Hugglemonster hits the debt hard!

hugglemonster

savingholmes said:

Well done on the payments. So will you be free of the car loan in May then? That's when I'm hoping to be debt free other than the mortgage

Yes the car will be paid and the last payment in May is smaller so I might see if I can pay it off in April instead and save a few pounds interest.

£30 received yesterday from survey sites so that went straight on the card bringing it down to a nice round £2300, I'm so close to breaking the barrier now.

A day off today, I was going to start painting the kitchen but need to keep checking that ds is doing his work as he has lots due in today. DD has an interview with the private school tomorrow afternoon, she hates talking to people but I'll be right next to her. 

That's about it, H x

hugglemonster

Good evening all, I come bearing news and it's good news with some hard work attached. My dd has been accepted for a place at the lovely school with a scholarship, now this is brilliant and we have wanted this opportunity for her. It comes with the knowledge that for the next 2 years we will need to work, scrimp and save to pay the monthly fees. She was awarded 35% off the fees which is 10% more than the standard, the monthly fees are a lot but we can make it work. She is a fantastic A grade student and works hard so we will do all we can for her.

I will therefore need to restructure some plans for the finances to cover this cost, plus we have a few months to start putting aside money so we are ahead of the game. There are some costs that need to be worked on in our budget e.g. we had far too many take aways this month, that's ridiculous! 

I will still be paying down the credit card but I think I'll leave the loan to run it's course.

I'll be back over the weekend with some numbers, we're very proud of dd and the head of the school was very impressed with her interview.

Exciting times, H x 

savingholmes

Fantastic news. Sounds like you are getting debt free just in time. I think if I'd known earlier my DD had ASD I would have considered a private school for her - just due to the smaller class sizes.

janb5

Well done HM,  It sounds as tho` you`re working so hard for your DD together with your OH.
Exciting times indeed!

hugglemonster

Hi folks, dh has been paid early so have done my budget for February and also used the Water and Council Tax free payments to send £100 to the card which brings me into the £3k's finally! I've also sent £100 to the school fees saving pot which was my general savings so already have £250 in there and will keep topping up.

I've decided that I need to split any extra funds between paying the card down, saving for school fees and also towards the guttering. All other pots will continue as before. We've had a very spendy January so need to get into better habits in February and beyond. 

Lots to do, trying not to think about the years we have been so bad with money! H x

savingholmes

You can celebrate the now. We've learned from the past - small rearview mirror - large front windscreen. Imagine how much better things will be once the debt is gone.

lucielle

That's a great message @savingholmes need to think about looking at things that way and not just money.
L

hugglemonster

Morning all, yep I can't deal with what's gone but only what I can do now. I'm glad we can support dd now, it wouldn't have been possible a couple of years ago so thankful we're in a much better position.

First of the budget changes has happened with the interest for the mortgage reducing, it was still the same monthly payment so will need to check this next month and make sure it's right. Oooh and check out my pretty picture, inspired by @Naomim's post I have a lovely progress chart for my debts, it will be colourful as we move along! 

Formal offer has arrived for dd school so I need to pay a deposit which will be refunded after the 2 years, I will need to use the savings plus also borrow some from my pots until I get paid, I can then concentrate on building the term fees.

A small amount of cashback has arrived which I will send to the credit card but waiting a couple of days before the next statement comes out before I make another payment.

Feeling a bit all over the place with work projects, training (exercise) and general life. Need to make a list of what I need to do in importance order and tick off things as they're done.

Have a lovely day, H x

savingholmes

Love visuals.

hugglemonster

Well good evening all, hope everyone is still plodding on and looking forward to more restrictions being lifted over the coming months. Fingers crossed that was the last full lockdown!

We have been really busy both at work, home, school etc. and things are cracking on a pace in all aspects. So first an update and then plans for the rest of the year and beyond.

Finances:
In a really good position (for us) than we've been in for many years, the car finance has been paid in full partly due to a mix up in February when the bank didn't take the usual direct debit so I had to pay the overdue amount and then the direct debit went out anyway the first week of March. So then there was only a small bit left to pay and good a few pounds back due to saved interest. 

Debts now left are the loan and the credit card, still feels a long way off but I've got some bits and pieces coming in over the next couple of months which will put a dent in it, more on that in a min. 

Saving for different pots and annual bills is going well, next big expense will be the car insurance and then the budget will be a little easier still as we won't be paying a monthly direct debit plus the annual savings so it all helps. 

Emergency fund is growing nicely as is the school fees fund, need to add more later this month.

Work:
All good at the moment, dh got a letter the other day saying he was getting a pay rise plus a good bonus which we weren't expecting in the circumstances, he is keeping a bit of the bonus himself and then the rest will go on a new shed and I'll use some for the kids and for school fees. I received an email this morning saying that I'm also getting a small pay rise plus for the first time a bonus of £250, this will be split between the credit card and school fees. 

In my other job I've applied for a permanent 1 night a week rather than relief but a lot of staff have returned so it's not guaranteed, if I don't get it I'll just move to another establishment within the organisation so no drama.

As sport opens up over the next few weeks my business will restart in May so another little bit of income.

Personal:
I've been lucky enough to have both my Covid jabs due to my second job and no side effects, I'm currently heavily into training for a big event which also keeps me busy. Early morning starts are the norm now!

Family:
Luckily all the family are well, parents on both sides have had at least one of their Covid jabs and the second booked. My Aunt passed away a few weeks ago due to Cancer and Liver problems and my Cousin is still battling tumours. DH lost a good friend from the forces to Covid, only a few years older than him, so we had a difficult couple of weeks.

Home:
We've been potting around in the house over the last few weeks, the biggest bit being I got a skip and we have dug out an area to put the new shed in, we just need to line it and add a base and then we can order the shed when dh gets his bonus. This will mean lots more room to move about in the existing shed. Yesterday I received my order of some shelves to go outside for my seedlings, I'm using the plastic cover from some gym mats to make it into a greenhouse type set up. Herbs and veg are at the ready, just potatoes to sort.

I messaged my friend's son to come and do some plastering but he hasn't been in touch so will contact the other person we use for our renovations to come and sort it and then we can get the attic and top stairs carpeted and then that will be another bit of the house done.

I'm still saving for the guttering to be done!

Kids:
Back to school on Monday after Easter break, ds had only been in 2 days but dd had been back full-time so will be good to get some routine back for them. DS year especially has suffered and all the parents unhappy with the school reports as not a true reflection of what they have been doing. 

Plans for the next few months:
* Keep cracking away at credit card
* Save first school term's fees in full
* Buy a shed
* Plastering and carpet for attic

Will catch up on diaries soon, I have a meeting in a mo!

H x