The 9 year plan...hold onto your hats and here we go!
EssexHebridean
Posts: 21,371 Forumite
Well, I've been thinking about this for a while now. I'm not actually a DFW these days, unless you count the mortgage which, in fact, I do. However, there is more to our plan that simply clearing that, there are other thoughts and considerations at the same time.......I have previously had a diary on the Mortgage free wannabe board, but because I'm not throwing everything at the mortgage yet I didn't quite feel like I belonged there. There isn't really anywhere on MSE for someone who's saving frantically but not paying off debts or a mortgage to a target date, is there?! I seem to spend more time on here than elsewhere these days anyway - it's such a friendly place - that I very much hope you guys don't mind me setting up camp here for a while.
So - the plan. *gulp* Last year we decided that we want to move house. Not just any old move though - the aim is that we will be in a position to move up to the Western Isles of Scotland. It's a heck of a decision - MrEH's family are in Devon and mine in Essex - and to add to the wrench I am an only child as well.....however, we feel that in the long run it's a lifestyle that we want, in a place we love. We've been visiting the Hebrides for years (hence my username - Essex for where we live now, Hebridean for where we want to be) and we actually have friends there too now, people we've got to know over our last few visits, so we're not just going in blind.
A quick bit of history - as I mentioned I don't have any debt now but we've both been through it in the past. When MrEH and I first got together he had a student loan, graduate loan and debts to his landlord, altogether totalling around 18k. He's now paying off the final chunk to his ex LL (which was disputed and settled via the court mediation service as the LL was trying it on :mad:). That, however, is his business and I won't go into too much detail here as it wouldn't be right. I was offered a credit card at 18 and thought "woo hoo!" - went a bit barmy with it and ended up with about 3k that I hid my head in the sand over for a while. Since sorting that out (On my own - parents quite rightly said I'd spent it, I had to pay it back, as otherwise I wouldn't learn....they were right!) I've had various loans all of which have been paid back to schedule, and have at various stages made good use of overdrafts. Last April when we decided on our plan I totally cleaned up our act and as a result we managed to pay off a 6.5k car loan in 13 months rather than 30. Fairly proud of that one. :A As a result of both of our problems in the past the idea of getting back into any kind of non mortgage-related debt now frankly terrifies me - and I have so much respect for all of you on here who are pulling yourselves up by your bootstraps to get yourselves back on track. :T
So - the plan.
1)We are currently overpaying the mortgage - details in sig.
2)Keeping to a strict grocery budget.
3)Next year we will be upgrading the car - for the first time ever this will be a cash purchase - no loan! :j
4)Mortgage OP's will continue to increase as and when we can afford it.
5)All spare cash is being put into ISA's, initially to fund the car purchase, and also to go towards being able to buy ourselves some land on the Island of North Uist on which we will be able to build ourselves a house.
6) Other odd moneymaking ventures as and when we can, Quidco, surveys, saving small change etc.
7) Keeping a diary on here so you lot can shame me if I slip up!
8) Other assorted randomness which will occur to me along the way....
Mortgage is currently standing at £90,400 (Fixed 5.39% until September 2011 and would be due to finish with 2028 if we just paid the standard amount) and the aim for savings this year in in excess of £5000 although realistically I'd like to beat that by some way.
Cheers for reading - sorry it's long, it's not as long as the next nine years will be though!
So - the plan. *gulp* Last year we decided that we want to move house. Not just any old move though - the aim is that we will be in a position to move up to the Western Isles of Scotland. It's a heck of a decision - MrEH's family are in Devon and mine in Essex - and to add to the wrench I am an only child as well.....however, we feel that in the long run it's a lifestyle that we want, in a place we love. We've been visiting the Hebrides for years (hence my username - Essex for where we live now, Hebridean for where we want to be) and we actually have friends there too now, people we've got to know over our last few visits, so we're not just going in blind.
A quick bit of history - as I mentioned I don't have any debt now but we've both been through it in the past. When MrEH and I first got together he had a student loan, graduate loan and debts to his landlord, altogether totalling around 18k. He's now paying off the final chunk to his ex LL (which was disputed and settled via the court mediation service as the LL was trying it on :mad:). That, however, is his business and I won't go into too much detail here as it wouldn't be right. I was offered a credit card at 18 and thought "woo hoo!" - went a bit barmy with it and ended up with about 3k that I hid my head in the sand over for a while. Since sorting that out (On my own - parents quite rightly said I'd spent it, I had to pay it back, as otherwise I wouldn't learn....they were right!) I've had various loans all of which have been paid back to schedule, and have at various stages made good use of overdrafts. Last April when we decided on our plan I totally cleaned up our act and as a result we managed to pay off a 6.5k car loan in 13 months rather than 30. Fairly proud of that one. :A As a result of both of our problems in the past the idea of getting back into any kind of non mortgage-related debt now frankly terrifies me - and I have so much respect for all of you on here who are pulling yourselves up by your bootstraps to get yourselves back on track. :T
So - the plan.
1)We are currently overpaying the mortgage - details in sig.
2)Keeping to a strict grocery budget.
3)Next year we will be upgrading the car - for the first time ever this will be a cash purchase - no loan! :j
4)Mortgage OP's will continue to increase as and when we can afford it.
5)All spare cash is being put into ISA's, initially to fund the car purchase, and also to go towards being able to buy ourselves some land on the Island of North Uist on which we will be able to build ourselves a house.
6) Other odd moneymaking ventures as and when we can, Quidco, surveys, saving small change etc.
7) Keeping a diary on here so you lot can shame me if I slip up!
8) Other assorted randomness which will occur to me along the way....
Mortgage is currently standing at £90,400 (Fixed 5.39% until September 2011 and would be due to finish with 2028 if we just paid the standard amount) and the aim for savings this year in in excess of £5000 although realistically I'd like to beat that by some way.
Cheers for reading - sorry it's long, it's not as long as the next nine years will be though!
🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00
Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00
Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculator
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OH - progress tonight.
Transferred £1700 into this years ISA. Nice to see it off the ground, but I should have noted the previous balance first as it now has a total balance of £1999.99 which is going to irritate the hell out of me until I do the OCD thing and go and pay in a bit to get the amount into round figures. *sighs* That payment comes from a cash draw I won at our speedway club a couple of weeks ago (I pay £5 per month and have won the thing twice in the past year - £260 a time!
) a bit of a build-up in the savings account I pay into monthly (pants interest rates, hence transferring to the ISA) and £100 surplus in my current account.
Shunted a small payment across into the savings account associated with our joint bank account too - again just to round the amount up to a nice balanced figure more than anything else. My OH reckons I need worrying about - an obsession with round figures in savings accounts (I've been known to go and tranfer an odd 27p to make the figure look "right") and I'm the only person he knows who gets over-excited at the arrival of the mortgage statement! :j Weeelll, seems rational enough to me - means I can play with my spreadsheet.
We have an imbalance in the month - I get paid mid-month and OH at the end - most of our DD's come out at the beginning......
This has on numermous occasions (both at times when we've both been skinter than a very skint skint thing AND at times when my inbuilt inability to count without using my fingers (It's inherited, ask my Mum!) has meant I've got the figures wrong) but hopefully this month all should be well. I have two freezers both packed full and a little over £100 in the food budget for the month which should take account of fresh stuff, milk and odds and ends. I need to do a meal plan which will cover the Bank Holiday weekend though.
FAY Happy Birthday!!!!
PIQ carrots to the Captain from me!
*WAVES*🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00
Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her0 -
Hello! What a plan! And what a goal. I'm most impressed with nine years - I can't manage to think as far as nine days ahead. Good luck. I'll follow your progress and shout from the side lines."Green pastures are before me,
Which yet I have not seen;"
I'd love to be a good example - instead, I am a horrible warning.0 -
Puts on hat and holds on tight.:D
Good luck with your plan, did i tell you i love a plan?:rotfl:Blackadder: Am I jumping the gun, Baldrick, or are the words 'I have a cunning plan' marching with ill-deserved confidence in the direction of this conversation?
Still lurking around with a hope of some salvation:cool:0 -
Thanks for that Wordsmith - all shouting gratefully received.
Bob - 'tis indeed a most cunning plan!
Tesco shop tonight which came in at £30 but we didn't have a veg box this week so that always makes it more. Also stocked up on Squash for MrEH (He seems to drink gallons of the stuff but at least I have him trained to head for the no added sugar stuff these days). Balance for the grocery budget for the month now stands at £70.50 remaining. Should be OK so long as I'm careful. The shop today included bread flour which should see us out the month as well, plus the inevitable extras for a long weekend. :rolleyes:
We're having takeaway pizza for tea tonight - yes, permission to tell me off well and truly granted! I've had a devil of a week at work and REALLY couldn't be bothered to cook tonight in spite of my meal plan saying otherwise. I promise to try harder next week.
I realised earlier - when I did the opening post on this thread I forgot a debt. I have a Tesco credit card that I took out last year while it had a 14 month interest free period on balance transfers. I bought my new camera and laptop on a cashback card, then BT'd onto the Tesco. It's ticking away nicely now on minimum payments and I have calendar reminders set everywhere to remind me when I need to start thinking about paying it off. It stands at £895 at the moment. I keep feeling tempted to throw a lump sum at it here and there and have to remind myself that it wouldn't be the sensible thing to do. Honestly - I'll never make a stoozer! :rotfl:
Oh - final bit of important news - BOUGHT SOME NEW STRIPEY SOCKS TONIGHT - FAY PLEASE NOTE! 🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00
Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her0 -
congratulationson the socks. I am very envious of your plan. Can you sort out my life as well as yours?MF aim 10th December 2020 :j:eek:MFW 2012 no86 OP 0/2000
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Nice to see you over here.I used to read on your plan on the mortgage free board.Well done on clearing the loan and I absolutely love your plan...0
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See the socks are taking over, had mine on today too..positive or what?Blackadder: Am I jumping the gun, Baldrick, or are the words 'I have a cunning plan' marching with ill-deserved confidence in the direction of this conversation?
Still lurking around with a hope of some salvation:cool:0 -
LilacPixie wrote: »congratulations on the socks. I am very envious of your plan. Can you sort out my life as well as yours?
LOL - sometimes I almost have to pinch myself when I think how in control of things I am now. I am quite honestly the worlds most unorganised person, and I have a memory like a sieve, so the writing down of "stuff" in a diary proves to be a huge help to me, in fact I believe that without that, I probably wouldn't stand a chance.Nice to see you over here.I used to read on your plan on the mortgage free board.Well done on clearing the loan and I absolutely love your plan...
Thanks Taxi - the loan was hard work but as you might remember my OH was distinctly cynical about my chances of clearing it by my planned date, so I HAD to prove him wrong!boredofbeingathome wrote: »See the socks are taking over, had mine on today too..positive or what?
Well, I decided that Fay had to be right about the powers of the stripes, so I should top up my stocks. Tesco have some nice packs of four pairs - two stripey, one spotty and one plain pair per pack, £3 a pack, and went through the till with a 20% discount applied. Hurrah! I have a health & safety course at work on Tuesday so shall wear a pair then for luck!
Thank you all so much for making me so welcome on your diary board. :beer:🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00
Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her0 -
It's everyone's diary board and besides i like a bargain..dashes off to Tesco ............ 24 hours stripey sock shopping...bliss:D:rotfl:Blackadder: Am I jumping the gun, Baldrick, or are the words 'I have a cunning plan' marching with ill-deserved confidence in the direction of this conversation?
Still lurking around with a hope of some salvation:cool:0 -
waves to EssexHebridean oo love the plan. Well done, have seen you on fay's thread, so thought i would pop in and say hi
chevI want a job that is less than an hour driving away from my house! Are you listening universe?
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