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Ammeretto's journey to no more worries
Ammeretto
Posts: 181 Forumite
I have been lurking on this site for a little while now, gaining inspiration and ideas from all the fab diaries on here. I have already subscribed to a few 
I thought it was about time that I took the leap and started a diary of my own to help me on my journey to no more debt worries.
So a bit about myself. I am nearing 30 (38 days to go) :eek:. I’m married to a wonderful man and we have two boys. One is 9 and the other is 3. My family is my world and I want to get this debt sorted for them. I would like to take the kids to Disney world Florida in 2014 (by which time I should only have the loan remaining)
We have been in debt for most of our adult lives. It started when OH got made redundant from his job within 5 months of us buying our first home. We have never really seemed to get out of debt since then. It has gone up and down throughout the years but has always been there. Now is the time to get it sorted once and for all.
Our debt is the highest it’s ever been, but equally so is our income.
Realistically we can be clear of the credit card and overdraft debt by Dec 2013 :T. That will leave just the loan which on its own will finish June 2015
Debts are currently (as at 30.06.12)
OH Cat
£399.00
0% until Aug. £168 interest to be added if not paid in full
My Cat
£227.95
0% until Oct. £78 interest to be added if not paid in full
OH Card 1
£1,844.59
15.9%
My Card 1
£4,191.00
0% until Apr 13
OH Card 2
£5,045.00
0% until Sep 13
My Card 2
£1,708.00
0% until Sep 13
OH Card 3
£1,960.00
0% until Feb 13
Overdraft
£1,097.38
19.9% - will be gone by end of Aug as OH has overtime
Loan
£14,419.41
12.9%
Total
£30,892.33
Total excluding loan
£16,472.92 – This is what I will be concentrating on for now.
I will put up a full SOA, but probably not until Sep. The figures for this month and next month are skewed as DS2 is finishing nursery and starting school in Sep (saved over £450 in childcare costs).
So what am I doing to help me see my debt free goals?
Well I am meal planning, driving more carefully to save fuel, ebaying – sold 12 items so far making a profit of £52 after Ebay and PayPal fees, another 12 are on and there are more items to list.
Another one of my goals is to lose some weight. I want to get to where I was when we married 5 years ago. So target loss is 16lbs. I’m going to really try and lose as much as possible by middle Aug as it is my 30th, and we are also going away for a week at the end of August. I am doing slimming world at home so no class fees. I hope to lose about 8 lbs by then (it always comes off slowly for me) hopefully more.
Bye for now
Ammeretto
I thought it was about time that I took the leap and started a diary of my own to help me on my journey to no more debt worries.
So a bit about myself. I am nearing 30 (38 days to go) :eek:. I’m married to a wonderful man and we have two boys. One is 9 and the other is 3. My family is my world and I want to get this debt sorted for them. I would like to take the kids to Disney world Florida in 2014 (by which time I should only have the loan remaining)
We have been in debt for most of our adult lives. It started when OH got made redundant from his job within 5 months of us buying our first home. We have never really seemed to get out of debt since then. It has gone up and down throughout the years but has always been there. Now is the time to get it sorted once and for all.
Our debt is the highest it’s ever been, but equally so is our income.
Realistically we can be clear of the credit card and overdraft debt by Dec 2013 :T. That will leave just the loan which on its own will finish June 2015
Debts are currently (as at 30.06.12)
OH Cat
£399.00
0% until Aug. £168 interest to be added if not paid in full
My Cat
£227.95
0% until Oct. £78 interest to be added if not paid in full
OH Card 1
£1,844.59
15.9%
My Card 1
£4,191.00
0% until Apr 13
OH Card 2
£5,045.00
0% until Sep 13
My Card 2
£1,708.00
0% until Sep 13
OH Card 3
£1,960.00
0% until Feb 13
Overdraft
£1,097.38
19.9% - will be gone by end of Aug as OH has overtime
Loan
£14,419.41
12.9%
Total
£30,892.33
Total excluding loan
£16,472.92 – This is what I will be concentrating on for now.
I will put up a full SOA, but probably not until Sep. The figures for this month and next month are skewed as DS2 is finishing nursery and starting school in Sep (saved over £450 in childcare costs).
So what am I doing to help me see my debt free goals?
Well I am meal planning, driving more carefully to save fuel, ebaying – sold 12 items so far making a profit of £52 after Ebay and PayPal fees, another 12 are on and there are more items to list.
Another one of my goals is to lose some weight. I want to get to where I was when we married 5 years ago. So target loss is 16lbs. I’m going to really try and lose as much as possible by middle Aug as it is my 30th, and we are also going away for a week at the end of August. I am doing slimming world at home so no class fees. I hope to lose about 8 lbs by then (it always comes off slowly for me) hopefully more.
Bye for now
Ammeretto
0
Comments
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Good luck Ammeretto, you have the same motivation as me for getting rid of your debt. I know I will have made it when I can take my kids to Florida :j, but that is a long way off right now! You have made a great start, keep up the hard work
March'13 - Debt £13000 :eek:Total % paid - 0%0 -
Its a bit shameful but its been two months since ive posted
The debt has increased overall in the past two months. We spent some money (more than expected) getting the garden finished, we also had car insurance of £291 and for My 30th OH paid for me and my sister to visit a spa for the day. (which was heavenly but costly)
so balances as at 31.08.12
OH Cat
£0.00
:j
My Cat
£381.95
0% until Oct. £78 interest to be added if not paid in full
OH Card 1
£3,356.94
15.9%
My Card 1
£4,002.00
0% until Apr 13
OH Card 2
£4,945.00
0% until Sep 13
My Card 2
£1,672.00
0% until Sep 13
OH Card 3
£1,920.00
0% until Feb 13
Overdraft
£1,423.54
19.9%
Loan
£13,781.23
12.9%
Total
£31,482.66
Total excluding loan
£17,701.43
overall increase of £590 not good
This month however looking a lot better. All cards already paid for the month and most of the regular bills have gone out.
Balance on main account is £520 in credit (which is almost unheard of at this time off the month - its usually overdrawn after day 2 of the month) There is still £185 still to come into the account and the remaining bills are only £150.00 so should finish with the account £550.00 in credit :T This means that the overdraft is gone :j another debt gone.
At the end of the month the spare will be paid onto OH card 1
Next month is also looking great as OH was underpaid his overtime last month so that is £430 gross, along with some more overtime and he should also get a bonus.
All things going as planned he should be getting in the region of £3300.00 take home.
This will allow us to clear a further £1600 OH card 1
On another note - DS2 started school this week (so cute in jis uniform) and as i had today off work i popped into town. There was a new charity shop opening up and i managed to pick up the boys a t shirt each and a jumper each for £8.00
Ammeretto0 -
Evening all
Had a good weekend - took the kids to a play / fun farm and they loved it (cost me £11.90 though)
Sunday was shopping day - spent a lot but some of that was much needed clothes for OH and socks for
DS1 (i dont know what he does to them but they always seem to fall apart on him)
Yesterday was a NSD and today was a LSD - just £2 for the syndicate at work.
Was hoping that i would have about £550 spare in account this month to pay to OH card 1, however his bike needs to go in for a service and he also needs to get some stuff for winter - Hot grips for handles, waterproof suit and something else i cant quite remember.
Been thinking about setting some debt targets. i like targets they keep me motivated.
So for this month my aims are to :-
Clear overdraft - balance end of Aug was £1,423.54 - pretty much definitely done (bar any major mishaps)
Get total debt under £29.5k (need to pay off at least £1,982.67 inc interest added)
Goals for the rest of 2012 :-
Get Credit card debt under £15k (£17,508.48 @ 31.08.12)
Clear OH Card 1 (£3,356.94 @ 31.08.12)
Clear total debt by at least 10% (£27,926.68) but prefer 20% (£24,823.72)
20% clear would also be another milestone in that the debt will be sub £25K
pretty sure i can get to the 10% clear but 20% will be a bit harder but not impossible.
now that my childcare costs are pretty much finalized i will post an SOA soon. Scary stuff me thinks :mad:
Ammeretto0 -
Here goes my SOA.
points to note. Surplas has not always been so much as had been paying out over £600 per month on childcare.
Debt balances are what i expect them to be as at 30.09.12 and the payments are ones i will make in October.
Also i did have a cash balance for the car savings however they were all wiped out on car spending.
Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 2
Number of cars owned.................... 2
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1939.38
Partners monthly income after tax....... 1181.59
Benefits................................ 134.8
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 3255.77
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 541.9
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 100
Electricity............................. 60
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 37.91
Telephone (land line)................... 14.6
Mobile phone............................ 47
TV Licence.............................. 12.12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 16.85
Internet Services....................... 25.4
Groceries etc. ......................... 260
Clothing................................ 10
Petrol/diesel........................... 195
Road tax................................ 21
Car Insurance........................... 55
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 36
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 100
Other child related expenses............ 50
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 4
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 31
Buildings insurance..................... 37.7
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 39.88
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 60
Haircuts................................ 10
Entertainment........................... 20.18
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 40
account charge.......................... 4.5
Kids savings............................ 52
Total monthly expenses.................. 1882.04
Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 122000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2500
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 124500
Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 90131....(541.9)....4.49
Total secured & HP debts...... 90131.....-.........-
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
My Cat.........................381.95....189.......0
OH Card 1......................3154.58...100.......15.9
My Card 1......................3910......89........0
Loan...........................13458.2...466.1....13.1
OH Card 3......................1900......20........0
My Card 2......................1654......18........0
OH Card 2......................4895......50........0
Total unsecured debts..........29353.73..932.1.....-
Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 3,255.77
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,882.04
Available for debt repayments........... 1,373.73
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 932.1
Amount left after debt repayments....... 441.63
Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 124,500
Total HP & Secured debt................. -90,131
Total Unsecured debt.................... -29,353.73
Net Assets.............................. 5,015.27
Created using the SOA calculator at
Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission, using other browser.0 -
thought i hop across to you this time :beer:
and seriously its gets weirder...........
I'm addicted to books..(admit never actually get round to reading, too busy staring at spreadsheets)
Not quite cross stich BUT just bought my first sewing machine to attempt being creative & making pretty things..
and i run the purchasing/stores for the branch along with invoicing for accounts... :rotfl:
even income/outgoings are v.similar :dance:
are you 5'5 and blonde (with well overdue roots :rotfl:) by any chance,
oh and how can i forget, ive got a bike and so's the fella :eek:
even our c/card debt is couple £k off the same and we're aiming for debt free on this part by..wait for it... dec/jan 2013 :rotfl:Peak £52,195.89 :eek: 24/9 £48,892.24 - GOAL C/Cards under 10k by 24th Jan 201324/6 CC £14,477 24/7 CC £14,249 24/8 CC £13,908 24/9 CC £13,0689/10 CC £12,409.91 :TOfficial DFW NERD #1441 PaD @ 9/10 £226 SPC5 #1835
:dance:Proud to be dealing with my debts :dance:0 -
Hi EJG
Love books - always reading love my kindle
i also have a sewing machine and have made a few items for the kids (trousers) and pressies
i cross stitch (well not so much any more)
Passed AAT and am studying ACCA, and work in accounts
i dont have a bike (bit impractical with the kids)
i am 5'5 but i have dyed black hair (roots do need doing though) :rotfl:
my c/c debt free is prob not going to be until sep/nov 13 though
Very spooky0 -
Quick update.
The past week hasn't been too bad spend wise - just normal fuel and groceries. I also picked up a pressie for DS1 friend as it was his birthday party. that was £5.99 so not too bad. Already had cards and wrapping paper in the house.
DS2 broke his glasses last week so had to go to specsavers and order some more. Spider-man ones this time. Hopefully we can pick them up tomorrow as he is currently wearing his year old glasses which are his old prescription.
Two days later i got his next eye test appointment through. He goes back in Oct for another eye test and will prob get a new prescription, so he will get to chose another pair of glasses next month. Hopefully his eye will have improved even more so that he can stop wearing his patch. :A
For that past two weeks DS2 has been part time in school as they ease him into it and from this week its full time. He loves it there. He looks so grown up in his uniform.
Its his birthday next week and he will be 4 - gosh where has the time gone.
We have gotten him a Castle with knights and dragons. It cost £29.99. I also picked him up 2 4 packs of puzzles from Argos. They were on 2 for £8. DS1 is giving him one as his birthday pressie and the other one will be kept for Christmas.
Only have £1.32 left in spends account and £10 in my purse.
It only has to last until Friday. Should be ok. The only thing i can see me needing is fuel for the car, poss some milk.
If i can keep spends to this then i will be able to overpay OH card 1 by £345.66 - this is less that the £500 odd that i originally planned, but that's OK as some planned bike spends (waterproof overalls, boot covers, bike service as it reached 2500 miles and some hot grip handles - a must for winter) for next month were brought forward to this month so should have more next month instead.
Off to read some more inspirational diaries. 0 -
Hello all.
Not too bad a day today.
was busy in work and then when i got home had to take DS2 into town to get his new glasses fitted. He loves them.
Put £15 fuel in the car. This will last to Friday when our new month starts.
OH had his payslip and they have messed his pay up again :mad:
they underpaid him by £433 last month and they didn't add it back on this month like they said they would.
OH is going to speak to them tomorrow.
He did get his overtime pay though and his bonus
i will finalise this months figures next month when all payments and interest on OH card 1 and loan has been applied.
Hoping to get under the £29.5k mark like i wanted but i have a feeling i will be over it by around £40
Off to study now0 -
Hi Ammeretto!
Not good RE: pay Can they not make an additional payment to him as a matter of urgency, after all it's their mistake... twice!
Have you got anything to ebay or sell? Try and make that £40 that way instead!
Good luck
Katie x"Life’s up and downs provide windows of opportunity to determine your values and goals. Think of using all obstacles as stepping stones to build the life you want."
Marsha Sinetar
NSD Challenge ~ October 50 -
Hi Katieandlee
thanks for posting OH is waiting to hear from them.
I do have things to sell, but the money wont be here by the time i do my month end figures. Just a little annoying that's all.
a LSD day today - i bought toast in work at morning break 70p but i was sooo hungry.
Ammeretto0
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