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Let's get this sorted then!
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Thanks everyone!
@doingitanyway I did consider a kfc for tea but I'm out for a meal tomorrow so made myself a lovely chicken curry instead. I did buy a mini lemon cheesecake for a sweet treat.
There is a butchers about a 20min drive from me that only sells meat from 4 farms nearby. They don't have a large selection but everything from there tastes delicious. The kind of meat that is lovely cooked simply without the need for flavourings. It's a little more expensive than a supermarket but not hugely. I used to wish to have enough money to use them regularly. I do use them occasionally now, when I'm passing.
Anyway simple chicken curry with veg and an Olio freezer naan.Debts 04/01/25 02/08/25
Tesco CC £6,509.97 £6,030 (now NatWest2)
NatWest CC £7,612.74 £7,080
Lloyds CC £6,112.60 £5,075
1st Direct CC £176.03 £19.92
CC total £20,411.34 £18,204.92TSB OD £500 £0
1st Direct OD £600 £250 (0%)
Car loan £4,000 £4,000
1st Direct Loan £10,684.44 £9,246.15
Total £36,195.78 £31,451.07
EF £400.561 -
Realisation number 63 - I have been treating my loan as if there's not much point overpaying as they front loaded the interest. So I've prioritised my credit cards. I've just realised (thanks to another diary I've been reading) that it was calculated over the total term so any overpayments mean less interest and paying it off sooner. What an absolute plonker. Even as I'm typing this I can't believe I didn't realise til now.
So it's actually my highest interest thing, as my credit cards are on 0%. I still want to pay those off because they make me nervous and I have to keep finding 0% transfer deals, but this might change how much I pay and off what. I can at least round up the loan payment!Debts 04/01/25 02/08/25
Tesco CC £6,509.97 £6,030 (now NatWest2)
NatWest CC £7,612.74 £7,080
Lloyds CC £6,112.60 £5,075
1st Direct CC £176.03 £19.92
CC total £20,411.34 £18,204.92TSB OD £500 £0
1st Direct OD £600 £250 (0%)
Car loan £4,000 £4,000
1st Direct Loan £10,684.44 £9,246.15
Total £36,195.78 £31,451.07
EF £400.562 -
I never really understood how front loaded interest works either, so you are not a plonker!"Good financial planning is about not spending money on things that add no value to your life in order to have more money for the things that do". Eoin McGee1
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I really like your idea of daily amount. For me at the moment I give myself a monthly amount but keep overspending. I may have to look at doing something similar to you. May make me rhink twice about odd coffee or bakery trip here and there*Dad loan - £5300 - £7200
*Virgin Credit Card - £3552.50 - £0
*Natwest - £1828.35 -£0.00
Barclaycard - £2315.25 - £0.00
Creation Finance - £960.32 £840
*Total debt - £8040/£11641.17*
Savings
*Savings Buffer - £100/£1500
*Emergency Fund - £1500/£1500
New diary- https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6474943/the-three-cs-coffee-clothes-credit-cards/3 -
Thanks @jwil, you're very kind.
That's why I did it @Sarahwithlove I gave myself a smaller amount for the month but things kept slipping and I would use it all then try to convince myself things I wanted were a necessity or the takeaway was technically groceries.
I am currently in a ridiculous online conversation with my L credit card people. No statement was generated in July, one guy has told me there is no statement necessary because there were no transactions and I had nothing to pay. After asking him to check with his supervisor I have now been told that there is 5k to pay. I guess I'll just make my regular payment and not ask such silly questions again.Debts 04/01/25 02/08/25
Tesco CC £6,509.97 £6,030 (now NatWest2)
NatWest CC £7,612.74 £7,080
Lloyds CC £6,112.60 £5,075
1st Direct CC £176.03 £19.92
CC total £20,411.34 £18,204.92TSB OD £500 £0
1st Direct OD £600 £250 (0%)
Car loan £4,000 £4,000
1st Direct Loan £10,684.44 £9,246.15
Total £36,195.78 £31,451.07
EF £400.561 -
rachmac3 said:Realisation number 63 - I have been treating my loan as if there's not much point overpaying as they front loaded the interest. So I've prioritised my credit cards. I've just realised (thanks to another diary I've been reading) that it was calculated over the total term so any overpayments mean less interest and paying it off sooner. What an absolute plonker. Even as I'm typing this I can't believe I didn't realise til now.
So it's actually my highest interest thing, as my credit cards are on 0%. I still want to pay those off because they make me nervous and I have to keep finding 0% transfer deals, but this might change how much I pay and off what. I can at least round up the loan payment!
Personally I would use the snowball method.The financial wealth building journey.
Busting this debt before 40. Started in August 2024 with debt = £19,966. August 1st 2025 debt = £0 and busted!
Debt free dairy https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6547320/busting-this-debt-before-40/p1
Savings goals by 31st December 2025;
Emergency Fund: £3,445 / £4000
SIPP: £3,932 / £4000
S&S ISA: £637 / £1000
“Save me now and I’ll save you later” - Your money
I eat far too much chocolate...1 -
Slightly belated signature update due to the ongoing farce with LLoyds. They are still insisting I don't need to pay anything this month and there is no minimum payment. I've paid the same amount that I paid last month to be on the safe side.
I need to have a good think about how and what I pay now. The loan realisation has made me rethink. I was paying slightly over minimum on the other CCs, the minimum on the loan, and focussing any extra payments on the credit card that had the soonest ending 0%. Should I instead pay all the extras off the loan as it will save me interest (8.9%) in the long term? But it makes me nervous as all three CCs have their 0% interest periods ending next year and they feel more risky than the loan. If I don't get more offers of 0% BTs then the interest on those could be astronomical.
I'm going to round up the loan payment for now, keep the intended payments for CCs in August, and try to decide by the end of the month ready for next months payments.
The overall debt hasn't gone down by much this month, due to the BTs, changes in payment dates etc. And also because I only have one job currently and I'm using work expenses payments for my September holiday. Still coming down slowly.
Debts 04/01/25 02/08/25
Tesco CC £6,509.97 £6,030 (now NatWest2)
NatWest CC £7,612.74 £7,080
Lloyds CC £6,112.60 £5,075
1st Direct CC £176.03 £19.92
CC total £20,411.34 £18,204.92TSB OD £500 £0
1st Direct OD £600 £250 (0%)
Car loan £4,000 £4,000
1st Direct Loan £10,684.44 £9,246.15
Total £36,195.78 £31,451.07
EF £400.561 -
Ha @Chocolatefund , it was your diary that gave me the realisation!
Just playing around with the calculators now.Debts 04/01/25 02/08/25
Tesco CC £6,509.97 £6,030 (now NatWest2)
NatWest CC £7,612.74 £7,080
Lloyds CC £6,112.60 £5,075
1st Direct CC £176.03 £19.92
CC total £20,411.34 £18,204.92TSB OD £500 £0
1st Direct OD £600 £250 (0%)
Car loan £4,000 £4,000
1st Direct Loan £10,684.44 £9,246.15
Total £36,195.78 £31,451.07
EF £400.561 -
Hi!
I’ve just had a good think at your signature numbers. Without using debt payoff calculators I would do this;
1. That 1st Direct CC with £19.92. Could you pay that off now?
2. Get that 1st Direct overdraft out of your life. I know it’s 0%, but nothing is going to change if you treat it as free money. It’s no different than being on a 0% credit card.
3. Attack the Lloyds CC with everything you’ve got before the 0% ends.
Looking at the amounts on your credit cards worries me. I’d leave the loans alone as they are safe and predictable. If say you had to balance transfer that Naffwest 7k cc today, thats a fat balance transfer fee of £250+!!
I don’t think the Avalanche method is worth the risk of pursuing if you can’t balance transfer and if those interest rates blow up past 20%. The transfer fees are going to be hiiiiiiighhhh…
When does the 0% end on those credit cards?
The financial wealth building journey.
Busting this debt before 40. Started in August 2024 with debt = £19,966. August 1st 2025 debt = £0 and busted!
Debt free dairy https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6547320/busting-this-debt-before-40/p1
Savings goals by 31st December 2025;
Emergency Fund: £3,445 / £4000
SIPP: £3,932 / £4000
S&S ISA: £637 / £1000
“Save me now and I’ll save you later” - Your money
I eat far too much chocolate...2 -
That's what I'm thinking @Chocolatefund , I'm not sure tackling the highest interest (loan) is the best thing to do at the moment while I have so much debt on credit cards and they are much higher risk. My plan was to get those down to 2 cards by next summer at the latest. The 0% runs out July (NW2), October (NW1), and December (Lloyds) next year so I definitely want to only have to think about two cards by July.
Debts 04/01/25 02/08/25
Tesco CC £6,509.97 £6,030 (now NatWest2)
NatWest CC £7,612.74 £7,080
Lloyds CC £6,112.60 £5,075
1st Direct CC £176.03 £19.92
CC total £20,411.34 £18,204.92TSB OD £500 £0
1st Direct OD £600 £250 (0%)
Car loan £4,000 £4,000
1st Direct Loan £10,684.44 £9,246.15
Total £36,195.78 £31,451.07
EF £400.560
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