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Years of Breezing: Time to Break the Cycle!
itskat
Posts: 31 Forumite
Hello, hello! New to the forum, though I have been lurking for a little while: finally decided to register.
I apologise in advance for how long this post is. It started off as a tiny little thing, then I just kept adding bits and pieces, and suddenly, BAM: 2,000 words! A bit like how my spending works, actually. So I've added a summary - a TL:DR version, if you will - at the bottom.
I realise my debt is quite small when compared to others, and I feel a little silly for waffling on so much, but a debt is still a debt, and I need to get it sorted. This is mainly a kick up the backside for myself to start managing my finances properly, so let's get to it!
The Long Version!
My first big debt--if it can technically be called that--was in 2002, when I managed to snap up a two bedroom house for the low, low price of £25,000.
At the time, my wages easily covered the mortgage repayments and cost of living, with plenty left over for frivolities. Oh, for those heady days!
Of course, I never did have any money left over to put into savings, because I was young and stupid, and there were so many things I wanted! I never spent more than I had, though, so besides the mortgage, that was my only debt for a long, long time.
Then I met the person I would go on to marry. He moved in, so my income rose without any substantial outgoings -- but again, I never really had anything left at the end of the month, because...shiny things.
Fast-forward three years or so, and we decided we needed a bigger house. The housing market had changed significantly since I'd purchased my house, plus it was quite a fixer-upper with the help of my family, so I managed to sell it for £80k (woo!). I cleared the mortgage (by then down to about £23k) and put £40k of it into another house we bought together worth £125k.
The difference between the income for the house and the £40k put into the new mortgage went on furnishing the new house, and the rest...I have no idea. Splurged it up the wall, pretty much. Again, no new debt (aside from the new mortgage), but no real savings.
So, new mortgage 85k, between two of us, we managed to get it reduced quite nicely and were at 79k within a few years. We both started setting aside money each month, and after another few years, we had quite a nice pot. Then we got married. We wiped out our savings and still borrowed against the house for this, and then borrowed again for a new boiler/bathroom, putting the mortgage essentially back to where it had been when we first moved in.
Sounds okay so far though, right?
Well, in the words of Fantine, "Then it all went wrong."
Our marriage broke down due to irreconcilable differences, and he left. It was relatively amicable, though, and because I didn't want to move out of the house, he agreed to transfer his portion of the mortgage to me and essentially "walk away". I still haven't decided whether this was a good move on my part or not. But as the house was only valued at £100k by the time we split, I didn't want to be selling up and losing out.
We split in early 2012, and that -- I think -- was when everything started to spiral a little bit.
Firstly, I didn't have the extra portion of income coming into the house anymore, but I still wanted to buy things, and because I didn't really accept that I didn't have money to throw about anymore, I just kept doing it.
I took out a one-year finance deal on an expensive computer (I think it came to around £1,300 in total, though my memory's not 100% on that) and a £1,000 one-year loan shortly after the break, just to tide me over.
Late in 2012, I started renting out one of the rooms in my house to a friend, which brought my income back up. Being the fool that I was, I didn't put anything aside, and allowed the splurging to re-commence. Shortly after that, I met someone else, and they moved in, also paying rent. So I was more-or-less back to where I was before, financially.
I managed to pay off the loan and the finance deal within their allotted time, and any extra I put into a savings account...HA, no I didn't. That would've been the smart thing to do. I spent any surplus funds on nights out and takeaway food. I did the calculations, and in 2013, I spent almost £2,000 of my money on fast food / takeaways alone. I did manage somehow to squirrel away over £1,000 in my savings account, which I was saving for emergencies.
And then...and then…
I decided I wanted a new digital camera, and a new phone, and instead of taking the money from my savings account, or saving for another 6 months until I had enough, I decided to take out a 18-month 0% credit card. I intended to put around £900 on it.
"I'll just buy those two things," I said. "I have decent money coming in, I'll have it paid off within 6 months, and I can always use my savings if I don't. Plenty of time left over."
Card arrives...with a £3,800 limit.
At first, I laughed. Then I looked at that figure on my welcome letter. "Imagine what you could buy with £3,800!" the voice in my head said. "You're still getting income enough to clear that within 18 months. And don't forget those savings! Live a little!"
So of course, £3,400 later...
I couldn't even tell you what I bought now. The camera and phone were amongst them, though. They did indeed come to around £900.
Anyway.
My new relationship ended; he moved out. A few months later (putting it around April this year), my other housemate moved out. My credit card was down to around £2,700 by this point, but the money I'd been paying that off with came from the housemate's rent and digging into the savings.
And I think that brings us to the present. I'm sure there's more that might come to me as I continue this diary.
I've been living alone since April, and I've been having ups and downs where it comes to managing my reduced finances.
First thing I did was re-mortgage the house: it reduced my monthly outgoings there from £520 to £344, though it upped the years from 17 all the way to 35, so currently I'll be paying that off right around the time I retire.
I've reduced my spending when it comes to takeouts pretty well, which is where a lot of my surplus money was going. Like I said, 2013 saw £2,000 of my funds go into fast food and takeaways. This year, I've estimated my spend by the end of December will be just shy of £600 -- which is still more than I'd like, but hey, one step at a time!
I've applied for a new credit card: 0% on balance transfers for 24 months. I intend to cut that card up as soon as it arrives (if I'm accepted, which I should be, as I've always made at least the minimum payments, often more). The 0% ends on my current card in March 2015, but I wanted to get an early start. I intend to transfer £2,000 to the new card, then focus on paying the remainder £379.68 off the old account (I do have £400 in a savings account [down from £1,200 at the beginning of the year] that I'll use as an emergency pay-off next year, if needed).
Now the plan is to get super-frugal, super-fast. Starting this month, I should also have an increase in salary (I never complained about my salary before, again because I'm stupid, and also because I had money coming in from other sources. When all this started to hit home, I realised I simply couldn't live and pay off my debt on my current income. Thankfully, I am a valuable worker, so they agreed without argument, which kind of annoyed me, because that makes me think I could've posed the same question 6 months ago and had the same result. But that's my own fault for not asking.).
I realise that renting the spare room out again would be an easy way to bring in some extra funds, but I also know if I do this, I both won't be happy -- because I'll be sharing my house with a stranger -- and I won't learn anything about managing my money, which I've been wasting away for over ten years now.
I don't like to think how much better off I'd be right now if I'd never sold my first house way back when, or if I'd been more careful with my money when I had it. But I suppose that's the thing about the past. You can't go back and do it over: you can only go forward!
It wasn't until I was living alone again that I realised two things: 1, I am not good at managing my finances (better late than never to learn this), and 2, I didn't want to share my house with anyone again for a long time. I enjoy the independence too much to go back to sharing.
The TL:DR Version!
Bought a house, bought another, got married, separated, ran up credit card debt. Turned 30.
Want to get finances in order and finally become one of those "responsible adult" types, even if it's twelve years late.
The Plan!
Right before Christmas is probably a terrible time to decide to make big finance changes, but never mind -- that's how I roll! I'm also quite fortunate, as I do have a pretty small family, and no children to consider, so it shouldn't (shouldn't!) put too much of an additional strain on anything.
Anyhoo, because I like to see numbers, here's my debts as they stand right now:
Current Debt:
Mortgage £83,256.10
Credit Card £2,379.68
Current "Assets"
Savings £400
And here's how an average month should break down:
Income & Expenses:
Income (Net) £1,320.75
Council Tax -£80.00
Electric / Gas -£97.71
House Insurance -£23.32
Mortgage -£343.75
TV Licence -£12.12
TV, Phone & Broadband -£64.39
Water -£42.13
Life Insurance -£7.26
Lottery -£18.00
Mobile Phone -£23.75
Pet Insurance -£25.75
Travel -£100.00
Prescriptions -£8.05
Food Provision -£120.00
Shopping Delivery* -£2.50
Total Outgoings -£968.73
Frivolities Provision** -£80.00
To clear debt *** £272.02
* I do all my food shopping online, because when I'm walking around in stores, money just magically leaps out of my pocket on things I don't need. I paid £30 for a year's free delivery from Tesco, provided I have my stuff delivered Tues - Thurs. I plan my week around it. Since switching, I've lowered my food spends by around £50 a month. I'm also aware that I generally overspend on food, so that's something I'll be looking to cut down on, as well.
** I want to allow myself a little bit of breathing room, so let's say I can throw £80 on other frivolities (maybe the occasional cinema trip, eat out once a month or something - I'm not a big party person, and I don't go out very often, so I think £80 should cover it, but I'll review that figure in a few months).
*** Funds that could theoretically be used to pay off debts.
I'm looking into options for reducing the fixed costs.
The mobile phone charges are split between 2 phones, one of which I haven't used since June, but keep paying the £10.50 a month so I can keep the number. I might give Vodafone a call to see if I can change it to a PAYG account, if that's possible.
The tariff I'm on for TV, phone and broadband seems high compared to most introductory offer types, but I'm wary (and frankly, a bit chicken) when it comes to switching, because of other costs that might be involved. I'm sure I could shave quite a bit off this amount, but I need to build up some confidence first to actually be able to speak to my supplier and say, "Hey you! Give me a better deal!"
And I've started the process to switch my electricity and gas to a new supplier, which claims would reduce my bill from £97 to £82, I think. But that hasn't gone through yet, so I haven't factored it into the cost.
I think as far as debt reduction, I'm looking to pay the credit card off first, and then save some, and then look into making overpayments to the mortgage. I'm trying to decide what the best way to do that would be, either:
1/ Sink everything into clearing the credit card first, to get it out of the way, then split the others equally. Or...
2/ Calculate what I'd need to pay each month to be sure the card will be clear before the 24 months is done (£83.34, by my calculations), and then maybe look into splitting the difference between savings and mortgage overpayments.
Or maybe I'm looking at this all wrong, I don't know!
Thank you for taking the time to read my little (big) story, and I'd love to hear any words of wisdom!
Here's to being debt-free in the future
Kat
I apologise in advance for how long this post is. It started off as a tiny little thing, then I just kept adding bits and pieces, and suddenly, BAM: 2,000 words! A bit like how my spending works, actually. So I've added a summary - a TL:DR version, if you will - at the bottom.
I realise my debt is quite small when compared to others, and I feel a little silly for waffling on so much, but a debt is still a debt, and I need to get it sorted. This is mainly a kick up the backside for myself to start managing my finances properly, so let's get to it!
The Long Version!
My first big debt--if it can technically be called that--was in 2002, when I managed to snap up a two bedroom house for the low, low price of £25,000.
At the time, my wages easily covered the mortgage repayments and cost of living, with plenty left over for frivolities. Oh, for those heady days!
Of course, I never did have any money left over to put into savings, because I was young and stupid, and there were so many things I wanted! I never spent more than I had, though, so besides the mortgage, that was my only debt for a long, long time.
Then I met the person I would go on to marry. He moved in, so my income rose without any substantial outgoings -- but again, I never really had anything left at the end of the month, because...shiny things.
Fast-forward three years or so, and we decided we needed a bigger house. The housing market had changed significantly since I'd purchased my house, plus it was quite a fixer-upper with the help of my family, so I managed to sell it for £80k (woo!). I cleared the mortgage (by then down to about £23k) and put £40k of it into another house we bought together worth £125k.
The difference between the income for the house and the £40k put into the new mortgage went on furnishing the new house, and the rest...I have no idea. Splurged it up the wall, pretty much. Again, no new debt (aside from the new mortgage), but no real savings.
So, new mortgage 85k, between two of us, we managed to get it reduced quite nicely and were at 79k within a few years. We both started setting aside money each month, and after another few years, we had quite a nice pot. Then we got married. We wiped out our savings and still borrowed against the house for this, and then borrowed again for a new boiler/bathroom, putting the mortgage essentially back to where it had been when we first moved in.
Sounds okay so far though, right?
Well, in the words of Fantine, "Then it all went wrong."
Our marriage broke down due to irreconcilable differences, and he left. It was relatively amicable, though, and because I didn't want to move out of the house, he agreed to transfer his portion of the mortgage to me and essentially "walk away". I still haven't decided whether this was a good move on my part or not. But as the house was only valued at £100k by the time we split, I didn't want to be selling up and losing out.
We split in early 2012, and that -- I think -- was when everything started to spiral a little bit.
Firstly, I didn't have the extra portion of income coming into the house anymore, but I still wanted to buy things, and because I didn't really accept that I didn't have money to throw about anymore, I just kept doing it.
I took out a one-year finance deal on an expensive computer (I think it came to around £1,300 in total, though my memory's not 100% on that) and a £1,000 one-year loan shortly after the break, just to tide me over.
Late in 2012, I started renting out one of the rooms in my house to a friend, which brought my income back up. Being the fool that I was, I didn't put anything aside, and allowed the splurging to re-commence. Shortly after that, I met someone else, and they moved in, also paying rent. So I was more-or-less back to where I was before, financially.
I managed to pay off the loan and the finance deal within their allotted time, and any extra I put into a savings account...HA, no I didn't. That would've been the smart thing to do. I spent any surplus funds on nights out and takeaway food. I did the calculations, and in 2013, I spent almost £2,000 of my money on fast food / takeaways alone. I did manage somehow to squirrel away over £1,000 in my savings account, which I was saving for emergencies.
And then...and then…
I decided I wanted a new digital camera, and a new phone, and instead of taking the money from my savings account, or saving for another 6 months until I had enough, I decided to take out a 18-month 0% credit card. I intended to put around £900 on it.
"I'll just buy those two things," I said. "I have decent money coming in, I'll have it paid off within 6 months, and I can always use my savings if I don't. Plenty of time left over."
Card arrives...with a £3,800 limit.
At first, I laughed. Then I looked at that figure on my welcome letter. "Imagine what you could buy with £3,800!" the voice in my head said. "You're still getting income enough to clear that within 18 months. And don't forget those savings! Live a little!"
So of course, £3,400 later...
I couldn't even tell you what I bought now. The camera and phone were amongst them, though. They did indeed come to around £900.
Anyway.
My new relationship ended; he moved out. A few months later (putting it around April this year), my other housemate moved out. My credit card was down to around £2,700 by this point, but the money I'd been paying that off with came from the housemate's rent and digging into the savings.
And I think that brings us to the present. I'm sure there's more that might come to me as I continue this diary.
I've been living alone since April, and I've been having ups and downs where it comes to managing my reduced finances.
First thing I did was re-mortgage the house: it reduced my monthly outgoings there from £520 to £344, though it upped the years from 17 all the way to 35, so currently I'll be paying that off right around the time I retire.
I've reduced my spending when it comes to takeouts pretty well, which is where a lot of my surplus money was going. Like I said, 2013 saw £2,000 of my funds go into fast food and takeaways. This year, I've estimated my spend by the end of December will be just shy of £600 -- which is still more than I'd like, but hey, one step at a time!
I've applied for a new credit card: 0% on balance transfers for 24 months. I intend to cut that card up as soon as it arrives (if I'm accepted, which I should be, as I've always made at least the minimum payments, often more). The 0% ends on my current card in March 2015, but I wanted to get an early start. I intend to transfer £2,000 to the new card, then focus on paying the remainder £379.68 off the old account (I do have £400 in a savings account [down from £1,200 at the beginning of the year] that I'll use as an emergency pay-off next year, if needed).
Now the plan is to get super-frugal, super-fast. Starting this month, I should also have an increase in salary (I never complained about my salary before, again because I'm stupid, and also because I had money coming in from other sources. When all this started to hit home, I realised I simply couldn't live and pay off my debt on my current income. Thankfully, I am a valuable worker, so they agreed without argument, which kind of annoyed me, because that makes me think I could've posed the same question 6 months ago and had the same result. But that's my own fault for not asking.).
I realise that renting the spare room out again would be an easy way to bring in some extra funds, but I also know if I do this, I both won't be happy -- because I'll be sharing my house with a stranger -- and I won't learn anything about managing my money, which I've been wasting away for over ten years now.
I don't like to think how much better off I'd be right now if I'd never sold my first house way back when, or if I'd been more careful with my money when I had it. But I suppose that's the thing about the past. You can't go back and do it over: you can only go forward!
It wasn't until I was living alone again that I realised two things: 1, I am not good at managing my finances (better late than never to learn this), and 2, I didn't want to share my house with anyone again for a long time. I enjoy the independence too much to go back to sharing.
The TL:DR Version!
Bought a house, bought another, got married, separated, ran up credit card debt. Turned 30.
Want to get finances in order and finally become one of those "responsible adult" types, even if it's twelve years late.
The Plan!
Right before Christmas is probably a terrible time to decide to make big finance changes, but never mind -- that's how I roll! I'm also quite fortunate, as I do have a pretty small family, and no children to consider, so it shouldn't (shouldn't!) put too much of an additional strain on anything.
Anyhoo, because I like to see numbers, here's my debts as they stand right now:
Current Debt:
Mortgage £83,256.10
Credit Card £2,379.68
Current "Assets"
Savings £400
And here's how an average month should break down:
Income & Expenses:
Income (Net) £1,320.75
Council Tax -£80.00
Electric / Gas -£97.71
House Insurance -£23.32
Mortgage -£343.75
TV Licence -£12.12
TV, Phone & Broadband -£64.39
Water -£42.13
Life Insurance -£7.26
Lottery -£18.00
Mobile Phone -£23.75
Pet Insurance -£25.75
Travel -£100.00
Prescriptions -£8.05
Food Provision -£120.00
Shopping Delivery* -£2.50
Total Outgoings -£968.73
Frivolities Provision** -£80.00
To clear debt *** £272.02
* I do all my food shopping online, because when I'm walking around in stores, money just magically leaps out of my pocket on things I don't need. I paid £30 for a year's free delivery from Tesco, provided I have my stuff delivered Tues - Thurs. I plan my week around it. Since switching, I've lowered my food spends by around £50 a month. I'm also aware that I generally overspend on food, so that's something I'll be looking to cut down on, as well.
** I want to allow myself a little bit of breathing room, so let's say I can throw £80 on other frivolities (maybe the occasional cinema trip, eat out once a month or something - I'm not a big party person, and I don't go out very often, so I think £80 should cover it, but I'll review that figure in a few months).
*** Funds that could theoretically be used to pay off debts.
I'm looking into options for reducing the fixed costs.
The mobile phone charges are split between 2 phones, one of which I haven't used since June, but keep paying the £10.50 a month so I can keep the number. I might give Vodafone a call to see if I can change it to a PAYG account, if that's possible.
The tariff I'm on for TV, phone and broadband seems high compared to most introductory offer types, but I'm wary (and frankly, a bit chicken) when it comes to switching, because of other costs that might be involved. I'm sure I could shave quite a bit off this amount, but I need to build up some confidence first to actually be able to speak to my supplier and say, "Hey you! Give me a better deal!"
And I've started the process to switch my electricity and gas to a new supplier, which claims would reduce my bill from £97 to £82, I think. But that hasn't gone through yet, so I haven't factored it into the cost.
I think as far as debt reduction, I'm looking to pay the credit card off first, and then save some, and then look into making overpayments to the mortgage. I'm trying to decide what the best way to do that would be, either:
1/ Sink everything into clearing the credit card first, to get it out of the way, then split the others equally. Or...
2/ Calculate what I'd need to pay each month to be sure the card will be clear before the 24 months is done (£83.34, by my calculations), and then maybe look into splitting the difference between savings and mortgage overpayments.
Or maybe I'm looking at this all wrong, I don't know!
Thank you for taking the time to read my little (big) story, and I'd love to hear any words of wisdom!
Here's to being debt-free in the future
Kat
Credit Card [STRIKE]£2,988.69[/STRIKE] £2,600.00 | Savings £0
Goals: (1) Clear the card; (2) Save £1,000 (emergency fund); (3) Make overpayments on the mortgage.
Goals: (1) Clear the card; (2) Save £1,000 (emergency fund); (3) Make overpayments on the mortgage.
"A man is BORN! He WORKS! He DIES!" - Russell Howard
0
Comments
-
Good luck Kat, you seem well organised to smash the debt!Debts (11/11/2015):
Credit Cards (0%) £5640
O/D £460
Sofa £275
Monthly Spends: Food £71.87 Extras £27.650 -
Thanks Chris! Here's to hoping my plan works in practice as well as it does in theory
Credit Card [STRIKE]£2,988.69[/STRIKE] £2,600.00 | Savings £0
Goals: (1) Clear the card; (2) Save £1,000 (emergency fund); (3) Make overpayments on the mortgage.
"A man is BORN! He WORKS! He DIES!" - Russell Howard0 -
Good luck x Debt (1/9/14) £6,702.11 Debt free (30/11/2016) mortgage port- £70,077.82 and mortgage £126,517.39 o/s currently
Debt - £17,190.83 (29/7/22) now (19/8/22) £16,688.800 -
Hi Kat,
Firstly I like the TL;DR reference!
I would say it depends on how much interest you would pay IF you didnt get the card cleared. Personally I would clear the card + cut it up.
Then join Mortgage Free Wannabe and start making overpayments!
I think you have the right attitude towards it all now and hopefully one day this may make it to /r/UpliftingNews!
ETA: I read the 'long' version. (You arent wrong!) Forget about past financial errors and where 'I could be now if I hadnt'
Focus on the present, you can change your future, not the past. Thats what I stick to!
Best of luck, il subscribe so dont disappear! The support available via this forum is insurmountable and the ideas that float around are invaluable!Sealed Pot Challenge:
2014 = £202
2015 = £3820 -
Thank you monz, and StrugglingYouth
StrugglingYouth wrote: »Hi Kat,
I think you have the right attitude towards it all now and hopefully one day this may make it to /r/UpliftingNews!
I live in hope!
You're right, I think the most important thing is to get the card cleared first. I mean, I don't know what's going to happen in the future. My job is perfectly sound right now, but if my circumstances were to suddenly change, I'd rather have a lower CC bill to worry about clearing rather than putting it against the mortgage right away.
The weekend was relatively uneventful, although a friend came over for a film night on Friday, so I did order us some food (she brought the booze, so...). I'll chalk that £13.50 against my frivolities, and now we're on Sunday I get a clean start next week!
It's funny, it's like having "spends" again.
Pay day on Friday. I have enough in the bank to cover my food shop and my travel to/from work for the week, so I can go into the new "month" without any additional issues. I don't think I'll have anything to throw against the credit card this pay day besides the DD minimum payment, but by the next one, hopefully I'll have something extra.
Onwards!Credit Card [STRIKE]£2,988.69[/STRIKE] £2,600.00 | Savings £0
Goals: (1) Clear the card; (2) Save £1,000 (emergency fund); (3) Make overpayments on the mortgage.
"A man is BORN! He WORKS! He DIES!" - Russell Howard0 -
I phoned my mortgage lender up today, just to check that I would be allowed to make overpayments, when the time comes. Mainly also because I couldn't find my mortgage reference number, which I'd need to make payments.
The guy on the phone was very nice, explained that yes, I could pay up to 10% off my mortgage without incurring fees. He also said that the 10% was calculated from January to December, so if I wanted to make an overpayment, I could pay up to £8000-ish pounds before December, and did I want to make that payment today.
I didn't laugh out loud, but I'm pretty sure he could tell by the way I spoke after that little revelation that that wasn't my intention. Anyhoo, I have that information now, so further down the line, I'll be ready.
Added just a tiny bit (£15) to the credit card today. I wanted to get a head start on the Christmas present business (worked out I'll be spending around £350 on Christmas this year - getting a good deal, I know, small family, all adults - including travel expenses to visit the few family members scattered across the country), and I saw something low in stock that would suit my mother to the ground, so I got it.
I'll clear that off as soon as I get paid.
Done my food shop, that'll be coming tomorrow. Other than money to travel to work, I'm now out of funds for the week, so barring anything eventful, I probably won't update again 'til Friday.Credit Card [STRIKE]£2,988.69[/STRIKE] £2,600.00 | Savings £0
Goals: (1) Clear the card; (2) Save £1,000 (emergency fund); (3) Make overpayments on the mortgage.
"A man is BORN! He WORKS! He DIES!" - Russell Howard0 -
"Barring anything eventful," she says.
OK, let's start with the good.
First, I got my e-mail confirmation about my electricity/gas transfer. Provided it goes through without incident, that will reduce my monthly payments from £97.71 to £81.50, so savings of £16.21/month, or £194.52/year. Woo.
Second, I spoke to my broadband supplier about my package. I didn't try to barter or haggle or anything - I just went through to the services department and said, "Look, I can't really afford my bill right now - what can you do for me?" Overall payments reduced from ~£65 to ~£35, so roughly £30/month (then £36/month - got a free 6 month NetFlix subscription, which I currently pay for separately) or £324 a year reduction there. Yay.
Now, the bad.
Basically, I bought a new laptop for £600 off Amazon, and I put it on the credit card.
See, it's easy to physically cut up a card, but you forget about the places you have the details stored (Amazon, eBay/PayPal, etc), and provided you've memorised the security code (which, of course, I have - I'm surprised at this stage I've not memorised the long number), you can still buy stuff.
The purchase has prompted me to remove the details from Amazon, although the damage has essentially been done. PayPal won't let me remove it there yet, as its a backup source of funds for some pending "Pay After Delivery" items I've ordered (Christmas presents - nothing more for me!). As soon as they clear, I'll remove it for good.
In my defence, my current laptop has been having issues for a while. It was an old cast-off from a friend who bought a gaming laptop, and while I was incredibly grateful for the offer, it's a slow as heck machine. It struggles with the simplest tasks. I can't have Word open and a browser at the same time, no way.
I'm trying to convince you, dear diary, that my purchase was justified, but I think you can probably work out that for the most part, it wasn't.
I realise £600 is a lot of money to pay for a laptop. But I have wanted one of these machines for about 8 months, ever since my last laptop (not the borrowed one) died from a coffee-related incident.
I'm feeling particularly guilty about this purchase, more than anything I've purchased before. I think it's because I've started actually looking at my finances as they're happening, as opposed to an afterthought a few months down the line.
I realise I could return it, but I'm not going to do that, because then I'll only make myself miserable and end up digging into the savings and buying something completely unnecessary, as I've done before.
Trying to stay optimistic, and here's something for future Kat: Kat, feel free to enjoy the laptop, when it arrives, but that's your last toy, if you want to be debt free by the end of 2016.
Pay day tomorrow. The saga continues...Credit Card [STRIKE]£2,988.69[/STRIKE] £2,600.00 | Savings £0
Goals: (1) Clear the card; (2) Save £1,000 (emergency fund); (3) Make overpayments on the mortgage.
"A man is BORN! He WORKS! He DIES!" - Russell Howard0 -
Im going to use 'man maths' to help you justify your laptop purchase:
£600/365days=£1.64 per day if you only keep it a year.
But we all know it will last longer than that. Say you only keep it 3 years (Even though it should last longer than this)
Three years is 1095 days.
£600?1095=£0.547 So £0.55 pence per day. Which is less than a kitkat. The longer you keep it the better value it will become.
This of course assumes you pay it off before any interest is added.Sealed Pot Challenge:
2014 = £202
2015 = £3820 -
I like this 'man maths' - it makes the laptop sound like a bargain! I'm still waiting for an acceptance for the 0% transfer card (there will be a £30ish transfer fee, but I'd be paying that anyway, so I won't blame that solely on the laptop), but provided that goes through, I'll be able to pay it off in plenty of time before any interest shows its face.
Of course, I intend on keeping the laptop for a good few years: the one I had before the borrowed one was around four years old and still running great, up until the coffee incident. (As a side note, I still drink around my laptop, but I have one of those stands now that raises the laptop nice and high off the desk, so history is unlikely to repeat itself.)
It arrived yesterday at the office. I didn't open it at work, because I don't want my colleagues to either (a) think I'm flush with cash, or (b) know that I have credit card debts.
But it's soooooo pretty. I'm this close to making cooing noises at it.
I got paid and shifted all the money around between my main account, bill account and savings. I paid around £80 off the credit card in addition to the minimum payment, which was for money I'd used the previous month to buy Christmas presents. I've done my calculations for what I'm expecting I'll need in the month, and everything else has been stuffed into savings for now.
I've also downloaded the trial of YNAB, and I'm kind of addicted. I've used spreadsheets for the last 2 years, but YNAB just has a great layout and has a great interface, especially because I'm paid in the middle of a month and I can split my pay between this month and next month. I'll probably buy it when next month's pay rolls around (found a 10% discount for it online - look at me, learning to shop around!).
Oh, and I spoke to Vodafone about changing the pay monthly phone I have to PAYG, they've said yes, with a month's notice, so that will be another £10.50 a month saved starting in January.
And I see a credit on my broadband provider account - the difference between the old and the new package for the rest of the month - so next month's TV/broadband bill should be even cheaper than usual! Don't worry, any difference is going straight into savings/credit card, too.
And and, I logged onto my current energy provider's account to check my meter readings were correct before the transfer (they weren't - my own fault, I never update them), and I actually looked at my invoices for a change. Turns out I'm in credit by around £150 gas/electric combined, before the reading adjustments. I'm going to have to look into how I go about getting that money back, before I switch. But...mo' money, mo' money!
God, I do wish I'd done all of this six months ago. But again, this isn't about the past: to the future!
Now if you'll excuse me, dear diary, I am off to go play with my laptop some more..."I will name him George, and I will hug him and pet him and squeeeeeze him..."Credit Card [STRIKE]£2,988.69[/STRIKE] £2,600.00 | Savings £0
Goals: (1) Clear the card; (2) Save £1,000 (emergency fund); (3) Make overpayments on the mortgage.
"A man is BORN! He WORKS! He DIES!" - Russell Howard0 -
Good luck!
I'm well versed in the credit card trap. It's so easy to just buy stuff... Because saving takes time, and I'm impatient, and I'll pay it off anyway- except that it doesn't really work out that way!
I like the 'man-maths' of laptop use though- I've used that to justify purchases of shoes before but not technology.Debt: [STRIKE]£8652[/STRIKE]£8550:eek:
Honeymoon and post-job savings: £50/£1100,
DFD target: December 2015
Saving for Xmas 15 #35: - £4/£365
NST December #28 - Food etc- £200.71/£260, :xmastree: & decs £0/40, Diesel £48/£110, Christmas presents and spending money £335.59/£380, Food Bank £5/5, SFDs 1/15.0
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