Money Saving Diary - dianek's journey

dianek_2

Hi Magpie100 thanks for dropping in
To be honest, I'm finding it hard to save £800 each month. However, what's helping me is that I've given myself until end of December to live frugally and save like crazy and then I can live normally after that. Thanks for sharing your experience of buying a shared ownership flat in London and congratulations for having owned it outright! I had ruled out shared ownership as I saw that most schemes had monthly payments of £1000 or more, which on my current single income I cant really afford. I will though keep an open mind when the time comes for me to buy and my income/salary situation has improved (which I'm working on).

dianek_2

The Halif'x free £125 for switching banks is back
I'm so glad because I had to cancel my application appointment a few weeks ago because my bank statement didn't arrive in time. After the deal expired I then planned to apply for S'ntander 123 (3% interest for balances up to £20k). Now I'm tempted again by the £120 bonus and the monthly fivers from H'lifax. I wish I could get both but I don't have enough direct debits because all bills are included in my rent.

dianek_2

Over the weekend I bought some simple ankle boots from Cl'rks on sale for £45 (full price £57). I plan to wear them for work and also outside work with my skinny jeans, leggings and dresses. I used to buy very cheap shoes but I've recently had a paradigm shift where I'm now willing to spend much more for quality and comfort, even though I'm counting my pennies. I believe it will pay off in the long run as I wont be replacing them often and I wont suffer from achy feet at the end of the day. I need to look out for sales as I still need to buy proper shoes for work as well as some nice heels for going out. I gave feedback on my store experience in order to stand a chance of winning £250 cash. I pray I win!

dianek_2

Looking back at my April goals:

1. I stopped buying lunch at work everyday which was quite an achievement. However, I still need to bring in cooked lunch and heat it up in the microwave so that I don't eat sandwiches all week! To do this I need to put the food in the container the night before instead of doing it last minute in the morning rush. I also need to get a bag or something to carry my lunch to prevent it from spilling in my work bag during my commute.

2. Speaking of my commute- I have really tried to take the bus straight to work but the current road-works mean a journey time of 1 hour 30mins instead of just 1 hour so the train journey has been more appealing despite having to pay extra. However, the journey is less pleasant because of the two interchanges which are tiring and I'm never guaranteed a seat in the jam packed trains. So I've decided that from tomorrow onwards I will leave home 30mins earlier than usual and take the bus to work.

dianek_2

In other news - I finally received my polling card so I am now definitely on the electoral roll which will improve my credit rating I'll cast my vote on Thursday at 7am and then head for work.

dianek_2

I saved £800 in April (towards my save 12k in 2015 challenge goal).

dianek_2

Today I had a No Train Day (NTD??) - I used the bus to work and made it in time

Anouchka

Have just read your diary. You're doing really well and I'm sure you'll meet your target. Good luck.

Bobarella

Hi
Is there any chance you could cycle your journey? We lost our car (it died) in August of last year and made the decision not to replace it. We all use bikes and I don't spend any money on my journies now. For a time I used buses but walked a lot so I just paid for the journies I did take.
and compared to a car it saves us about £300 a month by the time you consider fuel, maintenance etc.
Anyway just a suggestion.
Bob

dianek_2

Hi Anouchka - thanks for stopping by my diary and leaving your kind comment It's a tough journey but hope to get there.