Your advice - what would you do if...

iVillage Member
Registered: 07-06-2003
Your advice - what would you do if...
13
Mon, 05-26-2008 - 7:45pm
You found yourself in this situation - sorry that this is so long:

In 2005 I was then married to now ex-DH and we had paid off all debt and bought a condo together. A few months later we were filing divorce papers - we had been together for nearly 10 yrs, married 4 1/2 of those years. In short, he is a stand-up guy, but we should have NEVER gotten married.

I took over the condo, which we transferred in my name only and I had $10K worth of debt (buying him out). I sold the condo in mid-2007...there are some days I regret it but I am fine with that decisions more than not.
In late 2006, I met someone who eventually became my DF...well who as of last week is now my ex-DF and we started a company together and ran up a considerable amt of debt. I finally summed up the courage to leave him because he is not respectful of me, my emotions, nor of all that I invested financially in the company which was mainly to launch him as an artist and is hardly ever in town. So I am at this point VERY relieved to be single; to figure out the mess of this situation and to fix it, and just to take some time to heal from all this emotional baggage.

So now I owe a whopping $37,660.96 (personal = $27K personal and $10K business) from the $10K I had in 2006 :((( I am owed nearly $19K in business/personal loans from two people one of which is my former DF. Yes, this is a ridiculous amount to be owed, and my hopes for it being repaid are 50%...from my ex-DF I hold out almost zero hope he'll come through.

On the bright side, I do work full time for a solid company and have a very decent salary, as a...Credit/Finance Analyst...it amazes me everyday that my personal finances are now a disaster yet I can manage a portfolio of millions in receivables! But I do have the desire to pay this debt off for once and for all...on my own.

So here is the problem...my debt minimum payments are very high, and I have nothing leftover each month...in fact if it wasn't for extra money coming in time to time from performances I do (I am also a professional singer) things would be really horrible. So for the first time I'm going to post my expenses and hopefully you'll have some suggestions. I currently rent a 2 bedroom 1300 sq ft condo 10 min away from work and I recently renewed my lease for another year until July 2009. I have excellent credit, never late on my payments but I don't have money left over to live.

I get paid $1075.00 every two weeks (net of insane amount of taxes/rrsp contributions/private insurance which is meds/dental/short & long term disability)

Monthly expenses
Rent $885.00
Telus (cell) $55.00
Condo Insurance $21.27
Videotron (pkg of Internet/Home phone/Cable tv) $92.41
SAAQ (Car Registration) $22.30
Gas $250.00
Hydro (electricity/hot water) $75.00
Food $100.00
MBNA Mastercard (bal. $454.00) $11.00
Desjardins Visa (bal. $707.00) $22.00
Citibank Mastercard (bal. $1216.00) $26.62
BMO Mastercard (bal. $2427.08) $37.00
Royal Bank Visa (bal. $10,380.99) $134.00
Desjardins Loan (bal. $7551.62) $228.81
MBNA L.O.C. (bal. $14923.34) $388.00
TOTAL = 2,348.41 - shortfall of $198.41 monthly and this doesn't even count pocket money, personal care items etc!!!

Any ideas would be great. I already work 40 - 50 hours a week full-time, plus I spend 15 hrs minimum for my music projects which are starting to bring fruit but the extra money is sporadic, but I at least won't need to waste any more money due to my ex-DF being out of the picture. But I am willing to see if I can work part-time to help my situation. If I could consistently earn $450/mth extra I calculated I could be out of debt by July 2011 if not earlier.

Thanks for reading me if you made it this far!

Kassandra


"It is said that life has its peaks and valleys.

Kassandra

"It is said that life has its peaks and valleys.  The challenge is to accept them equally and experience them

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iVillage Member
Registered: 07-26-1999
Mon, 05-26-2008 - 10:47pm

Hi,

Hugs...that's a tough situation.

What I noticed is that you spend almost as much on cable/internet/home phone as you do on food. You said you have a cell, and I remember you from years ago, I think you live in a big metropolitan area? So, the first thing I would do is cancel the cable/internet/home phone. What Telus plan do you have? I have the My Faves $25 which costs me a total of $36.62 a month if I don't do anything extra. Telus will give you Voice Mail 3 for free if you ask them. Just some thoughts. I live in a rural area and the coverage is good enough to not need a home phone. You might be able to add My Faves to a plan that also gives you unlimited minutes evenings and weekends.

Second thing I would do is see if you could find a decent, stable roommate. You said you have a two bedroom.

Third, you said you live 10 minutes from work, yet you spend $250 a month on gas, I'm assuming that's for a car? Can you take the bus/subway/walk to work and cut down on driving?? Just a thought.

Good luck :)

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-12-2007
Tue, 05-27-2008 - 7:27am

Hi, Kassandra.


Rebecca has made some good suggestions.

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-10-2003
Tue, 05-27-2008 - 9:24am

Hi Kassie,


Congrats on posting your numbers! Its a good start. I agree wtih PP about the cell phone/home phone internet thing. Is there anyway to cut back on them?


You also mentioned that you live about 10 minutes from work. Any chance of walking/ biking to reduce that $250 montly gas bill? It seems really high to me. I take the bus to work everyday and can get away with less then $100 a month in gas (even with these prices!).


Also, if you get paid every two weeks then you should have two three paycheck months. When are these? Can you devote the entire paycheck to some of the bills? What about selling things you no longer need to snowflake to a bill. My concern is that you have very little grocery money and NO spending money. This isn't sustainable in the long term.


I have to agree with other posters that a roommate may not be a bad idea. Depending on where you live you could get a few hundred dollars a month. Even if it is just a temporary month by month thing, it still will help having someone else there covering some expenses.


Good luck and let us know what you decide!


Bex

Bex -


"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift -thats why its called the present."




Bex -

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-25-2003
Tue, 05-27-2008 - 10:36am

hmmm....

It seems to me that you need to free up some breathing room. Some suggestions:

We put our cable/internet on vacation mode. This meant we didn't get a bill for 6 months but we didn't have to pay the cancellation fee, which by the way is a ridiculous thing as it doesn't actually cost them anything to turn off our cable/internet. On the other hand, they never actually turned off our cable/internet, sooo... At any rate, the summer is the easiest time to go without cable/internet because it is easier to go to the library, etc. If you cannot go without, for your business or other reasons, can you call and see if you can get a better deal? We have an introductory deal right now which is 50% off.

I would then try to knock small amounts off the gas and hydro bill. It's difficult if you have a side business that's starting up to eliminate the car altogether, but for your regular job, can you carpool? My Dh actually has a coworker who lives quite far from their work, and we live quite close to it, so that coworker will occasionally pick him up and often drives him home. Dh does other favours for him to even it out. In the summer, Dh will be biking, but his workplace is very bike friendly. At any rate, if you can find a different way to get to work one or two days a week, you can eliminate 1/5 of that bill.

The ideas I have to increase your income: could you teach voice lessons? There are piano teachers and other teachers that teach lessons through community centres, maybe you can get signed up at a community centre to teach voice lessons. Or you could put up signs. It is a bit more consistent than getting gigs, although not as lucrative, I admit.

I have a friend that is working on getting out of debt and she works weekends at a retail store. They're pretty flexible with her schedule so long as she gives advance warning if she needs a particular weekend off. Another friend has a coworker who works at her favourite clothing store for the discount.

I'm sorry to hear that things worked out so badly with your ex, but it's good that you're moving on - the give and take might have been too one directional in your relationship/

iVillage Member
Registered: 11-17-2007
Tue, 05-27-2008 - 11:16am

check into combining some of the small balances into one card and make sure it is like 1%and the interest or 1 /2 percent of the balance as payment that might make up half of your shortfall a month.


Just got to do those baby steps. A few here and there will add up to a big difference. Use a lot of coupons at the supermarket and drug store. Try to lower food bill by 5.00 or 10 a month and then snowflake it on the smallest bill with the highest interest. Or transfer the highest interest over to one with smaller interest


You are a smart lady just work it down a little at a time.


Mary Ann


iVillage Member
Registered: 07-06-2003
Tue, 05-27-2008 - 4:46pm

Thank you for all your suggestions. Here is a bit more info:

I would have taken public transport to get to work however it would take me nearly 1h30 min and three buses one way believe it or not so that wouldn't work with my active lifestyle and in minus 20 degree weather lol :) I am getting my 10 yr old car inspected this week-end. I believe I have a problem with the front gasket pipe and that is what is causing my car to consume more gas than I think it should. I do drive a lot, but still!

I would consider carpooling with a co-worker who lives nearby and we're good friends, but often after work, I don't go home right away as I work out at the company gym and she has kids to pick-up at daycare or I have appointments relating to my music business. Also, tomorrow I'll find out if I get a part-time weekly evening office position that I applied for last week...it's looking good and the pay is pretty good and it's not sales or phone work and no week-ends which suits me just fine. I will also look into teaching voice again perhaps on the week-ends; I used to do it a few years ago.

Regarding the cable bundle, it's on a 12 month commitment contract renewed annually, so I can't change anything until next April and I have already reduced each option to the bare minimum costs except for keeping basic internet instead of dial-up for business purposes as I am on the net a lot. For the hydro, not much else I can do to lower the bill but I'll try. I keep a landline for my fax service and in case of an emergency. For my cell phone, I have the cheap Talk 25 plan but will review the options I have to see if I can save money there.

Thanks for your encouragement and suggestions; and I know I can make it...I just felt pretty down about everything for a bit...but things will get better.

Kassandra


"It is said that life has its peaks and valleys.

Kassandra

"It is said that life has its peaks and valleys.  The challenge is to accept them equally and experience them

iVillage Member
Registered: 07-26-1999
Tue, 05-27-2008 - 9:39pm

Hey, Kassie, how many kms do you get on a tank of gas? My car has a 2.2 litre engine and a 53 litre gas tank. I get a bit over 600kms to a tank if I drain it right to empty. Just a comparison for you.

I had the fuel filter changed recently and that might have made a slight positive difference. Here's a frugal tip: the dealership quote to do the fuel filter was "about" $75 parts and labour. I bought the filter at Napa for less than $10 because a friend was going to do it for me then that didn't happen. So when I booked it in at the dealership, I said I had the part because a friend was going to do it, so could they use that part. Sure, no problem. They charged me $29.99 plus $3 for sealant...so I got it done for about $45 total. By supplying the filter myself, I saved about $30.

I drive a lot and I think I spend less than $200 a month on gas, and it's $130.9 litre here.

iVillage Member
Registered: 07-06-2003
Tue, 05-27-2008 - 10:08pm

Hey Rebecca,

Like you I have a 2.2 litre engine with about the same gas tank capacity, but now I am only getting about 500 km from full to empty; it used to be a good bit more. I did change my air filter a couple week-ends ago and that has helped a bit, but I think my gasket pipe might be the main problem. I am sure the mechanic will be able to tell me more during the overall inspection this Saturday; but I'll mention to check the fuel filter as well.

All I know is that I refuse to take on a car payment at this point...where in the budget would it fit in anyway lol :) I promised myself that I'd pay for my next slightly used car in cash if I could do it.

Thanks for your insight!

Kassandra


"It is said that life has its peaks and valleys.

Kassandra

"It is said that life has its peaks and valleys.  The challenge is to accept them equally and experience them

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-25-2003
Wed, 05-28-2008 - 2:43am

Hi! Sending good wishes your way about that part time job! Eee - I guess public transit isn't that great in your area.

Have you checked the air pressure on your tires? Because that can change your gas consumption, although I must concede not by as much as you've seen. I like to check mine, I've always been a bit amused by the pressure gauge.

Sorry if I'm repeating things you already know, I'm just trying to make certain that all of the options have been explored.

I think you'll find that things will become easier over time. Eventually, even just paying the minimums, balances will go down. And if you are actively looking for side work, some will come, and that will allow you to pay things off faster.

A side note: I envy your musical ability - I can't sing at all.

iVillage Member
Registered: 07-06-2003
Wed, 05-28-2008 - 11:44pm

Great news! I got the part-time position I applied for and I start next Monday evening :)) So snowflakes here we come!
Air pressure is good; just had it checked at my last oil change last week-end.

Thanks again for your advice!

Kassandra


"It is said that life has its peaks and valleys.

Kassandra

"It is said that life has its peaks and valleys.  The challenge is to accept them equally and experience them

Pages