No Spend September

[StellaCruella]

Hi all
We have around £6.5k debt that I am determined to pay off as quickly as possible so we can start to build some meaningful savings.
To kick start this, I am planning a no spend September.
Anyone with me?

Very inspiring, I've got tons of cupboard and freezer food, and could switch off Netflix for a bit.

I'm thinking of running down our stocks of food. I think I was just buying it as soem sort of compensation for low mood.

I've done this in August and I have saved £700 so far. Not sure what DDS are still left to go out but hopefully will be up a couple of hundred. I have a dental bill for £2600 due in September hence being frugal this month

Well done!!

I went through my banking apps yesterday and cancelled all bar essential subscriptions. Over £100 saved in September!

Feeling positive

wow that's a great start, its amazing how much these little subs add up isn't it, I think its so easy to do because 'its just a tenner'. I'm guilty of it i have prime, prime music, Netflix and Disney! Having all these is still less than we were paying for sky though, I'm pretty sure the kids never even noticed i cancelled it either!

@mickandrorty
Exactly, I was so surprised. Especially with ones that bill quarterly- you forget about them.

I went through my direct debits yesterday afternoon and cut £20 out of my phone bill and break down cover were going to do the sky and then go through some of the bigger bills that are in my husband's name tomorrow.
£20 isn't much but £240 is roughly what I spend on Christmas presents!

@OKbutwhyplease it really adds up!

That's the sky cancelled and a saving of £60 a month.
This is all rather addictive isn't it 😆

joining ! All 3 of my kids have summer birthdays and we are going to Cornwall on Sunday . I do have £300 saved for spending money though

need a reset in sep / oct

ive got into bad habits with Klarna which I then forget to budget for

It's so easily done isn't it, particularly when it's small purchases.

Yes same - Klarna, Clearpay, urban outfitters -
All small amounts but they really add up.

No more credit for me - if I can't afford it I don't have it!

I've been listening to a money podcast which is really motivating. First step is to pay off the £6k of debt and then build a savings pot for emergencies over the next year.

Target for this month is £1.5k - seems so high but that's basically what I fritter away each month!

Which money podcast are you listening to OP?

It's called Making Money on Spotify

some people say you should try and get £500-£1000 emergency fund even when paying off debt so an emergency doesn't tempt you to just whack it back on a credit card

I think klana et al when used appropriately can be a excellent tool I often need to try three sizes on for example so will order through klana and then pay off what I keep immediately rather than waiting for the huge chunk of foods to come back to me.

@OKbutwhyplease absolutely- I just never use it like that!

@Cottagecheeseisnotcheese I've been pondering this myself. How much to use to clear debt and how much to put away for emergencies.

My plan (and what DH has always done) is, on pay day, seperate out my money so bills all go out, food shopping goes into a seperate account, and then what's left sits in my Chase account. Then keep it until the end of the month and, providing no emergencies have eaten into it, use it to pay off debt then.

I'm only four days in and stuck to it, save I did buy a much needed fan (managed to get a damaged box discount on Amazon).

I'm amazed and shocked by how often I go to buy something though. Like multiple times a day. I've such a bad habit of scrolling shopping websites as down time.

I need to join this thread! I'm hopefully going to be renting a new place in the next few weeks and on paper, I can afford it, but in real life I am always overdrawn, never mind being able to afford rent...

So I've just cancelled my Sky cinema subscription - £10 a month, but it's a start...!

@StellaCruella the problem with leaving it in your account is that it tends to get spent. If after pay day you put aside your bills food fuel etc then immediately transfer the rest to a savings account. Then you have to actively transfer it back . The thing is most emergencies are not emergencies but foreseeable but unpredictable in timing I mean this kindly. Ie needing to buy new shoes for DC is predictable needing to buy them new shoes as they were stolen while at gym is an emergency. Apart from bills you need to set aside money for predictable expenditure add up all things that you know will happen in next 12 months the obvious like Christmas birthdays MOT car servicing insurance but also if your tyres were last replaced 20000 miles ago they will need doing this year if you have appliances or tech you know are on their last legs you know you'll have to replace so add cost in . Add in reasonable clothes allowance for you all or decide that you and DH will not buy any new clothes for 6 months. Decide if you are actually going to have a small monthly personal allowance for coffee takeaways or other stuff . When things were really tight it was just 15 a month each now it is a 100. Then divide this by 12 and add this is accessible savings as if it was a bill, so when the tyres change becomes necessary the money is there. Personally I would try and get this to a few hundred at least then add the 1/12 each month before paying debts down. Depends on time frame. If you could pay off debt by going without everything bar essentials in 6 months I just go for it no takeaways no going out unless free don't buy each other gifts however that's not sustainable long term so if debt repayment is going to take a year or more you need a bit of fun money

Delete all shopping apps and saved card details from your phone if you need Amazon it can easily be found again. Make a rule you buy nothing immediately it has to stay in basket for at least 24 hours. Ask yourself if I don't buy this what is the worst that can happen? Do I have a spare somewhere ? do I already have something I can use instead like you could use a knife if potato peeler broke then maybe you decide actually I do really need a potato peeler a knife doesn't work for me ... It's just a silly example but it can stop impulse purchases

Well done!! A fan sounds like a well thought out purchase - couldn't be without mine.

And yes I know what you mean, I am a phone spender.

@Cottagecheeseisnotcheese
I have a seperate account for spending money so the savings are there for easy access in case of emergencies but then get used the following pay day on debt repayment.
Grocery shopping and general spending have their own seperate accounts (same app). Works for me!