Making savings before it's too late

[Deleted User]

I am just waiting for lunch so back on here with a few thoughts

Using m/s money

I have made allowance for monthly standing orders

I have decided what I need to transfer every month into a `smoothing `account. I opened that this morning linked to halifax current. I have totalled up one- off bills for the 12 months, divided by 12 and that amount £508 will go into the smoothing account every month,

Anything left after that is for daily living, petrol, entertainment, hair and so on. I will take some cash out every month and will account for that in m/s money

This will leave enough for re-building my savings without depriving myself

Best of all I will see all this at a glance

[Deleted User]

I have been looking at my weekly food, I eat organic and have an allotment but get a self-chosen box during the lean months. I got A and C and their goodies are so tempting, it is easy for the total cost to add up and there is also a delivery charge. I have been online and found a fairly local box supplier, I love supporting local business and all in all, including 6 eggs a week and some bananas and free delivery, no tempations from extras, I am saving at least £10 a week. I am pleased with that, getting a mixed box makes me think harder about my food. I have no idea about what will arrive, no potatoes is all I know but 7 different veg. I don`t need any more fruit, I have many many fruits frozen from my allotment

I would like to also ring plusnet but I may well move within the contract period. Money, I am also in that higher priced area, I have two choices for broadband, plusnet and bt and plusnet is owned by bt

[Deleted User]

I have just done that bull by the horns stuff, put my monthly smoothing amounts into m/s money. Looking at it properly, I need to get past that pinch point first and the safest time for me to start transferring from halifax current into halifax savings (smoothing bill paying) is the middle of february. I was so tempted to start now but that would have been a bad move, I have a tax bill at the end of this month and don`t want to change the status quo this month. No cash out this month, I want to get january over with and then start to accumulate for the one-off bills through the year.

I honestly don`t know how people manage without a spreadsheet or money programme, maybe flying by the seat of their pants

C_J

Thank you for posting, kittie. Planning for what to do should anything suddenly happen to either Mister CJ or me has been at the back of my mind for some time, and your post has just pushed it forward to the front. I’m going to start today by making a list of all my computer and banking log ins with account numbers and passwords so that Mister CJ knows where everything is, should he need to access any of them. I imagine it must be a nightmare tracking shares and investments down for a partner if everything isn’t in joint names, and it would be good to save him that particular headache.

Wednesday2000

kittie wrote: »

I wanted to write that personal stuff because I want spouses and partners to realise that things can change suddenly out of the blue. Without savings, I would have been in queer street and in difficulty.

It was my husband being diagnosed with cancer that made me realise how important it is to have an emergency fund. We have built ours up since then and it's in our joint account so we can both access it if we needed to.

[Deleted User]

a couple of pointers to making life easier if widowed, just in case

a will
savings in joint accounts
access to a list of accounts held, not just money accounts but clubs etc
a list of accounts when one or the other is the account holder such as telephone, house insurance

Having a will and a joint savings account are very much top of the list and get to know about the family finances, it is often the man who takes charge

CRANKY40

I actually did better without a will. As there wasn't one there were no weird and wonderful bequests or requests that I had to honour. Our savings were in a joint account and ownership of the house (which was bought in his name only as we we lived in my flat for a while at the start of house renovations) passed smoothly to me with no fuss whatsoever.

His sister who was trying to get hold of something that I knew he wanted to go elsewhere was told "if he'd wanted you to have it he would have made a will". Job done....

blackcatsx2

When my husband was having chemo and couldn’t work, we were fortunate that for some of the time he received full pay. He went back to work after chemo and we didn’t change how we lived and therefore didn’t really watch the finances. I think we didn’t want to change as that might show that we were frightened - sounds daft now but we tried to pretend that the cancer had gone away for good. Well it hadn’t and the diagnosis was terminal. Ironically we got some money as an ill health retirement lump sum but it came almost too late for OH to benefit from it but we recklessly spent, paid off debts and got to a place where he knew I would be ok as I still work. We had 12 months to make our preparations such as wills, knowing all bank details, logins etc. Very hard times but we did it all together. In the first years I spent without thinking - seeking comfort I suppose as well as a sense of “if he died so young why bother planning too far ahead”. I’m past that stage now and want to live happily but within my means. This thread seems like a great place to get support with that ambition.

mardatha

We keep things very very simple here. One joint bank acc and I do the online bank stuff. He knows to go down to the branch if I die and get a nice wee room and a nice bank person to sort it all out for him - how much to leave in weekly for DDs. No shares no savings accounts no wills no hassle. I need a clutter free life or I get stressed to hell. The main thing is to think what you want and plan ahead for it

trailingspouse

You've reminded me that re-writing our will is on the list for this year. We had to re-write them 8 years ago when we got married, but we've had grandchildren since then - and also run our own business, which we also didn't back then. Add in a selection of kids and step-kids, and things are likely to get complicated!!

I get annoyed with my father, who has always organised all the finances - Mum didn't even know how to get cashback at the supermarket until a couple of years ago. She had the presence of mind to teach him to cook/clean when they retired, but he hasn't shown her the same courtesy. If she went first, I think he would cope with day-to-day living reasonably well. But if he went first she wouldn't have a clue about the finance side of things, and that's just not fair.