My Graduate (Post-Student) Debt Diary!

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  • MrJester
    MrJester Posts: 1,015 Forumite
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    >12 Months
    Purplepenguin88 wrote: »
    Please tell me you're (at least) not going to buy the 2k comp until you have a buyer for your current one? Otherwise your debt will spiral again.
    I get why you need a powerful computer, I need one for my job, and all through uni, but maybe you need to take stock. Maybe selling the 3k one is actually a false economy if you already got an amazing discount etc. Maybe you need to slow down your expectations and work out how to cut the spending rather than sticking in the buy something to sell something rut?
    I dunno, just my thoughts...

    Oh yes, of course. I don't have a 'problem' with spending or anything, for this particular item 6 months ago I just wanted it and felt I could handle the repayments which I still can its just I don't actually want to anymore.
    I sort of see what you're saying, I am in a bit of a spiral of selling things I currently own to assist with debts but I think this can only be a good thing in this situation if I can get back what I paid for it (which I should be able to with a discount of near 800 odd) then still have enough of it to buy a suitable replacement system for what I need AND pay off most of a CC too? No brainer I think.
    sauceoclock wrote: »
    This is a fairly good plan of action... Sometimes you need to do something for yourself and as a techy the iPhone was your 'thing' and you seem to have a good plan to pay it off.. Maybe next time save up a bit when you hear about the release because hopefully by then you should be in a better financial situation to save up beforehand. My 'thing' is makeup and I'm on a spending ban until I have COMPLETELY totalled my collection as I had built up so much. It's been great and has made me appreciate what I have spent on and really squeeze the last out of every tube.. I also barely wear it on weekdays anymore so it’s helped me cut down spending in that respect too. Now spending on anything frivolous like that has to be well thought out and planned in advance – especially as I just don’t have the disposable money to blow with the higher rent costs & car payments to consider.

    Exactly in future I would hope, no, expect that I'd be in much better financial standing to prepare for a big purchase appropriately. A year from now things WILL be very different for me financially, my main aim in this year is still to be financially sound.
    Ha yeah everyone seems to have a thing! Props to you for realising you had to curve it. I have a bit of a clothes 'thing' like I mentioned before but I can't bare to spend much on clothes, any costly clothing items I will happily send back if I don't think its brilliant cause its just not worth the dosh. Luckily I buy everything through ASOS really, and they accept returns no questions asked even a month later after having worn the item lol. That's good customer service!
    sauceoclock wrote: »
    Completely understand why you bought such a high calibre computer (iMac I presume?) however I bought my macbook in 2011 and it’s still going strong (could actually do with a good tuning up so I’m going to be getting on to that this weekend). Hopefully you won’t even notice the downgrade and you’ll still be able to use final cut etc. Whilst I know and empathise it’s horrible not having the latest thing you might need to accept you’re not going to have the most recent *phone, computer, games console, graphics card* for a while, those are things that when you’re in a more settled financial situation and have progressed in your career you can have - I think often I look at people like my parents and think I'll just fall in to that without remembering that they work tirelessly and always have done. You’re smashing through the debt JJ, stick with it! You want to buy a bike to help cut down on your commute costs in the long-term, maybe start thinking about that rather than a tech-y item as your next spend as you’ll get great value out of a £600 bike over the space of 12 months (you’ll actually save more than the bike will cost you if you keep using it).

    Nope its the Mac Pro (yeah, that one). The bike's still in my mind, and soon can consider it once I hopefully get this Bcard out of the way. Luckily the point is relatively mute as I have all I need and don't foresee any big desires of tech purchases on the way. So this should be just a bit of a downgrade of system to get rid of debt and still be hunky dory.
  • MrJester
    MrJester Posts: 1,015 Forumite
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    >12 Months
    So then.. Updates.

    I've moved home finally, got out of the mouse/rat infested place I was previously at. But it came with a price. My rent has gone from £650 all inc, to £770 rent, and with bills probably around £40-50 pcm so up to potentially £820 a month! The joy of London living costs eh.
    But it's important for me to have a nice home environment, I spend a lot of time there, I can deal without having money for other things as long as my home is decent, which I will have to now do.

    There has been a change in my commute though, it now only takes me 20 minutes or less and I now live in Zone 2 and commute to Zone 2 via Overground. Making each journey cost only £1.50-1.60. I'm saving about two thirds in commute costs now! I didn't even realise this until last night. The cost has gone from over £100 down to £40, so essentially the cost of my rent has been subsidized because of it! Silver lining! And anyway I might still yet get a bike eventually when I can get some cash together.

    Right now my Bcard (high interest) is maxed out again, due to the transition of moving place I had to put money up front for rent etc. I should get my deposit back from old place tomorrow, £650 straight off that CC. I get paid on Thursday so can take some more off with that bringing it back to what it was before. As soon as I can sell my Mac Pro, my monitor, and other comp equipment that I will sell too I should be able to pay off that CC completely.

    I really need it out of my life soonish. With having to pay more for rent etc I cant be worrying about this card anymore, as I now have to worry about rather pricey rent and bills with it, so I just want to sell what I can to get rid of it asap.

    With having a nice place now, I will be much more inclined to actually use the kitchen (clean, brand new!) to prepare food and meals and stop spending the £3 or so every day on work lunches.

    I've just moved away from having any virgin active near me, so I've put the membership on freeze (£10 a month, max freeze 3 months) immediately, but still I am locked into the 12 month.. Though very soon I will get my pruhealth through, which gives 50% off the membership. I believe/think it is also rolling monthly and you can close it whenever you like, and you can switch off any membership to the pruhealth membership, so effectively it should mean I can switch to it and then close my membership completely - hopefully, fingers crossed.

    I have that freelance job to complete this week then should bring in £100 for the CC by end of week. Havent had a whole lot of time to do it with moving but need to get it done, get some on my portfolio and then hopefully get more jobs from it.
    I don't think I can do set prices for jobs though after this, I'd prefer to know that for every hour worked I was earning X. I'm not sure how much to charge per hour though, maybe start very low until I get more in my portfolio? Or charge what I actually already earn in my day job. Likely the former to get things going. Though, you still have to give a full price per job when you offer a quote so.. may be irrelevant.

    I should be starting to earn commission's for particular jobs I do with work, each job this could be an extra one or two hundred, and so far this month just gone we've done two with them so far, with one or two upcoming. They are my main client and as long as I keep our partnership a happy one that would mean my paycheque per month goes up a fair bit! I can only hope for now though, hasn't been finalised just yet.
  • System
    System Posts: 178,102 Community Admin
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    JoeJester wrote: »
    So then.. Updates.

    I have that freelance job to complete this week then should bring in £100 for the CC by end of week. Havent had a whole lot of time to do it with moving but need to get it done, get some on my portfolio and then hopefully get more jobs from it.
    I don't think I can do set prices for jobs though after this, I'd prefer to know that for every hour worked I was earning X. I'm not sure how much to charge per hour though, maybe start very low until I get more in my portfolio? Or charge what I actually already earn in my day job. Likely the former to get things going. Though, you still have to give a full price per job when you offer a quote so.. may be irrelevant.


    I'm a Cert3 and soon to be Cert4 on PPH so I might be able to offer some advice here, bid for jobs initially be it fixed price or hourly.. once you've hit a decent level and have good feedback set your hourly rate. People won't use you if they go on your profile and decide your price is a) too much money or b) not enough money.

    Also I'm happy to endorse you if you'd like :) x
  • MrJester
    MrJester Posts: 1,015 Forumite
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    >12 Months
    sauceoclock wrote: »
    I'm a Cert3 and soon to be Cert4 on PPH so I might be able to offer some advice here, bid for jobs initially be it fixed price or hourly.. once you've hit a decent level and have good feedback set your hourly rate. People won't use you if they go on your profile and decide your price is a) too much money or b) not enough money.

    Also I'm happy to endorse you if you'd like :) x

    That's a high cert so I am realising! Great advice to get from an experienced user! Thanks very much sauce.
    Oh brilliant that could help me a lot of the way, maybe I'll PM you my user! thanks :D
  • Purplepenguin88
    Purplepenguin88 Posts: 100 Forumite
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    Well done on moving, I'm moving this weekend!

    Is the new rent including council tax? otherwise I'd expect the bills to be higher than £40-£50 based on my experiences of flatshares. If council tax is in the actual rent you'll probably be OK!
  • MrJester
    MrJester Posts: 1,015 Forumite
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    edited 17 November 2014 at 7:18PM
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    >12 Months
    Purplepenguin88 wrote: »
    Well done on moving, I'm moving this weekend!

    Is the new rent including council tax? otherwise I'd expect the bills to be higher than £40-£50 based on my experiences of flatshares. If council tax is in the actual rent you'll probably be OK!

    NOPE it is not. I am yet to get a final cost on that. Will have a look now..

    EDIT: Band D, £1297 per annum. Is this based on the house in total, or per person?

    If per person, extra £108 per month.

    EDIT: I just read that the bill is per person, can someone confirm please? As then it would be 21.67 each extra per month.
  • MrJester
    MrJester Posts: 1,015 Forumite
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    >12 Months
    sauceoclock wrote: »
    I'm a Cert3 and soon to be Cert4 on PPH so I might be able to offer some advice here, bid for jobs initially be it fixed price or hourly.. once you've hit a decent level and have good feedback set your hourly rate. People won't use you if they go on your profile and decide your price is a) too much money or b) not enough money.

    Also I'm happy to endorse you if you'd like :) x

    Thank you for your endorsement sauce!! :D
  • System
    System Posts: 178,102 Community Admin
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    JoeJester wrote: »
    NOPE it is not. I am yet to get a final cost on that. Will have a look now..

    EDIT: Band D, £1297 per annum. Is this based on the house in total, or per person?

    If per person, extra £108 per month.

    EDIT: I just read that the bill is per person, can someone confirm please? As then it would be 21.67 each extra per month.

    Yes bill is given to the property as a whole, so divide by how many people live there. :)
  • MrJester
    MrJester Posts: 1,015 Forumite
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    >12 Months
    sauceoclock wrote: »
    Yes bill is given to the property as a whole, so divide by how many people live there. :)

    Thanks. It's not so bad then really. £26 or whatever each PCM.
    Like I said before I'm saving a lot on commute costs. Though my cost for living is approaching £850 with everything. So I'm spending a good £200 more per month.
    I don't know how long I'll stay in this property, I'll deal with it till after Christmas. I made a very quick decision to get into this property within a week as I just HAD to move from my old place, it was diabolical.
    I am down on this contract but as long as I replace myself with someone else (which in London, I'm sure will be easy) then I can move on.

    In the new year I will look into finding a more ideal spot for me. At my current work we have to change offices early next year anyhow, which could of course change a lot where the best location is for me (though it should be staying in the same area).
    Would prefer something cheaper assuming my wages don't alter much (may start earning more shortly, commissions and overtime, but might not be huge amounts after tax).
    With less people again, went from around 9-person house to a 5-person house, would prefer something around 3-4 I think. Orrrr would much prefer my own place, you never know :D

    Should be able to go pickup my deposit from previous tenancy tonight after work as today is the last day of that tenancy. That will be helpful right now, most going straight onto Bcard, get paid on thursday thankfully :T
  • Purplepenguin88
    Purplepenguin88 Posts: 100 Forumite
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    I don't know how many people are in your property but:

    Take the bill, divide by 10 (you pay over 10 months and get 2 months "free").
    Take that payment and divide by number of people in the property (assuming that none are students).
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