12 months of hard graft to become Debt-Free.

RandomOne

Hi everyone. Thanks, Vamp and Guru. I have decided to take job number 2. They have actually now said that they are looking to keep on staff after the Xmas period, so hopefully, it'll be permanent after Xmas. 
Yes, it's for a supermarket, and we could definitely do with the staff discount on food! 

I am going to sit down and write out a budget today. I've decided to get rid of the joint account I have with my husband. He is TERRIBLE with money, and I don't want that account to go overdrawn as it'll affect my credit score. 
So I'm going to tell him that later. He can have his wages going into his account, and I'll have mine into my account, and then he can just send me half of the household bill money. He is away for the next few weeks with work, so I'm only feeding 3 of us until he returns.

We don't have kids together (i have 2 from a previous marriage and he has 3 from his previous) so financially we pay for our own kids things anyway.

I want to write a monthly meal plan today too, as I have a LOT of food in my freezer and want to start working my way through it all. It'll save money as well as space in the freezer. I'll ask my kids for some meal ideas, as well as encourage my younger son to help with cooking. 

Lots to plan today!

RandomOne

I start my new job on Thursday and should have about £1k a month to put towards debt as long as I don't increase my spending in any other category. 

But, that being said, I wonder if I should also start building my savings while paying off debt. The main reason is in case of emergencies, like needing a new kitchen appliance, or car repairs etc. If you do this, how do you work out how much you should save every month?

joedenise

I think an emergency fund is absolutely essential whilst paying off debt so that you don't add to it if, for example, your washing machine breaks down.

If you don't already have an EF then I would suggest that you continue paying off what you currently are and save anything extra from your new job.  I would aim to get to at least £500 or even £1000 before paying extra off the debt.

RandomOne

I'm back and I've made progress. 

Total debt is now:
Barclaycard £5222.79
2nd Card £2794.33
3rd Card £2439.83

So my total debt is now £10,456.95

I should be about to pay off £1700 per month as of January. Not including interest means my debt will be paid off in 6 months. So it will probably be 10 months when I include interest. That is fine with me. I might even be able to do it sooner.

My marriage is in serious trouble and I need to leave, but cannot afford to. My husband knows this, we have tried several times to make things work, but he has said I'll never leave because I can't afford to and he is right. I NEED to leave. 
I'm safe, he isn't at all violent or anything like that, but I am incredibly unhappy. In order to leave him and be able to survive financially, I need tp pay my debt off. 

Moving on...my new job pays weekly. I've not had a job that pays weekly before. So what I've been doing is saving my wages for 4 weeks and then making 1 lump sum towards the debt every 4 weeks. Is there an alternative to doing it this way, or would it be better to just make the weekly debt payments? I'm thinking that the interest might be lower if I do it weekly? 

Humdinger1

@RandomOne have subscribed.   You are better with money than you give yourself credit for.  I think building an emergency fund while paying off debt is highly recommended as if something happens (and it will!) you're not thrown back on credit.   I'm sure you have a plan to manage the emotions while you get ready to leave.  Feel free to post it on here or not as you wish; I think you'd get lots of support if you did. You will do this.  Onwards and upwards love Humdinger xx 

RandomOne

@Humdinger1 thank you so much, I appreciate the support.

The main emotion I have right now is disappointment in myself that I ever got into a situation such as my marriage, that I couldn't leave because of money. I've learned a HUGE lesson here, and it'll never happen again. I would love to just be able to tell him to leave (we rent and the tenancy is only in my name) and cut all ties, but I have to pay off my debt and save to file for divorce first.

joedenise

I would think your interest would usually be less if you made weekly payments - it really depends on the T&C of each of your cards.  Give it a try and see what if any difference it makes to the interest.  Alternatively you could phone them and ask if it would make a difference.  With paying every 4 weeks you'll still make one extra monthly payment over a year so that's a bonus too.

RandomOne

Thank you @joedenise yes I thought so too. I'm going to just do it weekly. Not just because it might help with the interest, but also because then the moment isn't sitting in my account tempting me (which is my biggest struggle at the moment). 

Sarahwithlove

if you think you will be tempted to spend it i would pay it off especially as you only have to wait a week to be paid again. Hopefully wanting to leave will be a good incentive for you to keep to your budget and get the debt down as quickly as possible. have you tried any surveys or receipt scanning apps? not much but all adds up. I have recently started doing PADs (payment a day) and save the change on my main spending account. have you looked at account switches? thats a good way to make money as banks offer incentives to switch.

RandomOne

@Sara@Sarahwithlove yes I think weekly is definitely the best way to go.