Debt Advice- SOA Posted

westlothian

Hi all
not posted on MSE in a while. Finally facing up to the finances. Our school holidays end on Monday in our part of Scotland- wife and I will be back at work.I am a teacher in a management role and wife teaches two days a week having come back from two maternity leaves in quick succession.

I suppose this is where our problems started. We had drifted by on two decent salaries until the maternity leaves. My wife had been told she would find it hard to conceive, let alone twice in less than two years but we are blessed with two amazing boys.

In March, I traded in a decent car for a brand new car on HP. Why I do not know! But it has acted as something of a wake up call for me.

According to our SOA we do have a surplus. Sometimes we do have money left come pay day. It seems to disappear though.

Any advice welcome

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 2
Number of cars owned.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 2451
Partners monthly income after tax....... 924
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 3375

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 415
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 456
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 127
Electricity............................. 91
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 88
TV Licence.............................. 12.2
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 78
Internet Services....................... 29
Groceries etc. ......................... 340
Clothing................................ 150
Petrol/diesel........................... 90
Road tax................................ 0
Car Insurance........................... 38.8
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 14
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 200
Haircuts................................ 100
Entertainment........................... 180
Holiday................................. 200
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 2609


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 120000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 18000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 138000


Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 78000....(415)......2.94
Hire Purchase (HP) debt ...... 19000....(336)......7.9<
Subsidy of Flat................72000....(120)......4.74
Total secured & HP debts...... 169000....-.........-

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Loan...........................12300.....226.......4
Credit Card....................7022......400.......19.9
Total unsecured debts..........19322.....626.......-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 3,375
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 2,609
Available for debt repayments........... 766
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 626
Amount left after debt repayments....... 140

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 138,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -169,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -19,322
Net Assets.............................. -50,322

Created using the SOA calculator at https://www.stoozing.com.
Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission, using other browser.

sam.4000

westlothian wrote: »

Hi all
not posted on MSE in a while. Finally facing up to the finances. Our school holidays end on Monday in our part of Scotland- wife and I will be back at work.I am a teacher in a management role and wife teaches two days a week having come back from two maternity leaves in quick succession.

I suppose this is where our problems started. We had drifted by on two decent salaries until the maternity leaves. My wife had been told she would find it hard to conceive, let alone twice in less than two years but we are blessed with two amazing boys.

In March, I traded in a decent car for a brand new car on HP. Why I do not know! But it has acted as something of a wake up call for me.

According to our SOA we do have a surplus. Sometimes we do have money left come pay day. It seems to disappear though.

Any advice welcome

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 2
Number of cars owned.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 2451
Partners monthly income after tax....... 924
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 3375

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 415
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 456
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 127
Electricity............................. 91
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 88 i presume this is for 2 mobile phones, once each ends move onto a sim only deal
TV Licence.............................. 12.2
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 78 this is high, reduce package, you are paying over £100 with internet service this could easily be halved
Internet Services....................... 29
Groceries etc. ......................... 340 this could be reduced by £100, try by meal planning, changing supermarkets, refer to old style board for tips
Clothing................................ 150 again saving could easily be made here
Petrol/diesel........................... 90
Road tax................................ 0 there should be something in this box
Car Insurance........................... 38.8
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0again there should be something in this, I know your car is on HP but what about partners car?
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0 there should be something here
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 14
Contents insurance...................... 0 there should be something here
Life assurance ......................... 0again with a young family I would look at this
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 200 £2400 a year this is way too high
Haircuts................................ 100 again is this accurate, this could be cut you fiend has her hair cut and coloured at a local college for very little
Entertainment........................... 180 saving could be made here
Holiday................................. 200 i would focus on cutting debts and cut this for now
Emergency fund.......................... 0 you need something here
Total monthly expenses.................. 2609[/b]


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 120000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 18000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 138000


Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 78000....(415)......2.94
Hire Purchase (HP) debt ...... 19000....(336)......7.9<
Subsidy of Flat................72000....(120)......4.74 what is this for?
Total secured & HP debts...... 169000....-.........-

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Loan...........................12300.....226.......4
Credit Card....................7022......400.......19.9 can this not be moved to a interest free deal
Total unsecured debts..........19322.....626.......-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 3,375
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 2,609
Available for debt repayments........... 766
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 626
Amount left after debt repayments....... 140

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 138,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -169,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -19,322
Net Assets.............................. -50,322

Created using the SOA calculator at https://www.stoozing.com.
Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission, using other browser.

I have written some suggestions in red above. There are plenty of savings to be made and then you can target some of your debts.

westlothian

Thanks for the feedback. The car is £0 road tax and I paid £555 for a Honda service package so hoping that will cover the next three years.

The haircut figure is the wife- she goes to a specific salon which she likes and I am not sure she would change.

We have two phone contracts which end in December. They were Christmas presents to ourselves.

I know the holidays, entertainment, phone/internet and food bills are high. I think the food bill contains things like nappies but I just went off the bank statements and averaged it out.

The subsidy relates to our flat which we now rent out. It was in negative equity and we foolishly cut the repayment term on the mortgage to save interest and get back into positive equity.

Sazzie23

Hi

Well done for making a start at dealing with debts, your soa could almost duplicate mine, in fact mortgage, secured loan and council tax are almost identical. I'm guessing you have some insurance through work, but would it be enough if the family (perish the thought) became single parent. I'm not suggesting you go mad in life/critical illness insurances, but at least look seriously at them and don't leave it on the back-burner.

Ring your TV/broadband provider and ask for a deal, or you'll leave. Even if it does come down to you leaving, that's ok, the world won't end, really, if you don't have cable TV and Internet for a month whilst you get a better deal, and trust me they will try to offer you one.

Be serious about debt busting, make it a team effort, yes I know DW needs her hair done at certain salon, and I don't blame her for that, but in return, that month, it's no clothes allowance etc.

To save on groceries, start with what you waste, if you cut that you've made a saving without changing your life, change one brand a week if it's too much in one go. Track your costs in a spreadsheet, buy bulk if there are savings, try a cost cutting store once a month.

Not sure how your flat issue works, could you put rent up by small amount ? Or can you get tax relief on loss, not my area really but suggestions you could think about.

Make sure you're getting 0% deals where you can on credit cards, do the snowball calculator to see how to pay down your debts fastest.

Budget, budget, budget. Think what you'd do without credit, how to replace the washer, boiler buy new children's beds.

Hope this helps, and good luck.
Saz

westlothian

Thanks Saz
my wife bought the flat at the property market peak and then it was on an interest only mortgage for a period of time too. The rent is probably a little low, but we have a great long term tenant. We have a separate account for the flat which has a decent surplus in it now as no recent repairs etc required but I consider this not our money. I am not sure how the tax situation works.

The food shopping is just lack of organisation and planning. On occasions my wife and I would both appear home with milk having realised we were out in the morning. I would say we are in the supermarket daily.

We definitely do not budget or even really talk about money.

[Deleted User]

westlothian wrote: »

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 2
Number of cars owned.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 2451
Partners monthly income after tax....... 924
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 3375

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 415
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 456
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 127
Electricity............................. 91 - This is quite high. Check comparison sites, and ensure things are switched off, when not in use.
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 88 - Even if this is for 4 phones, it's still high. Swapping to PAYG/sim only, for ~ £10 each, will halve it.
TV Licence.............................. 12.2
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 78 - This, plus your TV Licence, is over £1,000 a year. Go to a cheaper package or, better yet, get rid and go Freeview/Freesat.
Internet Services....................... 29
Groceries etc. ......................... 340
Clothing................................ 150 -This is £1,800 a year. Reduce.
Petrol/diesel........................... 90
Road tax................................ 0
Car Insurance........................... 38.8
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0 - Nothing at all? Not even tyres?
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0 - Nothing?
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 14
Contents insurance...................... 0 - You need this. Costs ~ £10 pm.
Life assurance ......................... 0 - You need this, particularly since you have a mortgage.
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 200 - Reduce this. Also, buy token gifts for non-resident family members, and friends.
Haircuts................................ 100 - £1,200 a year on haircuts. :eek: Make fewer visits, find a cheaper hairdresser, or cut it yourself.
Entertainment........................... 180 - This is £2,160 a year. Reduce drastically.
Holiday................................. 200
Emergency fund.......................... 0 - You need something in here, especially since, as a homeowner, you are responsible for all repairs.

Total monthly expenses.................. 2609


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 120000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 18000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 138000


Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 78000....(415)......2.94
Hire Purchase (HP) debt ...... 19000....(336)......7.9
Subsidy of Flat................72000....(120)......4.74
Total secured & HP debts...... 169000....-.........-

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Loan...........................12300.....226.......4
Credit Card....................7022......400.......19.9 - Concentrate on clearing this.

Total unsecured debts..........19322.....626.......-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 3,375
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 2,609
Available for debt repayments........... 766
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 626
Amount left after debt repayments....... 140

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 138,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -169,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -19,322
Net Assets.............................. -50,322

Created using the SOA calculator at https://www.stoozing.com.
Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission, using other browser.[/font]

My comments in red.

You have a decent household income, but you are also spending heavily on luxuries and non-essentials.

You're entertainment spending (TV Licence, Pay TV, Presents and Holidays) is costing you £5,641-50 per year, or £470-12 per month.

At the same time, based on your current repayments, you will be paying £1,181 in interest, just on your Card Card debt.

If you only got rid of the Pay TV, and halved the £180 pm you list for "Entertainment", you could reduce the interest you will pay on the Credit Card to £754.00, and have it cleared in 14 months, instead of the current 21 months.

ViolaLass

westlothian wrote: »

We definitely do not budget or even really talk about money.

Then start. Has she seen the SOA? What does she say?

[Deleted User]

westlothian wrote: »

We have two phone contracts which end in December. They were Christmas presents to ourselves.

£528 per year, per phone. :eek:

Those were some expensive Christmas presents.

westlothian

Bedsit_Bob wrote: »

My comments in red.

You have a decent household income, but you are also spending heavily on luxuries and non-essentials.

You're entertainment spending (TV Licence, Pay TV, Presents and Holidays) is costing you £5,641-50 per year, or £470-12 per month.

At the same time, based on your current repayments, you will be paying £1,181 in interest, just on your Card Card debt.

If you only got rid of the Pay TV, and halved the £180 pm you list for "Entertainment", you could reduce the interest you will pay on the Credit Card to £754.00, and have it cleared in 14 months, instead of the current 21 months.

Hi Bob
not had to spend anything on maintenance for the car yet, but I suppose it will happen soon enough. Not looked into life insurance as always assumed the insurance we get through the teacher pension scheme would do the job but will look into it.

I think that a combined TV/phone/broadband package is something we should look at. Nothing is under contract as we have had it for years with the various providers. We used to watch the movie channels but can honestly say not done that in ages so they could get the chop.

My wife does go to a particular hairdresser and it is expensive but I am not sure how keen she would be to change or reduce the frequency of visits.

Holidays and entertainment are just an average of the online banking statements for the last year. It is an area we should look at though neither of us drink or socialise excessively.

westlothian

Bedsit_Bob wrote: »

£528 per year, per phone. :eek:

Those were some expensive Christmas presents.

Yeah new iPhones

Thanks for the feedback!

westlothian

ViolaLass wrote: »

Then start. Has she seen the SOA? What does she say?

Yeah we worked it out together. Some disputes about costs and lots of "Oh that was just a one off though so why include it?"

I think she is on board though as we need to plan to make sure that she can stay working only 2 days a week. We are lucky to both have family who help with childcare.