25 year old in financial trouble needing advice
So I’m a 25 year old female teacher. I need some good financial advice. I am very bad at handling money. I started working late 2024, but the only big purchase I made is an iPhone. I have no savings and I am R68k in debt. To break down my debt:
-Credit card: R3000
-Clothing account: R14000
-PayJustNow and Payflex: R15000
-Payday loans: R36000
I was under a lot of pressure and decided to get debt counselling. This is the best option for me as I have no one to bail me out of the financial mess I got myself into. I’m currently under debt administration. This will be my first month and I will be paying R3000 for 2 years. I earn R21000 so I will be left with R18000 for my needs. My monthly expenses are as follows:
-Rent: R3000
-Electricity: R400
-Transport: R1200
-Groceries: R2500
-Entertainment: R1000(I love reading so I buy books)
-My mother:R3000
So everything totals to R11 100 leaving me with a reminder of R6900.
I am quite nervous and I need effective and practical financial advice on how I can keep myself out of debt and have a healthy financial life. I want to get a car in the near future and would also like to save a good deposit for a house or save enough to buy my family a site/stand in a nearby small town that is 30min away. Sites/Stands there cost around R50000-R250000. I know that I’m fed up with my poor money handling skills, but I’m not really sure which steps I should make in this new journey.
Do I start saving for a car or a stand? I was also thinking of paying R6000 per month to the debt counsellor just so I can get out of debt administration quicker, but I’m not sure if this is a good idea. I’m honestly nervous I’m scared that I might make the same mistakes and 2 years down the line I’m still in the same situation or even worse. Please help.