# Constantly in Over draft please advise



## janedoe06 (1 Sep 2007)

is it me or will i ever get a handle on my money

Age :32 


Annual Gross from employment :26,250
After Tax //PRSI  = 1932.09 a Month
Or € 446.33 A week  used karls paye calculator to get this info


    Broken down
Benefits Employer Paid VHI
Credits
Medical Expenses 125
Rent Relief 300
Type of Employment :Employed 

Savings :

Credit Union   1   2172
Credit Union    2  1986  - Total €4158  €300 a month 

Halifax              580  -  €50 a month

Prize Bonds    125

Shares    €75 a Month



Other borrowings – 
Credit Union –2000   -€82 a Month

Over Draft : €1400


Do you pay off your full credit card balance each month? No
If not, what is the balance on your credit card? 
1600 C.C. 1
1000 C.C 2  

Expenditure : €300 Rent a Month


Do you have a pension scheme? Yes €125 a Month


€932 a month without clearing Credit Card –

Medical Expenses 
Medicine/ €85 monthly ( max on Drug Purchase Scheme )
Doctor €50 monthly 

Leisure Center /Gym  €71


Spent nearly a Year out on Sick Leave 

And further 5 months working Part – time on Return to Work – catching up since –


Medicine - € 85
Doctor €50


So I have got €1003 coming out a month - without me touching the credit card or trying to clear my Over draft –
I Think reason why I have let it get out of hand is I was sick 2 years ago and was out of work for nearly a Year , and then when I came back to work I had to work part time then for another 6 months,  and did hit the cards a lot more than normal as I felt grateful to be able to spend if that makes sense 


--Update I will be getting a Pay rise this Year – But I do not know how much percentage Yet and this wont come into Effect until November 

Thing is – I have no Hope of getting on the Affordable housing Scheme to look for a house or anything 

Cause all they will see that I’m constantly in over draft-

this sounds painful revealing this info - like peeling a layer - and putting it all out there for everyone to see 
how badly i manage everything


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## ClubMan (1 Sep 2007)

Yet again - why are you saving when you have outstanding debts? Use your savings to clear your debts and only start saving again when they are clear. If you are living beyond your means then you need to record your expenditure, see exactly where the money is going and start cutting down where necessary/possible. Are you sure that you actual net pay is what _Karl Grabe's _tax calculator says - e.g. have you checked your payslips and _P60s _to sanity check? Are you sure that you are claiming all tax credits/allowances/reliefs available (see the _Taxation _forum key posts).


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## Brendan Burgess (1 Sep 2007)

Jane

The Credit Unions must love you. You have €4,000 in shares and €2,000 in loans. So you are a net saver of €2,000.

You are probably paying 9% on the €2,000 or €180 per year in interest whily you are earning about 3% or €120 a year on your shares. So you are paying net interest of €60 a year although you have €2,000 on deposit. 

Why do you have two credit cards? They are costing you €40 each per annum. Scrap one of them. Use the Credit Union surplus to pay off the other. 

Other than the above minor issues, you are not mismanaging your money. You have necessarily high expenses due to your medical condition. You have still managed to save despite being on a reduced income for 18 months. 

How much are you paying in rent? How much would you have to repay with an affordable housing mortgage? 

Brendan


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## Butter (3 Sep 2007)

I'd stop saving for a while or at least cut back on your savings and use the money to clear your debts as soon as possible.  You'll sleep easier without those debts hanging over you even if your savings remain static for a while.  Keep some savings held back for a rainy day though.

I don't think you should give up the gym/leisure centre necessarily but €71 a month seems high.  That's almost €900 a year.  Could you take up jogging outdoors for a year to save that money or join a cheaper gym?  Use the extra money to pay off debts.  You'll feel better when the debt disappears and repayments won't be eating into your monthly income.

Don't be too hard on yourself - you were off sick for a long time and considering that, you are not in bad shape.  It will take time to get back on track when you haven't been earning for a while.


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## Butter (3 Sep 2007)

Also are you claiming tax relief on your medical expenses?  If not you should - get the MED 1 form to claim back the tax.


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## amgd28 (3 Sep 2007)

Jane, as others have said, you are not in bad shape - you jsut need to be more realistic about what you can save and try to work towards a debt-free existence, which appears to be very achieveable based on the above.



janedoe06 said:


> Savings :
> 
> Credit Union   1   2172
> Credit Union    2  1986  - Total €4158  €300 a month
> ...



Please clarify for me - does this mean you are putting away 300+50+75 = 425per month? That's a quarter of your net salary, and not even taking pension into account. I doubt if many people are in the position to put away that proportion of their salary, and I'm afraid neither are you! 

At a glance, you can clear your two credit cards and your credit union loan with your savings from CU and Halifax. 

Assuming you pay an average of 150 off the balance of your Credit cards monthly, the net effect of this action is that you will have approximately 670 euro extra every month available to you, which should clear your overdraft in a matter of months, and subsequent to this you may decide to save a portion, or to enjoy your life a small bit more. 

Best of luck


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## ggirl (4 Sep 2007)

Jane, this might not be very practical advice but I just wanted to let you know you are not alone but it is possible to turn things around. I spent three months in hospital a few years ago and things got out of hand financially for me afterwards. I have ongoing medical expenses and, also like you, I felt so glad to be alive that I spent more than I had coming in and struggled for years to sort things out. I was constantly in my overdraft and had way too much sitting on my credit card. In the end I got a credit union loan to pay it all off. I have a very manageable repayment every month and am managing to save towards an affordable house. I know the other posters have more practical advice for you but I just wanted to let you know that, in a situation similar to yours, I managed to sort things out so don't give up hope. Good luck!


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## Welfarite (4 Sep 2007)

Look at www.mabs.ie


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## janedoe06 (14 Sep 2007)

Thanks for the advice the 

reason why i joined that particular gym

is that the physio i got was crazy prices and it did'nt help and i started yoga which really helped but i was spending €50 a month on classes on that alone

The gym i went to has the pilates and yoga classes included in the subscription + i have the swimming pool and gym itself - and a personalized sergent major fitness instructor following my every move making sure i'm doing the right exercises so i guess i thought i was covering all angles there -

Re the credit union - maybe i 've been blind but ya the credit union is doing well on me 


I Have'nt started on affordable housing yet 

particularly as i think its still outside my league
and secondly even if i was given a mortage say next year- i'd find it hard to get a decent insurance rate as i have more surgery ahead of me , and i guess i'd hate to move into a house and then have to go on sick leave again for another while -

Just an update i have managed to shave €400 off my over draft this month


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## ClubMan (14 Sep 2007)

janedoe06 said:


> Re the credit union - maybe i 've been blind but ya the credit union is doing well on me


The _CU _policy of lending you money only when you have money on deposit/in shares may be in the interest of the wider _CU _community but is often not in the best interests of the individual. Not the _CU _ethos I know but you have to look after number one. Having borrowings when you have money on deposit/in shares that could reduce your borrowing needs and debt costs makes no sense in most cases.

Your original query was about "constantly [being] in over draft (sic.)" in which case having debt while also sitting on savings makes little sense as per my first post.


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## minion (20 Sep 2007)

Get your employer to add this on to your VHI subs.  If they cant then pay it yourself.  You claim the expenses back of vhi and the claim a portion of the remainder from the taxman.

[broken link removed]


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