My journey to Mortgage-freedom

unhappy_shopper

I have been Tillytidying small amounts to my MOP account during the last few weeks and have made the OP yesterday into the mortgage account. YTD figure looks good. On the money front, FTSE passing the 7000+ mark and the T$B windfall have resulted in a healthy upswing in my S&S portfolio; now have to decide whether to realise the notional profits or keep investing.

I am today locating my seed packets so that I can sow at least some tomatoes and chillies before it is too late. I am planning to try growing a variety of chillies this year, ranging from jalapeno to 'naga jolokia' and 'demon red'.

unhappy_shopper

Whoa! posting after a 9 month gap; though I have lurked on many occasions to see what is happening with my fellow MFWs.

Well, during the past few months we have overpaid our mortgages by around £23K bringing the outstanding amount to about £327K. However, we are in the process of converting one home to a let-to-buy property so that we can put the released equity as deposit for another purchase before the stamp duty hike gets underway. This will push us to a mammoth outstanding loan amount for a short time. The plan is to sell one of the properties to bring this huge loan to reasonable levels.

Wishing all fellow MFWs a Happy New Year

unhappy_shopper

Self-assessment time :-( Now hunting through the bank statements and receipts to submit the form online before the deadline.

Our current borrowing is at an all-time high; so dare not update my signature. The saving grace is that the interest rate is fixed @ 1.38% p.a for the next 2 years.

unhappy_shopper

It has been a tough time during the last few days. DS1 met with a minor accident while returning to his room after a tiring long day (13 hour) shift; has a wrist fracture and still wants to return to his job as he has patients waiting to see him. That is what I call vocation! I feel so upset seeing the politician's utterings on TV/internet/newspapers that the junior doctors are striking for 'money'. It has been days since he has found time to cook and eat a proper meal; so we go every weekend and fill his fridge with enough meals to last a week. That is the least I can do to support him. Sorry for the rant :eek:

The MFW journey is chugging along slowly. Lately, the local supermarket has been the fount of YS bargains. Also, I have been able to OP the money that usually goes for Council Tax this month. I did get a tidy sum as bonus, but saved it all into my pension fund; so no tax to pay on that.

Off to visit the other MFW threads.

Tilly_MFW_in_6_YRS

So sorry to hear about your son. It makes me furious too. The length of time to study then going straight into ridiculous shift patterns/lengths and expect them to be at the top of their game. I really expect a brain drain soon. It won't be long.

Tilly x x x

unhappy_shopper

Thanks Tilly for your kind words :A

I wonder whether his next patient will complain about his scruffy scrubs, having spent the previous 8-10 hours on his feet without even getting the time to grab a glass of water :-( How very tired he will be when the fatigue sets in and I dare not think about patient safety then! I always pray that he is agile and alert whatever the situation may be. So hoping that those in the know/power will heed to the voice of the junior doctors when they say 'unsafe' patient care.

unhappy_shopper

My to-do list gets longer and longer :-(

Finally, we managed to complete on our recent purchase just before the stamp duty hike on 1st April. Now, have humungous mortgages to repay. So, have to put in more effort into streamlining our household budget and sneak in overpayments regularly. The saving grace is the current low interest rates (1.38% and 1.95% on our 2 mortgages).

I have had my S&S ISA for 2 years now and am happy to report that my current portfolio is up +27%. This includes both the realised profits and dividends. My expenses related to the share transactions so far amounts to 2.4% - you could call it my management fee :-) ; so not bad considering that I am a newbie to the stock market and have managed my funds on my own and not made losses over this 24 month period.

Have a good day, fellow MFWs.

greent

Well done on your portfolio returns, u_s!


Junior doctors have my support (as do nurses, midwives...) - crazy hours and responsibilities expected of them My eldest DS is looking to become one (he's only in Y11 at the mo, so a way off)


I love the NHS, but also hate certain parts of how it is run


x

unhappy_shopper

My visits to update this thread is becoming infrequent; not that I have discarded my MFW ways.

The silver lining post-Brexit referendum has been the huge jump in the value of my S&S ISA holdings; a whopping 53%. I am so happy to see green whenever I check the value of my portfolio. On top of that I am poised for a windfall should a proposed acquisition of my employer go through. Hopefully that will take a big chunk of our outstanding mortgage.

Hope my fellow MFWs are enjoying the weather and making rapid strides to becoming MF :-)

unhappy_shopper

With all Brexit-related stuff going on and the plummeting sterling, I am hoping that the current low interest rates will hold on for some time so that the mortgage balances can be reduced further. This year, I will not be contributing to the ISA, but choosing pension instead to fully make use of the pension relief before it disappears.

We have made a big OP to one of the mortgages; still a long way to go.

Good night :-)