£14310 off mortgage 2010 lets make 2011 better

sarahevie

Three weeks grocery spends £140 not bad.

Previously have spent £210 on groceries £50 on petrol a month.

Now with our petrol spends at £100 with me working, no way of reducing I'm trying to keep monthly food to £160 not easy but hopefully I'll be close.

Free ebay listing weekend this weekend but I'm working today and tomorrow going to try and find time tomorrow as I'm only working 10-4

sarahevie

I've listed 13 things on ebay as it's free listings weekend and I had some ride ons I'm loathe to part with for 99p. Put them on at £5 to start.

If everything sells I'll have made £30 but DD1s bedroom is so much clearer.

I've also got a load of costume jewellery that I was going to sell on at fares but haven't had chance, I've tried selling it as a job lot on ebay the last two free listings and it hasn't sold. Even at 20p a piece so will defo have to try and do a carboot.

I didn't bother searching the loft for stuff for ebay as most of my baby stuff I want to keep for DD2. There's three toy boxes in the garage of stuff the girls don't play with but it's happyland stuff and fisherprice little people farm and things like that- which I'm hoping they may grow into. We were given a lot of it last christmas so I don't want to get rid just yet. Especially not for the peanuts ebay brings as it was all brand new and will have cost friends/family a fair bit

sarahevie

£450 op today. Leaves only £16 til Fri but should be fine

sarahevie

Having an update of our lounge, the curtains we 'inherited' from the previous owner 4 years ago, so was about time they went. So new curtains, a new clock, new canvas for the wall.

Was all going so well, when we left Dunelm, I said to OH the bill seems too high, him ushering us out as they were closing, tired kids etc. He wouldn't let me check the receipt:mad:

I get home they have overcharged us by £20, so bank hol going to consist of 20 mile round trip to put it right.

Not planning on doing any more OPs this year, as we have those silly internal doors with 15 glass panels in them and they really aren't child friendly. So going to have those replaced. Going to have some work done in the front garden. Want the huge borders removing and grassing over ideally.

Also OH has bought new light fittings, and satin chrome light switches to replace the current rubbish ones. Another case of bought in a hurry as FTBs but bought such naff cheap ones 4 years down the line they are such poor quality they need replacing really.

Also would like new kitchen curtains and the bathroom tiling, to update the white suite, and the horrible lino is all coming away at the edges. If we can't afford to move I want to improve:rotfl:

CathT

Great OP. We are still making OP's but slowing down a little so we can save for house renovations. Money will also provide a back up during my maternity leave but hoping we won't need to dip into it for that.

DD has loads of Happyland stuff she doesn't play with but I am hoping she will one day!

Sepa74

It never ends, does it! There are always things that need doing which then cost money! But it's important to live in a nice environment. Ik3a have it right when they say that home is the most important place in the world

sarahevie

Expensive 'for us' weekend.

£140 in dunelm, on curtains and pictures. Want our house to look more like a 'home' as it is painted white throughout with wood floors downstairs and brown carpet upstairs so looks quite clinical.

Treated ourselves to a takeaway for tea as its 'bank holiday' so that cost £11.50 really pushed the boat out:rotfl:

sarahevie

Just had a text from my current tenants asking me if I will move there stuff from my house into their new address, about 2 miles away, tomorrow morning.

Obviously being the softie that I am I have agreed. Its good really as my new tenants want to be in the day after as early as possible. So if they get out by midday, which I will have more control over if I'm moving them, it gives me a full 24 hours to clean it throughly I've also got my sister who works for a cleaning firm on standby to help out.

The new tenants can't officially move in til 4pm as per contract but apparently 'need' to be in earlier so we will see how we get on. Busy couple of days.

In five years the house has only been vacant for 2 months in all that time so that is pretty good.

Brodiebobs

thats a really good turn around for tennants, we thinking of renting our house/buying another to rent out and this is a worry of mine it been empty. You dont need to tell me specifics but are you in a big city? How do you advertise for tennants? and is it a 'family' area or do you rent to students/nurses etc?

And as for being a softie, i think this maybe a downfall if i become a landlady, im a sucker for a sob story!!

Thanks!

sarahevie

Brodie Bobs my house is in Headingley Leeds - it is let via Unipol who are a charity based next to the uni that aim to improve student letting standards.

The tenancies usually go from 1st July til 30th of June but I've currently had MA students in so I did 1st of Sept- 1st of Sept.

There is only one privately owned house on my street, the rest are rentals usually students but sometimes nurses,my new tenants are PGCE students, as I've decided to try and rent to slightly older tenants in the hope that they will keep it nicer. My current tenants at 24 have been my best yet.

Last year my old tenants who to be fair had lived there for 2 years did £6000 worth of damage, well it cost that much to re let it, but we did improve things rather than replace like for like. Plus two months where it was vacant when we were sorting it out.