Tidying up the mess

DD265

Merry Christmas to you and your family BabyStepper

Kitten868

Oh thank you lovely! Merry Christmas to you too. Don't forget that it's you doing all the hard work.

ANY energy supplier. Sorry I got you confused with someone else who has energy problems. Check your energy supplier on the 'leaving us bit'. You will get your switch date on your application (about 3 weeks) then it's 6 weeks from that you get your bill.

I'm just trying to work out a 2019 plan. Have you sussed yours? Xxx

BabyStepper

Thank you for all the good wishes.

This is my final update for 2018. It includes Lloyds minimum payment and a few extra pounds I paid here and there to bring the totals to nice round figures.

[STRIKE]Barclaycard (1) £3,044.54[/STRIKE] PAID OFF
[STRIKE]Lloyds (1) cc £434.33[/STRIKE] PAID OFF
Barclaycard (2) £517.12/£512.12 0% March 2019
Santander cc £3,435.67/£3,190 0% Dec 2019
MBNA cc £5,325.99/£5,360 0% Feb 2020
Barclaycard (3) £1,250/£1,250 0% Feb 2020
Hitachi loan £970.60/£633 0% March 2020
Overdraft £2,000/£2,000 0% Sept 2020
Halifax cc £3,342.25/£3,065 0% Oct 2020
Lloyds (2) £907.57/£885 0% Nov 2020

Total May 2018 £21,228.07
Total now £16,895.12
£4,332.95 paid off! :beer::j:D:T
Looking forward to 2019.

BabyStepper

I love New Year. Nothing like that 'fresh start' feeling' to make me smile and believe that all things are possible. Although we have just had austerity year from hell in our house (well, since May anyway) it has been worth it when I look at the debt reduction. I declare 2018 an official success. :beer:

2019 will be a full 12 months of debt busting so in many ways possibly even more difficult than 2018. I've been thinking of ways to relieve the strain as this debt anxiety I seem to be suffering from is driving me mad. The plan is working whether or not I am anxious about it so in 2019 I would like to enjoy the journey more and this is how I hope to do it.

*Share much more of the money details with OH. It is too much to carry alone. We are having meetings every few days so that he can be as up to speed as I am and we have almost finished our budget for January.

*Stop stressing about the mortgage. Quite literally this has to go to the back of my mind. We will take the best deal that is offered and we will manage. End of story.

*Do not try to pay things off too quickly and then leave us short. The recent backlog of things needing fixed, bought etc was not fun to deal with. The debt will be repaid in time and we need to be reasonably comfortable during that time.

*Top up the sinking funds and get used to using them. This is a good long term money management strategy that we need to get into the habit of doing.

*Last but not least, feel good about all the progress made so far. It really is quite something. :j When I look around the boards I see great progress being made everywhere. We're doing it!

enthusiasticsaver

Good rules there for 2019. The sinking funds is a great strategy as is getting your OH involved. Remember it is a marathon, not a sprint. I guess Barclaycard 2 and Santander are your next 2 target debts? Unless you get a windfall I think you might be pushed to clear MBNA too before Feb 2020 so I would target Barclaycard 3 with the view to BT the MBNA to a clear card early 2020. That is approx £4950 to find before Feb 2020. Is that doable?

Moneywhizz

Sounds like you are beginning to realise that paying off debt is a marathon not a sprint. Setting a realistic budget is the key. You need to have a little money to spend as you choose otherwise it will feel as if you are working hard but pretty miserable because you don't have a penny to spend. I would recommend a miscellaneous amount for you and your husband to have each month to spend, or not, as you wish. You should also be able to set your budget for the year and not have to spend much time checking each month that everything is in place. Ultimately it should manage itself if you are putting away the correct amount every month to meet your expenses. Anything extra you earn from your business will mean that you can pay off more debt, or build up some savings. I hope 2019 really is a great year for you.

BabyStepper

enthusiasticsaver wrote: »

Unless you get a windfall I think you might be pushed to clear MBNA too before Feb 2020 so I would target Barclaycard 3 with the view to BT the MBNA to a clear card early 2020. That is approx £4950 to find before Feb 2020. Is that doable?

That seems like a realistic challenge to me but I've found that setting targets just leads to more strain of will I/won't I meet the target. I decided I don't care as long as the debt moves in the right direction. I could change the order of repayment so that BC3 comes before MBNA, but the MBNA card worries me the most because it is just so massive, that is why I wanted to tackle it first. I will see how I go with BC2 and Santander, and make a decision when I get there.

Moneywhizz wrote: »

You should also be able to set your budget for the year and not have to spend much time checking each month that everything is in place. Ultimately it should manage itself if you are putting away the correct amount every month to meet your expenses. Anything extra you earn from your business will mean that you can pay off more debt, or build up some savings. I hope 2019 really is a great year for you.

I would love it if I could set the budget and not have to check it so often. One of the practical things I'm going to do in the New Year is move some of the DDs so that they all come out around the 1st and then the 15th. At the moment they are scattered throughout the month. That way I can check twice, instead of daily and there is some leeway for my wage to be paid later in the month. We are also going to use the envelope system. We only use this for food at the moment and it works well, so easy to keep on top of things.

Thank you for the good wishes Moneywhizz. I hope 2019 is a great year for you too.

Aaleigha

Baby stepper
I read your diary last night (I suffer insomnia) and even with your very kind aunty you have paid off so much

It's lovey to hear such a different tone now to your posts

Having hubby on Side is brilliant
Mine lets me get on with it and suffers the consequences

I have done my spreadsheet for the year
But in the post today I got a parking fine not my doing
His and according to what he has said there will be about 5 more

He said sorry but as I had been so fierce with the budget we will overdraw he said you can't get blood out of a stone

I told him no but he bleeds ooops
I have built up an emergency fund, which he doesn't know about so we can cover it and as it was all to see his mother I will claw it back over the coming months

What I am trying to say is non of us know what is round the corner, so a huge weld one to you for putting on in place so early

Off to say what I really think in my diary

I have subscribed to your diary as your change of feeling is so uplifting.

Moneywhizz

I have helped people learn to budget for years and find that the envelope system works really well for most people. I recommend withdrawing the cash that you need for the month and split it up into envelopes. When its gone its gone! I have envelopes for food, petrol, presents, miscellaneous/treats, hair cuts, and clothes. In my current account I leave enough money to cover all direct debits that are due to come out during the month ( doesn't matter what the date is), and the rest of my money gets transferred to a savings account. I then have a spreadsheet showing what the money in my savings account is for ie, car tax, insurance and maintenance, home insurance, holidays, emergency fund, dentist/optician. It is a fairly simple system and needs little maintenance. Usually once a month to transfer money and make sure there are no surprises is enough to keep things ticking over. You should try to simplify your system so that you are not having to constantly check that things are being paid. You will get to the stage where you know that everything is under control and maybe then you can relax more. Hope this is helpful.

BabyStepper

Happy New Year to everyone! :beer::D :j:T:) I hope 2019 brings us all wonderful things!

Aaleigha, thanks for dropping by and lovely to meet you. Your comments about your husband gave me a laugh, it is SO hard to find ways to work on the debt together. Keep trying! It can only get better. I'll pop over to your diary for a look.

Moneywhizz, you have inspired me with your info about keeping it simple and I'm trying very hard to do this. This month we are keeping the right amount of cash in our joint account for all the bills/DDs. We have sinking funds for Christmas, house maintenance, clothes, emergency fund (currently full at £1,000) and saving for a car (currently 4p! ). Everything else we need has been withdrawn in cash and is sitting in labelled envelopes. I won't know about debt overpayment until all my invoices have been paid but we have enought to cover everything else so far. My long term goal is to have 3 months' expenses including wages in my business account, but I'm not there yet. One step at a time.

OH is helping me to relax about it all and says things like 'we have enough, let's wait and check it tomorrow'. Then the next day I'm a bit more relaxed and can often just leave it. I had no idea my anxiety was increasing so much, thank goodness for this diary and everyone's comments to help me work it out and do something about it.

I hope everyone enjoys New Year's Day. Anyone else remember when Sundays were like this every week? All the shops closed, everyone having down time to spend with family and just relax. Maybe I will see if OH wants to turn every Sunday into that kind of day. Have a great time whatever you're doing.