DFW newbee

claire11_2

Evening all,
I have been trying to sort out my finances for ages, I keep planning but never seem to get any further than that. So here I am. I need to put together an action plan and get myself out of this debt.

Monthly Incomings

Salary = £1142.00

Total: £1142.00

Monthly Outgoings

Rent = £250
Council tax = £137
Gas and Electric = £40
Water = £22
TV Licence = £10.95
Sky = £22.50
Phone and Internet = £36
Mobile = £35
Food = £200 (including cat food for 2 cats, cleaning products and beauty products)
Contact lenses = £15
Bdays, Xmas and emergency money = £70
Work lunches = £30
Clothes = £20

Total: £888.45

This is based on a budget that I want to stick too. At the moment I am spending more than I get paid, and usually go over my overdraft getting charged the max in penalty fees of 90quid. For example I am 145 over my overdraft this month, so this is 145 out of my next pay cheque already. :eek:

Egg CC – Balance £1450 (limit £1450.00) min £30 APR19.9%
Capital One CC – Balance £200 (limit £200) min £15 APR 34.9%
Dorothy Perkins card – £550 (limit £650) min £21 APR 29.9%
Faith card – £150 (limit £250) min £5 APR 34.9%
Next Catalogue – £530 (limit £1500) min £50 APR26.49%
Natwest Overdraft – £1500, min £75
Barclays Overdraft – £2300 (limit £2300)
Council Tax debt - £355 – still to work out a month payment agreement

HELP I WANT TO BE DEBT AND WORRY FREE!!!!:A

wendy_ann1983

Im not very good at advice but others on here are great and will be able to help, good luck

poorandindenial

Well done for taking this first step, just a few things I have spotted, I am sure others wil be along with loads more advice soon

claire11 wrote: »

Evening all,
I have been trying to sort out my finances for ages, I keep planning but never seem to get any further than that. So here I am. I need to put together an action plan and get myself out of this debt.

Monthly Incomings

Salary = £1142.00

Total: £1142.00

Monthly Outgoings

Rent = £250
Council tax = £137 - this seems quite high baring in mind your rent is really quite low - if it isn't cheeky - what is your living situation
Gas and Electric = £40 - have you done a price comparason recently - if you switch do so throuh quidco
Water = £22
TV Licence = £10.95
Sky = £22.50 - ditch if you can
Phone and Internet = £36 - or get a tv, broadband and phone package - cheaper, some people have £30 for the lot
Mobile = £35 - Is this contract, you might save by going pay as you go or by downgrading your contract
Food = £200 (including cat food for 2 cats, cleaning products and beauty products)
Contact lenses = £15
Bdays, Xmas and emergency money = £70
Work lunches = £30 - do you take a packed lunch? you might be able to get this down to £20
Clothes = £20

Total: £888.45

This is based on a budget that I want to stick too. At the moment I am spending more than I get paid, and usually go over my overdraft getting charged the max in penalty fees of 90quid. For example I am 145 over my overdraft this month, so this is 145 out of my next pay cheque already. :eek:

Egg CC – Balance £1450 (limit £1450.00) min £30 APR19.9%
Capital One CC – Balance £200 (limit £200) min £15 APR 34.9%
Dorothy Perkins card – £550 (limit £650) min £21 APR 29.9%
Faith card – £150 (limit £250) min £5 APR 34.9%
Next Catalogue – £530 (limit £1500) min £50 APR26.49%
Natwest Overdraft – £1500, min £75
Barclays Overdraft – £2300 (limit £2300)
Council Tax debt - £355 – still to work out a month payment agreement

HELP I WANT TO BE DEBT AND WORRY FREE!!!!:A

do you have any transport costs at all??

I am sure you don't need me to tell you that the council tax debt is a priority, but it sounds like you are waiting for details of payments on that.

Have you ever kept a spending diary?? they help to wrk out where any 'spare' cash is going - mine is a godsend and within a day of doing it I had worked out lots of savings.

Capital one and faith have GOT to go first

try out the snowball calculator on whatsthecost.com, it will help you to see when you might clear this lot and what difference overpaying might make.

Good luck

floss2

claire11 wrote: »

Monthly Incomings

Salary = £1142.00

Total: £1142.00

Monthly Outgoings

Rent = £250
Council tax = £137 Can you pay this over 12m?
Gas and Electric = £40
Water = £22
TV Licence = £10.95
Sky = £22.50 Do you NEED this? Go Freeview
Phone and Internet = £36
Mobile = £35 Reduce the tariff until out of contract, then PAYG
Food = £200 (including cat food for 2 cats, cleaning products and beauty products) Sorry but you need to cut this down - look on Old Style board for help reducing all parts of this
Contact lenses = £15 Is that the cheapest? I'm sure Martin has done a piece on contacts...
Bdays, Xmas and emergency money = £70 Throw most this at your debts - this is an emergency
Work lunches = £30 Take your own - leftovers from last night's tea for example
Clothes = £20 Do you really NEED any more clothes?

Total: £888.45

This is based on a budget that I want to stick too. At the moment I am spending more than I get paid, and usually go over my overdraft getting charged the max in penalty fees of 90quid. For example I am 145 over my overdraft this month, so this is 145 out of my next pay cheque already. :eek:

Egg CC – Balance £1450 (limit £1450.00) min £30 APR19.9%
Capital One CC – Balance £200 (limit £200) min £15 APR 34.9%
Dorothy Perkins card – £550 (limit £650) min £21 APR 29.9%
Faith card – £150 (limit £250) min £5 APR 34.9%
Next Catalogue – £530 (limit £1500) min £50 APR26.49%
Natwest Overdraft – £1500, min £75
Barclays Overdraft – £2300 (limit £2300)
Council Tax debt - £355 – still to work out a month payment agreement

HELP I WANT TO BE DEBT AND WORRY FREE!!!!:A

Ok, start a spending diary as I am sure you really spend more than you have written down.

How many are there of you to feed on £200 + £30 lunch money?

Keeping_Positive

Link to an online spending diary http://www.spendingdiary.com/

claire11_2

Sorry I should have explained that I live with my partner. Our rent is £850 a month. I pay £250 of it and all the bills, and then my partner pays the rest of the rent. I am the more orgainised one, so it makes it easier for me to make sure that the bills are paid on time. Although I haven't been doing a very good job of it so far. The council tax is £137 a month.

I have never done a price comparison on my gas and eletric. Are you signed into a years contract like most things on can you do this whenever you like?

I am tide into a years contract with my mobile, phone and internet, which all finish in June. I will look at cancelling, downgrading etc then. And I still have my contract with Sky till Sept. I would be sad to lose this though, it is my life saver. Now that I don't have money to go out I just stay in and watch lots of TV.

My travel expenses come out of my wages, as I have a annual travel card to get into London. I do have a car that I am trying to sell at the moment. I am hoping to get £650 for it, so that will clear a chunk of my debt.

I am going to start a spending diary, as I know I spend way more than I should. Especially on food. I am going to do a serious budget on this in March.

Thank you for everyones advise. I am feeling a lot more positive.

dizzypink

Hi there claire 1 1, I too am new too all of this. I wish you loads of luck. I have been picking up lots of tips from these guys.
Just thought I would say re the Sky. I have 4 kiddies and thought I couldnt live without it. we did survive .

Go for it....video loads between now and when your contract is up then cancel it.......its only telly.Loads of other things more fun, oops thats why we have 4 kiddies.:o

floss2

To track your food spending & using, just keep all your supermarket receipts...then add up how much you spend & cross off the food as it is eaten. Also highlight anything thrown away so you can track what you waste.....

4littleone

Hi Claire, :beer:

One of the ways i save is to meal plan each week. I write down 7 meals, then the ingredients, check what i have in the store cupboards and go from there. Everything is cooked from scratch. Works out much cheaper and better for you as well.

I also leave my cash card at home and only take money with me if i absolutlely have to buy something whilst i'm out. (i keep an emergency tenner though).

Good luck, i'm sure you'll do well.

Verbatim

Hi Claire,

Although you have a contract until June you can still ask them to downgrade now.

If you're spending more than you earn you are presumably not sticking to the budget you've set your self.

Simple actions to get on track
Keep a spending diary where you write down every penny you spend. This helps stop unplanned spends like coffees/mags.

Meal plan at least a week in advance basing meals on what you have already and only buying what is strictly necessary. No thoughts such as "It'll save me money in the end.....the trick now is to spend as little as poss NOW. Make the shortest shopping list you can based on your menu plan and stick to it.

Only take out the money you have planned to spend, no ccs or debit cards or just in case money.

Have you considered opening another bank account and treating your current one as another debt to be paid off like the others at so much a month?

Well done for posting on here. I'll be following your progress. Good luck.

Gemmzie

If you're keeping Sky, then how about their broadband? It's free or £5 a month - should be less than your current one?