Time to grow up.

Megano

Today OH gave me his half of the house keeping money -therefore a little payment to TSB of £280 taking my total debt free amount to 47% - I was also able to pay off the bank of mum (£50) and finally pay of £80 towards a picture of a t-rex I bought (don't ask it was a drunk purchase I made of my friend who is an "artist)
Phoned W2 this evening to see if any help was needed but apparently everything was under control so I was told to go and have a relaxing night. Still not sure what to do about the MBNA situation
Do I A) say thank you but no thank you MBNA and continue to pay off my overdraft
or Do the money transfer at the lower amount to bring the interest baring debt down and just pay off the credit card within 12 months?
When did trying to do the right thing become so hard :(:(

Megano

So a kinda bitter-sweet pill to take today: - (brace yourself)

Good News - The bank of mum has decided to bail out Megano in terms of the overdraft. As off 9.15am my overdraft was 0
- Bad (but expected news) - Ive to repay the bank of mum £250 per month.

Bad news - Remember how I said I went a little crazy with the capital one card last month? For mum's birthday? The London trip? the light table incident (which in my defense I attempted to cancel but the seller said no) well it turns out the balance is back up to 1203.49 :eek::eek::eek::eek:
Good news - (Ive think Ive already told you guys) - I got accepted for a TSB credit card so £927.00 *including the fee* is interest fee for 22 months and I was also accepted for an MBNA credit card which means technically I can transfer the other amounts making the whole debt 0% (or I could just pay off the capital one card next month)

Bad news - In order to be debt free in 2016 I would need to pay £473.90 per month - which according to the budget is tight but manageable.
Good news - Everything is 0%

So my new figures are
£1300 to the bank of mum paying £250 per month (roughly 6 months to pay back)
£340 to HMRC paying £50 per month (that's going to finish in November)
£276.49 to C1 - only interest bearing debt so that will be gone next month and going forward used ONLY for emergency
£927.00 to C2 using the full interest free period would work out at £42.13 but looking to get this cleared off quicker

Megano

So weird being in positive with TSB - its been so long that I forgot I had save the change on which rounds up the odd pence and puts it into a basic savings account.
According to my manager it's most likely Im not going to get bonus again this quarter which sucks his excuse is "because Im on an action plan for lateness" (I wasnt late I was logged in the phone on time but never had my system loaded up) however I might be in a chance to get something if the floor meets its NPS target. The good news is we heard from the powers that be that our wages are set to go up. It might only be £30 before tax but its more than what I had!
I recommended a girl for W1 (after she got fired from her last job) so got the interview and now she's done a runner - I wouldnt really care but if she was in service for 3 months I would have got £500!

Willowpop

MEGANO!
I was worried about you as I'd not seen any updates here. ..ive subscribed to your thread but nothing was flagging up, so I've come to hunt you down and find you've been posting loads! I'm still subscribed so no idea why on earth your updates aren't showing at my end.
Anyhooooo! Well done at getting everything on zero %. That's a really big help. I loved seeing my statements fall into the next 100 down every couple of month. It was such an inspiration.
And well done for being on the express train again. That's smashing. You CAN do this, a wobble every now and again is to be expected, but getting back on it is vital. It isn't a sprint....it's a marathon.

Keep going Missis, keep putting them hours in at work and paying them debts off.

Do you do the online surveys at all? Or shop and scan? You can earn a few quid doing them and perhaps use them to treat yourself. I usee my shop and scan vouchers for b&q, and get stuff for my garden with them.

Megano

Ive totally messed up my budget this month and realized I literally had NOTHING. NADA, ZERO, NIL, NEGATIVE left in the bank after payday!
The problem with my income is I get 4 different amounts at 4 different times but when I put all the figures into excel it just sees it as 1 massive amount. Does that make sense?

I cant bear to ask the bank of mum for another bail out and OH is in the same situation as me so Im either a) forced to apply for an overdraft and start the cycle again or b) cut back on everything but put whats needed on the credit card and start the cycle again (choices choices choices)

Honestly Im getting so f*cking sick of this situation when I think I'm moving forward I realized I've messed up in another area its like spinning a million different plates there is only so long before they are all going to come crashing down.

Okay this month is a blip. Im still on track. Yes its annoying but thats life. Im going to get myself a little diary and record everything Im spending (Ive been saying that for a while now right?)

In other news my OCD has been acting up like crazy recently (I dont know if its the stress of OH being away on a business trip or money or work or just life in general) but my OCD takes form in "invasive thoughts" and I cant seem to a minutes rest wthout this tiny little voice in my head saying "what if""what if this happens" or "what if that" and honestly its draining.

Willowpop

Job for tomorrow... sit down and write down all of your essential expenditure...bills, rent, etc etc. Everything. In a big list. Go through bank statements.
Then write down income...If it varies take the lower amount over the last few months.

Then write down your non essential expenditure.... Starbucks, magazines etc etc.

Make sure that all of your essential expenditure is covered going forward. Then look at non essentials. Ditch 9o% for now, if not 100%.
Get your cash flow situation sorted then you'll be able to give yourself an allowance for treats.

Also, although I know you're keen to get everything paid off asap, see if you can build up a little Emergency pot of a few hundred quid..Not for 'omg I need a coffee' emergencies, but for emergencies like this where you have no money left, or the washing machine blew up.

On the debt free wannabe forum there is a link somewhere for an SOA... fill one of them in and that will catch most categories. Youll be able to see a lot clearer once it's all written down.

KxMx

We all have blips Megano, anyone who says they don't is a fibber!

You could try and investigate where the mistake happened, or maybe re jig things so excel works better for you.

And the spending diary is a great idea. I have a pen & small notebook in handbag, plus everything be it cash, bank account or credit card gets put on the master spreadsheet.

I'd also suggest GP support if you feel you need it. Also maybe talking to one of the debt charities. You're doing so well on your own but you don't have to be alone.

Megano

So here we are again? What is it attempt 4? 5? 20? Is anyone keeping count?
So following Willowpops advise I went over my bank statements and honestly it looks like Ive seriously taken my eyes off the ball. Taxis and overspending at work are at an all time high (honestly no wonder the canteen staff love me) and also buying crap for the house. Like who really needs a picture of a t-rex for the living room? Or a table which doubles as a lamp? I said it before and I'll say it again I think I just had a "f^ck it" month so much for being responsible right?

So I checked snowballing calculator based on paying £480 a month I should still be debt free in 8 months! :T:T:T:T

What they have suggested is £250 a month to bank of mum
£50 to HMRC
£100 Overdraft is currently £500 that why Im not going to have a massive shock like I did this month
80 between the 2 credit cards and then when HRMC is finished spilt it between them.

Its so good to have a plan of action again! I was going to say "I'll start it next month" but I might bite my teeth in and get it done

Remember I told you about the cleaning job? Well she texted me saying she is looking for another cleaner from 5am until 7am in a couple of weeks and I have to be honest Im tempted.

Megano

Amazing news! At W1 they had a raffle to win £250 of high street vouchers and guess who won? That's right baby me!
In other news FLP was invited to his 1st ever birthday party. I bought the little girl a personalised book. A little annoyed as it cost £20 and BIL hasn't offered to give the money back.
My £230 extra money has taken me completely out my overdraft so I'm going to reduce the limit from £500 to £200 which will still give me a buffer until next payday!

Willowpop

Oh that's brilliant news! Well done on your win! You deserved a boost like this.
The cleaning job coming up might be worth considering, even if it's just short term in the 8 months it takes you to clear your debt. It might help you build up a bit of an emergency fund?

Glad you got everything written down...it's a big eye opener isnt it? When I first did it i couldnt believe how far off on a lot of things I was! I did think of something else that really really helped me... using cash, not cards. I'm a terror for just shoving that fivers worth of stuff on my debit card here, another tenner there, and before I know it I've spent £100 on nothing.
A couple of years ago I found a small shoe box and a bunch of empty envelopes. I named the envelopes groceries, petrol, school expenses, oystercard, etc etc and treats.
I worked out how much my budget was for each category. £50 per week for groceries, £50 oyster, £60 petrol, £5 school etc etc.I have one for treats too and allow £10 per week for that.
Then on payday (last day of the month), I take the cash for the envelopes for the month out and fill them up. 4x little wraps of £50 for groceries (seperated into 4x50, not 1x200 or I'll spend it all in the 1st week) (if it's a 5 week month then I do 5x50 obvs.) £5 into school expenses for them unexpected 'mum I need a quid for non uniform day' announcements. Etc etc etc. Envelopes all full at the start of the month and I don't use my card at all. Bills are paid by DD and everyrhing else comes from the box. I physically can't go over budget. Anything left at the end of the month goes into a savings envelope and I can save that up and spend that on anything- a takeaway, or flowers for the garden, an icecream from the icecream van, whatever.
I can't tell you how much I've saved doing this. I can't speak highly enough of this method. It also means there are no nasty shocks when you look at your bank balance at the end of the month as nothing has actually come out other than the bills and your lump of cash for the month. It's definitely a system worth considering. ��