Third Time’s The Charm

Narola1976

Another £6 sale for clothes DD has outgrown or no longer wears. The sale was actually £15 but I agreed with DD that she should take 60% of the sale seeing that it was her clothes. Funny the fact that I paid for it in the first place didn’t count Anyway pleased for sale and to declutter at the same time. So another £6 off Argos. That’s a total of £81 paid extra over the last 3 days making a grand monthly total of £494 paid this month. I desperately want to make it an even £500 before the statement is posted on 21st but I have nowhere to pull the money from  Oh well I suppose I should be content with a mere £494 lol. Managed to complete a survey on PA for £1.70. Also Ziffit collected my box of books today. Really impressed with the service. Now I just have to hope my 2 trades payout quickly. That’s approximately £26 coming my way fingers crossed

enthusiasticsaver

You have been doing a lot of reflecting and I have noticed this on a few diaries.  There is no easy way to pay off debt.  It is hard slog and it means either working harder or longer or sacrificing things or delaying things until you can get back on track.  It is a process though and as you say if you keep going you will eventually get there.  All the little extra bits like sales and surveys etc will help as cumulatively the little things are what makes the difference.  Don't give up and you will be in a much better place once it is gone. 

Narola1976

Just reporting another sale of £5 - paid off straight to Argos. Total of £86 paid over the last few days. 

juicyjackieb

Hi Narola! Spent the evening with you reading about your journey- very inspiring!! You are doing so well! I am starting my £4700 journey this week, I calculated using the app you recommended to be 2 years 8 months, so hopefully we’ll both be going over that finish line at the same time. Thank you so and you’ve really helped. Have a good rest of the week!

Narola1976

Hi and thank you @juicyjackieb. It’s nice to make a new friend on the MSE boards. I am so glad I have been able to help a little, even if it is just recommending an app. I have found it so helpful to learn from others on this forum, MSE giants who have lots of wisdom. Good luck with your DFJ - I will be here to encourage you on. And how amazing is your weight loss. I fully believe in Keto but struggle to stick to it. I have many many stones to lose, and I am diabetic, and I wish I was better at staying on plan. I am not a great cook though so I will be moseying over to YT to have a look at your channel. I also need to do keto frugally, so I look forward to your advice and guidance. 

I am very happy to report that the TV licence is officially cancelled, and the payments I was making monthly will now be directed to the snowball. It’s only £13 extra but I am pleased to report that by adding this small amount to the snowball payment, it has brought the DFD forward by 1 month - August 2023. I am so very happy about this. 

I made another FB sale, just a £1 for a random thing, but its money, and it has been assigned to Argos. I have decided to wait until I get the Ziffit money and will pay this all together to Argos. I have just had notification that my first Ziffit parcel has been accepted and £8.52 is on its way to me. I am hoping for a similar speedy response for my second larger parcel. I also keep checking for surveys, managed a couple yesterday on PA. I am going to check out every £5 so I feel like I am actively making regular payments in between the big monthly one. 

juicyjackieb

Great work! I use Qmee app for the surveys, I get more hits than misses and they do pay out via PayPal. If you log in every day I think for a week they increase your survey rate too. If I’m fully on it doing one or 2 a day I can cash a fiver a week out. If you would like a link let me know. It’s the only one I seem to have time for and it’s not too fussy 

Narola1976

I just signed up to Qmee and done a few surveys...boy they are long! But it’s money and I have already made 99p so I will keep going. Thanks for telling me about them. But will always prioritise the PA ones as they are shorter but more interesting too. Good news on the Ziffit front. Both my trades have been accepted and I should receive payout within the next few days. I am determined to find more books to sell now lol. 

Looking at my snowball app, I can see that with all the extra money I have paid the interest applied is less than what was estimated which is great!! But also I can see that I will be able pay Argos off a month earlier, December instead of January which I am over the moon over. That means I start 2021 focusing fully on the HSBC card which at 28.9% interest is a real killer. And if all goes well I will have paid it off in 11 months. 

Now that’s a great start to my day. Right off to a virtual meeting now. These do take a lot out of you, having to concentrate intensely. Have a good day 

foxgloves

That earlier date for paying off the Argos card really shows how all these small extra payments do make a difference, Narola. It's going to feel good heading into January minus a debt, & doubtless facilitating snowballing more into the next one to bite the dust - HSBC. And you know we're all cheering you on!
F x

Narola1976

Thanks foxgloves, yes I am so chuffed. It’s hard to believe my starting balance in September last year was £2709! But I only really focussed on the snowballing a few months into the new year. It’s now down to £852. The interest rates are a killer which is why its taken so long. But come 1st December it will be a thing of the past. I have no intention of using it again. 

A bit of a spend today, £6.25 for a dessert to be delivered from the local ice cream place. DD and I went half, plus we had a 50% code. It was a nice treat for us on what is very dreary wet day. I had a bit and saved the rest for later. 

We spent the day doing a virtual online uni open day. She has her heart set a course and they are the only uni that offers this combination. I didn’t realise we should really be getting the uni application in soon. There is lots of work to be done, and she really needs to crack on with the personal  statement. The finance talk brought home once again the costs we will be faced with and why it is imperative to get rid of the debt asap. So I will do all I can to pay as much as I can. I have an old mobile phone for sale on FB, fingers crossed it sells. Lots of interest but doesn’t actually translate to a sale. I often wonder why people bother to ask if something is not available if they don’t actually want to buy the item. 

I am also pleased that I have been very good in terms of the grocery spending. I have not blown the budget and £150 is doable if you just buy the basics. Considering we have less than a week to payday, I feel I have done very well. Of course, I won’t deny I miss orange juice with my breakfast or fizzy pop or snacks, but needs must hey. My aim is to repeat the exercise this month if possible. The budget is extra tight as I have to pay DD’s learner insurance which is due for renewal at the end of the month. It’s £113 for 2 months insurance, which I feel is not too bad for a learner. 

So final figures as for this month now that all interest has been applied:

Starting Balance (excluding car ) : £35,156.29
This month’s balance: £31,793.19
Difference: £3363.10

foxgloves

It's coming down, Narola. Yes, high interest is a killer, as it really eats into the amount actually going towards repayment. I suppose all of us on here have well & truly learned our lesson on that, haven't we?
You've done very well with your grocery budget. Our list was quite small this week, so we stocked up on extra basics. In the bad old days, we had no budget at all, including for groceries & just used to bung whatever we fancied in the trolley. It's very different now, but I love meal planning & being organised wirh what I want to buy so am much happier with how we do things. 
Anyway, keep up the good work & keep those figures tumbling! 
F x