Hurdler's Race to be Mortgage-Free

Hurdler

Calfuray wrote: »

Made you a pink Vernon, can't remember if it was you or GG asking wonkies ago:

Calfuray - you could set up a Vernon colouring service!!!

Hurdler

Yawn, stretch - another early stint in the retail park but at least I can pick up my car. Quite expensive MOT and service but all sorted with new tyres, new cambelt, so when I get home I can apply for tax, and then next month start looking at insurance deals - have decided 25% of sweep save will go into car fund to top that up again - should leave the rest to make OPs.

MSE moments - a fellow Fitbit friend recommended bounts rewards for using the FitBit - so I connected to that and foursquare and should earn points that lead to high st vouchers for working out. I don't use my FitBit in quite the same way given the osteo-arthritis in both knees but I managed to get 35 points just from the gym session I did on Tuesday. Mind you, you need humongous amounts of points to get the vouchers but hey ho!

Better than the gympact thing that someone wanted us to try where you could earn money for going to the gym but if you missed it up they would take money off you. I get the inventive but was very wary about giving over card details for anything "reward" based. Earned me quite a bit of reproach from the fanatic that was trying to push it but they were a bit crazy trying to get everyone stepping during ad breaks on TV.

Hurdler

Hmmm strange letter from B@rclays - they are ditching the Premier fee (yay - £10 saving a month) but they are changing the criteria and as a penniless hack there is NO WAY I earn as much any more - but according to the letter I still meet the criteria so I can only assume that the mortgage and savings combined means I still qualify. I also think I "benefit" because I see my mum's savings account in my list as me and a family friend have enduring power of attorney for when she can't take care of herself anymore, and I can then transfer money to the friend on her behalf.

Of course with my aggressive plans to over-pay my mortgage, there will come a time when I get sent back to a regular account but let's cross that bridge when we come to it.

I am wondering if my overpayment was a little too clever (literally just over 3x) and that it hasn't recalculated (I mean it was literally pennies over)... the mobile app shows me as £80,300 give or take but I think that's because my actual monthly payment is still to go out.

Lots to get written today - colleague is kindly covering for me this evening so I can go out and meet some friends including one over from the US - and I need to have everything drafted for the Sunday newsletter as I have no intention of working on my day off!

Hurdler

I have had a very porky hurdler week this week - and will be away for my birthday next weekend with much over indulgence planned, so my Sunday to-do:

• Carrot & Ginger Soup
• Thai Sweet Potato & Courgette Soup
• Sweetcorn and Potato soup
• Finances and Filing

edinburgher

Those sound delicious, particularly the second two

How did the filing go? I've got half a rucksack full to put in the work secure box for Ir0n Mountain tomorrow!

Hurdler

edinburgher wrote: »

Those sound delicious, particularly the second two

How did the filing go? I've got half a rucksack full to put in the work secure box for Ir0n Mountain tomorrow!

Thanks to a LOT of wine last night I got my finances done and I caught up with a few bits and pieces around the house. But nothing else between sleep!!!

However fleecy blanky and DVDs are now the order of the evening!!

Hurdler

I have unashamedly stolen SuperSecretSquirrel's house design and updated one of the houses to tie in my savings and soon to be wrapped up investments for some long term planning for when this tennis writing lark gets to be too difficult for my old bones.

Also - I called B@rclays yesterday about this Premier letter and they have advised me to bring into my collective view my BTL (which is out of my current scope for as far as MF goes) to guarantee I stay a Premier client - I was advised by a wise lettings-savvy soul to only have the BTL wash its face money wise, and that has certainly helped when Self Assessment has rolled round as the place went through a spate of making a humoungous loss!

Anyway - it's a bit of a rainbow I know and I will be taking this to the Financial Advisor tomorrow as I think he was really worried I'd change my mind about the investments!

Red bricks - Mortgage paid off
Orange brick - Roughly what the remaining balance is
Yellow - Immediately available cash funds in all manner of Martin's MSE pots
Green - Cash ISA - so not to be touched until the direst of emergencies
Blue - mine and dad's investments now managed properly and looking for a MINIMUM 5-10 year investment plan for that - but again if I had to I could get that back, I have been assured.

I haven't included the rest of the wrap which was some old cashed in pensions that became a new pension scheme once I left my old company (and I will receive a final salary pension from them when I am about 115 by latest calculations!... or 65!). I have also left out the 3-month outgoings cash balance in the Business Current and the VAT and Corp Tax in the Business Saver - I assume that money is NEVER mine and don't touch it unless I have to pay over to HMRC.

All looks swimmingly good but of course now working in media it is a devillishly competitive and precarious direction... so I know I have A LOT stashed away but after being tripped up by a gittish editor in my early days, I have learned my lesson (something I am positive my teachers would never have thought possible, back in the day!)



PS... IF I ever pay off my own mortgage, I would miss you all WAY too much so would bring in the BTL - when I had a real job I always intended to have a few (HA!) properties on the side! Maybe one, just round the corner from Hurdler Mansions will have to do!

sarahgoodwin

I hope you got it all sorted my friend

Hurdler

Gah! Ridinkidonkly bad night's sleep so slept past alarm for gym ahead of gadding across town to see financial advisor so MUST go after.

NSD on Monday but that will flappity-fly out of the window today as I will have to pay for parking but need to go into town anyway to get a birthday card for a friend and pay some money into treat account so may as well do the killing of the birds/stoney thing.

Lots to do today - sigh my days off are always so busy!!!

• Soups
• [STRIKE]Ring np0wer and check they have actually put me in a fixed tariff - rang them as soon as I could re-fix but received NO confirmation [/STRIKE] ETA: Rang them - all fine, on a price fix to March 2016 and paperwork will be sent out in April.
• [STRIKE]Ring B@rclays/W00lwich - no recalculation letter so need to check that the amount IS coming down next month[/STRIKE] Had tried to be too clever and paid a few pennies over and it didn't recognise it as a part-repayment so got a re-calculation done. Could be coming down by quite a way but will wait until I see the letter before I get too excited
• R[STRIKE]ing B@rclays Premier to check that if I bring in my BTL mortgage into my list of accounts I can still pay off in to my residential account[/STRIKE] Turns out after 15 minutes of dealing with a bit of a muppet, the answer is NO I can't have it on my online banking. Tried to call the BTL team to work out when to overpay but after being on hold for over 10 mins I decided as I won't be overpaying until AFTER I clear my residential mortgage, I wouldn't worry about it for now
• [STRIKE]Business expenses, Pay VAT, paperwork filing[/STRIKE] The Use of home recurring expense has given me back £270 which will go to make up my expenses for March

Hurdler

No wonder I feel tired and slept through the alarm