Stuck in a runt

searching_me

hi well this is myself laying it bare... i have an overdraft of 1300 which originally started as a 600 overdraft but i moved from london to yorkshire and it increased as as you can imagine moving is expensive... anyway...

at the time i was recievin both my wage (which as drop now as i dont recieve london waiting anymore) and my tax credits and child benefit... but as my partner doesnt work and i do i had a bright idea of putting the tax credits in his bank account and just keepin my wage and child benefit... so i dropped from about 700 a month to 450 and now im stuck with this overdraft i cant seem to make a dent in ...

me and partner split the bills each month but by the week i have nothing and have to ask my partner to lend me a tenner when hes also down to his last 20 quid....

i know its not much compare to some debts out there but i hate it as watching my mother run up debts as she was a gambler and i hate the thought of being like her...

ive been checking this site and many others for awhile but its just helps me get by if you know what i mean... so any help or idea and i would be really greatful thanks all you dfw out there xxx

meyore

I'll bump this up for you!

Have you read the sticky thread at the top of the forum about doing a SOA? It'd be easier to help if you put one on here for us to look at.

Welcomme to the forums and good luck with the getting debt free!

searching_me

sorry im new to this so ok i think this is what you mean...

right....

as i said my overdraft is 1300,

i get paid 450 before tax... (about 420 if i dont take a day off)

sky (tv phone and net).. 30

bt .. .11

tv ... 11

overdraft % ...11

council tax ....90 (hopefully alittle less by april)
food shopping ..75 (its generally 150 i do it every 4 weeks when i get paid and then just top up but i do split it with my partner)

travel to work.. 40

then about 50-60 on credit coz i used it for thing i didnt expect eg. xmas things or if something broke which just lately seems to happen alot.

any advice xx

meyore

I've tidied it up a little...

Debt £1300 overdraft.

Income £420 a month

Sky £30
BT £11
TV £11
Overdraft interest £11
Council tax £90
Food shopping £75
Travel to work £40
Credit £60*
=£328 outgoing.

So you need to work out where the other £92 a month is going.

*How much do you owe on this, is it a credit card?

searching_me

hmmm good point... i sit and work out and work out... i end up getting confused... my credit card is generally for expensive i forgot about or extras eg. birthday xmas was the main one but i kinda got stuck in a circle of id use it then pay it off when i get paid and then of course im short because i paid it so use it again... if you know what i mean ... plus my daughter bed fell apart a week ago and ive had to paid out for that ... which was the last thing i needed lol... and the 92 maybe a result of my daughter i do try my best to say no but you know kids lol xx

Storm

Check your council tax bill, cos if you're paying it over 10 months (which is normal, unless you requested over 12) you're about to have 2 months council tax free, which will make a nice dent in the OD.

You haven't got any rent/mortgage or utilities on your SoA - does your OH pay for these?

mummytofour

Do you not pay rent/water/mobile phone? Hair cuts, clothes shoes days out? When u say you split bills down the middle does your other half claim any benefits at all? Can you get help with council tax?

searching_me

well see im payin 9 months worth of council tax in 3 months before the new tax year as it took them forever to sort it out so by the time they did its costing me abit... see even now i forgot gas 100 pounds every 3 months although i have just changed and thats saving me about 20 pound... anyhoooo.... yer my oh pays the rent which is 40 a week because of housing benefit any big bill we split ... everything is split... although i pay about 20 pounds more as i get more in wages then he does in tax credits...
i mean i do get paid every 4 weeks does make it easier to work out but i just cant see where im going wrong... am i just to close to see it?

Storm

Debt £1300 overdraft.

Income £420 a month

Sky £30
BT £11
TV £11
Overdraft interest £11
Council tax £90
Food shopping £75
Travel to work £40
Credit £60
Gas £30
Electric 30
Water £20
=£408 outgoing

OK, with the gas in, plus the same for electric and a bit for water that's completely your wages - which is why the OD has grown as anything else isn't budgetted for.

However, if these are monthly figures and you get paid 4 weekly then you should get £420 a year not already allocated, which should help. Also, once your council tax is over the year it will ease considerably

The only thing that could possibly be shaved off is the food bill (check out the Old Style board for inspiration) though as I'm guessing there's at least 3 of you isn't going to give you loads to spare.

Is there any chance of overtime at work? Could your partner get a part time job etc?

searching_me

looking but no luck as he been out of work for so long because i got the job first and working it around my daughter ... also the extra money could upset my housing benefits ... i mean ive been working for nearly 2 years and i was better off on benefits and thats the thing i hate the most... i like earning my money... ive been doing a few extra hours where i can but as i say if housing benefits say im earning to much they say i have to pay more... so you see the trouble im in x

searching_me

ok i just saw wot u put... but water is includin in rent