Wow wee oh my - trying to hack away at my £54k debt (was even about to book a holiday)

Rainbowtrousers

 I think @enthusiasticsaver is right; liquidating the BTL should be seriously considered as an option and a route to consider. Whether that would lead you back into personal debt in the future - who knows? That’s all down to if you change your mindset about spending.

i do totally get this but i think the mental impact of giving that up really would hit me hard. That flat is my jag! I think i am currently at 80% LTV and soon enough will be at 75% so can then put it onto a BTL i/o and have enough money to pay any tax due and have the remainder (circa £200 per month) go to a sinking fund.
I know i would still have debt but im thinking if i can give my car back (March 2022) that would clear £8k and try to clear the two ccs in the next year id only be left with the loan and £5k to my folks (£25 total by that stage) ... hopefully seems doable with a tough 2021 .... 
In terms of having no one to answer too, i think the debt has impacted my relationships massively. I ahve had to tell my parents and close friends recently (some of who felt a little guilty as they were holidaying with me!) so the shame is there mate ... we'll get there i am 100% sure of it 

ryanm8655

Rainbowtrousers said:

Thanks everyone for the replies, support and words. It really is helping. I will reply substantively later today. 
In the meantime my thinking for practical next steps is as follows:
Stick strictly to a budget
Reduce cleaner and haircuts to every other month
No more yoga, reduced eating out/socialising and cutting out all coffees/unnecessary spending etc completely
Pay into a separate emergency fund
Set up savings accounts for things i want and only buy when i can afford 
Tackle credit cards first (0% runs out in May then September next year), then car finance then loan
Rent out rooms or whole flat on airbnb and take extra consultancy work to tackle the debt
Put rental flat on a BTL interest only mortgage - the 'profit' should be enough to cover my tax liability and to put some aside for vacant periods and repairs
Shop at Lidl with a weekly meal plan
Maybe maybe maybe one holiday per year
Am i still deluding myself or is this heading in the right direction?

Sounds a sensible and reasonable list to me, though I assume you mean every other week for cleaner and haircuts? Could you do 4 weekly haircuts? That's what I have always done and if you were getting it cut weekly it explains why you're spending £80/month ha.

In some ways it's good you've told friends and family, I told family to give me some accountability. Sometimes it's been annoying as it has occasionally been used as a stick to beat me with but it has also led to me being in the position I am.

Through telling friends I also learned a lot of others were in debt but also had really good mates who would suggest cheap things to do to try and help on the money front (not in a patronising way).

alt80

@Rainbowtrousers sorry mate but a BTL shouldn't be a plaything - it's not really comparable to a fun car that I've given up anyway...

Understand wanting to keep it but don't think you and I are going to agree over this - I have the BTLs/ HMOs, a non-resi investment, a development block and another development - last is going through now. My main business is commercial / residential property too. So I'm not just trying to be a d**k over this it comes from a place of experience both of being a LL and managing others' investments amongst other things. Exploring the potential of exit doesn't mean you're necessarily going to do it - it means you understand it's a potential strategy that you could use at some point - not necessarily now but possibly. I value all my own investments (understand the conflict/ bias here but I am a Valuer by profession) on a bi-annual basis. Have sold investments in the past because the time was right / offer I couldn't refuse etc. You seem almost emotionally attached / invested in the flat - that's a little concerning imo. I am invested in my portfolio but not in a plaything / emotionally attached type of way.

There are still some 80LTV BTL deals out there eg https://www.ibs.co.uk/mortgages/our-mortgage-products/buy-to-let

What are you going to do for a car when you give yours back?

Suppose I'd been quick to think both you and @ryanm8655 hadn't told anyone purely because you're both single - I'd found myself quite envious of you both not needing to come clean to a partner ha. Interesting you both have told people. Tbf I did accidentally tell a mate of mine my RR is heavily financed in a fit of desperation over him thinking I was going to buy an XJS. I've found the guilt / shame have been awful this past month or so. Still battling with it now everyday. 

I too have a haircut 4-weekly, always have, never even considered having it cut more regularly tbh - London thing possibly haha. 

Rainbowtrousers

So i used to get the haircut every four weeks but have now moved to eight weeks - bring on the afro!
The shame is a big one and defo part of the process ... i have had plenty of that too and it is far from fun! 
You said you are budgeting now so that is massive progress.
I will take some time away from the forum and will post back at the end of november. By that stage hopefully i would have stuck to my budget and maybe even paid off a few hundred from my tesco cc. 
Thanks again to everyone for your help and support on the journey so far 

alt80

Good luck mate. 

Ok every eight weeks for haircut bit extreme imo lol. Not having the cleaner every eight weeks too are you? Can’t really see the point in that.

ryanm8655

alt80 said:

Good luck mate. 

Ok every eight weeks for haircut bit extreme imo lol. Not having the cleaner every eight weeks too are you? Can’t really see the point in that.

Haha agreed! Where are you going for haircuts at £80 a pop? Remember when I was at uni in London booking into toni and guy and getting stung for £65 for a standard blokes haircut ha. I didn't trust barbers back then though and a trendy salon back home was £25 for a guy, was a shock when I went to pay ha. So assume you're going to that sort of place? Have you thought about just going somewhere cheaper and sticking with the 4 weekly? Even the trendy London barbers are around £25 (places like Jack the Clipper) and you get a beer while getting a trim...they do just as good a job...

I'm so folically challenged that I now cut my own hair but used to go to those kind of places until recently.

alt80

@ryanm8655 The cost of one haircut at £80 even made my eyes water FML. £20-25 up here in Notts so not that much different.

Wife had a go at cutting my hair during lockdown, never again ha. Don’t think its meant to be done with kitchen scissors and after a glass of wine though. Only just right now lol.

Rainbowtrousers

alt80 said:

@ryanm8655 The cost of one haircut at £80 even made my eyes water FML. £20-25 up here in Notts so not that much different.

Wife had a go at cutting my hair during lockdown, never again ha. Don’t think its meant to be done with kitchen scissors and after a glass of wine though. Only just right now lol.

Ha ha ha. That made me lol. This is exactly what I’m talking about. A bad cut ruins you for ages! So it’s £90 but I get a 10% discount! I’ve been going to the same place for years and that’s probably contributed about 3/4K of my debt! 

Rainbowtrousers

ryanm8655 said:

alt80 said:

Good luck mate. 

Ok every eight weeks for haircut bit extreme imo lol. Not having the cleaner every eight weeks too are you? Can’t really see the point in that.

Haha agreed! Where are you going for haircuts at £80 a pop? Remember when I was at uni in London booking into toni and guy and getting stung for £65 for a standard blokes haircut ha. I didn't trust barbers back then though and a trendy salon back home was £25 for a guy, was a shock when I went to pay ha. So assume you're going to that sort of place? Have you thought about just going somewhere cheaper and sticking with the 4 weekly? Even the trendy London barbers are around £25 (places like Jack the Clipper) and you get a beer while getting a trim...they do just as good a job...

I'm so folically challenged that I now cut my own hair but used to go to those kind of places until recently.

Honestly I get it. I’ve tried barbers many times but I always hate the cut and have a !!!!!! month waiting for it to grow out. But obviously I’m hugely in debt so should not be spending like that. I do have a client facing role though plus I’m a single guy so it is important to look sharp. That being said the debt is making me stressed af and I guess in some way the haircut is another form of ‘look at me’ when really I’m living a life I can’t afford which is making me feel like a fraud. Same with the cleaner, the pedicures and the holidays. I do have a funny story for you. When I Zurich I popped in to a salon to get a haircut. Didn’t ask the price ahead of time and had the main dude cut it. Cost me £220!!!!!!!! I went white as a sheet after. Didn’t actually look that good but I was taking home 7k then. Ah man those were the days. Hope you are keeping well. Have to say I have now started buying supermarket branded food and really cannot believe how much cheaper it is. I mean 25-30 of the price which means I can probably save £250 a month on food. I will stick to the butchers for meat and everything else own brand or Lidl. 

alt80

Mate a barber will cut your hair a lot better than my wife with kitchen scissors during a national lockdown. 

I can’t believe I’m the one saying this, sounding like a saint but I earn just under £8k a month net and not a !!!!!! chance would I spend £80 let alone £220 on a haircut. My wife loves having her hair done and doesn’t spend that FML. 

I get wanting to look sharp but £80 has opened my eyes haha. Could just be London life contrasting with the regions tbf but appears not to be. They see you coming mate! 🤣

And pedicures? WTAF lol do you get your nails painted as well? Honestly never come across a bloke who spends so much on beauty and you haven’t even got a girl to impress ha.