Round and round the overdraft....soon to be no more 17 June 2016 at 7:57AM edited 17 December 2017 at 8:37PM in Debt free diaries 790 replies 61.3K views

louby40

Having lurked and read quite a few diaries I thought I'd start my own. If it's down on paper then I can read back and see my progress (or not)

My debts aren't massive but my bugbear is my overdraft as I do believe if I can get that sorted everything else will fall into place

My debts are:

£400-500 overdraft every month PAID
£970 cc now £90 Dec 17
£5500 left on my car loan (ends in Jan 2019) now £2696 Dec 17
£106,000 mortgage at £600 pm now £94,992 Dec 17
£6500 bank of mum and dad PAID

I have £150 in an emergency fund NOW £650

I'm just in the process of moving my current account to First Direct to take advantage of their £250 free overdraft service and £100 incentive to switch. I need to keep my o/d under the £250 and slowly begin to chip away.

My over spends are having 2 very tall teenage boys who eat a lot and extra trips to the supermarket. I also treat myself to a manicure/gel polish every month.

I'm a single mum and work as a teacher so I buy stuff for my class, extra craft bits, second hand books from Amazon, it soon mounts up.

I also need to be stricter with my boys and refuse the £2.50 they ask for lunch everyday.

I shop in Aldi and cook a lot from scratch - my slow cooker is my saviour!

I need to keep a strict spending diary and stop buying unnecessary things.

louby40

Oh I also owe my parents £4000 - I've paid £2k off so far. I'm paying them £300 and as its their retirement fund I want to pay it back asap

Also, how do I put a signature on the bottom of my page?

System

Welcome and good luck with your plan.

You can get to your signature by clicking on User CP - control panel. Its then a link on left-hand side.

Ramble x

louby40

So today I downloaded a Spending Log app on my phone which I'm going to use to track everything I spend.

This is more my type of thing than a notebook and pen - sometimes you've got to just find your thing.

My money from MoneyMagpie has gone in today, it's only £20 but it's another £20 towards paying my overdraft off. CD's and DVD's just sat in a cupboard that I don't watch or listen to.

louby40

Did my food plan for the week and went to Aldi with my shopping list

Sun - beef lunch
Mon - home made lasagne, salad
Tue - chicken stir fry
We'd - gym night - boys see their dad so egg on toast
Thursday - beef casserole
Fri - baby shower for a friend, buffet paid for last month

I spoke to my youngest son (eldest has now left school) and told him he would have to take packed lunches from now on. He's not a great fan of sandwiches so we negotiated paninis instead, more expensive than bread but cheaper than the £50 a month in school lunches.

£60 at Aldi which is more than I usually spend but only spent £41 last week so that's evened out.

Poor_Single_lady

Hello Louby,
Its good that your son understands, and school is almost finished so its not for long. I also owe my parents quite a lot of money. Its the most flexible arrangement but its the one that brings me the most stress, I feel like I've taken all their money. Hope you can blitz everything and manage the loan. I have 16 loan payments left at £153 a month then I 100% promise I am never getting another loan. Its so difficult. But at least it has an end date. Good luck for your journey. Xxxx

tori.k

Im guessing like most lads he doesn't like to sit to eat, I only have one left at home in college he will happily take a mock subway or a pasty to college but sandwiches always came home in the box. It not easy feeding lads they seem to have hollow legs
Best of luck

louby40

Yes - my 2 both have hollow legs! I have to hide food. planned for later in the week so that they (and their mates) dont eat it.


Just been to the tip and got rid of some junk - I always feel good after getting rid of rubbish. Beef is in the oven and veg is prepped.


Today will be a NSD as no need to go out or buy anything. Staying in and finishing off my school reports, TV, read and housework.


Ive signed up to a few more opinion sites which I'm hoping may generate a few extra ££. Ive also got a massive coffee jar of 1p & 2p coins so Ive put £2 of those in a bag for when I use the Morrisons self service till. It seems a bit desperate but I don't care - I'm determined to get my debts down.


Im also going to put some stuff on Ebay - shoes/clothes/bedding. I did put it on Gumtree and my local Facebook site but no interest. I hate the messing about with Ebay though and the postage costs I always seem to get wrong.

louby40

Having just looked at my car loan and mortgage amounts I realise Ive got them both wrong.


Acording to Noddle (which is always a bit behind) I owe £6388 on my car loan and £102,422 on my mortgage.


Another things Ive realised I haven't done since last week is spend in our local Co-op. I usually go and draw £10 out (so Ive got some cash) to buy milk and end up buying a bottle of wine and chocolate, leaving me with about £2 spare. This week I bought popcorn from Aldi as a treat 79p and drank Bacardi that I bought at Christmas with coke that was already in.


I'm definitely keeping away from the Co-op!

in_need_of_direction

When my DS was at home, I used to write the menu plan on a blackboard in the kitchen. At least he couldn't claim that he thought things were just there for a snack. Bad news is he's now 30 and still has hollow legs.

louby40

In need of....

Yes I pin mine on the fridge. They tend not to snack so much if they know there's a meal on the cards!