of interest on it.

Also save up an emergency fund so that you won't need to use a card or your savings if something breaks down or blows up!

Holiday savings/ treats should be another seperate pot after the repayments are saved and emergencies covered.

Missioncontrol2014

It is a tough call...slogging away relentlessly without allowing yourself *anything* is a miserable experience, and could make you seriously unhappy if you did it for a long period of time. Plus, some things crop up that just *do* cost money, and you can't avoid them - so if you've already allocated every last penny to paying off debt, what are you going to do?

But on the other hand, allowing yourself a bit of leeway could lead to trouble and the resurrection of old habits.

It's something I often muse upon myself. I spent years in a miserable relationship because I felt I couldn't afford to get out of it until I was debt free. Allocating every spare penny to clearing debt, and flogging myself to death selling all my possessions, working overtime etc etc. was a thoroughly draining experience. I could definitely have done with easing off and spending some money on fun stuff to cheer myself up....but if I had would I still be there? (And yes I do realise I am still in debt, and very stupidly this is largely due to forgetting the hard lessons I'd learned as soon as I did get out!)

There probably is a happy medium, should you be disciplined enough to stick to it.

maganan

I would suggest a happy medium too, you know you can do it (as in knuckling down, no life etc) but could that lead to a blow out at the end and more of the same and what about your physical and mental health?

Keep at it but in a different way maybe? Continue paying more than the minimum each month but allow a few treats, get an emergency buffer, if you don't need it towards the end of the interest free period you'll have a bit of a lump sum to throw at the debt and that'll feel fab it'll also give you the opportunity to budget for fun/life for the future and allow you to practice saving IYSWIM

That said my signature shows I learnt this all too late

Good luck and any decision will be yours and right for you

Kate x

FinanciallyUnsavvy

Thanks for everyone's kind responses. I'm still no wiser in what I'm going to do. I suppose continue paying whatever I can is the only way forward.

Bedsit_Bob wrote: »

Just out of interest, how much would you need to save each month, to have enough to clear it, the month before the 0% APR expires?

How does that compare to the monthly amount you are currently paying?

To have the card paid off before the 0% period expires, I need to pay £170 a month.

To be debt free by the end of the year, I need to pay £500 a month. (Probably slightly more now since this month I'm not going to meet that target.)

The very maximum I can afford from my wage is £300. The surplus £200 is reliant on extra income from my second job (online research work), ebay sales, and whatever else I can manage.

Considering this month I've only earnt £10.50 from the second job it's not looking good for meeting targets next month either. I really just need to get my head in gear I think...

triple_choc_chip

So, putting some figures to what I wrote earlier; I would advise you pay £175 off the card, put £125 into the emergency/holiday fund and then consider all extra monies earned from the 2nd job, ebay etc as funds to be enjoyed or make life easier. If you're making an extra effort, you should reward yourself because without reward, that additional work will become a drudge.

If the emergency fund grows to an amount that would settle the card you could pay it off early, knowing you then had £300 a month to re-grow the savings but it would be better to leave it for the whole period to gain some interest. The main thing is not to have a balance on the card when it starts charging interest.

When the total owed on the card is 100% offset by your savings, you will still be debt free!