Niggling ideas from Dan

glasgowdan

Spent a couple of nights in this week instead of just getting a take away or going out for dinner, so that's the first steps toward getting this thing sorted!

The other half has been talking about a holiday around new year too, despite the fact she is going to cuba for a 2 week trek next month AND we are getting married and having a honeymoon in April! I have put my foot down on this one though, a long weekend at new year to paris etc will probably be a grand or so, and I want that to go toward this mortgage!

It is hard to compare my overpayments as with other people on here as we have an offset mortgage. This, in effect, means saving into the savings account as much as possible until the savings equal the balance of the mortgage, and then use this account to pay off the mortgage at this point. I guess this means we don't have a seperate savings account, but we appreciate our situation and make the most of it.

The initial aim, when we took the mortgage, was to save £500 a month between us, based on my salary in a waste management consultancy, and the fiance's salary as HR officer. Since setting up my own business though things have been a bit better. I have managed to put away around £500 both near the beginning and end of each month. It is hard work though! But when you see that difference in balance between the savings account and the mortgage you get a bit inspired.

The winter could be a good time to save a bit more. I have a lot of free time in the winter - last winter I spent around £3000 on fishing trips/fuel/bait/gear in a spat of rock cod fishing obsession, but I hope to chill a bit this winter and put that into the mortgage account!

I'll probably do an update every couple of months, but at present the gap is £83,700. I want that to be down to £80,500 by Christmas.

glasgowdan

Update: I've been burying my head grafting as has my wife and we put a sum into the mortgage at the start of the year. We now owe £42k and have around £18k in the offset account so this mortgage free thing is starting to feel like a reality! We've got here by working hard, keeping costs low and being sensible. We have still had holidays and buy nice things at the supermarket but when you work hard you need these things to keep you going.

I had some significant expenses this year with a van breakdown and having to replace the vehicle which was horrible, but things have been going well since then.

Tahlullah

This is a fantasic achievement in just under 2 years. If you continue at this rate, you should be MF by 2015.

Congratulations and the best of luck for the future.

tootoo

good luck on your journey.

If you decide on a bigger place when you repaid your mortgage, then so be it. You can then work again to have it paid off early. Your still very very young (being 31 myself, I see it as very young ).

We are a household where oh is self employed and work is up and down. Two young children so I only work part time. Our journey is a long one (hoping for 15 years, but secretly want it 10 if I can go back to work full time at a later date).

Good luck.

glasgowdan

2 1/2 years later! We're approaching a happy time - 2 months to mortgage free! Well, technically it won't be mortgage free as the term runs until July 2015, but it is an offset with no limits on overpayments so the mortgage will be £1, leaving monthly payments in the region of 10 pence.

Baby due in the middle of May so it's all working out well. It has been a hard slog with my business and my wife moving jobs but she's settled and I'm working around a very bad back but getting there!

I think the best way to mortgage free is to curb spending, to work more (far better than trying the wee ways to make £10 a day online or whatever) and being sensible all round.

abouttimetoo

Hi Glasgowdan

Brilliant progress made in such a short space of time, hard to believe that over two years have passed since my first post to your thread

Congratulations on the approach of your new baby and MF will put you in such a strong position to support your growing family

Regards
ATT

billywhizz88

Fantastic stuff and all the better for doing it the hard way by good money management. Good Luck with the addition to your family and hopefully they will inherit your hardworking ethics