Debt mutual support thread number 7 ....... Spring is coming - let the sun shine into your finances and your life

[TalkinPeace]

This thread follows on from the last six threads in the series, the most recent of which is here.
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/legal_money_matters/2258202-Debt-mutual-support-thread-number-6-start-the-new-year-with-a-clear-purpose-and-keep-moving-forwards-even-by-tiny-steps?

We live in a society that makes it horribly easy to get into debt but makes it incredibly hard to admit you have a problem and even harder to get out of debt.
The posters on threads, new and experienced, are here to help people get to where they want to be.

I am not in debt, any more.
Here is a link to some spreadsheets that might help
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/legal_money_matters/1987219-SPREADSHEETS-for-Debt-Control-Budgeting-Mortgages-etc

and lots of people use this
YouNeedABudget

The important things to remember are

• yesterday is as past as the Crimean War

( we will not judge how you got into debt, but we will support you on the way out )

• this is an anonymous forum

( we will not tell your employer, family or friends of the reality of your numbers and we are here day and night )

• this thread is about supporting people through the huge mindset changes needed to come out of debt

( feel free to offload all of the feelings that drive you to want to spend, that make it hard to save and that generally make life crap at times, including getting those closest to you to recognise the changes needed )

Join in, bare your soul and come out the other end.
Its worth it.
You are worth it
The long term results for you, your partner, your children, and your friends and family are worth it.

I haven't been on in a long time, its been a hard year emotionally but things are getting better. was doing pretty well on debt front -paid off 2 catalogues total £400. had plans to pay off one c card (£250) by end of august which hasn't happened.

this holiday I've been rubbish and spent too much going out, meal plan went out of the window. all my free days out didn't happen as the weather was so bad so we ended up getting buses to places loads rather than walking (5.50 per day) so now im left with £50 till rest of the hols with some food shopping still to get.... determined make it last rather than stick it on a card.

Hi Alterego
The main thing to be honest is to keep your eye on the ball.
Debts balloon when people do not face up to them month in, month out.
With interest rates as low as they are, every month that you stop debt growing it is inflating away.

Nocuts
Ditto to the above : you may have not been as frugal as you had planned (and yes the weather has been utterly shite) but you have planned and thought
which is the real secret to living within your means.

Its a slow process : but stopping the debt growing is an achievement in itself

Luckily everything is on 0% so no horrid interest surprises for us.

Wow! Well done you : so every penny you pay down is whumping the capital
and every week you live within your means, the bigger cushion you build for when the debt is gone.

Hello!
(I was baddz btw prior to hack gate)
It's my first payday next week! Hurrah!
Dh has a meeting on Tuesday so should find out if he is getting a promotion..
Car cost £91 to fix :( and my teeth are still not right but I will tackle that after the kids go back to school.

Hi all, a fellow poster commented on my thread and referred me here :)

I feel like I have pretty much lost control over my finances lately and am hiding a lot from my partner.

I have just contacted Stepchange and am setting up a DMP.

Unfortunately the DWP will not put my account on hold as it is with the recovery team.

I am struggling to find what I owe all together, so far I am going by my credit report. I cant seem to find an address or email address to contact Virgin Media regarding an old outstanding debt. This is quite frustrating

Hi there boredadmin
Somewhere on the Virgin site will be a phone number.
Contact them and tell them you want to leave. That will swiftly get you through to the sales team who will be able to give you all of the detail.

Go through your bank statements to get the reference numbers for all direct debits
do the same with your credit card statement

it will take a while, but the more thorough you are about working out what you owe, the sooner you can get a plan to sort it.

REmember that if the bailiff really wanted to get in and collect stuff, he's have done so by now.

It may be a DWP investigator checking that you are out of work and living where you say.

If nothing else, openly take a picture of them and send it to a trusted friend (so it cannot be deleted) and then ask who they are.

But in the mean time, you need to get your debts well and truly sorted.

Feel free to PM me lots of details and I'll come up with ideas that can be discussed on the thread

Well, I am trying to get my finances in order.
Have got a better car ins deal...£6 per month cheaper and £50 food voucher (which I will save for my Xmas shop.)
Am going to just get a sim only contract for my phone when my contract expires in jan...that will save me nearly £20 per month!
Still waiting to hear about Dhs job...am not overly hopeful tbh. They have shafted him in the past.

Badders
PAYG on phones is a real saving : as you only call when you need to and pay for what you use.
Between the 4 of us we barely use £30 a month!

Fingers crossed for your DH.

I'm thinking of starting a fresh thread with a fersher theme for the new academic year as some people find joining and existing one a tad intimidating ....

Talkin definitely start a fresh one.

shall do : just need to think of a good theme
after sorting a shit load of RW hassle this week

Is it all okay now?

I'm fine but I have a tendency to try to help those in a pickle so I'm attending a county court eviction hearing tomorrow .....

I hope it goes okay.

by Wednesday, both of my current Pro Bono projects will be out of my hands

and then I'll sort a new thread

I'm was back at work yesterday. Feel like I've gone from 0-80 in a day! Start of term, always frantic no matter how prepared I am or how many years I've been teaching.

:-)

I'd love a new thread please, very keen to join. :)

I'll get one done this evening .... shall cogitate on a welcoming title while I finish my current set of accounts

Shiny new thread
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/legal_money_matters/2465435-Drowning-in-debt-and-cannot-talk-to-people-in-Real-Life-A-problem-shared-is-a-problem-brought-into-perspective-come-and-join-the-lens?