The only way is down (for the balances)!

catandy

£9 to last me to pay day which is next Tuesday - going to be tight just for a change


got petrol in the car enough for the rest of the week so that's taken care of, need milk/ bread/ sugar and apart from that its batten down the hatches and hope I sell loads at the car boot on Saturday (and the weather is kind to me as well)

catandy

I got my confirmation today that I've passed my probation period at work and have a full time well-paid (by my standards) long term if I want it job (dancing around the flat madly icon inserted here).


bills and expenses for next month worked out and doing the 'envelope method'. taking out cash putting it in envelopes and making that cover each item. any left over at the end of the month goes into 'holding account' which is also added to from anything from car boot/ cash for clothes/ music magpie etc.


I can do this - going to take some time but now ive got a permanent secur(ish) job I can plan ahead and do this a bit at a time

in_need_of_direction

Well done you.

catandy

£23.50 raised at the car boot and a lot of free space in the flat gained - result all round!


used the funds for shopping for this week - will only have to supplement with milk and bread


all good in catandy towers - gearing up for payday last week of the month to pay some bills

jodles16

Just wanted to pop in and say good luck! Sounds like your getting back on top after a difficult time, and making good progress!

Jodles

roxy7699

Well done on passing probation. I recently did that same dance.
Glad to hear the money planning is going well with the envelopes.

catandy

pay day on Wednesday - woohoo!!


mobile has been cut off as I don't have the money to pay it till then but I will catch up.


dca are chasing me for reviews of my offers, had a really horrible one on the fone yesterday insisting that the payments I am making need to be increased x10. took great delight in telling them they will receive what I can afford as a pro rata amount of my total debt - even if it did take me 2 attempts to do it as I had to hang up the first time as I got so frustrated with the downright rude and aggressive person on the fone. hopefully its sorted now but im not holding my breath - im expecting another threat-o-gram letter from them - gets boring really answering them but its got to be done.

catandy

total debt has just gone up by another 2500 with confirmed amounts finally come thru - my calculations were well off but that is the line in the sand. nothing else to jump out and bit me now.


mobiles back connected as is internet at home, - have redone all income/ expenditure to all creditors so I can send it thru to make offers - that's to priority and non priority debts cos they all need renegotiating.


loads of time off work now in the run up to xmas - I couldn't take any time off in my trial period which means I need to use up almost a years worth of holiday entitlement in 4 months - which is good cos it means less trawling up and down the motorway in the traffic (cost about £30 per week in petrol) so approx. saving of 90 between now and end of year.


have been working out end dates for some bills or starting to anyway - first CCJ I got will end March of next year, freeing up £40 pm. council tax and water will both be up to date by then as well giving me 28 and 13 pm respectively. grand total of £81pm freed up.


rent arrears will be cleared in 14 months if I carry on paying them off at the same rate I am doing so need to speed this up as don't want to risk being homeless - I'm sick of living on my nerves so I want to clear this first even though I've got an agreement in place. so rent will be cleared May of next year instead of Dec (using the money freed up from the other payments) and from June onwards that makes another 28PM freed up again - total now up to 109pm.


and of course if I happen to have a month when I get some commission I reassess what to do with the extra there - live a little with my kids or pay extra of one of the bills.


feels like a long road ahead.

catandy

I'm really proud of myself I just contacted a DCA that holds 2 of my debts to renegotiate the amounts - bought them down for a 3 month period which saves me a massive £20 per month. not a lot in the grand scheme of things but it means that we can afford to eat for the month and put electric in the meter so we're not living in the dark.


means I will have to rejig figures again dec time onwards with them but I will think about that when it happens.

catandy

weekly food shop done for £54 and some shrapnel at Ald! - will need some milk/ bread/ tea bags etc later but should get away with another £15 tops to last us till next Saturday. me likes seeing as my budget each week is set at £100 I think that's mega


back at work on Monday so doing ironing and stuff - exciting! also have worked out when I will be doing the hospital run over to see a relative who is in long term stay about an hours drive away from where I live/ work and what the best deal is with hospital parking. I was going to get a monthly pass but have worked out it wont pay for itself unless I go every other day (which isn't practical cos I cant afford the petrol). so pay each day at the machine it is.


getting organised (which is so out of character for me) but probably a long time overdue