Moving. Overwhelmed. Still have debt!

[Luv2BeFrugal]

This is a vent and a request for input/advice...all at the same time!

Well, Sunday night my Dh and I sat down to talk after getting off the phone with his best friend. We found out that they're moving next fall...him, his wife, and their 3 girls (our 3 goddaughters). So, we decided that we'd rather move, too...and keep us all together. We didn't want to miss out watching our goddaughters grow up...we're all pretty close.

So, here we are...Dh has school until May next year and only has P/T work...and not necessarily steady work at that. I'm working full time. We still have to pay for school (tuition/books/fees)...and we still have debt. We're going to consolidate our student loans just so we'll only have one payment to deal with each month after he graduates. But we still have CC debt. Two CC's to go (which is major progress and we're happy about)! One is $6600...we were planning to slam that and pay it off by December...but now we neeeeeeed to pay it off by October in order to start in on CC #2 in November...which is near $9K. We'd like to somehow get the 2 CC's paid OFF - AND save CASH to move on. All on our little income.

So, we're shifting into "uber-frugal" mode! Cutting back on groceries, driving as little as possible, selling stuff on craigslist, cooking from scratch, etc.

We've got a good sized pantry chock FULL of food...so we're going to buy as little as possible and just eat off the pantry until it's all gone. I certainly don't want to toss it when moving time comes...we've already paid for it, we might as well use it! There are tons of dried beans/peas, oatmeal, grain (I grind my own flour), rice, and I think we have about 4? months of powdered milk (based on how much we go thru on a regular basis). That will help for sure.

We're all moving next October...so we have time...14.5 months... It's not a long time in the grand scheme of things...but it's enough to get Dh finished with college; eat all the food in the pantry; pay off a chunk of debt; sort out the house and sell a bunch on craigslist...and...and...and...

Ok...vent over...now it's time to get excited, really be proactive, and try to have fun with what will be a grand adventure!

Any advice/input/suggestions would be much appreciated! Need to save !!

[auntie2many]

It sounds like you have a good plan. Perhaps you should talk with family and friends now about how you will approach gift giving at Christmas and birthdays as that can really eat a hole in the available income.

If you need ideas for meals, post what is in the pantry and I am sure that all of us would be glad to help.

Good luck.

auntie

[Michelle68]

You have a good plan in place, Kathryn. Where will y'all be moving to?


--Michelle

[Telephus44]

Just a few thoughts...

1. I know that you're trying to knock out debt (and way to go!!), but for the last few months, set some money aside for moving. Not a lot, but instead of throwing all the extra money towards the CC's, put something in the bank just for misc moving stuff. Even if you don't rent a truck and move yourselves, there are ALWAYS tons of little things that "come up" with a new place to live.

2. Declutter and get rid of what you can. You already have the right idea with "eating down" the pantry. I've moved across the country and back, and I don't like moving food - I'd rather use the space for other things.

3. Start thinking about some moving stuff now - things like saving boxes, newspaper to wrap things in, bubblewrap if you get any in the mail, etc.

Other than that, looks like you have a great plan!

One last thought - probably unsolicited, but I can't help but wonder - on the student loan consolidation - think about it before you jump in. There's a lot of other factors besides "only one payment to deal with." It may be the right choice, but it may not be.

[FrugalMomof3]

I agree with Sara and although you have the right state of mind, I agree that saving even a bit of money for moving expenses, I also agree with trying to get moving boxes, bubble wrap, newspapers, etc for moving even though it's far away (or so it may seem).

[dcompton]

If you can stand boxes around, go on and even start packing a little at least a couple of months out from the move, just a box here and there -- things you're sure you won't need. At moving time you'll be glad you did, and it will also make the move "real." That can be a motivation and keep the goal focused.

I agree wholeheartedly about saving money rather than worrying so much about the debt right now. I have moved more times than I like to think, and it ALWAYS ending up costing more than I thought. Often a lot more. Some expenses can be controlled by iron self-will and black belt frugality, but some, like deposits for utilities and such can't.

Good luck. And where are you planning on moving?

[sdrjeolsen]

Kathryn, I'm so excited for you! How cool to have such close friends that you would follow them thousands of miles. We knew we were moving 9 months ahead of time. It is nice that you have advance notice, you can sell stuff and de-clutter. I agree with the previous posts, save some money for the move. We had costs of new driver's licenses, auto registrations, utility deposits and hook-up expenses, etc.
This is just me, but I would do a spread sheet and figure out exactly what it will take to pay off the debts and have what I would want in savings. Then come up with goals and steps to achieve the goals, Monthly, weekly and even daily steps.
Also like others have said start packing some stuff now. It will help a lot at the end to have a portion of the work already done.
Good luck and congrats on the new adventure!

[momof2inpa]

How funny is this?! My cousin just moved out of Alaska to California- she used to live in Kenai.

Anyways I am all for paying off debts but I agree about figuring out the hidden costs of moving as well. You don't really want to have to come up with all kinds of money for food and the utility and so on hidden expenses when you had just exhausted a lot of your income towards paying of debts. One nice thing is that you have given yourself a nice time frame to do your move, save some money and pay off a lot of debt. Good luck and sending good thoughts your way!

[Dancing Lotus]

It sounds like you have a good plan but if worse comes to worse you could always stay back and join them in a few months. I'm jealous I wish I had friends good enough to move for!

[Luv2BeFrugal]

Thanks ladies for all the great advice! I hadn't thought about packing things a couple months ahead...it sure would make it easier than just a couple weeks...

We spent the weekend doing a bunch of scratch cooking and freezing meals (for quick and easy after work eating...not tempting to eat out that way) all from the pantry. Made a crock pot of split pea soup (enough for 3 meals for us both) and a stock pot of bean & potato (enough for 10 meals for us both). Whew!

We're moving to Wisconsin...looks like the Green Bay/Appleton area. I'm really excited...and nervous... All new everything to get accustomed to. We have a Sam's Club up here but never really used it...been using Costco. We're going to switch our membership to Sam's when it comes time to renew...that way we can adjust to at least one of the new things here...for slightly easier transition.

My parents are going to let us store some boxes in a small shed in their backyard - until we buy a house after arriving (like 1- 2 years?). So, that will help us not have to move a ton of stuff right off the bat...like keepsakes and such.

We also made a moving budget! Yes, we're planning to save it all up before moving time. Don't want to "grow" our debt from moving. In our moving budget we accounted for:
~ shipping expenses
~ (we're driving down) driving expenses, motel, food
~ 1st week in WI - motel, food, gas
~establishing in an apartment
(deposit, food stock, utilities, bed, some furniture and lamps)
~ 2 months living expenses
(bill payments, car insurance, rent, utilities, gas, laundry, etc.).

So, looks like we missed utility deposit. Can anyone tell if we missed something else?

[sdrjeolsen]

Have you considered auto registrations/new plates -may have to pay for VIN verification/air quality check etc., new drivers licenses, all I can think of at the moment.