Home Goals

Sarahwithlove

Sounds like a plan. If you get to March and you're a bit short of the allowance could you take a little from the EF and top it back up in April. Seems silly to miss out on the full bonus if you don't have to. 

meerkatpie

@Sarahwithlove Definitely! At least I have it on standby there ready to put in! I had my first bit of bonus paid this month and it is quite nice having 'free money' added to the account, I certainly don't want to miss out on any!

Sarahwithlove

Exactly but fingers crossed with a bit of strict budgeting sounds like you can get it done. 

meerkatpie

Hi Everyone!

I hope that you are all okay! 

Thought I would pop on for a quick update as it has been a while, I have been able to move my money around and so far, we are actually doing okay. I was a little worried after last month with my expenses that things wouldn't straighten out, but actually so far, so good!

Here is a run-down of where I am at - 

Debts:

Barclaycard - £ 3375.49

MBNA Credit Card - £5308.47

Car Finance - £13956.90

Total debt - £22640.86

That is a £547.25 reduction on last month, which isn't awful to say that I haven't paid off any extra than my standard repayment. 

Although with a bit of hard work and overtime, I have been able to fill my LISA to the full £4000 for this tax year! So by the end of the month, that will be at £5000 by the time my bonus is added (I have NEVER had that much money before, it was quite scary). 

I have also brought my emergency fund to £500, although £600 is needed for car insurance and tax - that is not due for a while though so I don't see the need to top that up any further just yet. 

Now my LISA is where it needs to be, I can really focus on getting these debts paid down. 

With some of the extra overtime I have done, I also had enough left over to pay off my phone contract and I have gone SIM only, that has saved me £40 a month. My gym membership is cancelled and I have switched to outdoor running and I have also deleted my cards from my online accounts like Amazon. At least now if I need to buy something, I will have the horror of having to actually go and get my card which is enough to put anybody off haha! 

So all my extra payments are now going to be set towards my debt. My Barclaycard is set to a fixed payment of £100 at the moment, but I am going to make manual payments when I am paid each month. I was going to change the direct debit but then I thought it might leave me short if there is something else that crops up and I never want to borrow again if I can help it (aside for when I finally have enough to get my house), so at least that is a buffer aside from running to the credit card. 

Luckily, seeing my LISA full has given me a sense of determination, now time to get intensive on these debts.

My plan is to pay off both credit cards, then go back to filling my LISA before tackling the car. Is this a smart move? Or should I start back on my LISA as soon as I have paid of the Barclaycard?

I know these times are difficult but always remember that today is the first day of building the tomorrow you dream of! 

Stay strong everyone!

meerkatpie

Good Evening Everyone!

I hope that you are all okay?

I thought I would give you a run down on my last month. It feels nice to write all this down here, I don't really have anyone to talk to about my money (or that I feel comfortable talking to about money), I cannot believe how much of an off-load this is. 

Here is where we are for March...

Debt:

Barclaycard - £ 2575.49

MBNA Credit Card - £5158.47

Car Finance - £13669.85

My total debt is now at £21403.81, which is a reduction of £1237.05 this month. 

I am really pleased as I managed to get so much over time in throughout Christmas and into New Year, I made a £600 overpayment on my Barclaycard. I very nearly didn't... I had the money and I was so scared to have to get rid of it, so I had to force myself and pay that as soon as I got paid so I wasn't tempted.

On the plus side, my LISA is now at £5000 and I have a total of £800 in my 'Emergency Fund', although I am also using this pot for pre-planned purchases. This month, I have my car tax, service and insurance due, which I am not looking forward to! Although, this is accommodated for within that £800, car tax of £170, service fixed at £150, my car insurance last year was £800+, this year with me having a smaller car and with one of my previous accidents now not needing to be declared as it is over 5 years old, this has dropped right down to £320 which is a lovely feeling. So even with these, I should have a little spare which will be topped up to £500 next payday whilst I use everything else to pay down my Barclaycard.

I am really hoping that by payday in May, the Barclaycard will be paid, but then I reach a crossroads. Should I A ), go back to filling up my LISA or B ), Keep paying down my credit card debts? I have decided to save the car until last and kind of forget it for now, because it is such a big debt, I need to focus on one thing at a time and the priority is those credit cards. 

Unfortunately this is also on the pretence that everything goes according to plan, but I am trying to stay optimistic. 

Aside from all that I suppose things have been tough lately, as they are for us all with lockdown, it just feels very lonely so I am looking forward to the weekend to go for a nice walk, some fresh air might do me good. 

Otherwise I do hope that you are all keeping okay and that things are going as amazing as they can for you. 

Hopefully next month I will have made even more headway, everything is being kept crossed 

meerkatpie

Good Evening All!

I hope that everyone is okay?

I am sorry that it has been a bit delayed in this months update but life has been so hectic at the moment. It seems that everything happens at once somehow, but nevertheless we are working towards clear skies and that's what matters! 

So, the lowdown for today. I have definitely made headway with my Barclaycard which I am very pleased about and so far my budget for the month is on track. This is where my debts are at the moment:

Barclaycard - £1998.23
MBNA Credit Card - £5008.47
Car Finance - £13377.70

My total debt is now at £20384.40, which is £1019.41 down from last month! 

I am very pleased with that and with how things are going and I have put in as much extra work as I can, fingers crossed I can get my Barclaycard just about paid by the end of May, which will be a HUGE weight off my shoulders. I'm especially proud considering all the expenses I had coming this month, budgeting and prepping for what I can has certainly made the difference!

To try and keep my goals in check, I have made a battle plan (this is on the basis I can keep doing the insane amounts of overtime that I am doing):

1. Pay off my Barclaycard by May. 
2. Fill my LISA with around £700-£800 a month to have £10000 in there by October. 
3. Pay off my MBNA credit card with a similar amount by March 2022. 

Those are my immediate goals... I feel they are challenging yet reasonable so I think with a lot of hard work and determination, I will get there!

Once that is done, I am going to focus on the car, but I would like to put that to the back for now as to not throw too much into the mix and then in 12 months time, I can see where my goals measure up and take it from there. 

Aside from that and how busy things have been at the moment. That is all to report, really! 

I hope everyone else is okay and has had a nice easter! I am also on the fitness train so no easter eggs for me, but fingers crossed you has some nice treats. 

Stay safe everyone and I will catch up with you all soon!

Aspiration

Fantastic paying over £1k off this month. 

Please just make sure you look after yourself so you don’t burn out as sounds like you’ve worked a lot. 

I’ll keep following your journey as it’s motivational!
Aspiration 

vampirotoothus

You are doing really well What is the apr on the loan? Is it worth seeing if you can balance transfer any of it to a cheaaper card? Keep up the good work 

meerkatpie

Aspiration said:

Fantastic paying over £1k off this month. 

Please just make sure you look after yourself so you don’t burn out as sounds like you’ve worked a lot. 

I’ll keep following your journey as it’s motivational!
Aspiration 

Thank you very much! To be honest that is my only worry at the moment, the effects of work hit quicker than I would have thought, I have booked some leave in for May to make sure that I get some respite! 

Pushing forward as much as I can while the excuse of lockdown stops me from going out all the time!

meerkatpie

vampirotoothus said:

You are doing really well What is the apr on the loan? Is it worth seeing if you can balance transfer any of it to a cheaaper card? Keep up the good work 

Thank you! 

Luckily my car loan is a 0% finance deal, so at least I am not paying over the odds! 

Both my credit cards are in their 0% deals too which I am hoping will be paid before the 0% deal ends... 

At least with the car, it is a PCP, it was a silly mistake to buy it, but I might hand the car back at the end of the term and buy a cheap little runabout to cut down my expenses. It's a balance between not going too expensive but also getting something reliable I think