Learning to live within my means

astrocytic_kitten

We’ve both come so far @GeorgianaCavendish! And good point on moving @Sarahwithlove, there will never be a perfect time so if I see something I should just go for it. 

Payday this week will take me down to 2.5k which feels like a more ‘acceptable’ level of debt in my head and a figure I’d be ok admitting to people. I’ve carried around such a huge weight of shame about my level of debt for so many years, I’ve opened up to some friends about paying off debt but I’ve always been way too embarrassed to actually name the figure. I think it’s going to take a while to get out of the mindset of feeling like I’m carrying around this big secret.

Still on track to be about £80 short of being able to pay it off in full at the end of March, I might take the money from savings or borrow it from a pot just to get it gone. It is, after all, still interest bearing even if it’s a fraction of when I started. Saw some student loan discussions on another diary, that’s another debt I have but I’m not really counting it and think I’ll still call myself debt free even though I’ll still have the student loan. If I get close to my full time salary again it would be gone in 5 years, but if that doesn’t happen I’ll basically be paying it as a graduate tax forevermore 😂 I didn’t have any family to help out with uni costs and even though I always had a part time job while studying that paid for food and bills, I needed the loans to pay my rent, so as much as I’d like the money in my pocket I’m not overly upset to still be paying the loan.

I’ve been feeling pretty flat lately and not engaging much with the forums, but feeling more like myself now. Thanks so much for the support everyone. I honestly don’t think I’d have stuck with the debt free journey over the past couple of years if it wasn’t for this place.

Sarahwithlove

I'm viewing my student loan the same tbh. Especially as after interest is added back on I pay off about £50 a year 🤣🤣 so wouldn't worry too much. It comes off at source and budget is based on wages received anyway.

Sorry to hear you've been feeling low. Definitely think it's harder this time round lockdown. 

savingholmes

Sorry you've been struggling. As Sarah said - we are all going up and down at the moment. There are days when I read and just thank and there are others when I post a little and more when I post lots. You'll get there. I used to carry around a massive burden of shame about debt - but when I have opened up I have tended to find others have hidden debt too.

astrocytic_kitten

First clothes spend of the year, 19.90 on a cosy lambswool jumper from Uniqlo. I’ve been feeling the cold so much lately, have been planning to get an oversized wool jumper second hand for a year or so but not been well enough to go round the shops. Very glad I went ahead and ordered it! My wool jumpers are the fine merino type, whereas now I just want something thick and snuggly which this very much is, I’ve been living in it for the past few days.

Agree that everyone seems to be finding this lockdown so, so hard - I don’t think I know anyone who isn’t struggling in one way or another.  Hopefully things will brighten up when spring comes.

redofromstart

The jumper sounds lovely and a good investment.  Late to the discussion (busy with work and not about much) but I would be building that emergency fund first, and then driving the debt down.  Six months of bare minimum spend though, not jumpers and books.

astrocytic_kitten

Thanks @redofromstart, that’s given me food for thought and sent me back to the spreadsheet. And for once instead of a horrible sinking feeling when examining my finances I think I have good news!

Basically, I’ve been working to a bare bones emergency fund figure which includes my monthly loan payment. I’ve worked it out that way for a couple of reasons: I need a clean credit record in the industry I work in, and I planned to move house to somewhere better suited long term which would involve increasing my monthly mortgage to what was pretty much the level of my current mortgage + the loan payment. So it seemed that would be about the amount I needed per month regardless. 

However! I haven’t revisited that figure in a couple of years and I’m now planning to keep a new mortgage to a lower level than I was before.... So while I’m currently about 3k short of a 6 month emergency fund based on the figures I’ve been working to, including paying the loan monthly, if the debt was paid off I’m actually already at a 6 month emergency fund for my current living expenses. On a rough reckoning I’m probably only 1-1.5k short of a 6m fund after I move house too, depending on things like council tax. 

So this is all a bit of a surprise. Going to double check the figures when I’m less tired, just to be sure.....I’m so used to financial reckonings involving an extra 5k mysteriously adding itself to the debt figure, rather than finding myself in a better place than expected 😆😆

savingholmes

Sounds like you are in a good place financially. Glad things are improving.

CreditCardJunkie

You are doing absolutely fabulous!

astrocytic_kitten

Thanks @savingholmes and @CreditCardJunkie! I have revisited the spreadsheet and it’s true - I have a 6 month emergency fund (assuming I stay in my current flat and am debt free). Astonishing! Not so worried about the minimum loan payments needing to be included in the EF figure either, it was one thing when the loan was much bigger but it’s now at a level where I could do a 0% money transfer to a credit card and pay the minimums if the worst came to the worst. I’ve been watching the credit union’s covid response and it looks like they’d also allow me to use my savings with them (currently locked away) to pay it which would cover a couple of months too. 

I also think I’m probably about £800 short of a 6 month emergency fund if I were to move to the sort of place I’m looking for, though who knows what will happen with that and if I’ll end up spending what I’m planning or will need to spend more. I live in a bit of a property hotspot so it can be unpredictable, I’ve been keeping a close eye and even the past year hasn’t dampened it much. Places that would work have definitely sold for the price I’d like to pay so I’m hopeful it will work out. I do love my current flat and would love to stay here if it could just be plonked down onto the ground floor, but in the absence of that moving is a must unfortunately.

redofromstart

I have to confess I frittered £8 on three months of kindle unlimited and thought of you as a fellow 'books are bare bones, not luxuries' spender.  I could put it through my work expenses as I mainly did it for a couple of employment law books but I know I will get my moneys worth out of trash reading in the bath.

So hard to plan a move at the moment, hope you can wait till things are more stable.