Debt Free Wannabe Teacher
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dfw87
Posts: 134 Forumite
Hello,
I am hoping to use this as a spending diary to keep me on track in my mission to become debt free!
I've used MSE's website and forum for years and years (despite getting further and further into debt!) and am finally starting my very own thread!
I have been in debt for quite a while now but it is only now that I have had my 'lightbulb' moment and I am determined to shift this debt.
I am 30 this month and have always dreamed of owning a house - sadly I am around £18k in debt and so this is just not a possibility for me... yet.
My debt has been accrued over the past 7 years whilst I was at university and is completely my fault. I went to university as a mature student having worked for years on a good salary. I never settled into a student spending mindset and continued spending as if I was earning, using my credit card to help me out.
Since university, my debt has spiralled and I have ended up with 2 over drafts (-£350 and -£1800) and 3 credit cards (all around £5k each). These credit cards have long since past their 0% interest days and I am struggling so much to pay off.
Rather stupidly, I have never made any real attempt to cut down on my spending properly. I am very generous (sorry to toot my own horn!) and this has massively contributed to my debt. I like to buy family and friends presents, trips away, meals etc and I spend as if I have much more money than I do.
I have travelled (America and Eastern Europe) and this has added to my debt and I holiday once a year and usually have a city break. I also spend ridiculously on little things - popping to the shop to get salad and coming back with a trolley full!
I already shop at Lidl and shop around for the best deals... but I still get into debt!
So... I have had a horrible week confronting this debt and trying to find the best way out of it. I settled on a loan and was horrified to find that no one would lend to me. However, I finally told my Mum about my debts (this took a huge amount of bravery!) and she was so supportive. She is going to get a loan in her name (we have discussed the pros and cons in detail) and I am going to set up a DD for the amount each month.
I am a teacher and sadly I am completely unable to get paid any overtime for the many hours that I do over what is expected so I have taken on a bar job which is just shifts as and when needed. I have also taken a break from my pension just for now - this will give me an extra £100ish a month and I have also discussed this in detail and thought about the pros and cons.
I have made sure that my pet and car insurance is the lowest it can be (for good service) and everything else is already at its lowest. I will cancel my gym membership as soon as I can (a few more months) and I will cancel my phone contract when it is up for renewal.
The main thing I can do to stop this ridiculous debt from spiralling is to stop shopping for clothes and food. I will use this page as a diary for my spending for the week!
Please do let me know if you have any advice - I am more than willing to hear it!
Thank you!
I am hoping to use this as a spending diary to keep me on track in my mission to become debt free!
I've used MSE's website and forum for years and years (despite getting further and further into debt!) and am finally starting my very own thread!
I have been in debt for quite a while now but it is only now that I have had my 'lightbulb' moment and I am determined to shift this debt.
I am 30 this month and have always dreamed of owning a house - sadly I am around £18k in debt and so this is just not a possibility for me... yet.
My debt has been accrued over the past 7 years whilst I was at university and is completely my fault. I went to university as a mature student having worked for years on a good salary. I never settled into a student spending mindset and continued spending as if I was earning, using my credit card to help me out.
Since university, my debt has spiralled and I have ended up with 2 over drafts (-£350 and -£1800) and 3 credit cards (all around £5k each). These credit cards have long since past their 0% interest days and I am struggling so much to pay off.
Rather stupidly, I have never made any real attempt to cut down on my spending properly. I am very generous (sorry to toot my own horn!) and this has massively contributed to my debt. I like to buy family and friends presents, trips away, meals etc and I spend as if I have much more money than I do.
I have travelled (America and Eastern Europe) and this has added to my debt and I holiday once a year and usually have a city break. I also spend ridiculously on little things - popping to the shop to get salad and coming back with a trolley full!
I already shop at Lidl and shop around for the best deals... but I still get into debt!
So... I have had a horrible week confronting this debt and trying to find the best way out of it. I settled on a loan and was horrified to find that no one would lend to me. However, I finally told my Mum about my debts (this took a huge amount of bravery!) and she was so supportive. She is going to get a loan in her name (we have discussed the pros and cons in detail) and I am going to set up a DD for the amount each month.
I am a teacher and sadly I am completely unable to get paid any overtime for the many hours that I do over what is expected so I have taken on a bar job which is just shifts as and when needed. I have also taken a break from my pension just for now - this will give me an extra £100ish a month and I have also discussed this in detail and thought about the pros and cons.
I have made sure that my pet and car insurance is the lowest it can be (for good service) and everything else is already at its lowest. I will cancel my gym membership as soon as I can (a few more months) and I will cancel my phone contract when it is up for renewal.
The main thing I can do to stop this ridiculous debt from spiralling is to stop shopping for clothes and food. I will use this page as a diary for my spending for the week!
Please do let me know if you have any advice - I am more than willing to hear it!
Thank you!
Since 'lightbulb moment' on 9th July 2017:
Loan: £1,670.25/£20,043.00 loan - 8.33%
£2,350.62 in savings
Loan: £1,670.25/£20,043.00 loan - 8.33%
£2,350.62 in savings
0
Comments
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Hello and welcome
You may wanna remove your real name from your post
You will only find three things here - help, support, understanding and lots of info on saving money.
Four things then
You will get there. Read folks diaries, join in and become part of this wonderful community
(I feel like an official meet n greet spokesperson lol)BUGGRITMILLENIUMHANDANDSHRIMP I TOLD EM! - Foul Ole Ron
It is important that we know where we come from, because if you do not know where you come from, then you do not know where you are, and if you don't know where you are, then you don't know where you are going. If you don't know where you're going, you're probably going wrong.
R.I.P. T.P.0 -
Good luck- well done for getting a plan sorted going forward.
Keep posting- I am rubbish at posting but it does keep you on tack.
Also recommend keeping a spending diary so you can see where the money actually goes.
Shoes xx- DFD 4th July 2015
- MFD 1st October 2021
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Hi, I'm a teacher too! It's great that you had the LBM and can now move forward and get rid of the debt.
Good luck.0 -
Thank you so much for your reply - I will remove my name!Since 'lightbulb moment' on 9th July 2017:
Loan: £1,670.25/£20,043.00 loan - 8.33%
£2,350.62 in savings0 -
Good luck- well done for getting a plan sorted going forward.
Keep posting- I am rubbish at posting but it does keep you on tack.
Also recommend keeping a spending diary so you can see where the money actually goes.
Shoes xx
Thank you - I already have a spending diary and am about to sort out an Excel spreadsheet to help!Since 'lightbulb moment' on 9th July 2017:
Loan: £1,670.25/£20,043.00 loan - 8.33%
£2,350.62 in savings0 -
-
I use a Onenote journal with an excel spreadsheet to keep track of things BUGGRITMILLENIUMHANDANDSHRIMP I TOLD EM! - Foul Ole Ron
It is important that we know where we come from, because if you do not know where you come from, then you do not know where you are, and if you don't know where you are, then you don't know where you are going. If you don't know where you're going, you're probably going wrong.
R.I.P. T.P.0 -
So, I started my new budgeting on Monday and this is what the week has looked like:
Monday
-£1.00 - Crisps for lunches (forgot in food shop)
Tuesday
-£2.80 - Hospital parking
Wednesday
-£14.00 - brother's birthday present
Thursday
Nothing!
Friday
+£3 - found
+£0.05 - from Mum
Saturday
-£6.34 - Food shop
Sunday
+£0.05 - found
Out: £24.14
In: £3.10
Total: -£21.04
Happy to say that I needed everything that was bought this week. I found £3 and I am even keeping track of those tiny amounts like 5p! The first 5p was just an overpayment by 5p that I had lent my Mum and I found the other 5p - it all adds up! :rotfl:
I managed to keep my food shop so low because I really shopped around and luckily have things in the house too.
Sadly my Grandad is in hospital so I can't do much about the car parking there.
Really happy with how this week went.
I also did 4 hours at £7.50 an hour at a new bar job - I think tax will take that down to £24 and I should get that next week. If I take that in to account then I am actually up this week but I'll count it when I get it.
I'm not keeping track of my usual bills in this spending diary as that's all under control. It is my daily spending that I need to keep in check!Since 'lightbulb moment' on 9th July 2017:
Loan: £1,670.25/£20,043.00 loan - 8.33%
£2,350.62 in savings0 -
Some folks keep a Finders or Roadkill jar for money found while out and about may be a wee idea? BUGGRITMILLENIUMHANDANDSHRIMP I TOLD EM! - Foul Ole Ron
It is important that we know where we come from, because if you do not know where you come from, then you do not know where you are, and if you don't know where you are, then you don't know where you are going. If you don't know where you're going, you're probably going wrong.
R.I.P. T.P.0 -
Dfw brilliant on the money in and out! I'm a bit of a fraud as I'm not at work at the moment, I'm off sick after having an operation. I'm going into work for the last 3 days of term, just to spend some time with my new class and get a bit prepped for September.
It's funny as usually I've got that.....nearly finished the year feeling but not this time.0
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