Finally I have a mortgage I can start to pay off!

themadvix

the_cross_rabbit said:

You can freeze grapes

Thanks CR, but I doubt they’ll make it that far! Am taking some this evening too.

Suffolk_lass

Two observations from me; there was an article in Saturday's The Times (Money troubleshooter) about a couple seeking to let their annexe as an AirBnB and the mortgage company said no - so worth checking your situation is specifically covered by the mortgage offer you have (the article was clear that lack of exclusion did not constitute permission). Also the situation with Council Tax and Utility Bills on the rental unit as this would constitute evidence as to whether it is within the curtilage of the principal property (and whether they treat it as an annexe that is not separate).

Re HMRC, my understanding is that they publish their guides and sometimes additional PDF documents to explain things, but they do not offer either advice or decisions through their telephone advice services, so not confident that this would help you. There's a good set of resources on Gov.UK in respect of Stamp Duty (including a clear definition of dwelling) here

themadvix

Thanks SL. The mortgage has been specifically chosen with the holiday let in mind - we have specific permission to let it out under our mortgage. It was the first hurdle we crossed (And worth the mortgage advisor’s fee.) MDR doesn’t require the utilities to be billed separately. There’s no doubt really that it qualifies, but I think we’re leaning towards getting the specialist to write the report (albeit we’ll see if we can get a reduction in price). For a saving of £10k, it’s worth the peace  of mind.

re HMRC, I’m inclined to agree with you - they are very unlikely to give us specific advice!

themadvix

Morning all,

(SL loving your use of curtilage btw, it's a word learned only recently - definitely a listed building thing! Great word though!)

Well we had a lovely bank holiday weekend (excepting the farce that was the Belgian GP). Had antipasti and wine at my Olio friend's house on Friday - we had an excellent time Then Saturday we supported our friend's new business venture and ordered a delicious Indian takeaway from him and enjoyed it with the in-laws (their house is within delivery area, ours not so much!). Yesterday we went to my Aunt and Uncle's for a family BBQ and caught up with her family who we've not seen in two years. So a lot of socialising and eating!

We've only got a three-day week this week as we're off for a very belated birthday treat for DH to Oxford for the night on Friday (fortunately accommodation, dinner, drinks and activities are all paid for already), so we're making the most of it and heading off Friday morning. In the meantime I've got loads of work to get done, which is great! 

MS things:
* Saved 50p off of bits needed in Coop using their loyalty app
* Lots of work
* Clicks done
* £3 Populous survey done

Gratitudes:
* Wider family are all very excited about our move
* Lovely time with new friends 
* Delicious Indian food

themadvix

Afternoon all,

Not a lot to report here, as I'm waiting until the 3rd to pay myself as I'll receive the overdue payment from my debtor client (who will no longer be referred to as such!).

Have done my Olio collection this morning and nearly all of it has now gone - I did get a loaf and some houmous which shouldn't have been included as it is a use by date product. Ergo, I couldn't list it and have just had some for my lunch - the second free lunch in a row.

Expecting a supermarket delivery imminently as we were very short on protein items in the freezer - and as we don't have a date for exchange yet, it could be a while before we need the freezer emptied!

Have just chased solicitor - it's all gone a bit quiet. We've not had the searches back (nor had an explanation as to why we couldn't buy them from the previous purchaser), nor the answers to enquiries. I don't think it's our solicitor at fault as she seems efficient, but I thought she might nudge the other side.

MS things:
* Free Olio food
* RM survey item posted
* Clicks done
* £16 claimed from Qmee for August; £7 from PA - terrible!
* Have renewed my phone contract - reducing the cost while increasing the data (and half price for 6 months will be a nice bit of breathing space

Gratitudes:
* Lovely catch up with friend yesterday over a cuppa - she is very excited about our move and had loads of excellent ideas for money-making schemes!
* Free food
* Expecting Mum, Sis and Niece for a last-day-before-school-starts cuppa shortly (and they've promised to bring butterfly cakes too!)

Have a good afternoon all!

Suffolk_lass

I thought you said your solicitor's secretary/goafer was on holiday for two weeks - that would explain the hiatus in activities. Fingers crossed it all pings back into action imminently

themadvix

Morning all,

No, SL, she was away for the first week (when we instructed them), but has been back for a while now. Chasing did have some effect - she obviously chased the vendor's solicitor and we have the answers to some queries, which is a start (there are 36 in total, so it's likely to take a while).

In excellent news this morning, I've won £25 on the PBs! Haven't won anything for aaages, so very happy about this. Would have been nicer if it had been £50,000 (or the million, I'm not fussy), but I'll settle for anything at this point! 

Ending up popping out to join Mum, Sis and Niece at the Harvester for a drink and some chips while they had lunch yesterday - naughty but nice as Niece's last hurrah before school starts at lunchtime today. 

Have covered an Olio collection for a fellow volunteer this morning, so have nabbed some leeks and flatbreads (as well as pastries for the freezer - figure they may come in handy when we're up to our eyes in boxes and the kitchen is packed up). Apart from dealing with collectors today, I need to finish a work project and hopefully get on to invoicing etc. Also collecting a key for a Saturday/Sunday cat sit for my most regular customer. I've yet to break it to them that I'm moving.

MS things:
*YG survey
* Clicks done (won 60p on HW)
* Free food
* PB win

Gratitudes:
* Lovely time with family yesterday - Niece is so excited about school
* Cousin is bringing us some Grasmere gingerbread as she's passing through there today
* PB win!

Have a good day all!

themadvix

One of the things that came up in the enquiries was that the oil tank is 1200l. Do any of you lovely oil-based people have any idea how often we'll need to fill this? It's for heating and hot water. Obviously YMMV as it's a large old house, but I have literally no idea (and basically the estate agent reckoned it would cost £2000/year to run, but a) I think he was plucking a figure out of thin air and b) I don't like the sound of this so am hoping someone has good news for me! 😂)

Thoughts please? We have a log burner too and a range in the kitchen (runs on calor) so I don't expect to have the heating on all day or anything.

Cheery_Daff

No Idea I'm afraid, we have LPG not oil (2000l tank that we fill roughly 3 times a year at roughly £600 a time but oil is very different so that's no help!)

rtandon27

👋 Hi Vix - We have an oil run boiler for our heat & hot water which averaged about £50 a month since March 2020. (About £600 per year).  We were both home all day every day for 14 of the past 18 months and both loathe being cold, so that was a high cost for a 2-bedroom house.  We never use our fire-place, though we do run an electric dehumidifier 24/7 removing 8-16 L of water a day which helps our old house feel warmer.