Flo 2.0

reality_check

Hi Flo, just catching up on some diaries, had a bit of a MSE sabbatical, but I'm back! Hope you're well and everything worked out with the new place you've moved to! xx

Florence_J

Hello all,

Long time no see.

A quick update of the last nearly year, from March 2018 through to June 2019 I was working near enough 7 days a week for that entire time. Job 1 changed to a Full Time Mon-Fri Civil Service Role which I love, and Job 2 was working weekends in a certain discount fashion retailer that may or may not begin with a 'P'.

Job 1 was initially through a temp agency, but then my role was advertised, I applied, and I got it. I am now on an 18 month contract, due to end Nov 2020, but could become permanent but as it's a Civil Service role things may be affected by Brexit, so only time will tell what happens. I am on the most money I have ever earned, £20k a year.

I left Job 2 at the end of June as enough was enough, I needed a break, and was going to try and work smarter not harder.

I really got into the savings habit. I do not have an emergency fund at the moment (well, I do, but it's only £50), but I consistently squirrelled money away into pots/sinking funds/accounts/spice girls money tin from 1997 and as a result every single financial hurdle that came my way in the last year I could manage. I paid for home insurance for the first time ever, I paid all my moving costs (deposit, 1st months rent in advance, various fees which hadn't been abolished at the time). I have not borrowed a single penny since May 2018.

My credit card debt is £2275, and I owe a family member £400. The credit card debt if you include all the fees, all the pay day loans I took out in the long ago 'bad years' and all the high interest rates probably came to around £10000, and the money I once owed that same family member was about £2550, so I have definitely made progress.

I live in a beautiful, modern, not mouldy 2 bedroom rented flat in a desirable area of my home city. I have just renewed the contract for another year taking me to next September. It's more expensive than my last property, but worth every penny.

I am back on MSE for one reason.

My boyfriend of 8 years and I have ended our relationship this year.

Not everyone on MSE seemed to like my boyfriend (The Boy as I called him I think), and there was something fundamentally wrong in our relationship which I kept trying to pluck up the courage to tell you all about, but it doesn't matter anymore. I consider my now ex boyfriend as a wonderful person, my best friend, and the love of my life to date. Our relationship ended not because we didn't love each other, but because we were no longer in love with each other.

My now ex boyfriend had a lot more money than me, he was from a well off family, he never struggled for anything, and also he simply had much better habits than I did in my younger years, and he inherited lots when his grandmother passed away in 2017. No matter how independent I tried to be, and do try to be, I guess part of me knew I'd be ok if I was with him because he would always be my safety net. I guess, without meaning too, I considered him my emergency fund. That's not to say I didn't want financial independence because I value it more than anything, and it's not that I used or abused him or forced him into anything, he lent me money willingly, I'm just trying to be honest.

We are going to live as roommates this next year, I know it will be hard, and there goes my sex life for a while, but we split up this week, and our contract was already up for renewal, if we didn't renew on the property we would have had about 6 weeks to both find new places to live, and I have no savings, and breaking up with each other is transition enough.

I am considering going back to Job 2, but I'm going to avoid that for a while if I can.

Next September I will be living somewhere completely differently. I will be single (probably), I need to be the Independent Woman Destiny's Child sang about.

So my goal is to be debt free and have an emergency fund within the next year, a net worth increase of about £4k.

That's why I need to go back to basics, and come back on here. I know I'll have all your support, I've always had it, thank you.

beanielou

You always have my support

Money owed to family member has gone down an amazing amount.
A hsas your credit card.
Be proud
Sorry to hear about your relationship.

enthusiasticsaver

Some good and bad things then. Good news on Job 1 and hope it stays permanent. Sorry about your relationship with your ex and good luck with building up savings and knocking down debt.

Seasidegal58

Hi Flo - it's lovely to see you posting again and well done with your job! I do hope it becomes permanent.

I'm sorry to hear about your break-up with your boyfriend, but at least you are remaining good friends. And I'm so pleased to read that you've moved out of that awful mouldy flat!

You have done fantastically well on beating down your debt and sound quite a different person from the 'you' that posted previously.

I look forward to reading more about your journey on building up your savings pots.
x

Florence_J

Hi all,
Long time no speak!
I just wanted to come on here and give an update. Today I became debt free from credit card debt. I still owe my ex boyfriend £22625 and will begin paying him back over the next ten years. We've got a mutually beneficial agreement to that, I trust him, he trusts me.
Although I have this good news to share I also have some bad news to share. On New Years Eve 2019 my Dad had a stroke and although he has recovered quite well he has lost most of his ability to speak. 
Even sadder news, on the 20th July my dear mum passed away suddenly from a heart attack.
It has been a strange year, not just for me but for everyone I imagine.
I hope you are all well.
I know I keep promising this, but I really will try to revisit this forum again. It was what made today possible, and I have always valued the support I got on here.
Another bit of good news is my contract at work was turned into a permanent contract, so I have job security, which is invaluable at this time.
One part of my financial journey ended today and a new one begins. 
Today I'm going to get a takeaway and drink some prosecco. 
Thank you all for joining me on this journey. I'll be back. 

enthusiasticsaver

Excellent news on getting rid of the credit card debt but so sorry about your mum passing away and your dads stroke. 
Well done on getting a permanent contract in these uncertain times too. Hopefully that will put you in a good place to get your finances on a great footing. 

Seasidegal58

Good to see you posting again Flo although I'm very sorry to hear the sad news of your mum and dad. 

I'm so pleased to hear of the demise of your CC debt.  And as ES writes, your new permanent work contract  will give you financial security. 

Looking forward to your further posts.