No More Spending.net

Checking Balances Online

2009-11-06T09:22:00.003+01:00

I've not been able to check my online banking account since last Saturday as I locked myself out, (having the flu made me forget my pin!) and it's driving me nuts. My whole daily routine is wrong. The simple act of knowing all was well in my account seemed to bring me peace of mind for the day, and now I don't have it. - The bank are sending me a new number, and it can't come soon enough.

I know that all will be well, everything is set up like clockwork, but I need the physical evidence of that. I could also get a mini statement from an ATM, but it's not the same!

Are you like me, do you check your online banking everyday?

Get updates by email or RSS feed here.

Quick 'getting over the flu' Update

2009-11-04T08:23:00.004+01:00

Oops no posting for a few days; the flu took hold! Budgeting and planning for November are a little behind, but I've not been spending, so it shouldn't make any difference.

I've made a couple of Amazon sales, so this has started the ball rolling on making a little extra money, and this weekend I'm starting an inventory of items to sell on eBay. I've already sold so much on eBay, and I'm not expecting any big ticket items, but in the New Year I want to finally rid the house of our surplus 'stuff'. Where does it all come from?

Debt Update: October 2009

2009-10-28T06:51:00.003+01:00

It's payday today and I've quickly sent a £1,000 snowball; November budget to follow, but my debt now stands at £3,377, 92.4% of the way there. So close I can actually believe it's going to happen!

Get updates by email or RSS feed here.

A Fairly Cheap Treat

2009-10-26T03:07:00.000+01:00

I've practically stopped spending on most things, however a new little routine has crept into my month; just after payday, I take myself off to the local Borders, browse the books, buy a magazine and then sit reading the magazine and drinking a double cappuccino.

All in all this costs less than £7 a month and makes me far happier than £300 handbags used to!

Get updates by email or RSS feed here.

Extra Money Earned: £350 Challenge

2009-10-23T02:30:00.003+02:00

In 2009 I've made about £1,200 in extra income from a variety of sources, but my focus on earning snowflakes has relaxed a little. Not now, it's back. I've already updated my Amazon listings and prepared some items to list on eBay over the weekend.

I need to generate at least £350 {£5 a day} in extra income, in the 70 days between now and December 31st.

What are you currently doing to earn snowflakes?

Get updates by email or RSS feed here.

What are your Spending Triggers?

2009-10-21T03:43:00.003+02:00

What triggers you to spend money needlessly? Are there several things or just the one?

I know the one single thing that causes me to spend money, tiredness. Being tired and run down can cause me to take a trip to the coffee shop, buy a ready meal for dinner, or stop me making my packed lunch in the morning; it can also make me run wild on Amazon!

The cure to stop me buying stuff has nothing to do with how many credit cards I have, even though I'm credit card free now, its whether I've had a good nights sleep or not.

What about you? What can cause you to spend money?

Get updates by email or RSS feed here. You can also subscribe to my other blog here

Debt, emotions, and why I quit my job

2009-10-18T12:32:00.006+02:00

Reading back over my blog it's easy to see the emotional up and downs you have when paying down a large debt; I've changed my plans nearly every month!

Anyone with debt will tell you that having it hanging over your head all the time is awful, it never goes away. Every decision you make is based on money, and being in debt is just about all you think about. It became my priority above everything else at times, and that was not always ok.

Now that I've learned my lessons, and its nearly all gone, I can finally move forward; that's why I'm leaving my current job and trying new things.

Get updates by email or RSS feed here

Christmas Habits

2009-10-12T07:56:00.003+02:00

Its that time of year again when our thoughts turn to Christmas shopping. Last year I attempted a back to basics approach, which, to a certain extent worked, but it didn't go far enough. This year I'm trying again.

I want to break the habit of just putting a voucher/cash in an envelope and sending it to four family members. This is not a loving Christmas gift, it is a habit. They, in return send us a money/voucher or a small gift. What is the point?

I really don't want this to come across as ungrateful, because it's not, it just seems a pointless exercise we are all doing for the wrong reasons. The question is am I brave enough to ring these people and stop the cycle? If I am, how do I do it?

Get updates by email or RSS feed here

Can I be debt free in 2009?

2009-10-08T19:59:00.006+02:00

There are now approximately 12 weeks until the end of the year and I'm re affirming my original 2009 goal; to get debt free. I leave my current job position in 11 weeks and with owed holiday pay etc I should, bar about £350, be able to pay off the rest of my debt.

EBay here I come, again!

Get updates by email or RSS feed here

October Mini Goal(s)

2009-10-01T08:03:00.004+02:00

I'll start off with how I did in September:

Post on this blog at least 15 times- Managed 8 posts!
Reduce my debt by £500 - yes
Earn £100 in extra income - yes over £200
Record my daily spends - 3 weeks out of 4
Make better food choices and lose 8lbs - 1lb loss (less said the better)

Um, not too bad! This month it's more about tasks than goals:

Move ING direct debit from personal to joint account
Cancel visa credit card
Get a haircut
Back up and clear my pc

I still have a visa credit card that I haven't used for ages, and I'm cancelling it. I don't need (or want) it; this will make me credit card free.

A couple of years ago this would of felt really scary, not now. It feels amazing. The aim of this blog was always to help me get debt free and I'm not quite there yet. However to a certain extent I feel like I've accomplished what I really needed to; to stop using credit cards as a support to living my life. I'm not saying that credit cards are bad, my husband has an American Express card that he uses to full cash back advantage, but for me they are no the way. I want to live a simple 'use cash only' life.

Get updates by email or RSS feed here

A Gap Year

2009-09-27T21:02:00.003+02:00

Randomness: When I'm debt free, there's a big part of me that wants to quit the job and go backpacking for 12 months!

Anyone care to join me?

Payday Budget for October

2009-09-27T09:45:00.002+02:00

Payday is next week and here are the plans for my money; I have £50 left over from last month and due to my tax code changing I have an extra £210 in my wage packet.

£800 - Joint account towards savings and bills
£18 - World Vision Sponsor
£80 - Daughters expenses
£20 - Miscellaneous for me
£10 - Gift for my brother
£20 - Petrol, reduced due to work changing expense claims (better for me)
£200 - Food, back up as I struggled to lower this month
£194 - Loan payment
£1000 - Snowball

I'm still using cash for everything I can, so I'll withdraw £310 and divide it into envelopes for the month. It's working quite well at the moment.

My debt balance by the end of October, if all goes according to plan, will be £4,377.

2009-09-21T07:31:00.002+02:00

Argh, a week without posting! I've been so busy with work and party preparations, that blogging went by the wayside. The good news is that my spending hasn't. I've managed to keep up my spending diary, make a little extra money and pay down some more debt.

Payday isn't until next week, ten days time, and I want to have a spending fast until then; I'm only buying milk and fruit between now and the 30th. We have a freezer full of food and I want to make do.

This month I feel like I'm back in control - it's a great feeling. I've been inspired by this post at Man vs Debt, some of the ideas are quite radical, and some I've already done, but I love it. I know when I started out on this journey I was as single minded about my debt as anyone could be, over time this has eased a little. I need, and want, to get back to that mindset.

Get updates by email or RSS feed here

Debt vs Savings: how we do it

2009-09-14T12:56:00.000+02:00

Further to my post yesterday I received an email asking why, when we have savings, we don't pay off my debt. There's a couple of reasons for this, which I'll answer here:-

1. We decided early in the year to save a 12 month emergency fund. This was because dh and I worked for the same company and if the worst happened (we both lose our jobs) we wanted to be able to meet our financial commitments. Prior to this in 2008 we were paying down our mortgage at an accelerated rate and had little savings.
2. I view this debt as mine, all mine. Dh has never been in debt (apart from the mortgage) and I wanted to pay it all off myself and learn my lesson in doing so.

What do you think, is this how you would do it?

Get updates by email or RSS feed here

Joint Accounts and Debt Payoff.

2009-09-13T09:18:00.004+02:00

Combining finances as a couple is not always easy, different couples, use different systems. We (dh and I) use the three account system; two personal accounts and one bill account, which we both pay into. I think we will always do this as I can never see a time when either of us doesn't want our own account. Having said that, as time moves on and my debt freedom day gets nearer we are combining more and more things and it feels right.

I've always viewed my debt as a separate entity* and mine to pay off, so we've kept everything apart. We allocate a certain amount of money to fund our bills and our goals, the rest is our personal money to do with as we wish. I use mine mainly to pay down my debt, but once it's gone, we will need to rethink how we do things. When we move to Portugal, in 2012, we will need another rethink, our system needs to be constantly evolving.

* The reason I run two blogs is for this reason; I see this as my debt, 'turn my life around' blog and Move To Portugal as a joint blog about how we plan to move abroad. I hope this makes sense! Once my debt is paid off though, I see this blog continuing as a place to plot our progress towards our financial goals.

Debt Total Update (No1) September

2009-09-09T21:38:00.004+02:00

Hopefully this will be the first, and not last, debt total update this month. My Earn Money Challenge for September is going quite well, so I should be able to snowflake some more money to my debt soon. Doing challenges with other bloggers really helps to keep you going!

I've sent the £300 snowball and updated the progress bars; 87.3% of the debt is gone, only 12.7% to go!

Help me to reach 300 subscribers: if you haven't signed up to get free updates from No More Spending by email or RSS feed, then please do so here.

Weekly Report: Feeling motivated

2009-09-05T22:13:00.004+02:00

It's been a good week, I'm definitely feeling the benefit of a two week break from work.

Highlights:
-I've only spent money on grocery and postage
-I've made a little extra money
-I've ditched most of my clothing!

Payday came and went and I'll have £300 to snowball to my debt next week, which will take me nearer to my debt free goal. Dh and I have also been discussing our long term financial goals, which we need to update to make a little more comprehensive - I like the way Miel and James have done theirs over at DINKS Finance, so this will be something to complete next weekend.

Have a great weekend!

September Mini Goals

2009-09-01T06:54:00.003+02:00

A new month and a new determination to achieve my goals. My blog posting has been erratic and infrequent over the last few months, this is contributing to my (continued) lack of focus. When I blog regularly, I achieve more, it's a fact. So, here are my personal goals for this month:

Post on this blog at least 15 times
Reduce my debt by £500
Earn £100 in extra income
Record my daily spends
Make better food choices and lose 8lbs

Subscribe:

Get updates by email or RSS feed here

I also blog at Move To Portugal

Debt Update: August

2009-08-31T07:53:00.003+02:00

The automatic payment of £194.23 went through on my loan last week leaving me a debt balance of £5,977. I'm below £6k, at last!

September will be another tight month for me, back to school expenses have been more than I thought, but I'm hoping to snowball at least £300.

On Holiday

2009-08-22T07:08:00.004+02:00

I'm on holiday for a week so will be unable to respond to comments; I'm having a week away from my pc....aargh...will I cope...lets hope so.

I'll be keeping a spending diary while away and blogging my spends when I come back!

Subscribe: Get updates by email or RSS feed here or follow my progress on twitter here

Help me decide the best route

2009-08-20T22:16:00.004+02:00

I've always, since starting this debt journey, budgeted payday to payday. I've worked out my expenses for the month and then snowballed whatever was left over. Now I'm thinking that I should do a years budget, September 1st 2009 - August 31st 2010, which is 13 paydays (I get paid 4 weekly) and do an automatic payment every month to ensure that the debt is (definitely) all gone at the end of the 12 months. This would stop me being under pressure to make a large snowball payment every month and would mean that I would have some personal savings at the end of it.

What do you think? Does this make sense?

Sorry lots of questions :)

Subscribe: Get updates by email or RSS feed here or follow my progress on twitter here

A New Plan

2009-08-18T09:17:00.005+02:00

My budgeting is all over the place at the moment, what with my son moving out and the added costs of helping him out, the food parcel I bought him and then my daughters 16th next month, I believe it will be October when I finally make big inroads into my debt again. December 31st 2009 looks highly unlikely to be my debt free day, it'll be more like December 2010.

I may have overstretched myself this year. I'm ok with this, I just need to work out a new debt repayment plan that works with my budget, instead of trying to stick to my original plan and keep failing. It would be so easy right now to contribute less to the joint account, but I'm not going to, it wouldn't feel right; I've never viewed that money as my money, it's our money for our future.

How do you and your partner divide up your money? Do you have separate accounts or joint or both?

Subscribe: Get updates by email or RSS feed here or follow my progress on twitter here

Missing a snowball

2009-08-15T14:01:00.003+02:00

Arghh! The lack of snowball payment is making me miserable and it's not because I'm helping my son out, I want to do that. It's the 'why am I in debt' 'I'm such an idiot' unhappy feeling that missing a snowball brings out in me; if I hadn't made all these mistakes in the past then things would be so different.

I need to pick myself up, again, and get on with this business of getting debt free.

Subscribe: Get updates by email or RSS feed here or follow my progress on twitter here

No snowball in August

2009-08-09T12:06:00.003+02:00

There will be no snowball payment to my debt this month, I'll be paying the minimum payment of £194.23 on the 27th, but that's it. This may be the first time this has happened in the last few years but I want to help my son with his university expenses.

He moves into student accommodation this month and was hoping to get lots of overtime this summer at his part time job, but it's just not happened. There is an overtime ban at his place of work. So I'm going to help him out.

This will obviously put back my debt repayment a little, a debt free new year looks out of the question, but I'll keep plugging away. I'll get there eventually.

Subscribe: Get updates by email or RSS feed here or follow my progress on twitter here

August Goal: Just the one!

2009-08-08T11:07:00.003+02:00

I'm not even going to report on my July mini goals; I didn't complete any of them. I'm ok with that, it was a mad, mad month work wise and I'm glad to make it to August. I did make £60.36 in extra income, which is not bad considering.

In August I have one goal and that's to keep my spending diary up to date and record every single penny.

I'm a little behind on my blog reading, I'm hoping to catch up today, so I hope you are all well and paying down that debt; if you have any!

Subscribe: Get updates by email or RSS feed here or follow my progress on twitter here