I knew it was bad but here are the #s...
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I knew it was bad but here are the #s...
| Sat, 12-12-2009 - 7:09am |
first the numbers than the questions:
Incoming:
DH income: 1080 bi-weekly
My income: now that back to normal hours ,about 300 bi-weekly, was way down last couple months b/c of child care issues, hence so many p/d bills

I took a quick glance at your bills and the one thing that completely stands out is your car payments. They are huge! $854 dollars a month just on your cars. That must really hurt each month. I can see why you are late! I'm not sure what you could do about about those payments, but I would try to research all of my options. Any way you could trade those babies in for something smaller and cheaper? How is your credit? Year ago we bought a used toyota corolla for 7,000 dollars and we were paying $180 a month on it. That was a really manageable payment.
Another thing I noticed is the cell phones. Now you may really need all the bells an whistles of a cell phone plus a ton of minutes, but I managed to bet my 2 cell phones from $120 a month to $80 a month. I could also add a line to my plan for an extra $10 dollars but that would still only be $90. We don't have texting or internet and I got my minutes down to just what I absolutely need. I found that we were wasting a lot of minutes during the month.
The most important lesson I've learned through this is to not put your head in the sand. Look at everything, every bill, every account. Know what's coming and what your options are. I have found so many mistakes and just by calling I have found many ways to get my bills lowered. I switched auto and home insurance companies, I lowered my cell bill, I've lowered my cable bill...actually I completely got rid of it for a year, but all of these little things add up to big savings!
Good luck! Sorry I couldn't be of more help but I have a million things to do this morning and I'm ready to go insane with my hectic schedule with 3 boys!!!! I've got kids choir rehearsal, a judo class and play rehearsal and I still have to get 3 kids and me dressed and fed!
And sorry for the spelling and grammar mistakes! I don't have time to fix them!
Hi Angel,
I hate to be the bearer of bad news. Maybe I am wrong. I tried to do the math on this with what you have given. Maybe some of the other ladies work it out differently as some are much better at it than me so don't panic.
It does not add up. You have more going out than coming in. Once you get rid of those cash advance bills you will be better off, but the math is not making any sense to me. Plus you don't have anything listed for spending money for you and DH, gifts or any school activities(other than the lunches).
No wonder you are stressed. This leaves you with two choices. You need to cut expenses or make more money. Is there any thing you can sell to get rid of those cash advances? Can you pick up extra shifts or DH?
The Cell phone bill is really high, is there any way to cut this down? Two car payments are really tough on people. I don't know if 350 is enough for groceries for that many people either. I would track it over a couple of months and see if you are really sticking to this. I'm not saying it can't be done, but i have a 12 year old boy and the amount of food he eats is ridiculous, so I feel for ya!
Once you knock out a few of these debts and adjust a few things you should be cooking again! So good luck and stick with it. It will get better because you make it get better!
Unfortuantely the sad fact is that dh and I currently don't have any spending money. We are still under contract on the cell phone, so even if I get rid of it, still have to pay it - which bites!! When we bought two cars on payments I was bringing home 1200+ more per month. I have been selling some things on ebay, I did make 135.00 (I used that for christmas gifts). DH has talked to his uncle about some side jobs, and has applications in for a second job. We are very blessed with our grocery budget. Both dh and ds like to hunt, so that has helped with our grocery bills alot, and we do receive WIC, (a program for women, infants and children) it buys milk, juice, eggs, wheat bread, some cereals and veggies, and some beans, so also a big help; we actually have been surviving on alot less than that per month for the last several. I don't buy much junk food at all, for snacks we have baked goods - not a hard expense to cut, since they taste better anyway; I clip coupons, plan my meals around sales flyers,
Angel
Wife to Wayne, Mommy to Tyler (15), Nickolas (3) and Noah (1)
Angel
Wife to Wayne, Mommy to Tyler (15), Nickolas (3) and Noah (1)
I'm still on contract with my cell phone company too and I never switched companies, I was just able to downgrade to a lower minutes plan and get rid of features I wasn't using like texting and the internet. What company do you get service through?
Got a 2 year old screaming for dinner here and he's getting ready to throw a plate! AHHHH...