Sort of debt-free but hope to be a super-scrimper in 2019

[Deleted User]

wishingthemortgaheaway wrote: »

This is what I did a few years ago, I think it took me about 4 years to get the following onto annual payments:
2x car insurance
Breakdown
House insurance
Council tax
Water rates
Work union fees
Co$tc0
Ynab
Amaz0n prim3
Telephone line rental
Car tax
I did pay insurances/service plans for appliances too, but now I 'self insure' (have a pot of money put to one side for repair & replacement of such goods)

I also 'oversave' into those annual pots mentioned above so when I pay one of them (for example I've just paid the car insurances for the next 12 months) I have enough in the pot incase the price has risen and/or have a little 'bonus' to redistribute. For example, my car insurance was £340 less than the amount is saved, so I put £40 into the mortgage overpayment and £300 towards some work on the house we've got coming up. I actually felt like I'd found £340 rather than spent £900 on insurance.

Thanks very much for this post:T. It's a lovely feeling isn't it when it's possible to pay annual renewal costs upfront:j. The monthly instalment method was a lifesaver when deep in debt though.


OH and I split the utility bills and some others 50/50 so I'm not responsible for as long a list as you. Sounds as if you have your work cut out getting all that lot organised:eek:.


I'm responsible for any annual payments relating to my own car (breakdown, tax and insurance), the landline phone and broadband and the electricity. We have no mains gas in our area and although we use oil for the central heating it still needs electricity to run the boiler etc. The electricity bill is a big expense:(. I also pay for all the groceries but that's a never ending money pit and not an annual upfront payment of course:eek:. I did fork out on an annual Morrisons Delivery Pass though as it works out cheaper over the course of the year to have groceries delivered and I'm a Morrisons shopper anyway. Driving to the store, which is a long way from here, would cost much more in petrol in the long run. I also buy any small household appliances and even some big ones as I bought my last washing machine and fridge. I'm hoping OH will pay for the new cooker when we eventually get our kitchen done but I'm not holding my breath;)


We don't have subscriptions to any TV services and rely on Freeview which is, er, free:rotfl:. When we had our cat I always paid his vet bills and insurance but I cancelled the insurance eventually as I had to pay a big excess anyway like with a car insurance policy. Some conditions which I had to have him treated for weren't even covered by the policy at all:mad:. Total rip-off IMO.


Our mortgage was paid off about 25 years ago so that's one millstone we don't have, thank goodness:j. OH pays the council tax, water rates, house insurances, central heating oil (once in a blue moon because we rarely have it on:(), and all his own car expenses. We no longer pay insurance/ extended guarantees on any current appliances because most of our stuff is so old and on its last legs and the insurance would be more than things are worth. I might have missed things off from each list but we worked it out and it's pretty much 50/50.

MrsLottie

After struggling with money matters for years in my first marriage I have now found the joy of being free from money worries first as a single mum and now in my second very happy marriage. I too put money aside monthly to cover all payments up front and this makes me feel really happy and safe . As long as we have enough to live comfortably and have a couple of little holidays a year and a bit saved to treat /help our children and grandchildren then that is enough . By the way because of my previous hectic money dealings I was owed quite a bit of PPI and used this to settle a couple of loans and a credit card and was able to budget upfront accordingly .Now I actually enjoy looking after my money and being careful how and what I spend , most of all I enjoy the peace freedom from money worries brings. Just wanted to say for all those struggling that plugging away at things does work and that there is light at thee d of the tunnel. Love this diary CBC and admire your tenacity.

[Deleted User]

MrsLottie wrote: »

After struggling with money matters for years in my first marriage I have now found the joy of being free from money worries first as a single mum and now in my second very happy marriage. I too put money aside monthly to cover all payments up front and this makes me feel really happy and safe . As long as we have enough to live comfortably and have a couple of little holidays a year and a bit saved to treat /help our children and grandchildren then that is enough . By the way because of my previous hectic money dealings I was owed quite a bit of PPI and used this to settle a couple of loans and a credit card and was able to budget upfront accordingly .Now I actually enjoy looking after my money and being careful how and what I spend , most of all I enjoy the peace freedom from money worries brings. Just wanted to say for all those struggling that plugging away at things does work and that there is light at thee d of the tunnel. Love this diary CBC and admire your tenacity.

Thank you very much:T

It's so nice to hear that things have worked out so well for you and that you're free of money worries and in a really happy marriage:j:beer:


Well done on the PPI payments:T. They certainly helped me towards lowering my debt balance. Since being so deep in debt I've discovered that budgeting can actually be fun. Maybe 'fun' isn't quite the right word for it though and certainly when I was having to count every last penny it was really hard work and very stressful. Now things have eased a lot I find budgeting rather an enjoyable challenge.

rtandon27

Wow CBC - your thread has moved at a fair old clip!:D

Late to the vote (I just love a vote :rotfl:), but definitely pay annually where you can if it saves you money! You can adjust your payments to savings & top up at a later date! It's that much less money that is sucked from your pocket into the "beast's".

I found it really hard emotionally the first year when we could finally afford to pay up front instead of monthly - goodness knows why - but when I tallied up what we saved over the course of the year it was so satisfying to see on paper as a lump sum, knowing that it was all ours and enough for 30% of the following year's insurances and policies! So that was 30% less we had to budget for the next year and then the next year that amount went to savings instead of bills!

Don't forget that juggling the pots & keeping those balls in the air can be just as hard as paying off the debts, but infinitely more satisfying! xxx

HairyHandofDartmoor

I think budgeting is fun when you have more money and stressful when you are in debt or struggling on a low income :think:.

beanielou

HairyHandofDartmoor wrote: »

I think budgeting is fun when you have more money and stressful when you are in debt or struggling on a low income :think:.

So agree with this.

enthusiasticsaver

carbootcrazy wrote: »

I'm now able to pay my car insurance and car tax upfront annually and save money that way but have been paying my telephone line rental monthly alongside my bill for calls and broadband. I've had an email from PlusNet with the Line Rental Saver offer which costs £197.88 a year. This equates to £16.49 a month as opposed to the £18.99 a month that the instalment method costs, giving a saving of £2.50 a month/£30 a year. It should be a no-brainer really and :money: to pay upfront like I'm doing with the others but I need to renew my car breakdown cover at the end of this month and which I'd totally forgotten about:o. I might be able to cover the breakdown insurance payment and something else that I need to subscribe to with what I've saved from the 'No Spend on Groceries' month that I'm doing. If I pay the line rental upfront as well I won't be able to add much to my savings pot and I've set up a DD to transfer a certain amount (the maximum amount I'd worked out that I can possibly afford:eek:) into it on the last day of each month.


I know it's a simple process to change/cancel the DD but something in me doesn't want me to do it even though it might only be for one month, two at worst. Next month is likely to be more expensive grocery-wise anyway as I'll have to replenish the cupboards after the Grocery Challenge as they are becoming barer by the day. Why do I make life so unnecessarily complicated for myself?:rotfl:. Anyone reading the above will probably think I'm bonkers:o but it's been so many years since I was in a position to be able to save anything at all (apart from towards my debts) that it's becoming something of an obsession now that I can. Just like it was when I made myself miserable at times just to repay the debts in the shortest possible time. I don't ever seem to be able to find the right balance:(

Do you pay your council tax over 10 months or 12? If it is 10 February and March are "free" months which may make the decision above easier. I pay my Virgin line rental upfront which is £196 rather than £19 a month. If at all possible I would do that to save the £30 but can understand you not wanting to mess with the savings DD.

enthusiasticsaver

wishingthemortgaheaway wrote: »

This is what I did a few years ago, I think it took me about 4 years to get the following onto annual payments:
2x car insurance
Breakdown
House insurance
Council tax
Water rates
Work union fees
Co$tc0
Ynab
Amaz0n prim3
Telephone line rental
Car tax
I did pay insurances/service plans for appliances too, but now I 'self insure' (have a pot of money put to one side for repair & replacement of such goods)

I also 'oversave' into those annual pots mentioned above so when I pay one of them (for example I've just paid the car insurances for the next 12 months) I have enough in the pot incase the price has risen and/or have a little 'bonus' to redistribute. For example, my car insurance was £340 less than the amount is saved, so I put £40 into the mortgage overpayment and £300 towards some work on the house we've got coming up. I actually felt like I'd found £340 rather than spent £900 on insurance.

I am impressed you can pay your council tax and water rates annually. Is there any financial advantage to that? Our council tax and water rates are the same over the year regardless of whether you pay upfront or monthly.

rtandon27

HairyHandofDartmoor wrote: »

I think budgeting is fun when you have more money and stressful when you are in debt or struggling on a low income :think:.

So very true - there are so many emotions that come up with budgeting! I always worry to no end about not having enough for the tomorrows.

I find it very hard to cope with our annual payments - the concept scares me to no end, no matter how much we end up saving - it is so much easier to emotionally cope with our weekly or monthly spending (food, electric, council tax, etc) - somehow I feel more in control with small amounts that trickle out bit by bit instead of in one big lump.

[Deleted User]

enthusiasticsaver wrote: »

Do you pay your council tax over 10 months or 12? If it is 10 February and March are "free" months which may make the decision above easier. I pay my Virgin line rental upfront which is £196 rather than £19 a month. If at all possible I would do that to save the £30 but can understand you not wanting to mess with the savings DD.

Thank you:T

OH is responsible for paying the council tax, it's not my worry:j

I think I will pay the PlusNet line rental upfront after all like I've managed to do now with the other regular payments. I know I mentioned before that I'd prefer not to but saving £30 over the year isn't to be sneezed at and I'd be silly to break my MSE:money: habits so quickly:o