Challenge Debra...life goes on 30 August 2016 at 10:22AM edited 30 August 2016 at 11:21AM in Debt free diaries 82 replies 6.6K views

hign10pines

Debts
Capital One - 0 (used for food & paid off each month)
Loan - 5500
Lloyds cc - 194
Virgin cc - 764

Savings
Nationwide - 128
Natwest - 6.47
Virgin - 2500
Lloyds - 0
Halifax - 0

Aims
Emergency fund - 0/1000
Rental deposit - 0/2000
Monthly savings - 5 to 10%
Holiday - 7500
Lose weight - 60lb
Open LISA April 2017

----

Holiday

We are going away in May 2017. The flights are £1500, hotel is £900, event tickets are £800, and we would like to take up to £4000 for spends :eek: To achieve this means working extra shifts and cutting back. So far we have £4400 (£2500 in savings above) so need to find £3100 or £344 a month/£172 each.

Savings

This won't really start til 2018. I want to pay for the holiday then try & pay the debt off by Dec 2017, so only minimum payments for now. Come Jan 2018 I should only have debt payments of £200 a month. Now isn't there a saying about saving 10% of your monthly wage? So:

5% savings = £65
10% savings = £130
20% savings = £260

Once I have no debt it would be much easier to save £300 a month. This has to go towards an emergency fund, rental deposit, house deposit.

Housing

I'm nearly 35 & living in rental. Studios go for £60-90k & 1 bed flats for £120-140k. I would need to save for 5 to 10 years, so it is debatable whether I'd get a mortgage, plus I would really need to increase my wage (currently can get 60-80k). My OH would be too old to be considered for the mortgage.

Do we really need to buy somewhere, I'm happy to rent but not sure about renting in retirement. LHA would barely cover a studio/bedsit.

---

All this could change if I get into nurse training next September, I would really have to work at the savings during the 3 years but it would mean a wage increase :T

hign10pines

On annual leave for 2 weeks :j Working 4 night shifts though so £128 a shift! Got my parents Ruby wedding celebrations next weekend and still have to buy a present & card.

----

Totals

Groceries 0/300
Spends 24.15/78.68
Misc 0/95.49

hign10pines

Totals

Groceries 50/300
Spends 76.72/78.68
Misc 0/95.49

----

Been a bit spendy these last few days. Wednesday we had an evening out at a mates racing slot cars and had a mini pub crawl before hand and today involved going to collect out new bikes

The only other spends this month are:

1. UCAS application
2. Parents anniversary parent
3. Weekend away

We do happen to be travelling when the trains are on strike! SO able to get any train into London that day to make our connection.

---

Sometimes I wish I lived in America. It appears to be easier to rent out there and you can make your place feel like home. You also appear to be able to buy a property easier than over here.

I am thinking of starting to save £50 a month from next month then £100 after the holiday (in a lifetime ISA) till retirement (68) so around £39k be that point add a pension lump sum and I should be okay for a few years, wouldn't be enough to buy with though. Looking like I'll only get my own place if I get a share of my parents home.

hign10pines

Financial aims for Aug 2018

Virgin cc = 749

£31 for 24 months, to OP as much as possible to clear by Jan 2017

Holiday 2017 spends

Halifax cc = 910

£60 for 15 months from June 2017 (hotel)

Barclaycard = 3000

£200 for 15 months from June 2017 (spends+current balance) aiming for less than this

Lloyds = 1000

£41 for 24 months from September 2016 (NASCAR tickets)

---

Halifax + Barclaycard payments will be shared between the two of us. Lloyds + Virgin will be just me. Total £350 including my loan.

DD265

Where are you going on holiday?

I'm a fine one to talk as our holiday was paid on the credit card this year but are you sure you want to take £4000 spending money, and £3000 of that go on a credit card?

I know what you mean about living in the US BUT they also have crippling student loan and healthcare costs. I think it probably balances out in the end unfortunately. From what I've seen, where land or taxes are lower, living costs are higher and vice versa.

hign10pines

So things have changed since I last posted.

Debt:
Lloyds - 246
Aqua - 129
Cap 1 - 142
Barclaycard - 109
Credit Union -252
Ocean - 214
Loan - 5353

TOTAL - 6445

Savings:
Virgin ISA - 1500
Nationwide - 50
Natwest - 19
Halifax - 5

Goal:
To pay off the credit cards (840) by 1st September. From June to September I aim to work as many extra hours as I can to pay debt off and save, (my credit union loan will be paid off by then also).
The reason for all this, other than wanting to be debt free, is that I shall be starting my nurse training!

Finances:
My bank wage is finally over £9 per hr! Come September my income will drop like £10k due to only getting a student maintenance loan. This should just about cover my bills so I shall be working bank shifts for savings, spending and travel. 4-6 each month.

hign10pines

When I stop working full time end of August 2017, it's going to be very tight on the budget. I shall be working most weekends

I want to get the debt gone ASAP. I shall be letting the loan run it's course, it will be finish by the time I finish uni, and I will have 3 credit cards (joint with OH) that I will need to continue to pay during my studies. I am hoping to pay off my small credit cards (ones in my sig) by the end of August.

From June 2017, I won't be putting £200 aside for a holiday and I won't have the credit union loan. This money plus any from extra shifts will go onto the small debts and giving myself a buffer for uni, the travel will be £250 a month alone!

I will struggle for 3 years but I hope to come out of it in a much better position.

hign10pines

Haven't been on here for ages. Here is the current state of things:

Debts
Capital One 0/200
Ocean 0/400 (closing)
Aqua 0/200 (closing)
Barclaycard 106/400
Lloyds 397/500
Natwest Loan 4906
Credit Union Loan - 1591

Savings
S&S ISA 215.58
Lifetime ISA 303

Other
Back from an amazing holiday, we plan to go back next October if possible. The joint credit cards stand at 1300 + 4000 balances!
I start nurse training in Feb 2018 if I pass at least one of my current modules. I am currently waiting the results (19th July). A start of Feb 2018 means I can pay off more debt before starting.

hign10pines

Debt repayments per month

Lloyds cc 50
Barlcaycard 1 20
Halifax 50 (100 total)
Barclaycard 2 50 (100 total)
Natwest loan 148.71
Credit Union loan £120

Date to pay off by

Lloyds cc 31st December 2017 | Balance 397
Barclaycard 1 31st December 2017 | Balance 106
Halifax 30th September 2018 | Balance 1300
Barclaycard 2 31st December 2020 | Balance 4000
Natwest loan 31st December 2020 | Balance 4906
Credit Union loan 31st December 2018 | Balance 1591

hign10pines

Oh forgot I have an overdraft of 1250 with Natwest, I'm paying £50 a month to this plus charges, should be paid off in 2 yrs time.

hign10pines

Aims

House deposit £27k Nov 2025 Aged 44 (or for retirement if can't afford to buy)
Holiday £4.5k Sept 2018
Lose 50lbs Sept 2018

So the holiday is between the 2 of us so £2250 to find therefore £140 a month. I will just have to throw as much as I can at it as my SOA doesn't give me that much left over money each month. My budget is between £2000-2300 per month (with bank shifts) throwing as much as I can currently on my credit cards. Lloyds & Barclaycard 1 will be gone by Christmas and Halifax will be gone by July 2018 ish.

Budgeting would be so much easier if I didn't have any debt