First Steps to Solvency

Willowtree222

I was once dropped off at school on my friends Grandad's Lada. Now that was something I will never forget. 

Could you start to plan your Christmas days like you've been doing these ones? It might help reduce your anxiety about them and also help to keep you positive. 

warby68

Morning @alt80
When you do the budget, remember you're looking for achievement not failure and at this still early stage factoring in NOT overspending by £3/4k is a huge achievement on its own.
Also you've had some dreadful days and a few slips but you're still here, business is going well, wife, son and even FIL are still here in positive ways, you rant but then see sense and the sense bit is increasing with each new look at things. Your car mate is still there, offering a treat for your son - that's a friend you know, not someone out for what they can get from you. You also know rationally that you feel much better when living well and not propped up by substances, they offer tiny bits of escape but huge downers. Your wife knows what you need (perhaps not want yet but need) so follow her lead for.a bit, one way you can give up the 100% control of everything, which doesn't help.

Truthfully, I think you need to either do something with cars or reset your income a little when you have chance to allow some personal spending and to start saving for annual expenses. If this opportunity arises in Spring when you sell the block then good. That will give you 6m of 'punishment', rethinking everything plus hopefully enough help with your mental state and then you can set a budget which is more sustainable for the longer term.

Good luck with the budget meeting and keep going

RelievedSheff

We never stooped as low as a Rover but we did have a Honda Concerto which was to all intents a rebadged Rover 

Sun_Addict

Good to hear you're spending time with your wife and son and enjoying it. Has your wife thought of becoming a personal trainer, she could work as and when to suit childcare and would be doing something she obviously has a passion for and bringing some money in at the same time.

vixx_123

It's really nice to hear how you spent time with your son looking at Santa's naughty/nice list with a hot chocolate.  And how you're excited about getting a Christmas tree. There are other things apart from spending that make you happy (not the buzz happy but that sustained happiness).

RelievedSheff

@alt80 nothing wrong with getting excited about the tree. We are putting ours up on Saturday and we are the same like a pair of excited kids

alt80

I don’t see any room with budget tbh. We’ve done what we can also struggling with the idea of letting the BMW go and having one car between us tbh know that makes things worse financially and would have to make our minds up with what to do with it at the end of the term as I don’t think we’d pay the balloon. Also puts us behind to pay the balloon on the RR so a bit difficult. 

Have a bit of hope I’ll be able to give myself a bit of a boost if I do manage to sell the block in its entirety - get rid of the cards then just be working on sorting the cars out. Get those sorted and then onto the PGs doesn’t !!!!!! end lol but not holding out much hope right now. Know it would be better to throw into capital and majority I would but not having £1k/m going on cards would be a massive help.

Still very slowly building a bit of a sinking fund and throwing holiday budget at it as we’ve no chance of going away with current covid restrictions. Both wife and I have resigned ourselves to 1 holiday to go see my parents next summer. It’ll cost £1k so from what we’re keeping to that’ll be £3k by end of next year as a sinking fund. Not amazing but some steps in the right direction I think. 

My wife has actually done L2/3 PT quals. She’s trained a few mums for free from school but finds their commitment is poor, they want to put 0 work in, smash three Maccies a week and still think they’ll get abs. When it doesn’t work and they’re still fat, they’ve every excuse in the world about various BS ‘women’s issues’ haha. She 100 tells them how it is, savage lol and they don’t like it. So yeah probably not going to work unless she worked with people that were properly committed to improving their fitness/ gym based maybe.

Keeping myself out of trouble right now at least ha. 

Sarahwithlove

What about online fitness coaching? It's become quite popular and people that sign up for it would be more into it. She would help them design a fitness plan for at home, a menu plan for nutrition etc and then do weekly check ins. I follow someone on Instagram that's made a real career from it. But even if she could get a couple people interested might help on financial front and keep her occupied. 

ZaSa1418

Training a few mums for free is never going to get the same results as she potentially would with a paying customer though. It is always worth looking into especially in January when everyone wants to get rid of their Christmas weight. 

enthusiasticsaver

At the gym I go to there are cards for personal trainers so if she can forge links with private gyms the people there are likely to be more committed. If she is qualified that is a real bonus.    Long term that is something she could look at given she is so into fitness and nutrition. 

Good idea on the sinking funds and £1000 for a holiday if we are allowed to travel next year is not too bad.  As you say getting rid of the BMW would help you out financially but if you both need cars that might be a problem.  Saving for balloons for two expensive cars though will be tough and if you refinance them you are still in the same position as now. Maybe reassess next Spring.