What have I done....

LauraJo

Ok this is my first time on anything like this but after a mad moment back last sept I decided I'm now a committed mortgage free wannabe...

£170k .... Target end of 2014. As of today £153k left to go.

What have I done.....?!!??

cod3

Well done!

LauraJo

Thanks. A nice big gin and tonic helped with the brave decision to post... Now I have 'said' what I am going to do out loud it makes it real!!!

dimbo61

April 2012 and you want to be Mortgage free in 20 months ?
What do you do for a living NO win No fee Solictor ?

LauraJo

Lol dimbo61 I wish - probably wouldn't have a mortgage if I was one!!
I kinda started back in Sept and aim to get sorted by end of 2014 so that is 3 and a half years.

Plan to be posted later today - guess I'd better get on with some work, getting the sack wont help with my plans

originalmiscellany

LauraJo - I had a similar mindset to you when I started. What worked was getting my good wife (MOM) onboard and we were fortunate in that we had an account that allowed infinite overpayments of mortgage at any amount it appears - so I kept on overpaying every week, I'd put in a little bit and enjoy getting a letter telling me that the mortgage had dropped down by a few pence! Once I showed how much money we would save, MOM was really keen and committed too. With 2 people reminding each other how to save, it really is incredible how quickly the mortgage got "eaten up" - and it was the best thing I have done

LauraJo

originalmiscellany wrote: »

LauraJo - I had a similar mindset to you when I started. What worked was getting my good wife (MOM) onboard and we were fortunate in that we had an account that allowed infinite overpayments of mortgage at any amount it appears - so I kept on overpaying every week, I'd put in a little bit and enjoy getting a letter telling me that the mortgage had dropped down by a few pence! Once I showed how much money we would save, MOM was really keen and committed too. With 2 people reminding each other how to save, it really is incredible how quickly the mortgage got "eaten up" - and it was the best thing I have done

Congrats!! Getting both of you on board seems to be key...that I am working on!

LauraJo

So a bit more about me and the story so far!
I'm 33 and OH is 40...
Both earn a reasonable wage n although we have no kids we have enough pets to sink the ark (still way cheaper than kids tho!!)
I'm pretty sure if I put my mind to this I can do it... OH way more cynical!!

Lightbulb moment last year made me realise I was on a really high mortgage rate.. I remortgaged n saved the best part of £1k per month!!

Couple of months later with extra cash in our pockets we were still skint ... Talk about spending everything u earn!! Then the mfw idea hit me... Could we do it? are we disciplined enough? will people think we're mad? Do people really do this?! Fanfare.... I found this site whilst pottering on google one day and it appears the answers could be yes!

Convincing OH was the next big step and altho I'm sure he thought i was mad and just humouring me, he agreed to give up his extra spending money each month!!

Over last 6 months I have put in every extra penny including my lovely bonus from work which normally pays for our yearly holiday.... Overpayments to date £17k (although admittedly this does include money that was earmarked for other things such as a new bathroom!).
Challenge now is to keep this going at this level!! Got a couple of ideas but all others (legal!!) welcome. The motivation will be another thing and I'm hoping this site will help

LauraJo

Potentially expensive work day today...can I stuck to my guns?! Round trip to Newcastle with work. Now I am constantly thinking of saving, I have realised how much these trips cost! Ok so all my travel gets paid but a cheeky coffee at Costa first thing, snack for the flight, several cups of coffee and lunch means I am already £10 down today! Couple that with a bit of food later at the airport (wont get in til 9 and can't last that long!), and maybe a nose in the duty free means one expensive day at work!

Starting to realise where my money goes Have other people been through this process early on?!

lexington013

Laurajo, good luck with your focus, I'm in a similar position to you, similar mortgage and similar hours! Lol.

Thrugelmir

LauraJo wrote: »

Starting to realise where my money goes Have other people been through this process early on?!

Analysing every penny you spend is a real eye opener . As what gets frittered away tots up. So debt reduction isn't always as difficult as many imagine. More a question of mindset than the cash itself.