Intro - Looking for all the advice, support, info you have!

BlinkMe182

Hey All-

I've lurked MM off and on for a while. I started on TK back in 2006, TN for a few year, and I've been on TB for a while. Going through the whole life cycle on this site. Anyways, I wanted to do a quick intro before I start working my way into becoming a regular on this board. 

H is 30, I'm 29. We bought our house in 2006 at the peak of prices and the fall and very quickly went underwater. We have barely floated above OK for several years and in the last few weeks we've been spiraling down and we are ready to make the change and fix our financial situation. 

Yesterday, July 1, 2014 is our Day 1.   H and I both have bad habits and bad budget management. 

The big pushing point is that I received a court summons for a $500 medical bill from 2010- I'm being sued to pay the debt. Due to my bad tracking, I have a piece of paper stating "paid in full"   No confirmation number, I've reached out to my old bank to get statements to try to find the payment... But that was my big old reality slap of grow up! Get your finances in order! Get Organized and Grow Up!

A quickie summary of where we stand with Debts:

- Student Loans ~ 60k  *Federal loan is sending garnishment warnings as we are behind. 

- Credit Cards ~ 2500 **We've been working on these for YEARS, and we currently have NO open credit cards

- 2 car payments

- Mortgage

- 2nd mortgage- recovery/collections 

- Medical Bills ~ 2400 - some still with hospitals/clinics- some in collections

We are working on setting up our goals.

We are reading (together) The Total Money Makeover, by Dave Ramsey

I'm making phone calls to all our creditors, bills, mortgage to let them know we are here, we are not ignoring our money problems and we want to work toward resolution. 

There is my life story in a nut-shell. 

Tl:DR

Hi, I'm new, I suck at money, Hoping to join this group, get some advice and get my life back on track!

Xstatic3333

Welcome, and kudos for taking control of your situation!

Would you be willing to share your income, interest rates and minimum payments? That could help with advice.

BlinkMe182

Thanks Guys!

I don't have all the detail stuff with me right now, (rates etc) But I will compile and post. 

I will get my budget and share- I'm open to all the help/advise I can get! I'll probably add both this evening... 

Incomes:

H- W/O overtime $47K

Me- Salary - $50K

we have both had 2nd jobs, but with a baby on the way I quit mine. H took a leave from his to get some stuff done around the house. but he is talking to his old boss today and going to start back up. 

brij2006

Welcome and congratulations on you both making the decision to take charge of your financial future. 

Definitely post your budget here along with a list of your debts and interest rates.  Everyone here is great at helping you figure out what cuts to make and where to start. 

We are also following Dave Ramsey's plan to get out of debt too, so feel free to ask any questions.

Also, love your SN.  There's a sweet spot in my heart for some good ole Blink.

jessica490

Welcome!! You will learn A LOT from everyone here. They all got me on board to better budgeting!

BlinkMe182

brij2006 said:

Welcome and congratulations on you both making the decision to take charge of your financial future. 

Definitely post your budget here along with a list of your debts and interest rates.  Everyone here is great at helping you figure out what cuts to make and where to start. 

We are also following Dave Ramsey's plan to get out of debt too, so feel free to ask any questions.

Also, love your SN.  There's a sweet spot in my heart for some good ole Blink.

What can I say, I'll forever be 14 and obsessed with them

BlinkMe182

Thanks for the welcome all!  I'll get budget and more details up later tonight- when I get home. 

Thanks so much!

uncreatedsnow

Welcome!

I've lurked on this board for years and when I finally started taking control of my finances I was seriously hiding from my problems. Not answering the phone, not opening mail, etc. Now, it's a great feeling to answer the phone and not worry about someone asking for money, or if something comes up not freaking out about where that money will come from. Baby steps will get you really far!

jlaOK

I followed Dave Ramsey's plan and it has completely changed my family and how we handle our money.  You will get some great advice from here when you post your budget.  Luckily you and your DH make great incomes so it shouldn't be too much of a struggle. 

hoffse

Welcome!  I think you'll like this board - we tell it how it is, but I think it's a very friendly/supportive group.  Many people on these boards have been in terrible financial situations and have turned things around, so we're sensitive to that.

It's also good to hear you are reading Total Money Makeover.  The regs on this board know that I am not Dave Ramsey's biggest fan (I don't see eye to eye with him on everything), but I do think that his model is one of the best for folks who feel like they are totally underwater and need a life raft.  

It may not be easy at the beginning, but eventually the debt snowball and savings will become second nature.  My H and I actually treat it like a game: "How much can we save this month?  Can we beat last month?"  That helps us stay focused and makes it kind of fun, rather than a chore.

Once you have a chance, do post your budget and balances on these debts with interest rates.  I also suggest posting your income as a monthly take-home, since that will vary depending on state income taxes, withholdings, etc.  Prepare yourself - we'll probably suggest some pretty dramatic cuts, but it will be worth it to get your debt under control!

CuriousKiddosMama

Hi and Welcome!!!! The good news is you guys make a decent income, so you have a big shovel as Dave would say, the bad news is that you also have a big hole you've gotten into. But you have to start somewhere, everyone does! Please post your budget on here when you get to it, so we can all offer suggestions. When you get gazelle intense like Dave talks about, things really can happen quickly. Also let us know what is in your emergency fund- if you don't want to talk numbers there at least let us know we have 1 month, 1 week, etc.

Congrats on the second baby! When are you due? That's also very exciting!

BlinkMe182

I hate to admit it, we have $0 in our emergency fund.  

We did have a 2, pushing 3 month fund just over a year ago, but a flooded basement, discovery of a major mold problem and the clean up took care of that rather quickly. 

We had been struggling an barely making if for a while before that, but that mess was the beginning of the end. I gave up, I got frustrated and I just let so much go, for way to long. 

I feel very similar to how @uncreatedsnow felt. 

uncreatedsnow said:

Welcome!

I've lurked on this board for years and when I finally started taking control of my finances I was seriously hiding from my problems. Not answering the phone, not opening mail, etc. Now, it's a great feeling to answer the phone and not worry about someone asking for money, or if something comes up not freaking out about where that money will come from. Baby steps will get you really far!

I feel like I've tried hiding and saying OH. It isn't that bad for too long!

I have read others who post their budget and get VERY defensive and my goal is once I get it posted to NOT be that person. I need someone to look at it from outside my view- and tell me the things I'm blind to!  Help me make cuts where I don't see them on my own.

BlinkMe182

Vikingsfan 71713 said:

Hi and Welcome!!!! The good news is you guys make a decent income, so you have a big shovel as Dave would say, the bad news is that you also have a big hole you've gotten into. But you have to start somewhere, everyone does! Please post your budget on here when you get to it, so we can all offer suggestions. When you get gazelle intense like Dave talks about, things really can happen quickly. Also let us know what is in your emergency fund- if you don't want to talk numbers there at least let us know we have 1 month, 1 week, etc.

Congrats on the second baby! When are you due? That's also very exciting!

And Thanks.   We are very excited. 

I'm due July 30... so 28 days to go!  That is probably another reason for the huge kick of reality and my need to start getting myself together! 

CuriousKiddosMama

Honestly then, this month you don't need to focus on paying ANYTHING off- don't pay a single extra cent than you need to on anything. Anything extra save until you and baby are both healthy and home! Things can happen, even something as simple as needing a C-section can cost more than you expect. (I was induced because of a spike in blood pressure- after almost 24 hours, they did a C-section because he wasn't turning to come out. The second Dr. they pulled in wasn't covered under my insurance because he was out of network. OUCH! Not that I'm saying anything like this will happen to you, but it's okay to say we are going to start July 1st by building our emergency fund, and focusing on our spending this month, then after baby is here and home we will get gazelle intense on our debts.) This may help you get that first $1k into an emergency fund if you do that this month and next month) Then start paying on bills smallest to largest. 

brij2006

I will agree with @vikingsfan71713  This month just focus on buckling down with the budget and getting things in order, but do not pay any extra toward the debts.  Dave Ramsey says that when you are pregnant it is an "emergency" and you stop the debt snowball until mommy and baby are home, medical bills are paid, and everything is fine.  However, in the meantime you continue living like nobody else.

We started his plan in December and paid off $17k in debt.  Last month we found out we were pregnant, and have instead snowballed the debt payment into our savings account for baby.  If everything goes according to plan (which usually doesn't), we will pay the $3k for birth, $1k for necessities, and then dump the extra amount in that account toward the next largest debt.  According to our calculations we should be able to wipe out the rest of H's student loans and just about all of mine.  But we will not be making extra payments for the next 9 months, just in case things go wrong.

BlinkMe182

HERE IS OUR BUDGET:   This is the monthly average-  This is pretty rough as we have not had a good budget before- So right now- This is our average expenses per month-- so let me have it!!

I don't have all the rates and all the details, but this is the start for you guys-

Our Take Home is about $4600 / month without any OT. 

Bill	Monthly Amt	Balance	% rate
Mortgage	1235	172700	3.71%
Cell Phone	179.79
Car Ins.	192
Internet	60.25
Electric	115
Gas (home)	100* varies
Car Loan	241	$7646.47	4.24%
Truck Loan	485	Unsure? ~10k	Unsure?
Consolidation Loan	266	$5997.77	8.99%
Daycare	660	$165/week
Utilities	35	Pay 105 quarterly
Garbage	15	Pay ~50 quarterly
Medical 1	65	648.23	0%
Medical 2	50	412.62	0%
Medical 3	121	Final payment in August
Medical 4	203	Due Now- not on a payment plan
Gas (both)	300	Aprx.
Groceries	300 – 400	Depends on the month- we try to plan meals/shop savy.
Entertainment/Extras	200	Depends on the month. Sometimes more, sometimes less-
PAST DUE DEBTS	Includes Student Loans	Includes 2nd Mortgage- with a settlement company now- in process
Total	90K	Various creditors/bills/collections	various

Some of my un-sures:

Truck- That is through my H's work Credit union- the payment is taking out of his checks automatically. I considered that in our take home and adding as the bill. So I'm not sure the remaining balance. 

Things up for discussion in our home now:

- Getting ride of the truck/truck payment. 

- Electric is high- we are on the budget plan so it adjusts every 6 months. It went up from 85/month to 115/month.. This jump happened during the year MIL was living with us- we had extra use.   Now that it is summer and we are using the AC I imagine it will remain in the 115 - 130 range.

- Gas will be going down now that the winter is over- 

- Cell Service- We had just updated our plans with Sprint and dropped the bill by $30... The reason it is high now is we are paying off the phones we purchased. I'm planning to sell my tablet since I got the smart phone and using the money from the tablet to pay off the phone- This will drop the bill.   We have also dropped our data plans to the minimum, and we expect next month to be closer to 160, then upon sale of my table down to about 140. 

Help me hash out anything else I have not hit yet!

BlinkMe182

Vikingsfan 71713 said:

Honestly then, this month you don't need to focus on paying ANYTHING off- don't pay a single extra cent than you need to on anything. Anything extra save until you and baby are both healthy and home! Things can happen, even something as simple as needing a C-section can cost more than you expect. (I was induced because of a spike in blood pressure- after almost 24 hours, they did a C-section because he wasn't turning to come out. The second Dr. they pulled in wasn't covered under my insurance because he was out of network. OUCH! Not that I'm saying anything like this will happen to you, but it's okay to say we are going to start July 1st by building our emergency fund, and focusing on our spending this month, then after baby is here and home we will get gazelle intense on our debts.) This may help you get that first $1k into an emergency fund if you do that this month and next month) Then start paying on bills smallest to largest. 

Good Advice-

I am having a c-Section, already planned, Doc is covered so we wont have a major surprise there. 

athlete010688

First thing I see...you need to cut your entertainment budget.  DH and I hardly ever spend that much on entertainment for the month.  Start trying to find free things to do.

cbee817

When you're home on maternity leave, will DD be staying with you? That could save $660/month for the 8-12 weeks you're home. Not sure how flexible your day care is, but it might be worth asking. Car insurance is really high- we pay $800/year for 2 cars. Have you shopped around at all?

hoffse

So bad news first: without savings and without any overtime this month, you'll have a negative balance by a couple hundred bucks.

But then onto the good news: medical 4 and medical 3 will very soon be paid off, and that should have you about breaking even if you cut out the entertainment.

I do agree with PP that entertainment needs to go.

I also encourage you to sell your tablet ASAP to get that payment down to a more reasonable level... also see what cancellation would be to switch to "dummy" phones or low-end smart phones (like Straight Talk).  I've seen ads recently for one company that will pay termination fees if you switch to them - maybe TMobile?  Do some homework on this and see how you can get it down.

And I agree that your car insurance is very very high.  Try shopping around for that.

smbenevides1989

Welcome! All the ladies here have great advice. I know I've needed a wakeup call with some of the actions my H and I were doing, but after listening to the advice others have shared, financially, my life has been on a better track.

I would definitely cut out your entertainment budget and bring it down. Definitely try to sell the truck and get a beater until you are back above water. Once you pay that $203 bill off and the other $115 that will at least help you put some money into other areas.

I also will agree to talking to your daycare and see if they will do a reduce rate or hold process while you are on maternity leave. Even if there was a way to reduce the pay without losing a daycare spot could help you. 

BlinkMe182

ALSO-

thinking more on this, I can almost promise that our entertainment and grocery budget was more than that in past months.. I'm just trying to rough estimate.

Without looking back as I put that rough estimate together- I think of all the one off target runs, 20 here, 20 there...  I know for a FACT those numbers are estimated low from our previous month!

BlinkMe182

Thanks guys-

For sure the entertainment is a big one. I don't even realize how quickly we spend 200.. I rolled eating out into that, so the $5 at the gas station for coffee/pop is in entertainment, not grocery. I can honestly say H probably does this 3 times a week.. it adds up quick!! 

And out to eat, not bringing a lunch to work etc.. My big guilty.. I eat for lunch WAY more than I should! those are all counted with entertainment.   BAD HABITS!  I know for sure. that is a quick/easy cut!

We are doing the write down every penny, every day thing right now. so hoping we can nip all that little, extra, crap spending to VERY little, VERY soon. 

BlinkMe182

I will be home 6 weeks for leave..

We did discuss taking her out of daycare for that time, but to hold the spot we'd need to pay a portion of the care. 

I do understand that it would be less money. but at risk of losing our place, losing our routine and all that we decided we would continue to keep LO in full time care while I'm out. 

I will address this again with my H, because you are right, would be a huge help to save that $660, even if just for 1 month. But when we first discussed it, we didn't want to 'rock the boat' with routine. and we really wanted to keep her in care.   BUT this is worth discussing again. 

BlinkMe182

Good to know that is high for car insurance. We haven't shopped around for that in YEARS...  

Any ideas on places to go? or where to start looking? I am not well researched in this, and I have my hesitations on the whole internet dealers, like The General.. or Progressive.. or Geikko..  I'll take advise on that for sure.

I also didn't mention our home owners insurance is escrowed into the mortgage as well as the property taxes. 

als1982

Cut the data plans on your phone.

Also, your internet seems high.  I know it varies, but we pay $35 for what H deem's a pretty good speed (I could care less).  Have you called to see if you can get a better deal?

And get rid of your vehicles for something cheaper!!

BlinkMe182

We cut the cable package stuff and just have the internet. I will look up and see what other options we have for internet. 

One thing we discussed was cutting the internet completely and using the data on our phones since we really don't use our computer anymore anyways. 

For Phones- I am going to see about the phone by back and drop to dummy phones/change the plan up..   Such a simple thing, I should have thought of that previously

jessica490

Sign up for mint.com to track all your spending if you feel comfortable doing that

BlinkMe182

AprilH81 said:

I think you and your husband need to start honestly tracking your expenses and not ballparking it any more.

Find an app, a spreadsheet, a notebook whatever works for both of you.  When you spend money, right it down.

The envelope system is good for this until you get in the habit (I use a virtual envelope app).  If you have $400/month for groceries you subtract each grocery run from that amount.  When you are out of money you stop spending.  

I'm "flexible" in that if I spend more on groceries and less on entertainment I will transfer money from one envelope to the other, but I would try to avoid doing that in the beginning because it makes it easier to justify overspending.

As you track you actual expenses and spending then you can get a more firm grasp on where you can cut and put it towards debt repayment.

I think you should get rid of your husband's truck and find something that is still safe but will cut your monthly payment.  An older model will also be less expensive to insure, so you will have extra savings.

I would sell the tablet ASAP and look into cheaper phones/plans.

This may not make a huge difference, but try to be mindful of energy usage.  Get a programmable thermostat if you don't have one...  Adjust the temperature for both comfort and energy savings.  Don't make unnecessary trips in the car, turn lights of, etc.  That will help bring your utilities down without a major sacrifice.

Do you have anything other than your tablet that you can sell?  Coming up with a few hundred dollars in "stuff" to sell will knock out one of your smaller debts.

This is great-- Thank You. 

 

You are 100% right. as we said we are on Day 2 of getting our crap together- so no-more ball parking our budget. it is kind of embarrassing that I can't give you an idea of what we spend on certain things without going back and checking the account. We have been horrible at tracking. It is for sure time to change!

I have heard mint.com is great for tracking stuff- do they have a budget tool? any suggestions on good budget templates to start?

For selling other stuff. I've been getting on those garage sale sites on Facebook and started putting things up there. I have a lot of Party lite stuff laying around, since we are having a boy, I'm putting together all the old girl stuff to sell, we started putting a pile together of things to sell last night. I will continue on that path, taking pictures and getting them posted for sale. 

I don't think I have enough for an actual garage sale, but I see a lot go on those sites, so I'm hoping that will be a good start. 

CuriousKiddosMama

There has already been a lot of helpful advice posted. I just want to second/reinforce the watch every penny right now. Start a spreadsheet or even use a notebook and make sure you write down every dime you spend. Do that for a full week, and then see how much you would spend per month if you continued that spending- that may help you see how much lunches cost you, and your DH how much his coffee costs him.

Call around for insurance. We have AAA which isn't really thought of as a cheap company, but with 2 cars and our home insurance through them we actually got a great price. When I switched to join DH on the plan I saved on my car like $400 in a year. It can make a huge difference! Check for different cell phones, or even consider ooma (a cheap home phone) if you think you can sacrifice the cell phone completely. I don't recommend this lightly as I know our society practically expects people to have cell phones- but if you sacrifice that for a year $180 times 12 is $2160. That one change would pay off all your current medical bills, plus some. And that's the mind set you need to get in after baby. What can I live without temporarily in order to win long term with money? Or maybe you cut internet like you said- that still saves a lot in a years time!

hoffse

I tried using mint, but it can get glitchy.  My account started counting random transactions twice, and I never could figure out how to make it stop doing that.  Obviously that's a problem when you're budgeting down to $0.

I finally just gave up and started tracking it by hand.  We do most of our spending on credit cards for points, and doing it by hand helps us track cash flow - income vs. closing dates vs. pay dates for various cards.  For instance - I've been spending "July" money since June 9 on one of my credit cards.  Virtually every budgeting tool doesn't take variable closing/pay dates for credit cards into account, and I found myself not being able to track things accurately.  Actually - this is one reason why people tend to overspend on credit cards... if they don't line up their cashflow and closing dates correctly, they really have no idea if they are over or under in any given category.

Since you aren't using credit cards, your cash-flow will be easier to track - the day you buy something will be the day you actually pay for that purchase.  Try it with envelopes first - pull out cash, divide it up into envelopes, and don't "borrow" from envelopes for awhile unless it's an emergency.

Get used to that, and then you might be able to work your way into a more flexible system like April described.