New here, desperate to get out of debt

greenglove

Thank you all so much for commenting again and giving advice.

- I don’t own a car
- life assurance is a top priority and I am now looking at quotes
- the £10,000 we need to cover mat leave doesn’t need to all be ready by April, as my partners pay will not decrease until end June. the 10k is to cover the gradual monthly shortfall in her wages, but as this is monthly and gradual, the savings can be too. I will post how I got to the figure of 10k and perhaps others can check my plan for support. My partner is also contributing to the savings up until May 2025.
-I have worked out my tax now that I am being pushed into the higher bracket (have written a separate thread on this for advice)
- understood re my savings pots being in “savings” rather than expenses, I will revise this
-so far I am 1 week into new budget plan and all going well and to plan so far, I am optimistic

katsu

Your jobs might provide life assurance, it's very common.  As you are renting not owning a house, I wouldn't prioritise life assurance at this time over cleaning debt and meeting your daily expenses during her maternity leave. 

Is the rent the 1k you pay or 2k? It's hard to tell what  is a 50% cost.  I'm wondering if you've given yourself all the cost in your soa by mistake.

I agree that looking over both your debts makes sense, so you can clear them as a couple. 

Good luck. 

kimwp

Has your partner looked into kit (keep in touch) days? These are days you can work (and get paid) during your mat leave to keep in touch with what's going on at work, without affecting mat leave. Some companies will count you going in for a couple of hours as a whole day.