The "Save 12k in 2020" Thread!

Jami74

clarissa62 said:

Darkidoe - I'd agree with you re the negative balance. I'm just at the beginning of getting myself straightened out financially after not working to raise my kids & although I'm recording very minor savings or £57 last month, I'm also tackling debt too which is just as exciting. I must admit I keep my spreadsheet updated daily. It's a bit of an obsession. 

That's where I'm at, getting straight after raising kids. Also, little bit obsessed and get very excited if I can earn or save an extra £1 here and there.

 I think knowing that you are in negative balance is a good starting point. It is where you are aware of things has to change before it gets out of hand.

Yes absolutely! I'm not actually in a negative cash balance, it's just my cash balance is lower now than it was at the end of January. By the end of March it will be higher than it was end of January, assuming Payroll don't screw up. 
My income fluctuates wildly. One month it can be £5,000, another £500. I'm learning how to smooth things out to avoid shocks.

geoffers4

darkidoe said: 

I do it manually monthly. I admire people who can update it daily but it's just not so worth the effort for me at this point.

I used to be a monthly updater when the boys were younger - gathering together lots of receipts on the last day of each month to try to figure out where all the money went. It never really worked as I could never remember everything that had happened like school dinner money, bus fares, cubs, scouts, etc! Now the boys are grown-up life is much simpler - almost everything on DD and all the groceries etc on the credit card statement so I just tot up the figures from that. Anything non-DD and non-CC I put straight into the spreadsheet before I forget. So not daily but just as & when.

Marina1506

#52 declaring £1255.30 for February, update form posted I'm counting the following as savings: £200 Vanguard ISA, £1000 Regular Savers (Coventry, Virgin and HSBC) and £55.30 Marcus (what was left in my current account before payday today).

I will save less from March onwards, because I have increased my pension contributions from 10% to 13%.  I'm not counting pension contributions towards my total - at 26, I'm a long way off from benefitting from these.  Instead, this challenge has been a real help in motivating me to build up my savings again, having bought a house with my partner in July.  Now it feels like I have loads of things to save for (emergency fund, furniture, redecorating...) but it can be harder to save without having such a specific goal in mind.  

March-May will be more challenging, because I have all of my car expenses coming up, along with a rather expensive US holiday.   It's always a balance between getting too obsessed with the numbers and living life... 

ForestBluebells

Well annoyingly I had an extra £415 to pay towards my remortgage to complete that I wasn’t expecting 🤦‍♀️ I don’t think my broker has been very clear with me! That money was earmarked for MOT car repairs so here’s hoping my car sails through without needing any repairs 🤞

Mnd

February savings is going to be less than I was hoping, 2 main reasons. I bought line rental for a year in advance, so over the year will save £20, and my wife's pension fund has taken a battering from the fall in stock markets this week.
Still hoping to be close to £2000 for the month.
Shopping for wife's 60th birthday present Saturday, that's budgeted for, but the ancillary costs, lunch, coffee etc will be the issue!
Shame it's a leap year, Saturday would have been in March.

[Deleted User]

Hi folks, I am declaring £3050 for February. This is made up of £2400 into cash savings and £650 into my pension.  

delta13

Declaring £1000.51 for February! Made up with myself, will update the form shortly.
March is going to be a better month I think but it will test my urge to splurge - I get a pay increase, my yearly bonus is paid plus it's my birthday, but I also have a number of other birthdays to prepare for so just need to be careful I don't go overboard!

Well done everyone

webjaved

£1250 saved for January 2020.
Sorry for the late update, I've been mega busy and completely forgot about updating my total here! Well done to all those that are making savings. 

laurababs

£254.58 in February....Not ideal but this should be going up substantially in the months ahead

slowlyfading

Spreadsheet updated