museumworker's quest to consign mortgage to history!

museumworker

Yours does sound better than mine tyo... but I get stressed when the house is a mess, so rather bite the bullet and do a couple of hours now rather than spend all week struggling to find things. The moneysaving stuff is bottom of the list, after the house sorting stuff and seeing friends, honest! Have a good day!

museumworker

Only £69.41 off making £10K ops in 6 months :j! Hoping to make that after fees etc from today's ebay sales. please please please...pretty please with a flower on top... :rotfl:!

[Deleted User]

wow!!! fab OPs there - must up my game!

museumworker

£84 before fees... plus postage. I am quietly confident will meet target

museumworker

The hunt is finally over - after 3 years (and the purchase and return of a possible that cost us £100 in fees and shipping :mad::mad:) we have FINALLY agreed on and bought a sideboard for our dining room :j:j:j! This feels like a big step for me, the last major purchase required to get the downstairs EXACTLY the way we want it, furniture wise at least. We had hoped to spend under £300, but has come to £360 + £65 couriering, but I still think an absolute steal to get what we want.

I am so in love with this piece of furniture it is ridiculous! For those who wish to nosy here's the link - the first photo is a bit pants, but the others show it off much better.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/260849739602?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

museumworker

An update:
Ebay, all now paid for :j! £41.09 + £19.74 profit off two items, c. £8 off other but need to post tomorrow to confirm posting costs!

ETA: From the ebay sales, £68.83 OP made today:j:j:j! So close to the £10K op amount it hurts! (£9999.42 :rotfl:!)


Amazon - had 5 sales after nothing at all for weeks. £29.20 in disembursements requested (I pay postage from joint account, and just transfer the whole amount to our mortgage) Profit: £24.29.

Found 2x schwim caps, and 13p in roadkill.

£90.40 made in make £10 a day challenge so far, my signature is mucking around so will just record here for now.

Have wedding in Ireland at end of week, just getting organised for that. Have put one of my free designer dresses from my win last year into the dry cleaners for myself. DD has a dress I bought for £3.75 from a charity shop when we were in Wales in July. Can't find photo but it is really gorgeous, red satin with a jewelled neckline and empire line, and red netting under it. Perfect for an autumn wedding, and am sure i can sell it on for more once she has grown out of it.

The only problem was what to put on her feet! I have just reserved in store some gold pumps from john lewis for £14 - tried to find a cheaper, better pair online that would go with it, but really very little out there, and I can't rely on the post to arrive in time. I suppose £17.75 for a child's wedding outfit isn't bad! She really doesn't have any other shoes that would go as we haven't bought any party type shoes for a couple of years now - if I could take her in wellies I would do :rotfl:!

On a clothes theme, have turned a corner with OH. Bought 3 x gap shirts from our local oxfam on Sunday for £8.97. They are all lovely, really smart and wearable in great nick but I don't normally buy OH second hand clothes as he is quite hard to guess what he'll like. After checking their returns policy, I bit the bullet, and he LOVES them! I now feel more browsing in the menswear sections of charity shops! Although to be fair, it is quite rare you get much decent menswear second hand, these looked virtually unworn.

tootallulah

I think that you got a bargain with your sideboard it is beautiful. Ditto your charity shop shopping. But most astonishing is your £9999 over payment in six months, you are inspirational.

museumworker

Thanks Toots Looking forward to us doing our, ahem, motivational challenge together!

Just checked the FD account, and £3.83 landed from ebay sales - which takes me up £10,003.25 :j:j:j! We started this mortgage on 17/3/2011, so that is under 6 months! As you'll know if you've read this diary, this does include the OH accidentally putting an interest free car loan in there (at £5K ), so not sure we can do this EVERY six months, but pleased to have done it this one!

Have the final payment to make to the builders (must must must email them the costs to take off), and then we should be at about £4.5K saving. I am now saving £300 pm into the 8% interest FD account (the maximum I can save), plan is to get OH to do the same. That means in a year we will be up to £7,200 + interest + £4.5K in savings which is more than enough contingency. Our aim was to get to about £8k, so it may be in a year we cash in one of the savings and put it in the mortgage - we can decide closer to the time.

We have also decided to take up some share purchasing options at OH's work, without going into too much detail they are a good medium term investment (5+ years before you can cash in). We will be saving the maximum into these we can, £110pm in one scheme and £50pm in the other. Let's just say one is bought before tax + NI (and OH is a higher rate tax payer), and the other involves a discount and has seen 100% returns - and you can decide just to have your money back at the end if you prefer rather than the shares.

This does mean we will be putting £760pm into savings of different kinds, which seems on an emotional level counterintuitive to OPing the mortgage. However, it is really going to provide such a better return than our mortgage - and is not only heading on the same path but hopefully accellerating the mortgage free date! Any other MFW's have decent savings?

mouche

Hi MW,

I’ve just finished reading through your diary from the beginning – I clearly have far too much time on my hands! Just wanted to say I’m awestruck at your ability to save/ overpay the amounts that you have, especially given that you have such a full on life! I hope to join the ranks of MFWs very, very soon though with a little one on the way, don’t know how much I will be able to manage by way of OPs. But I will keep coming back to your diary for inspiration.

Hope your migraines are staying away.

[Deleted User]

hey mw
we are going for a saving plus OPing tactic too - doesnt knock the mortgage down as quick but feels more secure in many ways! plus gives a buffer for emergencies/instant access!
well done on the charity shop bargains and persuading OH to see the benefit of charity shopping
You really have done fab to do 10K OPs in 6 months or so!

ps need a kick up the butt to get back on the shred , distinct lack of toned-godessness going on this end! :rotfl: