My Soa - Any Suggestions

mum2one

Here goes my SOA and my debts

Income Support, Child Benefit, DLA and Tax Credits:

Monthly - £792

Get no child support from my daughters dad, he packed in work, we live with my parents, so they said while I get the worst ofmy debts off just pay them the £100 and pay the sky.

Outgoings:

Mobile Phone £20.00 (pay and go (1 x £15.00 mth = 300 free texts, 150 off peak mins). ( 1 x £5.00 month emergency phone))

Internet AOL + call package =£32.00
Mobile Internet £20.00 (Had a grant from Open uni but hadtouse it off bills)
Open Uni £50.00
credit cards £250
overdraft - £50.
Pocket money daughter - £15.00
Sky £36 (just signed into 12 mth contract sky+)
Life Ins £15
Savings plan £10
Petrol £30
Car Ins £25
Car bills £25
Home bills £100
Holidays £50.00
Odds and sods £60

Total £788


Debts

Credit Cards
Aqua - £816.00 39% apr (aiming at £70.00 per month - est Jan 09
Barclaycard - £482.00 - 24% ( aiming at £30.00 per month) est Apr 09
Halifax - £1241 - 19.9% (aiming at £55 per month) est Dec 09
Evans storecard £1176 29% (aiming £75.00 per month) est Dec 09
Capital One - £609 24% (aiming £30.00 per month ) estDec 09

Open uni £575 -9% apr -Minimum of £50.00 month repay Dec 08

Overdraft £1000 - 15% apr - £50.00 per month - Dec09

Club £45.00 (!5.00 mth - 3 months)
Club account 2 (55.00 - 2 months £27.00)


TOTAL INTERESTDEBTS -£5999

My savings goto be replaced - £1420
Isa - need to be replaced Owe - £1600
Dad owe £2000

NO INTEREST £ 5020

TOTAL = £11019

DEBT FREE DATE =DEC 2010


Xmas 2007 all paid for

Xmas 2008
Pigback
Mutual points
Quidco
Greasy Palm
2 x survey companies - recieved £20.00 Boots vouchers
Boots points _ £2.00

1carlos

Hello m2o,

I'm certainly no expert on SOAs, I'm sure one will be along very soon, but you seem to have lots of Sky, internet and phone thingies going on here. Are they all necessary?

Also, savings and pocket money - maybe think about suspending these until you get back on your feet?

As I said, I´m no expert; in fact I´m literally in the sh*t myself ;-)

Penny-Pincher!!

Can I ask what you are paying OU for? Is this an OUSBA account and if so, could you not get the course free due to you being on IS?

You could cut back on:

Savings plan-whats the point when you owe money out and you could save the high interest charges
Sky could be reduced to a cheaper package
Car Bills £300 per annum
Internet/Calls-look around for a cheaper package
Life Insurance-Could you not claim on this being ill (if I have read this right?)
Holidays £600 per annum-I would throw this towards the debt
Odds & Sods-If poss cut this down.

Are you cliaming everything your entitled too? Free school dinners, clothing allowance for uniform etc etc.

I would use a snowball calculator and juggle some figures after cutting back the above and see how quickly your debt could be paid up.

HTH

PP
xx

belfastgirl23

You can apparently use tesco clubcard vouchers for the OU, just in case it's useful to you.

Good luck and congrats on keeping up the studying

nelly_2

What the hell is mobile internet?....bin it

And having savings and an overdraft is bad! check out martins article on this site

southernscouser

nelly wrote: »

What the hell is mobile internet?....bin it

And having savings and an overdraft is bad! check out martins article on this site

!!!!!! are you doing here? :rotfl:

Ain't you got no cartoon !!!!!! to watch?

Jacks_xxx

:wave: Hiya sweetie,

I'm really sorry your ex doesn't help support his child, that's rotten.

However things are what they are, so......

How hard you cut back depends very much on what your priorities are and how high up the list getting debt free is.

Looking at the interest rates you're paying in your place I'd want to get rid of them as soon as poss, but of course it's up to you how you get this done.

(I'm probably about to come over as terribly bossy in a minute and I'm really trying not to! )

Have you put all your debt info into the snowball yet? It's THE best thing I've found (beside this place ) to help get debt free. It's really important to pay the higher interest debts off first.

http://www.whatsthecost.com/snowball.aspx

Now... the trouble is that I can't see any way that you can pay the amounts you're aiming to pay off each debt when half of your money is already allocated to phones / internet / tv / savings/ holidays/ the car etc.

In your place honey I'd pay the £100 bills money, and the sky... (for the time being!) and then think very very carefully about everything else on your list.

Do you really need a mobile at all?

AND mobile internet as well????

Could you get your internet and landline bundled in with your sky for no extra cost saving you £32 (I bet you could! )

Do you actually need a car?
(I thought *I* did but it turns out I need to be debt free more! )

Could you do without a holiday this year in order to throw that £50 a month at the debt instead? (add the £50 to your debt repayment total in the Snowball and see what a huge difference it makes.)

Could the savings tenner go towards the debt for a while instead?

Do you need life insurance? Why? (I'm not trying to be bolshy or challenging., it's just that we pay all of these things blindly when maybe we don't really need them, or could stop for a while at least.)

Are you sure you have to pay for Open Uni? (It's worth double checking isn't it?)

That's what I'd do anyway...:D

Let us know how you get on hon,

Love Jacks xxx

mum2one

Jacks_xxx wrote: »

:wave: Hiya sweetie,

I'm really sorry your ex doesn't help support his child, that's rotten. The expression for him is unprintable, - but I have a beautiful daughter.
However things are what they are, so......

How hard you cut back depends very much on what your priorities are and how high up the list getting debt free is.

Looking at the interest rates you're paying in your place I'd want to get rid of them as soon as poss, but of course it's up to you how you get this done. - Thats what Ineed to do, might aim for Barclays finished 1st - only cozits the smaller one, gd 4 the morale

(I'm probably about to come over as terribly bossy in a minute and I'm really trying not to! ) I appriciate any help possible - hence the post

Have you put all your debt info into the snowball yet? It's THE best thing I've found (beside this place ) to help get debt free. It's really important to pay the higher interest debts off first. - your an absolute star, couldnt locate the snowball, had an attempt to do my own

http://www.whatsthecost.com/snowball.aspx

Now... the trouble is that I can't see any way that you can pay the amounts you're aiming to pay off each debt when half of your money is already allocated to phones / internet / tv / savings/ holidays/ the car etc. = Thats the plan, but whether Imanage it is another thing

In your place honey I'd pay the £100 bills money, and the sky... (for the time being!) and then think very very carefully about everything else on your list.

Do you really need a mobile at all? - Its pay + go, use 300 free texts each month, so it pays for itself in the long run

AND mobile internet as well???? - that was paid for by open uni - but I used the money to clear creidt card

Could you get your internet and landline bundled in with your sky for no extra cost saving you £32 (I bet you could! )- cant Im tied into a 2 yr contract with AOL

Do you actually need a car?
(I thought *I* did but it turns out I need to be debt free more! ) I get free road tax - being disabled - I need a car to get around, thou when Ive run outof petrol do collar dad to run me around inn his

Could you do without a holiday this year in order to throw that £50 a month at the debt instead? (add the £50 to your debt repayment total in the Snowball and see what a huge difference it makes.) - I should do, Id feel like Id be letting my daughter down, if we go with parents I only pay half - not to bad

Could the savings tenner go towards the debt for a while instead?- Have to do that

Do you need life insurance? Why? (I'm not trying to be bolshy or challenging., it's just that we pay all of these things blindly when maybe we don't really need them, or could stop for a while at least.) - Tried to put ins on hold - they wont let me - its more a cushion that is anything happens at lewa my daughters got a bit of a cushion

Are you sure you have to pay for Open Uni? (It's worth double checking isn't it?) I had a bright idea to do 3 courses last yr, so had to pay £200 and this yrs courses Im doing 2 - over ny grant allowance picked the expensive ones (law)- so OU have footed the biggest part of the bill
That's what I'd do anyway...:D

Let us know how you get on hon,

Love Jacks xxx

A massive thank you - def aim to do the snowball, should help with better dates.

mum2one

belfastgirl23 wrote: »

You can apparently use tesco clubcard vouchers for the OU, just in case it's useful to you.

Good luck and congrats on keeping up the studying

I couldnt use that as I get a grant for my courses - just that I picked the expensive courses and instead of 1 course a yr, Ive doubled up last yr and this yr.

Were putting the Teco vouchers up 4 next yrs hol, its my dads 70th - daughter has decided she wants to take himon Haven holiday. (his favourite site not!!!!) x

mum2one

nelly wrote: »

What the hell is mobile internet?....bin it

Its a sperate internet connection that means I can use the net anywhere.
And having savings and an overdraft is bad! check out martins article on this site

I didnt think £10 would make much difference butguess over a yr its £120.00 off debt x

keeperbear

mum2one wrote: »

Outgoings:
Mobile Phone £20.00
Internet AOL + call package =£32.00
Mobile Internet £20.00
Pocket money daughter - £15.00
Sky £36 (just signed into 12 mth contract sky+)
Holidays £50.00

Not to be mean, but for someone without a job some of the above expenses are unbelievable. As you don't work, why do you need "mobile internet" for £20 a month? Seems a total waste of money to me. Get rid of it, and save £240 a year towards your debts. As for Sky, get rid and get a freeview box.