From debt to freedom...

Honeysucklelou2

On the plus side, it's positive to know about these changes before the finance form has to go in and is steering my thinking towards the possibility of looking for a home with cheaper running costs, if that is even possible.

helsbell

I had a letter like that from the water company a few months ago. I went from being around £25 in credit to over £300 in debt in the space of 3 months :eek:

They came out to check for leaks, which they couldn't find even though they were very thorough. Just before leaving, they took a meter reading and discovered that the previous reading was wrong and there was no leak and no increase in usage :T

It's always worth checking the reading yourself, in case there's been a mistake.

Spendless

Honeysucklelou2 wrote: »

He then proceeded to suggest getting back together

:eek: The thing I like best about him is that he's your ex. Though him helping out with DD2s driving lessons, gave him his first brownie points from me. Until he stops doing things like refusing to give his address and landing you with dogs, this shouldn't even be a consideration!

Sorry to hear about DS1s job too. Can't quite remember what he was doing, agricultural what is it or catering. I suppose though if it was a holiday job which I think it was, at least he knows it's not something he wishes to go into. Fingers crossed his results out soon may give him some direction in what he wants to do. Kids eh, I've got 2 and both are currently testing me, can't imagine having another 6 in the mix.

Honeysucklelou2

Thank you Spendless! They certainly do keep me on my toes!! As long as only one at a time has a wobble, we're ok!!

DD2 has suddenly got lots of shifts at her place of work which mercifully is within walking distance. DD1 is pottering through each week and enjoying her work, so I'm hoping that a good working ethic will rub off on DS1.

Eager_Elephant

Honeysucklelou2 wrote: »

. The bad news is a letter from the electricity company telling me that my direct debit is changing from £112 a month to £167:eek::eek::eek:. Apparently the electricity consumption has gone up by 28% compared to this time last year. I don't quite understand why that should be. The only difference is that I had the immersion heater replaced as we were struggling to get any hot water and the old one kept tripping out to the point that it would not reset. The new immersion heater works beautifully, so perhaps that is the reason? Even so a 28% rise is huge, especially as last year I was in the position of being in credit and having some money refunded.

Do you keep youyr immersion switched on 24/7 or do you just put it on when needed?

In my experience having an immersion on 24/7 costs between £1 - £1.50 per day:eek:

Honeysucklelou2

Ah...didn't know there was an option with immersion heaters. Must go and investigate. I know that in the winter, when our water is heated by the oil central heating system, the heater comes on for a couple of hours morning and night and isn't on all the time. I will try to check this today. Thanks for that EE!

I've spent about half an hour updating the spending tracker to reflect recent spending. Paint and brushes has taken a £50 chunk of spending. I've also spent £40 at the vets getting my elderly lurcher a particular type of tablet to sort out flea problems. I've tried the cheaper options of fr0ntline pipettes type treatments but he doesn't get on with them. He's a faithful old friend so it's the least I can do to sort it out. Surprisingly the diesel spend is still high. I had thought that not being at work ( and not having the 30 mile a day drive) would reduce this but I'm still driving DD1 to the point at which she can access public transport to complete her journey to work.

I've ordered DD2's clothes for the next year at college, so just need to get the bus pass sorted, although I still have about 10 days to do that.

Honeysucklelou2

Paid £105 off a debt yesterday and £44 off the credit card. Today's spending will involve getting milk and paying DD2's monthly insurance of £109.

Kitten868

Wow big changes afoot!
So you'll be refunded for the total you've spent in repaying tax credits? That would be totally fantastic! Im not surprised you had to ask for it and jump through all those hoops. They never seem to know what they're talking about and all say something different so it's fantastic that you were prepared to speak to them and be as clear and calm. Well done you.
Are you totally sure of your options in terms of buying your ex out of the house? Get all the advice you can, work out what you want and compromise between the two.
I'm seriously impressed about the decorating! Well done you. I buy my paint from wilkinsons. They're on sale at the moment. If you don't like it you can return it and they told me their paint wins in tests against dulux.
Keep going. You're winning! Xxx

Honeysucklelou2

Thank you Kitten868. I haven't received any refund yet:(, the man I spoke to, said to ring back in 1-2 weeks time if I hadn't heard anything, so looks like I'll be ringing again if nothing has happened by Friday. It won't be a full refund according to the notional entitlement letter. They are still saying I owed £1k but even some money back would be good and the cancellation of the direct debit in future.

I'm not totally sure if the options yet. I know I need to get the house valued as soon as I can, to be clear on the figures involved. I do love where we are but I can see the practical benefits of moving. At the end of the day, it will boil down to what I can afford to do.

Today has been a productive day. I've washed down the walls and ceiling of the hallway with sugar soap. I'm hoping that tomorrow I can start the first coats of paint on the ceiling. It didn't rain today :T so the washing got dried. I've sorted through some clothes and am on a second bag for recycling. Towards the end of the day I realised the grass was long enough to warrant a cut, so hot that done. I so love using the little push mower...most relaxing!!

DD3 decided today, that she would write out a chore chart. She duly did and has allocated a particular task each day to each child, except the toddler. I was amazed, DS2 did get in the washing and asked if he could walk my mum's dog as one of his chores:rotfl:. DD5 was so excited to get a chore, she was asking all day if it was time to do the washing up yet. I did do a chore chart years ago but got so disillusioned with having to constantly chase everyone up to do their task, it was quicker to get on and do it myself. I think DD3 has seen me flagging at the end of each day and decided to do something to help me. I think it will work with the little ones, not sure it will hold with the older teenagers but we will see.

My lovely mum and grandmother have come to visit for a couple of days. Tea was homemade lasagne, garlic bread and salad. We had corner yogurts as a treat since my mum had brought her Tesc0 vouchers with her .

MeandO

Have a wonderful time with your Mum and Grandmother HSL2. xx