Constantly overdrawn - help?

SteelBlue05 said:
assuming you and your friend are both first time buyers are you claiming the interest relief on your mortgage? Works out at about 66 euro per month, i.e. 33 euro for each of you every month for 7 years....
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Shouldn't that be €66.67 p.m. owner occupier mortgage interest relief each assuming that the interest bill on the mortgage is more than €8K p.a.?

Are you claiming all other tax reliefs/credits/allowances to which you are entitled? This thread summarises some of the more common ones:

Common PAYE tax credits and reliefs
 
you need a car for work, and yet you manage to drive home for lunch every day?

At the very least stop this, and cut your fuel bill in half.
 
carina said:
Petrol €100 p/m
Food €200
Phone credit €100 p/m
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These would be the areas I'd try to change.

Do you really need to spend 100 pm on your phone - its €1200 per year! If its on a PAYG account change to a monthly bill with vast amounts of free minutes, or avoid making daytime calls - potential savings are around 55 euros a month here.

Food - I once lived on 10 euros a week for food by buying loose meat from the butcher and vegetables from the grocer. Sounds extreme but there's a huge differential. You could certainly shave off 40-50 euro by buying fresh veg from the grocer and meat from a butcher and eschewing convenience foods. Alternatively avail of bulk buying deals and fill up the freezer.

Petrol - walk or cycle if at all possible.

Only other thing I can suggest is to switch off and plug out rather than leave devices on standby - they use about 80% of the eletricity of leaving it on all the time. You'll save 20-40 euros a bill on this.

Likewise don't turn on the heating when you're not there or if its not required.
 
As well as reducing expenses, is there any way you can earn some extra income? Change jobs? Ask for a pay rise? Do some part-time work to clear the debts?
 
Along with a couple of the other posters I would agree that there appear to be a couple of areas you could cut back, so take some time out to investigate them:
Phone bill - Eu100 does seem extremely high, can you change provider and get a better deal - www.callcosts.ie will give you an idea of who will give you the best package, if you have a relatively good idea of when you call, how much you text. Also have you and your flat mate considered getting a landline instead, it may work out better value.
Car Ins - i'm assuming thats you insurance, which without knowing your car / age, does seem a bit on the high side. Have you shopped around to see if you can get a better rate, i do it every year on renewal and the savings can be up to 40%! Has your car a large engine, could you move to a smaller car.
Car petrol - how many unneccessary journeys do you take? I'll fully admit that once a car arrived I suddenly became allergic to walking a few hundred meters to the shop! Stop driving home for lunch, what you're saving on sambos you're spending on petrol! Have you checked out if anyone in the area is likely to want to car pool, there was a website launched a few months ago, hoepfully someone can find the link - see about splitting the costs
Food - check out local markets / farm shops, between 2 of us we spend about Eu40 per week on food, buying from butchers and market. We can easily fill 2 large bags with veg for about Eu10-14! Supermarkets are convenient, but there is a reason they are so profitable! Plan you main meals, decide at the weekend approximately what you'll eat during the week, not planning can be costly.
Ad hoc house stuff... can you wait a couple of month to get some of the things? We're 5 months in our house, and having moved from a 2 bed apt to a 4 bed house we were 'short' lots of pieces of furniture, but we wait until we have the cash before we buy it. No kitchen table, but also no loan for a kitchen table. Just because 'everyone' you ever met has their places done up,doesn't mean you have to, and waiting can mean you get good deals when sales come up, we saved 50% on our floor tiles.
Credit Card - definitely take some time to shop around, interest free is where you want to be!

As an aside I have found 2 books good for helping to identify the financial pitfalls we face, what I like about both of these books is that the authors have been in debt and have gotten themselves out of debt:
Your money or your life - Alvin Hall
Debt-Proof Living - Mary Hunt
While these aren't Irish writers, Alvin is American writing for UK market and Mary is American writing for american market, both have good strategys for handling your money.

Congratulations on getting on the ladder, and we know you can make it.
 
I used to have a credit ph and spent about E100 on credit a month. I swtiched to o2(It was a corporate deal and available as the majoirity of my colleages wanted to do it too) but now I have a bill phone which is much handier-my first bill was E38 for the month&I really was ringing and texting alot that month and now I also send most of messages from the O2 website so it is even lesss. Maybe you could switch networks. Also a friend of mine (in the uk but I would say it is similar here) plans her monthly shopping and gets it delivered(its free) that way she spends just what is necessay and doesnt end up buying things she doesnt need and said she has cut down on her food spending.
 
Do you have anything that you don't want anymore that you could sell to raise cash to pay off some of your loans? You would be amazed what some people sell on eBay, or there may be a car boot sale near where you live where you could offload some old books, clothes, costume jewelry, CDs.....
 
You say that you can no longer afford to go out at night so why not pop down to your friendly neighbourhood pub and get a part time job. You may find that you enjoy it.
 
Thanks for all the advice guys!
Im determined to get myself sorted out. Have cut down on call credit as I agree its a ridicules amount.
Might look for a part time job (waitressed for years)
My car is a 1ltr & its a '92 so I dont think I can cut back anymore.
The food thing I will discuss with my flatmate, shes loaded & we shop in Superquinn, she makes me feel bad by how much she has to spend - I guess I try to keep up wit her sometimes.
Will take all of your advice on board.
Def switching credit cards!!
 
Carina

Do not have anything to do with shopping in Superquinn! Don't feel bad about wanting to shop in Lidl or Aldi. There is nothing wrong with the quality.

Ann
 
You're right Ann, the reason we shop there is because its the closest! We're probably being lazy tho, will start to shop around. Am going to look into getting a part time job to help me get on top of things. Will also start a money diary to find out where its all going!
Golden Mean, I prob do have stuff I could get rid of but I always presumed that selling on EBay was just too much hassle! Will look into it tho.........
 
One weeks money diary should be all you need Carina , I'm sure you will balance the books pretty fast once you identify a few frivolities that can be chopped out of the budget .

Do remember that its actually worth borrowing off a credit card to up that SSIA because in the last year a CC would cost you say 17% a month but the governemnt gives you 25% . Get an interest free 6 or 12 month introductory offer and do not use that credit card. When teh interest free period is over do it again. Then use the ssia money, the taxpayers money if you will, to clear the cc this time next year.

Stop buying 'house stuff' for 6 months is my instinct and that petrol bill looks a tad high to me if you live that close to work .

Things started to improve when you started the thread so do not worry. You can sort it .

also see

http://www.shoppingbill.com/

especially this bit

http://www.shoppingbill.com/basket_price.php?id=1

before you go shopping AND

http://www.revenue.ie/

where you now claim your tax rebate on last years bin charges , middle of that page , it will take you only 1 min starting now.
 
2Pack said:
Do remember that its actually worth borrowing off a credit card to up that SSIA because in the last year a CC would cost you say 17% a month but the governemnt gives you 25% . Get an interest free 6 or 12 month introductory offer and do not use that credit card. When teh interest free period is over do it again. Then use the ssia money, the taxpayers money if you will, to clear the cc this time next year.
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Was this a joke?

The interest free period is or balance transfers and never for cash advances. Probably one of the strangest bits of 'advice' I've read - hopefully the OP didn't listen.
 
askalot said:
Was this a joke?
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Not if you can count. If you can't I was being funny all right :D

Her SSIA is being fed €120 a month and is in its last year . The government contribution of 25% is equal to 25% interest a year .

If she found another €130 from any source, even a credit card or overdraft !!!!!!! it would be worth putting it in her SSIA becuase she would have more money next year. I will tabulate the figures for you askalot , its pretty clear


Overdraft Interest c 12% SSIA Interest 25% Profit 13%
CC Interest c 17% SSIA Interest 25% Profit 8%
Car Loan Interest c 9% SSIA Interest 25% Profit 16%

I have been known in the past to get a variable rate car loan, it being the cheapest form of loan , and paying off the other loans and cards with it . You may pay this off early as you find savings especially on the house and superquinn.

To deal with the overdraft here is the plan.

1. get deposit account and thats the end of the overdraft car loan sorts that . :D
2. keep €1000 of the car loan in your account at all times . You must never drop below €1000 except in dire emergency
3. The €1000 is your overdraft fund, if you ever dip below €1000 you must cut back to get it back to €1000 .
4. find €130 a month for the SSIA first , max it. Brian Cowan gives you 25% topup every month.
5. next year take the extra ssia fund, 130+25% = €162 x 12 months = €1950. You will ringfence that money and pay that €1950 off against your car loan next year .
6. credit card for dire emergencies only . Do not use for 1 year to train yourself. If you cannot resist using it then retire it for a year . Snippety Snip!
7. use personal loan money of €200 to pay off car loan every month, thats €200 a month for now and the ssia fund from next year = €200+€120 a month.
8. You have savings from cc and overdraft interest to help find the €130 for the extra SSIA . A few cutbacks will do the rest.

Does that look better for you once you crunch it , especially once the ssia comes in and you clatter that car loan ????
 
But would the poster feel that she gets value for money when the payout comes and she owes it to her credit card company? The sums may make sense, but money is emotive and how you feel paying out your gains back to credit card is a factor...

Carina, try keeping a money diary for a week or 2, note everything down as soon as the cash / card leaves you purse (forget about feeling foolish, debt feels worse), don't try and fill it in later that day, you will forget the small things.
Then look are where you're spending you cash, do you find that at the weekend you end up buying a few magazines, that coffee in the morning, the toll because you never got around to getting that Easypass!!! Its surprising where you find you're money going when you start to track it.
Try and cut down on withdrawing money from ATM, make 1 withdrawl a week, and try and keep to using that... Being aware that the Eu10 note in your purse has to keep you going until Fri, and its Wed, does stop and make you think of what you're buying.
 
mell61 said:
But would the poster feel that she gets value for money when the payout comes and she owes it to her credit card company? The sums may make sense, but money is emotive and how you feel paying out your gains back to credit card is a factor...
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Very true mell. I am trying to get her to swap expensive loans out for cheaper ones.

CC Interest 17% . This must go first.
Overdraft 13-145 . This must go next.
Personal Loan c 10% this can be tackled next.

Roll it into a car loan which is cheaper above about €5k and costs circa 9% but there is good news today..

a) In case of emergency she now has €1k cash which is an instant overdraft from her to her. Thats her new floor, not what the bank gives her. She is out of money unless she has her €1k .

b) She is borrowing money at a lower rate than before to make some money with the SSIA, that extra money will be used to pay off her loans . She managed an ssia for 4 years already .

c) Her ultra short term target is therefore to find savings to pay the €130 into the SSIA every month . She must up that ssia tomorrow and find that money by the end of the month !!!!

Her next goal is to increase payments to this car loans above €200 if possible in increments of €20 a month and in a good month €40 .

The original SSIA , funded until now, which is the €120 a month + the rest bit is not to be touched , it must still go in every month but I want Carina to reward herself for a good result after 1 years discipline and lowering of stress levels . She can start planning that too :D


That diary helps her plan all of this. Its a must for a few weeks.
 
Thank you guys! I am going to print all advice off and sit down wit a pen & a lot of paper tonight. I feel that I can do it and will be very proud of myself when I am debt free. Will let you all know how I get on with the diary- even just thinking about it I think I kno the problem areas already....
Will definitely up the SSIA.
 
Carina

You say that you come home for your lunch. So do I and I enjoy it and wouldn't change it.

Depending on where you are working and living in Lucan you may pass by Tesco in Hillcrest every day. They always have food marked down to 1/2 price that is approaching its best before date - ideal for immediate consumption or freezing.

There is also a Lidl beside the Penny Hill and an Aldi on the Fonthill Road.

Avoid Superquinns at all costs. They are very expensive. If you have to go there, never go there on an empty stomach. Superquinns used to put their prices down to 50% off similar to Tesco on fresh produce that was approaching its sell by date but they now only normally reduce it to 30% off. Given that they are usually more expensive than the other shops in the first place there is not much of a saving even at 30% off.

Your car Ins seems very high for someone driving such a small old car. I presume that you are 3rd party insurance only. No point in paying for anything else except windscreen insurance.

Finally, Leave your CC and your cheque book at home.
For some reason it's much harder to pay cash for something than run it up on a CC or write a cheque. If the item is in any way expensive and you really want it, go back the next day, and you will be very surprised at the number of times that you no longer desire/need yesterdays must have item.

Also if you are carrying a debt on your CC, then buying something which is reduced on it is not sensible unless you are in a position to pay off the debt.

WWW.fool.co.uk is another website that can be useful for anyone looking to cut back. Go to the get out debt section and follow the links.

Murt
 
Here's one trick that worked for me with credit cards:

Take a small bowl of water and fill her up.
Place credit card in bowl.
Stick it in the freezer.
Next time you are tempted to make an impulse purchase on the CC you'll have to wait until the ice defrosts - which gives you time to think about it and hopefully change your mind!

The main thing I'd say is prioritise your debts. Don't fall behind on the essentials. Give yourself small (cheap!) rewards or you'll get fed up.

Good luck!
 
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