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Original poster

Budgeting for mat leave

4 replies

newtonupontheheath · 22/02/2015 11:42

We really can't afford dc3 (due in August) so are re-assessing finances. Have already saved £100 per month by switching our mortgage-luckily our LTV rate fell just under 80% so we were eligible for a cheaper deal from this month!
Have cancelled our summer holiday as it was 2 weeks before due date and got approx £2k back, and am hoping to get approx £5-6k for my car, which I've just put up for sale. Together this should cover what I will lose over 9 months of mat leave.

My question is, is it better to pay things off now or budget monthly for our "usual" bills. We have a loan, a credit card and some furniture on credit. Both loan and furniture are due to be paid off by the time I would return to work, credit card balance is low % for life (about 2.9%)

OP posts:
Cooki3Monst3r · 22/02/2015 23:17

Always pay off your debt, if you can. It's crazy talk to think about putting cash in the bank and keep paying all that interest.

You're talking about having £7k cash to boost your 9 months mat pay. That's £777 a month.

You've already reduced your mortgage by £100. How much would you save each month if you paid off the debts?

Original poster
newtonupontheheath · 23/02/2015 10:10

Not exact figures, but off the top of my head:

The loan is £300 per month, and was due to be paid by feb 16 but this will reduce to July 15 if I pay £2k off now/soon. Spoke to dh and we will pay off as much as we can off this as this is the most interest (around 8%) Ironically, this was for the car we are now selling. Laughable if I didn't want to cry Sad

Furniture is £125 per month and due to be paid by sept 16 (when I will be back at work) There is less than £2k owed on this. No interest if we pay off within 12 months and around 5% after that.

Cc is on £100 per month which is the max we could afford. This won't be paid for another year or so, we were planning to move the £300 from the loan after feb 16 to get it paid off but I guess it'll just have to wait. It's closed, so not increasing any. Other than interest.

We've also put the wheels in motion to cancel sky, saving £75 per monthShock

OP posts:
lizzie1570 · 25/02/2015 08:55

It's nice to know it wasn't just me and DH having this prob! We paid off as much as we could, so that during mat leave we don't have to panic. Then moved the credit card to Santander 0% and then by August it should be more manageable. You will be ok try to stay calm as it can be so stressful xxx

Aus541 · 10/03/2015 10:51

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