Need help with budgeting

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why would you let 15k go to collections if you had more than enough cash savings to pay it?

You sound like you desperately need some basic financial literacy. I would look into your local adult Ed programs and see if anything us available. You will never get into a better financial situation if you continue your current patterns.

I'm also not sure how you can expect to get useful help here when you've provided random pieces of information about your finances, and shown no willingness to cut any of the few expenses you have mentioned. You listed 4 things that total $1850-without adding in dinners, weekend meals, car or transit costs, utilities if you have them, clothing, hygiene and household items, etc. yet you think you can spend no more than $1900 a month?

Where do you get that I'm not willing to cut any of my expenses? I said in a prior post I'm going to start bringing breakfast to work to save $15 a week. I didn't have ANY savings when I accumulated the debt - I was out of work and in order to have cash to pay rent, I put everything else on my credit card (I did not eat out at ALL then). When I finally got work, I immediately began saving so that god forbid I was out of work again, I would not have to go back on unemployment and food stamps. Prior to that, I had perfect credit and saved reliably. When I got laid off I was able to live for a year on my savings comfortably. If I got laid off today I could live on the $25k for a year, though it wouldn't be comfortable.

I do not have to pay utilities, and can walk to/from work, plus to the grocery store, drugstore, and library. I spend $3 a week getting to my volunteer position. Haven't bought new clothes in about 5 years. I don't need basic financial literacy - I just need someone to set me back on the right track which I feel far off of.

[Anonymous]

Get Suze Orman's book Women and Money out of the library. Watch her show on Saturday nights at 9 pm. You'll learn a lot. If your debt is in collections it has been sold to a company for pennies on the dollar. They will do whatever they can to get paid back, including representing themselves as the original company or threatening you. The cc company has written off the debt and your credit has taken a hit (pull your report, Suze Orman's web site tells you how). You can either just forget the collections company or try to deal with the company and tell them you'll give them a lump sum (half?) and wipe it out. You can also work out a payment plan with them (X dollars a month).

You do need to deal with that debt in some way, just to reestablish your credit and move on. You'll need to have a decent credit score to get a car loan or another apartment, etc.

The advice about mint.com was very good. All your transactions are tracked, and you can see both your assets and your debt so you know your total net wealth. You might be able to tweak your expenses to get them down... Just be aware that our family makes about $160/yr (3 people in family) and I take my breakfast and lunch almost all days to work. Our total cell phone bill for 3 phones is $72/mon (no texts, no data, no smartphones). No flat screens, no lap tops. Two old cars. You need to live like this because you don't have the income to do otherwise.

[Anonymous]

You don't know how to set a budget.

You have thousands in debt but eat out lunch every day and are fine with it.

You have no idea how much you are spending on other stuff.

You say you feel off track.

All if those statements equal a lack of basic financial literacy. It's not meant to be mean, a lot if financial savvy needs to be learned.

[Anonymous]

Suggestions:
1. Write down everything you spend in a paper journal or mint.com.
2. Download a budget template from the Internet. Fill in your income and your expenses (use your receipts and journal to record your expenses accurately)
3. Figure out how much more you are spending per month than bringing in.
4. Then, attack your expenses. Cut expenses as much as you possibly can. Be ruthless to yourself as much as possible, remembering that we don't need as much as we think to live -- Internet, cable, cell phone, pack your lunch, find a roommate (can’t remember if you are single). Call your utilities and vendors and move around the due dates to align with when you get paid.
5. Save up a few hundred dollars of cash to deal with emergencies.
6. Now attack your debt. Don't use credit for new purchases. Pay the minimum on all your cards. But, pick one to attack first (the lowest balance or the highest interest rate). On this card, pay more than the minimum balance as much as you can. Stick with it. When you pay off this debt, pick the next debt and pay on that one, using the extra money that you were putting on the first card.
7. Consider a part time job to supplement your income. Use all the extra income to pay the debt.
8. After clearing the debt, go back to saving and build up 6 to 8 months of savings.

It will take time. So, stay encouraged. When you finish, remember how painful this was and don’t use credit cards when you can’t pay it off right away.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Suggestions:
1. Write down everything you spend in a paper journal or mint.com.
2. Download a budget template from the Internet. Fill in your income and your expenses (use your receipts and journal to record your expenses accurately)
3. Figure out how much more you are spending per month than bringing in.
4. Then, attack your expenses. Cut expenses as much as you possibly can. Be ruthless to yourself as much as possible, remembering that we don't need as much as we think to live -- Internet, cable, cell phone, pack your lunch, find a roommate (can’t remember if you are single). Call your utilities and vendors and move around the due dates to align with when you get paid.
5. Save up a few hundred dollars of cash to deal with emergencies.
6. Now attack your debt. Don't use credit for new purchases. Pay the minimum on all your cards. But, pick one to attack first (the lowest balance or the highest interest rate). On this card, pay more than the minimum balance as much as you can. Stick with it. When you pay off this debt, pick the next debt and pay on that one, using the extra money that you were putting on the first card.
7. Consider a part time job to supplement your income. Use all the extra income to pay the debt.
8. After clearing the debt, go back to saving and build up 6 to 8 months of savings.

It will take time. So, stay encouraged. When you finish, remember how painful this was and don’t use credit cards when you can’t pay it off right away.

I just realized that your debt is in collections. Definitely call the creditors and work out a payment plan. They will take something vs. nothing and will be shocked if you actually call them. Then, follow step #6. Sorry about your job loss - an understandable reason for getting into debt.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You need to know more about how much you currently spend to make a reasonable budget for you. What you've posted so far does not have enough detail. For example, is your debt in student loans or car payment or credit card? If it is cc you should pay it all off as quickly as possible before adding to your savings. I can tell you $75 a week for breakfast and lunch for one person sounds like way too much. DH and I spend about $300 on food each month for two people and a baby.

I know this post is a little old, but how is this possible?!? $300/month on food---that's a fraction of the national average.