Category Archive

Hooray!  Yesterday, M ceremoniously snapped my credit card in half!  We’re just about to go meet his bank manager to talk about opening a high-interest savings account to start saving for a home-loan deposit, but before I can contribute to that, I need to sort out my current cash concerns.

Been reading more blogs about savings and stuff, but I’m being creeped out by percentage budgeting and the like.  I Sigh, this is so hard for me.  I haaaaaate number.  But maybe not as much as I like spending money :P I got paid today, and having done all my bills and rent for the fornight (including a set amount to repay my credit card) I keep thinking about the nice little balance left in my account.  I know that I’m supposed to live off that for the next two weeks, but I like instant gratification, dammit!

So I have decided to have a plan.  I like plans.  And having one might help me be a little more frugal.

So, presenting my 7 steps to get started on the path to financial freedom (cause I know it’ll take more than just “7 steps” to get my there) which includes paying of the credit card, getting that emergency fund up-and-running, and working up to visiting my friends in Melbourne (cause I just got an email from one of them and I REALLY WANT TO GO VISIT!!):

1. Each payday, transfer $200 to credit card.
2. Budget for the fortnight.
3. STICK TO THE DAMN BUDGET!! That means… DON’T SPEND RECKLESSLY!!
4. If money is left over at the end of the fortnight:
   (a) transfer 50% to credit card account; and
   (b) transfer 50% to emergency fund account.
5. When credit card is paid off, transfer $200 from each pay to emergency fund account.
6. When emergency fund is at $1000, open another account for Melbourne Holiday.
7. Transfer $200 from each pay to Melbourne Holiday account.

 As Bridget Jones says:  GOOD PLAN!

Hah.

Yet another item on my stress list: Money.

Cash. Dough. Moolah.

Whatever you want to call it, I don’t have much of it.

Upon returning from M and my Post-Graduation South-Asian Holiday-Extravaganza, there were three factors which left me in this particular financial position:

1. I had spent all my savings;
2. I had dipped into the ol’ Visa (all it takes ™) to fund some splurge duty-free purchases, leaving me in debt; and
3. I realised that I simply cannot, no matter what, regardless of any previous grandiose stay-at-home-to-save-for-home-deposit plan, live with my parents anymore.

As for Number 3, I honestly had to get out.  As. Soon. As. Possible. (I know keep putting off the back story, but I really can’t find the time to sit down to shift through it all…)

I emailed/rang a bunch of people offering rooms in share houses in suitable locations and accepted the first response because it was in a great location, the room was reasonable, the house didn’t look horrible and the house-mate seemed nice enough (in the five minutes in which I spoke to her).  It was lucky I took it since it was the only response I got, and therefore I ignored the fact that my share of the rent was slightly higher than I wanted, and just submitted to the horrible rental market, relegating myself to not saving as much as I would like to.

My frugality with the new digs included not buying a TV and choosing not to use/share the wireless internet (saving about $40/month) but I had to borrow $750 bond from Mother and $200 from M to buy a microwave.  Whereby Number 2 got even worse.

An “interest-free balance-transfer low-rate credit card” offer was taken up to avoid paying 19.99% on my old student “fee free” credit-card, which was now about to charge me fees as I was no longer a student, but I was rudely awakened to receive less than I expected in my first paycheck due to the fact I was paying back more than I should have to in Fee-HELP because my incompetent university had overcharged me.

Plus I have the aforementioned shopping addiction, so I was buying a few things here and there which I probably didn’t need to buy, but hey, I just started working and I was earning money, I should be able to spend if I want to, dammit.

Then, as I was reasonably making-do, I decided to go to Therapy to sort out my Issues.

Which totally Boned my budget.

At $170 a session, getting Self Actualized ain’t cheap.

While I do get about $110 back from Medicare cause I’m on a “Mental Health Plan” through my GP, I still have to have the full fee up-front, and it’s caused me to actually increase my credit card debt. 

I need to get it paid off before the 6-month “interest free” period is over, but I feel like I’m not making aaaaany headway and it’s bumming me out because I can’t save for anything, including a trip to Melbourne that I would reeeeeally like to do in July.  Plus I can’t shop. 

After I’ve paid for this week’s session today, I am cutting up my card so it doesn’t get worse, because I have budgeted to keep my head above water from this payday onwards.

I’ve been reading a few blogs about saving money, and I have decided to really get serious about “budgeting” and the like.  My next goal is to save up an “emergency fund” so that I don’t need to rely on credit or parents or M for things that jump up to scare me.

Then I’ll work back to the Melbourne Trip, if I can, and then work on saving for a home deposit.  Not that that’s likely in this market (I’m such a pinko, cause I love to blame the freaking market) but hey, a dream is a dream.

Squanderlust on news.com.au had a new post today about “frugal being the new black” and I reckon she’s onto something.  And hey, if I’m on that bandwagon, of course it’s cool now :P