NOW OPEN: the MSE Forum 'Ask An Expert' event. This time we'd like your questions on TRAVEL & HOLIDAY DEALS. Post by Wed and deals expert MSE Oli will answer as many as he can.
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Sorry its not 66pence per mile its 6.6pence per mile
Meaning £1000 in excess charges....is £100.....
If partner moves in mid year, I'll have maybe £300 a month to throw at debt, I've worked out both scenarios but he is definitely moving in at some point. I've been honest with how finances are and he suggested moving in mid year, he can rent his house out - might air bnb it over the summer see what that is like as his house is fully furnished. And then if that works out after paying mortgage wants to help pay off debt. I said no.....I said repair your roof, replace your carpets, do the stuff you want to do to the house and then we will thinking about it. His reasoning is that the sooner I am out of the debt, the sooner we can move to a new house. I live in a city, he lives 10 miles away in between my city and the main town that I moved from. Ideally we'd like to live closer to his work and I would commute by train (as it is free for me working for the train company). But still I don't think I would learn my lesson having him pay for my debt!
Learned today that my 2k halifax card has restarted interest because I made min payments. So its not AP its not defaulted. I don't want to default now because that adds another 6 years and I'm 18 months into defaults. So....if he moves in around May time, I can clear that card by the end of the year at about £150 interest cost. Focusing on that.
I was originally focusing on the ASDA card but the £750 overdraft and £2000ish Halifax card need to be cleared first. I THINK new rules in April will mean my overdraft is 40% APR so that's my target at the moment. Get overdraft done.
Two days off at the end of the week so going to ebay a few things. Not getting rid of the baby stuff just in case one day in the future I have another. I'd like to, aiming for 3 years time as hopefully debt clear by then.
In the interests of not going to lidl and spending money, I tried to cook from the freezer and cupboards last night. It was half a disaster half okay. I made fish cakes with frozen fish that was rubbery as 'eck. DS wouldn't eat the fishcake, it would have been nice if it had been fresh fish. Lesson learned. I made vegetable rice, basically leftover peppers, carrots, onion, garlic, rice stock. The green peppers were foul so I'll let DS off for not finishing that.
Tonight DP is teaching a fitness class from 7 til 9.30. As he's off his main job this week, he's at mine now for a few days and I have the next two days off work. So tonight he is picking DS up from school at 3.20 which is really sweet and I'm happy that they're going to have that time together. He said the other night he hopes to be a stable influence in DS's life. DS has leftover pasta for tea, DP will have to go to the shop for food as I have nothing in that he can eat. And I'll have last nights rice for the next few days. My TV licence payment bounced today - didn't expect it to be going out if I'm honest. Payday Friday though!!
And then its two weeks until DP moves in for a week as a trial. Gives me two weeks to empty the spare room so he can have it to do his stuff in.
I am shortly going to empty about three drawers worth of food out of my tall freezer. It has some really really old food in there and its time to let go. Some of it is so old its digusting. Going to do that tonight. Start again and only buy things I need.
I'm still working on the premise that I will live on my own til debt is paid, even though I am discussing moving in with SO.
I can pay off Halifax, overdraft, Asda Card, and loan to my dad in two years I think. About 8k roughly.
No big debt payments due to go out now, £50 to Halifax on Feb 10th but now there is nothing. The problem with those gaps is that I want to spend spend spend.
I've set up a standing order from my Monzo to my Starling for a weekly £100. I'll have £100 1st Feb, which needs to last me til 21st Feb. Which is 3 weeks. That should be fine. I already did a shop, and I have lots of food in. I used my £15 voucher at iceland so we have plenty of veg in. And for any big meals I'm going to ask SO to buy the goods.
My lease car goes back in a week and a half, then there will be a gap before I get my ex's car so I won't spend much on petrol hopefully.
I worked out £100 a week can cover fuel, clothes, groceries, anything that needs spending including entertainment. That's about £4400 for the rest of the year. Sounds like a huge amount! But knowing my habits... it isn't.
I know I've had my lightbulb moment yet, I still buy food frivolously. So I'm going to stick to a weekly budget and only spend what is in my Starling account.
I was pretty good when I went to Tesco, no snacks or random rubbish, Stocked up on loo rolls, kitchen paper, bought 1 chicken and chicken breasts, some bacon, a bit of pesto, cereal. I've got enough to keep us going through February. The only thing I need to do is pay for my milk, and make sure I have enough for DS's lunches. We should have enough crisps, but I will need apples/bread/cheese.
I'm going to try my absolute hardest not to buy food when I could use what I have. For example, I have chicken breasts so I could make Paella, yes there will be no prawns but it won't hurt DS!
Went to the local shop after picking DS up, gave him his pocket money and then bought him a Mars Bar. he chose a galaxy for my SO which he gave to him when SO eventually turned up at 8pm. I bought nothing for myself or the house. Yipee
Got home, made pasta for DS and microwaved the bolognese I had defrosted. I made too much pasta intentionally, went into the fridge to see what was hanging around and I dug out
Parmesan
Bacon
Leftover Christmas Cheese
Sour Cream from last weeks Tacos
Milk
Half a jar of pesto
From Freezer - Brocolli, Mushrooms and Onion.
I made cheesy pesto pasta which is yum, SO took some for his lunch and I've got dinner for the next few nights. DS won't eat it because he hates mushrooms but he's having freezer bolognese all week!
I'm going to ask SO to pick me up some eggs tonight so I can make my cake. Recipe uses soft light brown sugar but I only have dark so I'm just mixing half dark with half caster. Might ask him for some bananas as well.
The good news is I have paid off £449.56 this month. I don't think that's going to be a typical debt payment, in fact it will usually be a lot less. When SO eventually moves in that will go up quite a lot but for now I am focusing on getting to £39,999.
Its my birthday in a couple of weeks and one of my oldest friends who does know my financial situation, for some random reason decided to gift me £200. I said that wasn't fair as they knew I wasn't likely to treat myself with it and thenI'd feel guilty, to which they said if I wanted to pay off the last bit of my ASDA card with it - then I should do what makes me happy.
So....ASDA card gone! £206.15 paid and I'll phone in a week to confirm its closed. It was restricted anyway, but I would imagine I need to ask for it to be completely closed.
I've paid £661.70 in debt this month, really not sure how....but I have. We are now at £41,052.59, maybe my goal of being under 40k will be April?
That £52.69 is annoying me...... Although looking at my budget, £50 is due to go to Halifax on the 10th Feb, and £14 is going out to DMP payments so I'll be below 41k by the 10th. PATIENCE.