How do you all do it? Ive got the bug! :-)

babybakey

Well im now hooked by the idea of paying off our mortgage early so now i need to know how your all doing it? at the moment we dont have any spare cash but i will do my best to save on our monthly outgoings to release at least £40 a mth to up our payments, i plan on ebaying as much stuff as possible to earn extra cash too, but obviously that will run out at some point.

because we only have one income from my husband ( im a stay at home mum) i wonder how i can save enough or make more each month to up our payments as much as possible.

any ideas?

oojakapipi

Hi babybakey,

Welcome to the board. I am also on a single income and do the surveys, cashback sites and daily clicks on cashback sites (when I can be bothered). These all earn small amounts which add up, and more info can be found on the up your income board.

Others on here do stoozing and matched betting which can bring in quite a bit more, though this involves quite a bit if research and I am not brave enough to try.

Good luck, I think any little bit extra you can make on the side will make a suprising difference to the interest saved, though we all agree that a savings safety net in case of financial emergencies should be put aside first before putting it into the mortgage.

sleepless_saver

spam from zunjiang reported

co123456

Mrs. Cheery is also a stay at home mum so I'm the one who pays her wages. I would like to pay her less, so that the saved cash can be used to overpay the mortgage.

Here's a couple of suggestions:

1. I transfer a set amount of cash to her on payday which covers the supermarket and food shopping. That's her money to manage and whatever is left at the end of the month is money for shoes (as I call it). This money could of course be used to pay down the mortgage. She uses an Egg Money card for the shopping and will earn 1% cashback, in addition to 4% interest on the balance. Unfortunately, Egg Money applications are suspended at the moment because it's such a good deal (for us). We also made sure that any interest payable is tax free.

2. Any spare cash that I have, when in a 'stoozing cash positive' situation goes into her 'high' interest account which is tax free. That interest is then hers to do with as she likes.

3. Make it as easy as possible to overpay. Set up a payment facility from your online banking and make a test payment of £1. If you come accross any spare cash in your account at the end of the month, you can get shot of it.

4. Good luck!

StuartGMC

Babybakey
Welcome to the MFW board; there's plenty of inspiration on the diary's (which is what got me hooked on improving our position we had prior to joining the board in May2008).

I suggest that you get your household expenditure pinned down precisely (I use a spreadsheet, others use MS Money) for all things you need monthly and yearly, plus the "allowance" required for savings to cover things which need replacing over time like white goods, car etc. Thus you'll know your "baseline" position and can then gauge improvements against it (a good motivator when the big plan to clear the mortgage seems a long way off) in combination with some small targets along the way.

Best wishes in the journey ahead for you and the family

RosieTiger

Once you start looking at the savings involved by using a mortgage calculator, you'll realise that even small amouts are worthwhile. If you can do the £40/month and sell off unwanted items on e bay you will have made the most important step - the first one !
Good luck

dimbo61

If you can trust yourself get a cashback Credit card and do as much spending on that each month as you can. But you must pay it off in full each month.
Join quidco and use that to apply for the cashback credit card ( £34 from american express )
Just got my car insurance from MORE THAN and got £68 back via quidco as well as best deal ( via internet ). Also applies to home+ contents !
You need to sign up for quidco and delete cookies before you apply for CC cards , car insurance etc GOOD LUCK

Floxxie

babybakey wrote: »

Well im now hooked by the idea of paying off our mortgage early so now i need to know how your all doing it? at the moment we dont have any spare cash but i will do my best to save on our monthly outgoings to release at least £40 a mth to up our payments, i plan on ebaying as much stuff as possible to earn extra cash too, but obviously that will run out at some point.

because we only have one income from my husband ( im a stay at home mum) i wonder how i can save enough or make more each month to up our payments as much as possible.

any ideas?

We are also a single income family on an average salary and my overpayments are made through 1) reducing our outgoings and 2) increasing our income. I am planning to work harder on 1) this year but last year 2) was pretty successful.

Can I suggest you take a look at the DFW board as there are a number of challenges on there and the people who take part are geniuses at making money from nothing? Also take a look at the 'up your income' board; there are all sorts of ideas on there.

What you decide to do to raise funds for overpayments will depend on your personal circumstances. I have very little time looking after three children, studying for a degree, as well as a voluntary genealogist so what I choose to do is minimal compared to some people but every little bit really does help towards your aim.

Good luck!

Floxxie

setmefree2

and

phizzimum

I know it sounds dreadfully old fashioned, but if you're planning on starting small get yourself a mortgage piggy bank.

There was a sticky about this a while ago but don't think it's there anymore. Get a pig - or any sort of money box - some people used a jam jar of made their's out of papier mache. put it in a prominent position, give it a funny name, or even a speech bubble saying "feed me!"

It's just a visual reminder of your goal. We have Mortimer the Mortgage Pig. He sits in the hall way - (a great place to be when DH empties his pockets when he comes home from work!) It may sound silly but giving him a name means we feel sorry for him if he hasn't been fed in a while. If the children find a coin in the street they pick it up so they can feed Mortimer.

If I save money by using a money off coupon, or resisting buying a magazine or a coffee - when i get home I put that money into Mortimer.

It may not sound like much but it does add up and help you to be more aware of day to day spending. It was how we started off and helped us have the mindset which now means we have budgeted to make larger regular payments, so don't look down on starting small!

cupid_s

It's not loads but mystery shopping helps. I signed up to retaileyes and some assignments can be quite good. Recently there were loads of hotel phone call enquiry ones paying £10 each. Had to be done during office hours when I'm at work otherwise I'd have chosen to do a few.

I'm going to cash a cheque on saturday and they're paying me a fee of £15 (and giving me the amount I'm charged to cash it) and I've done several drinks assignments. All this goes towards the mortgage paying off fund.