Keeping afloat till I can get round to the debts!

NeverendingDMP

Yes that's the aim. I'm in my 40s and have been in some form of debt since I did my degree
 Maybe at some point in my fifties I can be debt free (mortgage doesn't count)
DH is sort of on board but really not bothered and I've spent the past week telling him he can't sign up to finance on another car as we don't have any spare to begin with let alone finding whatever it would cost for a car. He sees a fiver in his pocket and thinks it's there to spend. I see that fiver as being planned for and the reality of it. Ah well one day at a time

jwil

A DMP sounds like it might be worth it.  Get your payments as low as you can by making sure you maximise all the budget categories.  It gives you breathing space and you can save any extra.  If you've got savings behind you, it will help stop the endless struggling, but also mean you can pay off the debt once you've got enough.  It's a marathon, not a sprint.

You'll have more flexibility if you continue to self manage, but if going with SC feels better than that will work too.

NeverendingDMP

Flipping Eck wrote a big reply and it's gone. Long and short of it is that mortgage goes up in August but I've put new rate on dmp. Its both our faults but dh is often more reckless and I have to then invent money to make up for it. I'm going to be a lot more strict with the pots to see the money build and if going right back to the beginning is the way I complete the final hurdle then so be it.
Not sure if I have ever openly said either but DH drinks daily and that's a huge drain on the finances. I also drink- I'm no saint but it's only a treat at weekend which is not quite as dramatic although still throwing money down the drain. 
Step change have all the info so all being well it will be up and running within the month. Now I've openly declared this I can't back out. I'm making a worse case guesstimate of 16.5k as of April 2024. (For reference)

jwil

Good luck with it

NeverendingDMP

Tha is. So credit cards removed from purse. Not cut up  yet as then I'll never remember the flaming account numbers to contact people with.
First Tilly tally done. E fund still has approx 250 in it. Shall I aim for debt free by 50 ...makes me feel old- I know it's not but i still think I'm in my thirties as I've kind of stopped counting since then!!😂

jwil

I would forget about the debts and focus on the savings.  As long as the debts are ticking over then leave them be.  Unless you plan on clearing them really quickly, the defaults will be on your record for 6 years anyway, and after that they won't be visible. 

Set yourself a savings target instead    If you can get a sustainable budget in place, and some savings behind you, then the debts will clear themselves.

NeverendingDMP

Very true thank you for being my voice of reason. First target 500 e fund!  My budget has a tenner a week going to e fund and a tenner slush fund. Its a start. 

jwil

It's a good start!  Good luck with it.

NeverendingDMP

Feeling frustrated just need a vent. One of the kids has been unwell. I Spent twenty minutes on hold with 111 at weekend then had a six HR wait for callback. Good advice given and told to ring our GP if not better in a couple of days. Second day of attempted calls to gp and have just actually got through to be offered an apt for saturday at 1.15 pm as all today's have gone. Have accepted it just in case but neither use nor ornament reallyas they are sick now. I have my suspicion she will need antibiotics to resolve it. Postcode lottery isn't it. DH is registered elsewhere, we can't get on with them. He rings and gets an apt that same morning-every time. The whole process takes him less than five minutes -that's rare I know but so frustrating. 
Problem is I will make all this worse as if no better today I will wait till out of hrs then sit in urgent care with her which is not what it's meant for is it. 

slm6002

It is so frustrating that is for sure.  Can you be put on a waiting list for DH doctors just in case they take on any new patients?