Reach for the stars...

niccatw

Right... numbers! (Eventually, you sigh! She remembers what the diary is for. ) In no particluar order...

NRAM - 1,379.14 No change. There's a total of £630.10 sitting in an allocated account to go toward it. I was waiting for this month's pay as that would give me another £300 (give or take), which I think would pretty much pay it off. Though I now have £215 on a credit card for flights which needs paid first.

B'card - 1,247.60 The legs! (And arms and face and other bits ) I think I have 6 "zaps" left - another consideration in The Big Decision.

SLC2 - 1,693.69 The one that comes of my wages. Plod, plod, plod.

SLC1 - 115.37 10th March and vamoosh! Gone! Almost 13 years after I graduated from my first degree and I will have finally paid off the loans I took out in my 2nd, 3rd and 4th years! (I had at least managed to save money for my first year. But then I moved to the big city as an 18 year old and the rest, as they say, is history.)

HFC - 767.35 This one is the sofa. Do I really want to rent it out before it's even paid off?

Others - 2035 Friend and family.

So the grand total owed is £7,238.15.

And hopefully NRAM and SLC1 will be gone by the end of March. That being the case, then I think I will leave B'card, HFC and SLC2 ticking over as the first two are 0% and the other comes off my salary. That means I can save to pay back what I owe my friend (£1000) and family (£835 grandparent, £200 parents).

Right, now I'm off to see if the How much did we pay off in 2011 thread made it in to the newsletter. I don't think it did though.

MrsMoo2U

Oh dear, I hope that I am not late to plate on this one Nic, not been around MSE much lately.

Right, Butti speaks so much sense. It is normal to have all of the butterflies and worries. I went through all of that when moving to Wales but your instincts will kick in. Just take deep breaths and dont force the thoughts - allow them to happen naturally. Your friend means well about trying to convince you to move but dont listen to her, listen to that little voice inside.

I have finally rented out my flat but I still have a shortfall of £200 per month by the time I pay agents fees, insurance, service charges etc BUT I am £X better off than I was. So dont look at the negative only, look at the positives. As for the SVR, if you are converting to a rental will NRAM allow you to fix a rate on a buy to let agreement? I was on a fixed rate already so I have been allowed to keep that until June 13 without changing over but once I hit that date then I will have to change over. The FR is actually higher than it would have been had I changed over now but the fee negated the move. Also can you look at putting your mortgage for the flat on interest only whilst you are renting it out and would this help? Now I know that you have been overpaying but if you need money to see you through where you are going to then it may be a way forward in the short term.

You say that it might not be worth doing this as you see it as a short term move. Is that because you are now determined to do VSO? Remember that the more experience you have, the more flexible that you appear to them (and moving from one country to another - even if only Scotland to England) will all go in your favour when applying.

Sorry if this sounds harsh but you know as well as I do that sometimes you have to face that fear and do it anyway

To succeed, jump as quickly at opportunities as you do at conclusions.
Benjamin Franklin


To hell with circumstances; I create opportunities.
Bruce Lee

niccatw

The pendulum is swinging back round the other way at the moment.

NRAM was Northern Rock's "bad bank" and thus I can't change to another type of mortgage with them, i.e. I couldn't be considered for a new buy-to-let mortgage without going elsewhere and negative equity, or at least not a high enough LTV, means that's not possible.

From what I have gleaned from NRAM, moving between repayment and interest only, or being allowed to let your place out on current T&Cs is, in theory, doable as they are a company that only exists to reduce the current mortgage book. All decisons are a moot point if the theory doesn't pan out in practice as then I'm essentially stuck until I can move the mortgage elsewhere.

One of the work opportunities was advertised. It's a two day post. Which I knew, but boss seemed to think was full time. So asked boss what the odds were on doing 2 days there, three days here, if I was offered that post. She couldn't guaranteee it unless there was a guarantee from on high that the two days I dropped wouldn't be frozen and added to the savings pot.

If she wants to keep me, she is going to have to fight a bit harder. Hence the pendulum swinging back! I have refrained from mentioning that might happen anyway. Boss doesn't seem to realise that I am not precious about such opportunities and hence did mention this post to another staff member who I know would be keen and who I know would be brilliant at it (even if she's my competition if I go for it ). If I don't go for it, she is bound to get it (that sounds really big-headed! I have more experience in the clinical area than this person so it might, but not necessarily, work in my favour). She's on a temporary contract so would take 2 days permanent if offered. By the time they advertised my post (assuming I go), she'd would apply and ask fro three days and my boss would find herself in exactly the position she is wanting to avoid.

Ain't politics fun! Does this kind of tying up in knots happen in the private sector too? Many, many companies must lose many, many brilliant people through sheer complacency!

This morning I have been gutting the flat again. More decluttering! Every time I clean at the moment, I have a car load to take to the dump! Just in case I need to be miinimalist soon. Easiest way to declutter I tell you! Suddenly things become dead weight you'll have to pay for instead of sentimental objects you can't bear to part with!

Stopping for a quick bite to eat and then on to the bathroom. Once it's clean I may go for a bath! And sort out what I need to take tomorrow as my flight is at lunch-time! :eek:

niccatw

Watching The Bank Job at second job. Any-one any clue how it works? I really don't! Mind you I still haven't worked out how Deal Or No Deal works, so I don't hold out much hope for figuring this one out!

Has any-one read Her Fearful symmetry? Audrey Niffenegger. I enjoyed reading it but can't say I liked it by the time I finished it. Felt the same way about One Day. Wonder what to read next...

Nope, don't like using my phone to post. Too fiddly for me. I'll see you all after the interview. Eek.

niccatw

I have a job offer. ****. I think the job would fabulous. I don't think I want to live on the island. But I don't know that anything is going to change work-wise, boss can't tell me what I want to hear about the post here.

I'm in total quandry. And I'm at work being totally ineffective.

MatyMoo

Well done on getting a job offer, now is the difficult time as you have a decision to make. Not a position I would want to be in as it involves such a huge move for you.

Time to right up the pro's and cons list.........

Butti

niccatw wrote: »

Watching The Bank Job at second job. Any-one any clue how it works? I really don't! Mind you I still haven't worked out how Deal Or No Deal works, so I don't hold out much hope for figuring this one out!

Deal or no deal is simply probability. Nothing else.

Any help? No I didn't think so.
Anyone got a coin we could toss?

I think you need a serious talk with your boss about implementing the things that she offered you before you went for the job.
With the above information you need a big sheet of paper with four collumns; two for current job, two for potential job
+ - + -

It's just like the beer we were serving on Thursday 'Errmmm'.

B x

p.s. Either way you will be rid of the imaginary lodger so that's a good thing.

MrsMoo2U

Well done on the job offer. Oh dear how difficult the decision is. I am another one with the pros and cons but aside from the 2 jobs columns how about a pros and cons for the island and your current home too. Separate out the personal stuff from the work stuff and see which place outweighs the other on both counts. Remember that you should be working to live not living to work so the personal stuff should be as high a priority on that pros and cons list as (if not higher) than the work stuff.

“Cease trying to work everything out with your minds. It will get you nowhere. Live by intuition and inspiration and let your whole life be Revelation.”
Eileen Caddy

niccatw

Thanks guys. I know I need to do the pros and cons list - it's what I'm constantly telling my friends to do! Especially the one moving to Dubai in two weeks!

But not tonight. I am shattered and my wee brain is frazzled!

What I have done is email to say if it was only the job I had to consider, I'd say yes in a heartbeat as it sounds a great job. (Which it does. I felt at the interview that my ideas and views on things were on the same wave length as theirs. Always handy!) However, I pointed out it wasn't just a job, it was a big, expensive move for me and I'd be foolish to take it if it left me in a worse position financially.

I asked whether there was any flexibility about where I started on the payscale, whether they'd take on my lease car contract and what was available for relocation costs.

I think the decision may be made for me financially.

If I need to buy myself out of my car lease, I would be charged £1063.60. This applies even if I want to buy the car, but not if the new NHS trust will take on the contract.

They did not know what relocation packages were offered, or even if they were still offered. But they knew there was hospital accommodation if I needed it.

They do not think there is any flexibility in where I start on the payscale. The starting point for the pay band is the same as my current salary. They argue they cannot start me higher as I am currently on the lower pay banding. My incremental pay rise is in August and I would automatically go up to the next point in the scale then (which is different to any pay rises received in line with inflation, which we haven't had for the last three years). I can do this for another two, maybe three years before I hit the ceiling for that payscale banding. If I moved up to the next pay band, I could do it for the next 9-10 years before I hit that ceiling.

So, the lie of the land currently looks as though I'd be getting the same take home monthly pay, but I'd need to buy myself out of a car lease contract, get myself a car, relocate myself from one end of the country to the other without any financial help from new emplyer (even more expensive, given where the land lies!).

Not a hugely attractive offer, however good the job felt!

And back here, my boss's boss can't guarantee cover for the post I would like to apply for at two days a week, because of the current financial situation, because of some other profession being in overspend, yadda, yadda, yadda...

Which essentially means I can't apply for that post as my boss would not allow me to go part time. ANd I can't affoord (unfortuantely!!!) to drop to two days per week!!!!

The entire situation makes me angry at the nonsense of the public sector! But also just extremely frustrated and impotent. I feel I am just a pawn in my bosses game. But she is just a pawn in her bosses game. And god knows how many layers of that there are going on.

That bit of nonsense was enough for me to consider a move despite my personal reservations. But not at such a huge financial loss.

And I don't mean for that to sound as though I'm in it for the money, because I'm not and I'd happily take a lower pay if it was the right job for me - but as MrsMoo says, I work to live. There's a line.

On a more positive note, tonight I went for dinner with the lady whose training I gatecrashed the other week, as she was back up this way. She has publsihed books in her field (her field is that of our conference and the one I'm most passionate about) and regularly trains. She said she will recommend me to her training company if I want to do that. I said I would think about it and as I was driving home, it occurred to me that it might be a safe way to explore other avanues, as initially I could use annual leave to do it and see if it was workable in the long term. Or whether I'd be more willing to take the risk of an unsteady income as I hopefully begin to swing the balance the other way.

I bet when I try to post this, it's taken me so long, I'll have been logged out.... hmmmm, copy and paste just in case Nicca...


Whilst I might be stressing, it's a nice dilemma to have! A friend of a very good freind of mine died of a heart attack at the weekend. He was 34. As am I. Life is just too short and we are too fragile and we worry about things that we really shouldn't. We really do need to learn as a species to live more.

Butti

niccatw wrote: »

I asked whether there was any flexibility about where I started on the payscale, whether they'd take on my lease car contract and what was available for relocation costs.

They do not think there is any flexibility in where I start on the payscale. The starting point for the pay band is the same as my current salary. They argue they cannot start me higher as I am currently on the lower pay banding.

Not a hugely attractive offer, however good the job felt!

And back here, my boss's boss can't guarantee cover for the post I would like to apply for at two days a week, because of the current financial situation, because of some other profession being in overspend, yadda, yadda, yadda...

Which essentially means I can't apply for that post as my boss would not allow me to go part time. ANd I can't affoord (unfortuantely!!!) to drop to two days per week!!!!

Whilst I might be stressing, it's a nice dilemma to have! A friend of a very good freind of mine died of a heart attack at the weekend. He was 34. As am I. Life is just too short and we are too fragile and we worry about things that we really shouldn't. We really do need to learn as a species to live more.

B**locks, bol**cks, boll**ks........they want you but not enough. I know of other cases in the public sector where they have not applied these rules. Bolloc**!.
But you are obviously highly regarded so maybe these hints of options will start to open up. Keep pressing your boss on doing things, you established before the interview that things couldn't stay as they were.

Really sorry to hear about your friend. Same thing happened to one of mine at the age of 37! Terrible shock. I think we need to learn to live more and have our cholestorol checked!

Whatever happens you keep plugging away and doing a good job. People are noticing you and that is always a good sign.