Advice on starting

Floss

You also need to have an emergency fund so you don't resort to credit cards again, and a sensible budget for Christmas so that redundancy money doesn't just dribble away.

kimwp

May I check my understanding - half of your household's monthly expenses are £2319? 

Champdog

kimwp said:

May I check my understanding - half of your household's monthly expenses are £2319? 

Yes and no. Rent, utility bills, tv licence, council tax, travel costs are all shared 50/50. Other bills such as clothing, dog insurance, etc are funded 100% by me (as they are my dogs and children etc etc)  

chris_n

So your council tax is nearly £3k, you pay £1600 rent but you still use £300 a month for fuel presumably for work?

EssexHebridean

That looks like a bit of a selective SOA to me - for example you clearly do high mileage, yet there is nothing there for car maintenance - how is servicing and MOT, plus consumables like tyres paid for? That will be a significant cost if your fuel spend is as high as you’ve said.  

You’ve stated £50 a month being put away for presents - but there are no cash assets shown - do you actually have enough money saved to cover the level of Christmas celebration you are considering for this year, assuming that is something you mark? Don’t just think about presents either - take account of additional food spending, and any extra travel over and above your usual budget.

For me, one of the biggest questions here is whether you know exactly how all the debt was accrued, and if either the situation which caused it is now resolved, or if it was through simple spending, the habits that lead to it have been addressed. Without those points being considered any solution you put in place now will simply be a short term “sticking plaster” - so that needs taking into account too. 

Completely agree with Sourcrates and fatbelly about getting all the DDs cancelled too - while it’s highly likely that the breathing space will be respected, it never does any harm to ensure that no “administrative errors” can lead to money being taken! 😉

Champdog

chris_n said:

So your council tax is nearly £3k, you pay £1600 rent but you still use £300 a month for fuel presumably for work?

Yes. Council tax band E. £1595 monthly rent. £300 for fuel - majority work related (66 mile round trip).

Champdog

EssexHebridean - you make a very valid point, I have completely neglected car maintenance which is something I clearly need to account for in my SOA. 

Christmas this year is being covered by a work bonus (confirmation guaranteed). The £50 p/m is what I'd ideally like to contribute going forward. 

The debt was accrued via historical events (an expensive divorce a few years back) and having to move home three times in the past 2.5 years. Both of these things I have now addressed - no plans for a divorce and no plans for moving home. 

Direct debits have all been cancelled too! Thank you all for the advice on that!