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

[Deleted User]

I'm still managing to keep to the Spend Nothing On Groceries Challenge that I set myself for the whole of January. I'll certainly do it again sometime but definitely not for a whole month next time. The storecupboard and freezer food have lasted remarkably well and we've had some tasty (if unusual:rotfl:) meals but it's not been possible to last a whole month without buying milk and a few other essentials:(. I ran out of cooking oil and salt and the bread that I already had in the freezer wasn't enough to last the month. Luckily I had 7 @ £5 Morrisons More vouchers so I could buy those items without spending any real money:j


I had to go to Morrisons again yesterday for 4 pints of milk (which will see us through to the end of the month) and kitchen roll. I wasn't sure if they give change if less than a £5 voucher is spent so I added some own brand Greek-style yoghurt (I've really missed not having yoghurt for 3 weeks:eek:),6 eggs and some reduced price mushrooms to my basket to make it up to £5. It was just over at £5.11p so I had to spend a whole 11p:(. When I gave my car a good vacuuming a couple of weeks ago I found a 20p coin under the seat so I'm counting some of that as the 11p overspend:rotfl:.

wishingthemortgaheaway

enthusiasticsaver wrote: »

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.

No, no financial advantage. I do 'over save' though so I do get my own, personal little bonus when I pay them. I think I just got on a role and, when I realised I could do it, I did do it.
If things turned tight at some point I guess I could return to monthly payments of those two bills and I'd have a little to add to the emergency pot.

Karmacat

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:.

beanielou wrote: »

So agree with this.

That's such a good way of putting it, thanks HHoD!

rtandon27 wrote: »

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.

RT, its the other way round for me, isn't that odd - the monthly drip drip feels completely unaffected by anything I do, whereas the one off annual, its a decision, and I pay it, and voila!

CBC, your groceries challenge is going amazingly well! Congratulations
:T

[Deleted User]

Karmacat wrote: »

That's such a good way of putting it, thanks HHoD!


RT, its the other way round for me, isn't that odd - the monthly drip drip feels completely unaffected by anything I do, whereas the one off annual, its a decision, and I pay it, and voila!

CBC, your groceries challenge is going amazingly well! Congratulations
:T

Thank you:)


The first time I could afford to restart one-off annual payments again I was so happy. It seemed like I'd reached such a major milestone:rotfl:. I must admit that I found it simpler, budget-wise, when I was paying monthly as I knew exactly to the penny at totting-up time just how much I had for that month's necessities. I arranged all but one of my monthly DDs to go out on the 1st of every month although one company wouldn't change the payment date:(. A case in point was my car breakdown cover this year. I paid it in one go last year and because I wasn't seeing the ongoing payment every month on my online bank statement (which I get a strange satisfaction from checking most days:o) I totally forgot that it was approaching its annual renewal. They emailed me, thank goodness, to remind me.


I expect I'll get the hang eventually of being solvent:rotfl:

System

I have managed to get my car insurance, house insurance, breakdown cover on yearly payments . Plus car maintenance and car tax all gets paid with debit card not credit card. My next one is going to be the landline , I never use a landline but need it for the internet. You have made me think about adding it to my savings pots . As for council tax and water rates I prefer to pay those monthly .

I hope you got back to sleep last night carboot and that the doctor can sort out your pain relief.

enthusiasticsaver

I prefer annual payments wherever possible too. It makes me feel more in control. I do car insurance, house insurance, breakdown cover, annual boiler service and gas fire service, telephone line rental all annually.

Sayschezza

rtandon27 wrote: »

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.

I am much the same as this. CT/water/fuel/ins/BT are all paid by monthly DD and the morgage has long gone. OH pays for everything to do with the car. My spending is pretty much the same every month so I know within a little how much I can save monthly for holidays etc as long as the DC dont borrow from me.

Sun_Addict

One good thing about getting older is that the house insurance is so low that it can easily be paid off in one go now

I don't drive and Mr SA had to give up his licence because of the brain damage so at least we don't have vehicle costs these days. One plus point I suppose.

The mortgage was paid off at one point but I re-mortgaged 2 years ago to have some much need refurbishment done to the house, it's got 7 years left to run, I retire in 8 so it will be gone again just before.

elizabethhull

I used to find the quarterly paper bill a nightmare because it was such a lot in one go, but there was no option to pay monthly. Now I've got a newspaper subscription, which is still a horrendous bill quarterly but actually saves me quite a lot. The milk bill was weekly cash (which I was always putting off), but now it's all done on line I can see exactly what I'm paying for and adjust the deliveries any time I want.

What I found most difficult a few years ago was the irregularity of money coming in rather than the total amount. I suppose it was similar to being self-employed, with peaks and troughs. I had payments that were lunar monthly, (state pension), calendar monthly (work pension), quarterly, half-yearly and annually ! Now the intermittent ones have mostly been converted to a more sensible frequency it's a lot easier to see where I am.

[Deleted User]

Hi CBC

I’m following your diary as a lurker on another thread (Hi HHOD - just love your diary :wave:) and feel that in many ways we are very similar.

First of all, congratulations on being debt free (neutral) that is a really fantastic achievement. I am a little younger than you I think? (63) but my OH is 77 and like your OH is very frugal (well downright tight] to say the least. We too have lived in unwedded “bliss” for well over 30 years. Like you, I was in debt, which I also hid from him. I also felt that it was MY responsibility to get out of the mess that I had got myself into. My OH was born during the War and his mother was a single parent (in the days when it was a bit of a stigma) as his father left when he was a young child. His mother had a factory job, as well as cleaning and ironing jobs to put food on the table. I think this goes some way to explain his view about money. They were very poor and he remembers spending time in a Children’s Home as his mother couldn’t cope at one point. Although leaving school at 15, by attending evening classes he was able to get an education and eventually a teaching post in Further Education, rising to Middle Management.

Me - on the other hand - was an only child and, whilst we certainly weren’t well off, I never wanted for anything. I got my first credit card when I was 18 and my debt just spiralled from there. My credit limit kept increasing - add a couple of loans - and I was in serious debt. My “light bulb” moment occurred about 12 years ago. I wanted to retire from a stressful job and realised that there was no way of doing that with the amount of debt I had. Like you, I cut everything back to the bone, managed to get a promoted post in the same field but at another place, and although I was a lot happier, I still wanted to get out of the daily grind/commute and live a much more relaxed and stress free life.

Fast forward to today - I have now been retired just over a year and live off my small occupational pension and draw down from a private pension. I will continue to draw down until I receive my State pension in 3 years time. I would not have been able to retire if I had been in debt.

My OH, being a bit older than me and having been retired for several years, was a little apprehensive about me stopping work. I solved the problem by using the lump sum from one of my pensions to build a loft conversion:rotfl: - we live in a very small bungalow. He is now up there with all his toys/gear/a flat screen TV and I hardly ever see him. Well, he does come down at meal times:rotfl: We are very similar to you and your OH - I am fond of my own company and could quite happily live alone, but after all these years - I think I will stick with the Old Man:rotfl::rotfl: We share the bills and although I do most of the cooking and cleaning, I don’t mind, as my OH maintains both cars (he spent years in the Motor Trade and has saved us a fortune in repair bills) and can turn his hand to anything - even installing central heating many years ago! To me, that is worth his weight in gold, and to be honest, if he offered to cook for me. I would politely refuse - I don’t think it would be very edible!

I hope you get your kitchen sorted out soon, it must be hard to try and make meals every night under those circumstances. Although we are relatively comfortable now, it wasn’t always like that. I DO have a credit card, but, like Martin always says, I pay it off IN FULL:money: I realise I am very lucky to be in this situation, but nowadays I get a great kick out of seeing my savings pot grow, far more pleasure than the buzz I used to get when spending money on things that I totally didn’t need, or really want.

You are doing great. My debt wasn’t as great as yours and I am awe of how you managed to pay it off. I think you said your savings will go towards replacing your car? Next - new kitchen:T. (after essential re-wiring, of course).

Keep up the good work.

RL x

PS - I KNOW you said your diary was a politically free zone. However, I feel I have to say that former Chancellor, George Osborne, did me a HUGE favour in not forcing people due to take retirement to take out an annuity. If I had to do this, my pension would have been dire. With the new rule, I was able to take a lump tax free sum and draw down a small amount of money to tide me over until I reach State Retirement age. Hopefully, there will still be money left in the pot to use towards home improvements/emergency fund after I stop the draw down. I can’t say I have ever been a HUGE fan of Old George, but I do feel that this is ONE thing the Conservatives got right.OK - political talk over, I will revert back to lurking:)