A diary of clearing the credit card and gratitude

wantabetterlife

I’m really hoping this diary will help keep me accountable in clearing our credit card. 

The current balance is £4461.16 The credit limit is £4600 and every month on pay day I pay a few hundred off and by the end of the month I’ve maxed it out again. It has become like an overdraft facility and I really want to get rid of it and get control if my finances.

I will update when I make any payments big or small to keep me motivated. I will also try and post something I am grateful for, in an attempt to keep me content with a more frugal lifestyle. 

Today I am grateful for this forum and all the lovely people on here who are so helpful. 

Richard1212

It is a bad place to be in if you are using your Credit Card like an overdraft every month. If you have ANY savings , use them all to pay off all or as much as you can of the CC ( and then use it responsibly thereafter by paying off the entire balance every month--or better still wean yourself off it for a while altogether ). If you do not have savings, adjust your budget, make cuts wherever possible ( and it is usually possible to cut out certain expenditure---be strict) and pay off as much as you can every month, certainly as much more than the minimum payment as you can.

Spinayarn

Hi and welcome! It’s good that you recognise the problem and want to clear it. I highly recommend setting yourself a budget and try to overpay your credit card by as much as possible to help get the balance down, is there any way you could transfer it to a 0% card?

MatyMoo

Well done on taking control, I used to be in the same position as you & it’s tough to get out of the cycle but it can be done 😃

Have you done an SOA or kept a spending diary? Both are really useful even if you choose not to share them. 

wantabetterlife

Thank you all for your lovely messages. I am totally sick of this hamster wheel of paying off a few hundred and then adding it back on by the end of the month so am totally committed to getting rid of this for good! 

£200 from this months pay has now cleared and the outstanding balance is £4261.15 😃

Sold a fitness tracker online for £26 but will wait to payment clears and then pay that off aswell. 

Gratitude

I am grateful that I am working at home tomorrow so the morning will be a bit more relaxed. Have a good evening everyone

londoner2019

Good luck on your journey! I was exactly in your position. Started with a 2k student overdraft - moved to London on a tiny wage, discovered interest free cards, and all of a sudden I had maxed out 4K. Got another one… and another one.

it took 10 years to change my spending habits - I recommend you look at your budget and stick to something you can work with. Going through the process of budgeting will be a motivation. 

And definitely find a 0% balance transfer if you can!

wantabetterlife

Thanks Londoner … I think that should be me next step as I’m currently paying around £90 per month on interest alone. Do people usually go into a comparison site to find the 0% deals or just type it in to google? I’ve had the same CC for 20 years so a bit out of touch 🙈

londoner2019

Definitely check out the MSE Eligibility Calculator - it gives you an indication of what you're likely going to be accepted for without impacting your credit report. 

wantabetterlife

I’ve just realised my credit card is so old it’s in my maiden name, so will need to get in touch with them about that before I can apply for a balance transfer.  

wantabetterlife

Managed to pay another £325 off the CC so the balance is now £3936.15. Delighted to see it starting with a 3 😃. 

Today I am grateful for a lovely home cooked evening meal and a bottle of wine. Also the £5 car tax rebate I received in the post