I want it all...and I want it now..

BalanceBy50

I am a bit wary of posting a full SOA as I 'think' there maybe a couple of people on here who know me in real life and I feel that as we do everything jointly it's unfair on my husband to post full details. However feel free to ask any questions where you feel i haven't provided enough info:)

So DH works full time and I work part time for a very small company I am a director of. We are trying to grow the business and increased turnover by 50% last year however due to cashflow we can't always pay ourselves what we want to and this causes massive problems for us as a family. I have based the following figures on April's pay as we will be paying more in pension, CT etc

After all DD's, SO's, childcare, pension contributions etc we are left with £1922.50. We don't have Sky or Virgin just Freeview tv. All insurances are paid monthly.

This is then spent:
£425 services debt with a plan for all debt to be cleared by December 2023

My husband is paid weekly so the rest is allocated on a weekly basis:
Food £100 x 4 = £400 Covers all grocery shopping and we both (in theory!) have all our meals out of this
Spending Money £100 x 4 = £400 This covers parking/coffee for work which I claim back, Netflix, doing stuff on a weekend with the kids, house stuff, rare nights out.
Car £60 x 4 = £240 petrol for 2 cars and a little bit left for MOT/services but never enough in it for these things
Christmas £25 x 4 = £100 - paid to my friends mum so I can't access it. Seems a lot but it covers everything including food and a visit to Santa.
Holiday 20 x 4 = £80 Week in Suffolk booked in a caravan in August!
Beauty/Health 15 x 4 = £60 Haircuts, waxing, dentist and contact lenses
Birthdays 15 x 4 = £60 Boys seem to get invited to lots of parties!!
Clothes 15 x 4 = £60 not really enough for 4 especially with growing small people
Savings £20 x 4 = £80 this gets raided constantly to cover shortfalls and never builds up.

Total £1480

So in theory we should have £17.50 a month left..

So a few things to take into account I earn more at the start of the tax year, as I am a director of the company I don't pay my NI until I hit the threshold so from about September my net pay is a lot less. For this SOA I have worked out my average (I know - I need to put the difference on one side and then pay myself the difference later in the year!). I receive £2-300 in expenses a month which gets frittered. I also do side hustles and probably make an extra £2-300 when I put my mind to it.

Other financial stuff I want/need to do and need nagging to do

1. Reclaim PPi I know was on DH's credit card when he met me.
2. Get in touch with all pension providers (we have at least 4 each). Some don't have nominees and at least one doesn't have our current address. I then need to look at what we need to do with them (Suffolk Lass looking at you!). We are both 47 so older parents and need to know what we are looking at.
3. I wanted a house saving pot where can this come from. Lots of decorating and new carpet needed.
4. Think about whether it's realistic to visit Australia for my mums 75th bithday in 2021. My sister lives out there and mum would like us all together at least one more time.
5. Put another £75 towards debt.
6. Save £200 a month and use it for salary shortfall or a real emergency.

Think that's it. I have now raised my head above the parapet and this is what has stopped me doing a diary for years (I had a previous user name which i felt could identify me so I created a new one hence being a relative newcomer on here .;)I Know people only want to help!

Think that's enough for one night;).

xx

BalanceBy50

enthusiasticsaver wrote: »

Why don't you just open an internet saver for now and then maybe consider one of the high interest current accounts like TSB when you have more money in it? They require a certain number of direct debits and funding requirements although the money does not have to stay there but not easy juggling money when you don't have any.

Not sure where you bank but Tesco internet saver pays around 1.4% and I think the Post office is similar rates. A lot of people are raving about Marcus but not sure if there is a minimum. Check best savings accounts on this site.


Sorry, just seen you don't want internet saver. Post Office then I guess.

Thanks enthusistic! I think I just need to be more disciplined - hoping this diary makes me more accountable to myself xx

BalanceBy50

Oh and today has been another NSD! Tomorrow won't be as I need to send a pound into a school for comic relief xx

Suffolk_lass

Thanks for being so open and honest BB50. There is a lot to absorb in the information you have posted and I will have a think, but I wanted to highlight the one big thing that I see missing.

I go on about Tilly Tidying on my diary - this is [STRIKE]quite[/STRIKE] very addictive and over the 2 and a bit years I have been doing it, it has accumulated thousands (I know, because I use a different column to log them and recently totalled it).

What we each choose to do with it is different for each of us as we are at different stages, with different priorities, but given your reference to frittering away your expenses, you should consider putting this (all!) in a separate account each time you receive it. You then have the opportunity to earmark that money for one of your aspirational purposes, or to be there for your NI (£780 in 19-20) or for car servicing and maintenance. You could round down (Tilly Tidy) your account to the nearest £5 each time a payment goes in and before you know it, you will have some reserves.

If you reduce your entertainment budget for a month, or lump your other personal pots into the same one and call it personal spending (same result, different psychological processing) - it will give you a great head start.

I said one thing but there is a time-pressing other thing re pensions - get yourself and your DH on the State Pension forecast webpage on Gov.UK and check if you have any partial (incomplete contribution) years in the last 6 years (these are the only ones you can make up to full) - if you can address this this month you pay the rate that applied when the shortfall occurred.

The time critical element is that if you wait until the 19-20 year you will pay at the current rate (so it will obviously cost more than 6 years ago). With the new State Pension it is well worth making sure you will get the most you can.

I also want to check you do get (or are at least registered for) child benefit - this will give the nominated person (should be you as your income is more volatile) credit years until your child leaves Further Education. Please check!!

jwil

Ooh you've reminded me that I need to get in touch with DH's old pension to see if I can be added to it as a spouse.

BalanceBy50

Suffolk_lass wrote: »

Thanks for being so open and honest BB50. Its not been easy SL but having this diary and reaching out for help would all be a mockery if I wasn't honest!There is a lot to absorb in the information you have posted and I will have a think, but I wanted to highlight the one big thing that I see missing.

I go on about Tilly Tidying on my diary - this is [STRIKE]quite[/STRIKE] very addictive and over the 2 and a bit years I have been doing it, it has accumulated thousands (I know, because I use a different column to log them and recently totalled it).

What we each choose to do with it is different for each of us as we are at different stages, with different priorities, but given your reference to frittering away your expenses, you should consider putting this (all!) in a separate account each time you receive it. You then have the opportunity to earmark that money for one of your aspirational purposes, or to be there for your NI (£780 in 19-20) or for car servicing and maintenance. You could round down (Tilly Tidy) your account to the nearest £5 each time a payment goes in and before you know it, you will have some reserves. Will definitely give this a go!

If you reduce your entertainment budget for a month, or lump your other personal pots into the same one and call it personal spending (same result, different psychological processing) - it will give you a great head start. I will think about this. I did this previously and just kept running out of money so split things and tried to be realisitic about costs

I said one thing but there is a time-pressing other thing re pensions - get yourself and your DH on the State Pension forecast webpage on Gov.UK and check if you have any partial (incomplete contribution) years in the last 6 years (these are the only ones you can make up to full) - if you can address this this month you pay the rate that applied when the shortfall occurred.

The time critical element is that if you wait until the 19-20 year you will pay at the current rate (so it will obviously cost more than 6 years ago). With the new State Pension it is well worth making sure you will get the most you can. Have checked for myself and I have paid in full since 1992 and I just need to do 2 more full years between now and 2038 :eek: to receive a full state pension. Can't see anything going wrong between now and then! Need DH to set up his access but he has worked full time and contributed since 1988 so I can't see his being a problem either but you never know

I also want to check you do get (or are at least registered for) child benefit - this will give the nominated person (should be you as your income is more volatile) credit years until your child leaves Further Education. Please check!! We are registered and I do receive child benefit for the boys

Thanks Suffolk you have really made me be more honest with myself and I will be posting more info about our debts later and my plans. Plus some challenges I want to set myself :D

xx

BalanceBy50

jwil wrote: »

Ooh you've reminded me that I need to get in touch with DH's old pension to see if I can be added to it as a spouse.

Have you done it yet jwill? It's in my plans for Sunday! xx PS Up to June 2011 on you first diary

jwil

BalanceBy50 wrote: »

Have you done it yet jwill? It's in my plans for Sunday! xx PS Up to June 2011 on you first diary

Not yet, I've got the paperwork out, I shall try and do it this week

I can't believe you've gone back to my first diary, I can't remember what I was writing back then, I'll have to have a look. it's all much of the sameness I think You are very dedicated :rotfl:

juststuff123

Hi Balance50
I've never been in uncontrolled robbing peter to pay paul debt. But i did have a goal to be mortgage free (with the help of the folks over on that board) I think the most useful thing for me was to have a budget spreadsheet of absolutely everything, and each time i paid a Direct Debit or bought a 10p coffee i would write it down on the spreadsheet next to the appropriate budget, then i would be accountable to myself if i overspent in a particular category, and each month i'd try to beat by budget by spending less and shoveling the excess in to savings, debt repayments etc. It worked for me and i paid off my mortgage 16 yrs early. Now i have the advantage that I'm a saver by nature and spending money brings me out in a cold sweat but i don't think i could have achieved what i did without having a full and complete budget for every penny and without keeping a proper track of every penny spent. NB. if you try this you have to religious in filling in every little expense, once you start to forget to add that bacon roll the whole thing can fall apart quite dramatically. It can become quite addictive.

teafor2

Evening BB50. Hope all is well with you and yours

I live in (irrational) fear of being known as well Not that there's really anything to know but even thinking somebody is reading how much I get for spends every week feels like a real intrusion, so I totally get where you're coming from with trying to keep some things private. It's not that easy though is it when you're asking for help without trying to give too much away.

Your list of things to do is impressive. We've only just claimed for PPI ourselves in the last 2 weeks. I doubt very much we'll get anything but I can't bear the thought that now there's a cut off date we could miss out.

One of our recent big spends has been wills. We did them about 17 years ago but so much has changed that we basically had to rip them up and start from scratch. It was a pretty hefty chunk of money but I feel better for having done it.

It would be lovely if you could get to Australia for your mum's 75th but if that's a bit tight tell her she's still a spring chicken and you'll go for her 80th instead

Hope you have a lovely week.