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Original poster

Debt Free 2007?

551 replies

Flamesparrow · 28/11/2006 17:42

Keep thinking about this since yesterday...

Am thinking that my aim for 2007 is to be in a decent(ish) money situation next Christmas BUT I don't wanna take the swing out of the budgie's cage completely...

I need to work out how to save money, pay all the bills, but still be able to have the odd treat here and there.

I thinking:

  • Decent food budgetting/planning
  • uswitch (I think I am on the cheapest anyway)
  • s/o for savings AND a s/o for treats
  • Work out the birthdays that will be coming across the year and make sure I put aside enough each month to cover the hell months.

What else should I be doing?

OP posts:
kidsrus · 12/02/2007 00:00

nikkie and charlie im sorry things are breaking down have you heard of freecycle you can pick up things free that someone wants to get rid of or give something yourself. ive just joined tonight so have no experience as yet but willing to give it a try.
passata is great for making a cheap bolognaise sauce.
I use just 1 washing tablet in each wash unless the clothes are really dirty.(better for the environment too)
lidl/aldi is great too i save a fortune shopping there.
online shopping for bulky/heavy items once a month is good.
i change credit cards every 6 months to 0% and try not to increase them but pay off regular amounts this works well some even extend their deals near the end.
turn off t.v completely at night standby uses 80% of the power as if it was on.
i also make all my own cakes/food and use all white brands.
I love prima mag it has loads of tips for living on a shoestring and has lots of happy thoughts too
but it does work well and i must start again i just need some inspiration so if i can join you all i would be most gratefull.

Bananaknickers · 12/02/2007 12:29

I have 3 accounts with RBS. got charged £60 for being £57 overdrawn in Jan. IT was just that I forgot to transfer money from 1 account to the other to cover 2 direct debits. . About the same I made on ebay last month. Worked my balls of for nothing.

MascaraOHara · 12/02/2007 12:36

hi folks, just checking in.. things are going pretyt rubbish for me at the minute. Not in a bad way just being really crappola.

Got caught speeding (£60 fine) car tax runs out at end of month (175 or what ever it is) Overdraft today is currently £700 don't get paid yet and am pretty sure mortgage hasn't come out.

nikkie · 12/02/2007 19:52

I am on freecycle but am usually donating rather than accepting!Ours is oretty car*p as its al wants and we are a poor area.I also go on Kendal (and the Lakes) good stuff there but nothing at the right time so far!

GreedyGecko · 13/02/2007 11:51

Just done this weeks shopping. £40.07. So I treated myself to a Cadburys Creme Egg!

nikkie · 13/02/2007 12:31

Well done, we are having a cheap week too, only need bread and F&V !

chatee · 13/02/2007 12:42

Tresemme shampoo and conditioner is on bogof at t e s c o ....

charliecat · 13/02/2007 17:35

I am a member of freecycle. Have got my rat tanks and cages from there. Have offered a few things but cant think what at the moment. Ahve a heap of toddler books to freecycle...hmm WILL get round to that.
Didnt I mention I accidently spent 50 on food? Hmm....and it wasnt good food either. And we only really needed Bread and milk.
And that its half term which means having the heating on, so im 30 quid down...and dps brother decided to pay us a visit. Sp dps used a tank load of petrol getting him form the airport etc....ho hum. tighten belts ...er...soon.
Weve nothign to tighten this week.
And I saw the tresemme in Tesco after spending 50 in morrisons and couldnt justify it..............arrrrrrrrrrgggggggggghhhhhhhhhhh thanks tho chatee!!!!

Bananaknickers · 14/02/2007 11:27

Half term with little money is a challenge for me at the moment. We spent day at a friends yesterday. Today we are going to do baking.They eat me out of house and home at half term so I am killing two birds with one stone.Raining here

charliecat · 14/02/2007 14:08

I am in today waiting for a courier/saving money by not going out.
I have a mumsnetter and her 4 dc coming tommorow, cheap picnic and a bag of chips at the end of the day!

GreedyGecko · 14/02/2007 20:34

I think reality is dripping through to DP. We were having a whinge about how some people we know have been so silly with remortgaging over & over again etc. He realised that we are paying approx £400 each month on CCs and loans, and that's all money we could have to ourselves/plough into the mortgage. Finally. Fingers crossed he doens't forget.

nikkie · 14/02/2007 22:07

Forgot about phone bill in my calculations ,its just changed from quarterly to monthly. £14 this month is that good or bad?

pookey · 14/02/2007 22:14

kidsrus if you are a credit tart or whatever the phrase is, i noticed this on money saving expert smartcard . I was tempted by thew fact there is no fee and 0% transfers for 6 months, but we have worked out if we are careful we should be able to pay off our cards by May and want to get out of the 0% trap as that is why we have these debts in the first place. This will still be an expensive year as we are having a baby, need to do repairs to the house and are remortgaging.

pookey · 14/02/2007 22:17

sorry off to bed, didnt get any further with reading messages but will catch up in the next couple of days with how you are all doing

charliecat · 15/02/2007 09:51

Very good isnt it? My phone, broadband and line rental and calls are 50 per month with bt. Tied into a 18 month contract. But have been with bt for years and never had any bother and my bills have never been more than 50 a month so no nasty surprises.

MascaraOHara · 15/02/2007 09:57

£1400 overdrawn and still a week til I get paid.. as I said befoer I had hoped to be only £1k overdrawn this month. Then ened to add on speeding fine and car tax but both these can wait until I get paid. Will list some more stuff on eBay.

On the upside, I should get a bonus this month (which might cover my overdraft) AND I have managed not to do a shop for the last two weeks

Original poster
Flamesparrow · 15/02/2007 10:10

Aww sorry this month isn't going well for people

My fridge died, but we managed to get one on freecycle.

All seems to be staying pretty much on track so far luckily...

We've decided to accept the offer from the bank for the overdraft charges - its nowhere near the total, but 2 small children, trying to set up a new business - I can't face the court issues, so we're just going with the easy option and getting something iyswim. Will end up with £450 - £350 going off loan, and £100 to use for the business.

OP posts:
staceym11 · 15/02/2007 10:11

hi! could i possibly join? so far this month i am £30 away from my overdraft limit (£300) and dh doesnt get paid till next friday!

i've recently switched gas and elcetric company to get a cheaper deal, we dont use credit cards, im now using re-usable baby wipes to save a bit of money, buying fruit and veg off the market, making my own cleaning stuff, looking into using reusable nappies

is there anything else i can do!?

Original poster
Flamesparrow · 15/02/2007 10:13

If you wanna go and look in the small business bit for nappy ads then you can help out my finances when you get the reusable nappies

Here's the list we made fairly early on in the thread

  • Decent food budgetting/planning
  • uswitch
  • s/o for savings AND a s/o for treats
  • Work out the birthdays that will be coming across the year and make sure I put aside enough each month to cover the hell months.

SHOPPING
*Shop online if you make a comprehensive list (it will cost more if you miss lots off)
*Menu plan ? easier to make a stickable to shopping list

  • Use Quidco to get money back on shopping
  • If you can be trusted to pay it all off before the end of the month, do your shopping on a Tesco credit card to get the points to use elsewhere
  • Eat before you shop
  • Buy extras like milk and bread at the corner shop ? what slight extra you pay for the milk, you save on not seeing tempting offers!! (4 pts of milk is actually CHEAPER at my corner shop than Tesco Express)
  • Sign up for anything that will send you free vouchers
  • Pay at the self service machines in Tesco as they accept all vouchers regardless of purchases
  • Avoid gift/cleaning aisle in shops ? you buy things you don?t need FOOD ? Menu plan! It can be a 2 or 3 week mix n match type thing, but have some plan to help you shop ? Work out which foods can be economised on, and which are just not worth it ? value mushrooms are just an odd shape, value mince is more fatty, but if you strain it it is fine, but frozen mince tastes like disintergrated cardboard ? Cook bulk meals and freeze ? 2 packs of mince can often make 3 meals, where as 1 pack makes 1 n a bit ? Bulk meals out with lots of veg ? again, a Bolognese sauce goes a lot further if its filled with peppers, grated carrots etc ? Take drinks out with you so you are not forced to buy ? Get Fruit and Veg at markets

GIFTS
? Keep a list of birthdays with you so you can buy presents as you spot bargains
? Save for Christmas NOW ? Use a club or a separate savings account with a standing order - don?t wait and see what you can afford at the end of the month ? you won?t be able to

GENERAL
? Save up spare £1 coins and coppers etc ? You can get it changed at most Sainsbury?s in a machine ? it does take some of your money in a charge, but I never get it changed if I have to take it to a bank, so it makes more sense.
? Claim back you bank charges if you have them
? Cut up credit cards ? If it is not a matter of starvation or eviction, it is NOT an emergency
ITS NOT A BARGAIN IF YOU DIDN?T NEED IT IN THE FIRST PLACE!!!

Welcome to penniless world

OP posts:
staceym11 · 15/02/2007 10:16

thanks for that, will look at your ad for nappies!

Bananaknickers · 15/02/2007 10:19

I got a letter from powergen this morning as we owe them a backlog of money from 18 months ago ( we owed it and did't know). They decided to come for it just before christmas. we owed them over £400. we have now made two payments.This months was late so they threatened me with a debt collecting agengy. Anyway I have gone back to monthly payments. Where do they get of sending such vile letters.

We are paying family tax credits back. We are paying n power because they didn't charge us for gas since we moved in ( din't know this either as thought it came in the one bill). All these back payments for other peoples cock ups. Now my budget envelopes are being underpaid.

Just seems like we are never gonna get clear of these debts.

On a plus I think I am gonna get out of doing a food shop this week..

charliecat · 15/02/2007 10:21

I am going to the bank today to get £50 to refill my jars....hmm, the phone budget has been stolen for gas, and the water/sewarage for petrol.

staceym11 · 15/02/2007 10:22

flamesparrow, i am on a very limited budget, have looked at your website, but i really need a cheap all round option for nappies, you have any tips? iv got a 14week old and a 2yr old both in nappies, so could do with the whole package for as cheap as pos!

Bananaknickers · 15/02/2007 10:27

had a result yesterday. I found a hair in some chicken ( shrink wraped). Took it back to store and got my money back and another packet of chicken. Got a cheap box of wine as a treat with some of the money I got back.

Bananaknickers · 15/02/2007 10:28

Did you have a good time yesterday charliecat?