Ambitious MFW

AnnaBeth

Thanks XS and Lilac Pixie will go shopping this evening, very handy tips!
Sainsbury's sounds like a bargain.

AnnaBeth

Giving up slighlty already pretty much before I've begun.
Don't think I'm alone having read some other threads think quite a few of us at the moment are finding lots of bills etc before xmas.
As we overspent last month think it's already affecting us quite badly this month as well.
I can see how CC debt for everyday things is quickly racked off and not paid back, I hope not to get into that situation but can really empathise with those that do after our last few months!
If you do carefully look at what you spend it is amazing how much goes when you didn't used to notice!
Have a good everyone x

LilacPixie

AnnaBeth wrote: »

Giving up slighlty already pretty much before I've begun.
Don't think I'm alone having read some other threads think quite a few of us at the moment are finding lots of bills etc before xmas.
As we overspent last month think it's already affecting us quite badly this month as well.
I can see how CC debt for everyday things is quickly racked off and not paid back, I hope not to get into that situation but can really empathise with those that do after our last few months!
If you do carefully look at what you spend it is amazing how much goes when you didn't used to notice!
Have a good everyone x

your not giving up your just having a blip and a short time to refocus on your spending soo positive spin

Christmas is a horrible time and OP's often suffer but council tax wise you have 2 free months in feb and march so you make it up then. Remember with this MF business, its a marathon not a sprint and you need to review things on a 6 monthly basis rather than monthly to get a better picture. :T

AnnaBeth

Thanks for the encouragement Pixie it's made me feel much better forgot about the council tax bonus after xmas that will help.
I think your advice to review every 6 months is really good and I'll try doing that, you can spend too much time over reviewing things!

Queen-Bee_2

Hi AnnaBeth and welcome to the board. Everyone is very supportive on here, as we're all going in the same direction, whether by large steps or small.

I think that being a MFW is as much about one's state of mind and moving to a different sort of lifestyle as anything else. It was only relatively recently that I really overhauled my finances and started to think about how I spent my money. I think that if I'd been this self-aware and educated when I was younger, I'd have been mortgage free a long time ago, so don't be too hard on yourself - you're here now, and that's what matters!
QB

AnnaBeth

Thanks everyone for your support:)
Feel much more positive today (maybe cos it's saturday?!?)
Think it's hard when you read some people's posts who seemed to clear there mortgage quickly and are MF at 30 I realise I'm too close to 30 and with not enough income to get to that point.
But yes I'm glad I'm here as young as I am so am going to keep plugging away at small steps and when I can pay off more I will.
Living with the legacy at the moment of the wedding in August, overspending in October (which have never done before as far as aware) and planning to have laser eye surgery in the next 6 months.

Have a good saturday everyone :j

CathT

Hi AnnaBeth

It is easy to get disheartened but any OP is an achievement. I read on someones diary once 'that's money you will NEVER have to pay interest on again'. The OP's do really add up and some of the mortgage calculators and spreadsheets can really make you feel more positive.

I agree lots of us are having a difficult time finding the OP's we want (are still OP but not as much as we would like!) in the run up to christmas. As Lilac says we have the free c/tax months and i know I can't wait to pay that £250 off my mortgage!

I think the 6 month review is a fab idea - perhaps we could set ourselves 6 monthly goals as the big picture is a bit more scary! I want to get sub 100k by end of 2012, maybe not achievable but would be brilliant pschologically! Even if I don't get it, it is my goal and i wll get as close to it as i can!

Good luck and keep making use of the fab support on here

LilacPixie

Anna - know what you mean. I am 30 in about 10 weeks time and in the process of more than doubling mortgage to into the 6 figures from 49k. Move date is 2 weeks before Christmas so realistically I will not OP again until 2011. However come April time I should of paid over maybe £400 maybe even a bit more. I only aim to pay £800 over the whole of 2011 because of the house move and upcoming maternity leave. The overall aim is to waken up on the morning of 01/01/21 totally mortgage free. Maybe you should set yourself an overall target such as being MF by 40 then chunk it up into smaller 6 month targets . Or maybe you should start a new challenge for 2011 to encourage people to aim for shorter targets then the MFiT and keep everyone on track

sarahevie

The best advice I could give is to get more overpayments out of the way before kids come along. We bought our house in 2007 aged 23 (I was pregnant a month later).

In March this year when I was heavily pregnant with DD2 my contract ended along with £1850 a month net in income - we have managed without it on the whole. (Dipped into savings for £68 this month as car insurance, car service, road tax, home insurance all due at once and I paid them all off in full.)

If only I'd overpaid that money - now I'm on a more realistic target an extra £400 a month would see me mortgage free by 39 (13 years time) not doable right now but it's my aim.

[Deleted User]

Hey AnnaBeth
I sympathise too as sometimes I look at diaries where people are set to pay thier mortgage off by the time thier 30 and think Ill never be able to do it!
then again.....if I OP nothing on my mortgage it will take 30 years to pay off (by which point I will be 57!! :rotfl:)
I think QB makes a good point that its about a mindset - the first couple of years where the balance is bigger less will come off the capital anyway and sometimes I find its easy to get disheartened- but the fact is without either the high income or low mortgage balance to start with MF by 30 is never gonna happen for me, but if Im MF before 57 then itll be a bonus whenever it is! :rotfl: CathTs idea of 6 month/short term targets is a good one! will need to figure out what mine are ...;)