end of year thoughts and target

rockrat

i never posted at the beginning of the year but i decided to set myself a target to pay off the small credit card debt i had (£1700) which had basically built up from xmas and one holiday last year, and to end the year 2007 with £10,000 banked as savings in our combined ISA's.

First i stoozed the CC amount (it was already on 0% offer), which took a few months to save an equal amount, but instead of paying it off, i put the £1,700 in the ISA and used the rest of the year to pay the CCard off at a slower pace at a lower monthly amount.
Then, i have added to the ISA's and finally managed to with this months salary hit that £10k banked figure.

i have also changed mortgage this year to IFinance, where the ISA's are offsett to maximise the cash's potential (thanks to those that advised on this earlier this year)

I also managed to save an additional £1.5k over and above this which almost exactly matches the remaining amount i have on the car loan. I am going to put this into the offsett savings account, and now pay the loan off from there for the remaining 7 months.

so, what i thought was a long shot i have managed to pull off. The main reason for this target in jan this year was that we realised we had NO savings to protect us should the unthinkable ever happen, and we needed to have at least 6 months living expenses as backup, which we now have.

But....... it has been hard. Mrs rockrat and I have had no end of money arguments throughout the year, and i have to question how long we can continue to live under the strain of being so focused.
Maybe we can scale back a bit, but i dont want to lose momentum if i can help it. 6 months unemployment cover is not a lot, i would like it to be another £10k.

anyway, i am rambling now, but i just wanted to say that i have become a regular reader here because it continues to spur me on, and i appreciate the support and advice given and because of this, the board has yet another target successfully hit.

merry christmas one and all

betti911

What a great idea for a thread!!

I came here looking for advice as I'd just put in an offer for my first home and my financial adviser told me what a pickle I was getting myself in financially. I started properly organising myself moneysaving wise from January of this year.

Since then the way I live my life has completly changed. I know exactly what money is coming in and out of my account. I can no longer afford to spend now and pay later. My life has been very much restricted by the amount of debt I have. I don't wish that to continue.

To change this I have changed my loans to interest free credit cards, I have been making overpayment to these every month, and I have been budgeting on a monthly basis. I have also spoken to my friends and family about my debt and have had varying levels of support from them all.

Next year I want to pay off:

1) My bed
2) My barclaycard
and then start making payments towards the virgin card.

My aim is to be debt free by 2009. Thanks very much to Martin and Co for all the work they have put into this site and to all the other contributors.

Merry Christmas:xmassign: and good luck for 2008 for all moneysavers_party_ !!

:xmastree:

newmum1

Hello for me I think it was recognising that I was in debt but i needed to have some sort of plan so this its not much but i am pleased i now
*pay with everything with cash
*i have paid off my halifax loan which at the start of the year was approx £1200 it was paid off 2 months early, thanks to this site I did usually i would have just kept it going until it was paid.
* I am more aware of what i have coming in and out
*i believe I am now financially savvy
*I am well on my way to been debt free
only a few more debts albeit £0000's then Im free

redsquirrel80

I would like to pay off half of my overall outstanding debt (£4800) including clearing two individual debts which currently stand at £2858 and £580, by the end of the year. I'd like to do this whilst also having a bit more of a life than I have done this year - I've got one 'major' 2 week holiday planned and another couple of short breaks - so I'm going to have to do some serious work at getting extra money in!

Thanks to this site and all you lovely people I'm finally focused on getting my money situation sorted, and I know when I flounder and think it's not worth the effort you'll be there to persuade me otherwise!

madmich666

I found this site by accident and have recommended it to loads of friends. But since reading this site I have now got an action plan to tackle my debt (already paid 2 small debts off) and I can sleep at night. I want to stay focused to clear my debts and pay my mortgage off early just need to get my OH to read this site cos hes the worst one with money.

purpledelly

Lovely Idea.....
My life has changed quite a bit this year thanks to this site.

I had already taken on a DMP and thought I was doing all I could until I started really looking around this site and taking it all on board.

• I've switched suppliers for all sorts of things and saved money.
• I've joined Quidco and made a staggering £450 in just 3 months.
• I've joined AQA and earned £300 in 3 months
• I've started a battle with some of my horrible DCA creditors who seem to have no legal right to be collecting money from me. I am hoping to get rather a lot of money back off them next year to throw at my other debts and if I'm lucky they won't be able to get any more money from me..... we'll see but it's a HUGE chunk of my debt!
• I've started proper meal planning and cutting my shopping bill.

And probably loads and loads more.... but most of all I have a postitive outlook on my finances now and although I thought I was in charge of things before, I know I really am now and I sincerely believe that I will be out of debt much sooner than the 10 years ahead which I thought it would be in January 2007!

Merry Christmas from me to all the fantastic people on here who share ideas and advice - you're all wonderful :beer:

Reya

Oddly enough, I was just thinking about this at work today. I've been on a one-week break from work (just pottering around the home, really) but on going back today I realised that it wasn't just me being tired from working so hard lately that was making me so depressed; it was my actual workplace. Within minutes of being there, I had slipped right back into the negative and utterly miserable frame of mind that seems to have consumed my company over the past six months (and believe me, a company where the staff are mostly on a downer is not a fun place to be...)

So my mind turned to changing jobs. I've been there for over 13 years, which is a long time. I did try to look for work when I got fed up a few years ago, but the job market and interview process had changed so drastically that I got scared and gave up. Besides, right now I can't afford to change jobs. I work in a well-paid industry sector and any job move would likely entail some sort of pay cut, so I need to get my debt out of the way first.

Thus my goal for 2008 is to pay off all (or as much as I can) of my debt, so that at some point in 2009 I can begin saving. And once I have a decent sum of £££ behind me, I can find work that I actually enjoy.

The thought of another year or two at that place is incredibly dispiriting, so I'm hanging onto the hope of something nicer by the end of 2009. Either that, or the novel that I wrote last year and am currently editing will find a publisher and be wildly successful, and I'll be able to give up work and live the Life of Rowling

purpledelly

Do you know what Reya, I'm off work at the moment too. And today is the first proper day of 3 weeks off. I've had such a wonderful day. Just pottering really and having time to cook proper meals and not rushing around. I've been in the same workplace for 10 years, although I recently changed roles within it.... but it's a grind.. and lots of negativity. I too would like to make one of my targets for 2008, to aim to kick off enough debt to be able to either retrain or simply work part time. I'm a mum of a 7 year old but never have I worked part time - I only took off 3 months when he was born... I really feel I need some time to step back and reassess things and the lack of money is really holding me back. And the only thing causing lack of money is paying £600 a month on debts
Good luck to you - I hope you achieve your dream.

lunar

I would love to pay off half my debt in 2008. its a big challenge but im really detirmined to do it. I would cretianly love to be rid of my barclay card and mint card, and to make a dent on egg! Ive had a really positive year with my LBM, hopefully 2008 will be a year to turn things around for me.

Good luck to everyone for meeting their targets for next year, im sure we can all do it if we stick together on here.

Mozette

I aim to be (non-mortgage) debt free at the end of 2008, and to always think before I spend. That has saved me no end of money, rather than just having what I want when I want. It's amazing how many things you don't really want once you think about it.

rockrat

i'm pleased the thread has caught the imagination of some of you.

purpledelly - how did you manage to get qualified for AQA? any hints, tips etc.