Tidying up the mess

Moneywhizz

Thats too bad for all your plans but you sound as if you are coping with it well and not too disappointed about the debt free date being put back a little. Truth is, it would probably have been one of your first purchases anyway and you would have continued saving for it as soon as the debt was gone, so it virtually works out the same provided you can do it without incurring interest. Shopping around and going through cash back sites will cut the expense of insurance and breakdown cover. I think you can still use Tesco Clubcard points for Breakdown cover if you have any spare. I save £40 monthly into my car pot to cover mot, services, tyres and unexpected repairs. It depends on the condition of the car of course, but I have found that adequate for most things. You can
not account for every repair that might need doing but you have your emergency fund if something crops up that you cannot cover from your car pot. As well as paying for your insurance and tax upfront this year you will also need to put away a monthly amount so that you have the money to pay it annually going forward. Cars are such an expense but mostly a necessity as it is in your situation now. I hope you find one that suits your needs quickly so that you don't have to use the bus too often.

PositiveBalance

BabyStepper wrote: »

I have some bad news. There has been a change in bus timetables. My long journey that already takes forever (and leaves me grumpy and in tantrum mode when the buses are late) has just been extended by 1.5 hours. I test ran the new timetable this week and safe to say, it doesn't work. Travelling this way is just not sustainable any more (it was barely manageable to begin with) so we're going to need a car.

[...]


Our budget is £2.5 - £3k so a further ££1,280 - £1,780 to find (no more than a further 2 months debt repayment money). We're looking for the longest MOT and road taxed car we can find. We haven't decided whether to try and pay insurance upfront or put it in the monthly budget. We will need to start saving for repairs etc so the car pot will need a regular payment. Any thoughts about how much this should be? Also, residents parking to pay for (not sure how much this is) and breakdown cover to buy.

Well done on knowing how to make lemonade out of lemons! :T


Buying a car has now filtered its way to the top of the 'need' not 'want' pile for you but you are dealing with it in a considered way buying what is right for you with a realistic budget and not caving to societal pressure or snide comments.



This is how to win with money. Go you! :A

BabyStepper wrote: »

Just read that paying monthly for insurance is really just taking on a very expensive loan. Need to pay outright.

If you look at the options on websites it effectively shows it to be a HP agreement.

BabyStepper wrote: »

Yes, budget for petrol as well as for repairs. Thanks for this.

I keep reminding myself that the plan was very ambitious and pulling it back is not a disaster.

It really isn't. You have still made fantastic progress and will make even further progress once you have bought the car - and as you point out, there may be other fringe benefits to having the car like being able to visit cheaper supermarkets for food.


Instead of doing the financial equivalent of opening a packet of biscuits and saying 'oh sod it, I've eaten one biscuit so I might as well finish the pack' you have learned to eat one, realise it's not helping your goals and putting the rest of the packet in the cupboard.


If only I could learn to be so controlled in the biscuit anaology! :rotfl:

girlatplay

Hi BabyStepper :wave:

I have finally caught up with your diary. Wow, what a ride! You have done so incredibly well so far.

My tuppence worth is; it used to get me down when I couldn't keep up with other people or when people looked down on me because I didn't have much. Want to know what helped me? I stopped caring what other people think. It was a total revelation. No one knows anyone else's situation so just let it dribble away like water off a duck's back. The less you let it bother you the easier it gets.

I've subscribed!

Gap x

BabyStepper

positive balance love the biscuit analogy, so very true! Hope I've learned a bit of restraint in life, finally.

girlatplay can't believe you read all of my diary, you deserve a medal. I'm not sure where the concern about what other people think has come from, didn't used to feel that way, it seems to have abated for now though. Phew.

So we have spotted 3 potential cars that will be viewed and test driven this weekend. They're right at the top of our £3k for the car budget, seems to be that or under £1k, effectively old bangers, so we're going at the top end. I've been checking insurance (4 comparison sites, 2 other sites, cashback websites, it took forever!) and we can get £337 + £20 petrol voucher + £28 cashback. Worth the hassle. 2 cars are £300 road tax, the other one is a lot cheaper but a less good car. I haven't checked breakdown cover yet, I'm at a loss, what do other people pay for this?

So far the total initial outly will be £3,637 (ish) - £1,220 (debt money) = £2,217. We have 0% on purchases on the MBNA card until Feb 2020 so will finance it ourselves using this.

I don't know whether to record this by pausing the debt repayments while I pay off the car, or just roll it into the debt and get back on track with my usual repayment plan asap. Probably the latter. As always I have motivation in mind and where and how to get the biggest sense of achievement.

I need to start on next month's budget. There will be petrol and a car savings pot to account for. Also need to adjust cc totals, and factor in a bigger payment to mbna, and review order of repayments. It just never stops but I'm on it.

Thanks for all your help. :A It's appreciated more than I can say.

enthusiasticsaver

If you plan on using the MBNA card you need to check the garage takes credit cards. Some don't in which case you need a 0% money transfer card.

You can often get breakdown cover at the same time as insurance which can be cheaper. What you pay depends on what cover you need. Will you need a replacement car if yours goes into a garage? Do you need homestart or do you have a local garage you could call out if it goes wrong? Some get very cheap breakdown for around £30-£40 but I guess it depends on the age of your car. How old is the one you are keen on?

enthusiasticsaver

What some people do with recording debt is to keep new debt separate. So you continue with the original debt recording as you have been doing then record the £2217 or whatever the car debt is separately. Alternatively you could roll it all in together and start again with the new figure of approx £15k in July as I think you were pressing pause for a holiday anyway weren't you? Just be glad you started tackling this as it would be a totally different situation if you had £21k of debt and needed to buy a car.

BabyStepper

I have just secured 2 new pieces of work that would have been impossible if I had no transport. One at £250 and the other £240 for minimum effort, both happening next month. In the spirit of not counting my chicks before they hatch I won't include these in my planning until I actually have a car and have done the work. However, this is very promising.

enthusiastic saver we were going to take half the holiday money, £500 - ish, from debt repayment money at the end of June. As always this will depend on invoices being paid in full and on time. I'm trying to not think too far ahead but just stick to the budget and plan as the cash arrives and the car amount is confirmed. I'll post a full update after the weekend when hopefully we will have some wheels.

Drawingaline

Wow, just read through your diary, what a roller-coaster of emotions! We are the same as you mortgsge wise, I am now self employed but plan to stick with our provider on a new deal rather than move.

You sound so focused, and I love all the plan changes, I am so like that too!

Buffythedebtslayer

Hello,

Your diary is amazing, you are so organised and on it, the progress you have made is just outstanding

Yours is like a proper debt busting sorting it out changing your attitude diary!

I am never sure about Dave Ramsey, I have his book and he is the reason why I try to keep an emergency fund. I did read Mr Money Moustache but he is scary. I take bits of both but do really come back to Martin and this site for advice.

So impressed

XXX

girlatplay

I don't know much about Dave. I know his baby steps and I agree with most of them but for me (not now but when I had multiple debts) it was about paying off the most costly debt first. I probably need to watch some of his videos to understand a bit better. I think Mr Money Mustache is great. I do think he's quite extreme but he's inspired me a lot. I have used some of his ideas and they've worked for me. Martin holds my heart though. As someone mentioned earlier, it's his empathy. His compassion.

You're doing brilliantly with bringing the work in!