Nice people thread part 7 - a thread in its prime

michaels

This is more a question for Mortgage Free Wanabee but they are rather messianic in their true faith so I thought I would ask NP for their advice.

I very much like the thought of being mortgage free, not so much that I don't believe in debt but because I see it as giving me choices over how I choose to balance my life between consuming (taking the kids to see their Caribbean relatives, pursuing after school activities etc) and enjoying a better lifestyle working fewer hours and spending more time with the family.

Living frugally now I hoped I might achieve this position in about 4-5 years. However the govt has put a large spanner in the works with the removal of child benefit (and no I don't think it was right that I was getting it but I had budgeted it in). The main issue being is that it gives me a large incentive to cap my earned income whilst diverting money to my pension. This would result in big increases in my pension pot at the cost of small reductions in my take home pay. However it would also push back any potential mortgage free date into the future. In theory just looking at my net asset position I should be able to ignore the temporal effect but I am still 13 years (under current rules) from getting my hand son the pension lump sum so effectively that is how far back I would be pushing my mortgage free date which psychologically I am uncomfortable with. I know that whilst the mortgage remains I will continue to be a tight ar*s and perhaps that is unfair on the kids.

Thoughts?

zagubov

michaels wrote: »

I seem to remember a parliamentary seat having to be re-run in Sheffield(?) not that long ago due to a particularly odious election leaflet - google will/may not be your friend.



That Generali, he gets every where.

On the substantive issue, I think we need to go back to Orwell (assuming it has not been deemed non-pc and thus no longer available) and the bit about controlling the past to control the present and the future - previously we have only let govts determine what we should know and remember, now we are outsourcing it to big corporations - or is that more Huxley?

Sadly I suspect as more parties policies overlap to the point where we can't distinguish them, then personality issues will dominate, like in the US. Horrible. The parties need to think about what they stand for. Is this happening in the rest of Europe or just here in US-aping Britian?

Suddenly remembered somebody calling the two main parties in Ireland Coke and Pepsi.
Maybe they've got similar problems.

sss555s

vivatifosi wrote: »

Oh heavens. The big G is watching me:eek:.

In other news, it was in CILIP Update (the magazine of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals, not particularly high readership) this week that Amazon is now looking at ways to licence the Kindle for use in UK libraries. This will take a while to do if it goes through but could finally mean being able to upload library books on loan to the Amazon devices.

So it isn't just the big G. It's the whole of the internet is against us;).

Evolution is everywhere and speeding up all the time. The trouble is, the UK isn't best placed to take advantage of it or even cope with it.

lostinrates

michaels wrote: »

This is more a question for Mortgage Free Wanabee but they are rather messianic in their true faith so I thought I would ask NP for their advice.

I very much like the thought of being mortgage free, not so much that I don't believe in debt but because I see it as giving me choices over how I choose to balance my life between consuming (taking the kids to see their Caribbean relatives, pursuing after school activities etc) and enjoying a better lifestyle working fewer hours and spending more time with the family.

Living frugally now I hoped I might achieve this position in about 4-5 years. However the govt has put a large spanner in the works with the removal of child benefit (and no I don't think it was right that I was getting it but I had budgeted it in). The main issue being is that it gives me a large incentive to cap my earned income whilst diverting money to my pension. This would result in big increases in my pension pot at the cost of small reductions in my take home pay. However it would also push back any potential mortgage free date into the future. In theory just looking at my net asset position I should be able to ignore the temporal effect but I am still 13 years (under current rules) from getting my hand son the pension lump sum so effectively that is how far back I would be pushing my mortgage free date which psychologically I am uncomfortable with. I know that whilst the mortgage remains I will continue to be a tight ar*s and perhaps that is unfair on the kids.

Thoughts?

What's more important to you AND DW?

Personally, I would be trying offer some extras but not trying to let them do and have it all.

PasturesNew

michaels wrote: »

Thoughts?

No thoughts from me - I've no idea whatsoever. I just scrape by and have no pension..... not ever been in a position to have such questions enter my life.

vivatifosi

michaels wrote: »

Thoughts?

Somewhere in there, there has to be a solution that gives you middle ground.

We could pay ours off in five, but are currently looking at 7 as it enables us to maintain a standard of living without pushing too hard. It also enables us to continue to make good pension contributions into DB schemes.

With your children the age that they are, I'm guessing that they will start to cost you more in 10 years time when they are starting to go off to uni. Can you find a sweet spot between the 5 and 10 that enables you to still do everything you can and meet an achieveable target and retire on time?

zagubov

vivatifosi wrote: »

Somewhere in there, there has to be a solution that gives you middle ground.

......
With your children the age that they are, I'm guessing that they will start to cost you more in 10 years time when they are starting to go off to uni. Can you find a sweet spot between the 5 and 10 that enables you to still do everything you can and meet an achieveable target and retire on time?

I agree. It's tempting to see it as two polar opposite choices but the best answer may be a compromise that isn't so neat or simple.

zagubov

vivatifosi wrote: »

Oh heavens. The big G is watching me:eek:.

In other news, it was in CILIP Update (the magazine of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals, not particularly high readership) this week that Amazon is now looking at ways to licence the Kindle for use in UK libraries. This will take a while to do if it goes through but could finally mean being able to upload library books on loan to the Amazon devices.

So it isn't just the big G. It's the whole of the internet is against us;).

Chin up, viva!
I always reckon all libraries need to incorporate the internet into their services, and to provide more than books and reading facilties to thier communities (which I know they alrerady do, but which needs to expand even more)

Curitiba in Brazil has taken this furthest I think and made libraries a key part of their education system. Hope Michael Palin includes it in his tour of Brazil.

And did anyone find last night's movie "Perfect Sense" about everybody in the world losing their senses one by one as thought -provoking as I and DW did? Seems a seriously under-rate gem.

PasturesNew

Of course - once your mortgage is paid off.... you're free. Free of The Man. You don't HAVE to keep your job/pay, you don't HAVE to stress every time there's talk of layoffs etc.

Mortgage paid off = sleep easy now.
More wealth in your pension = more Pimms later.... if you live long enough to collect and if your life stays on the current track and if the Govt haven't robbed the funds and if ... and if ...

Every £1 you pay off a mortgage is a bird in the hand.

sss555s

michaels wrote: »

Thoughts?

Personally I got far more (and still do) from my loft conversion than from paying off my mortgage.

I also wanted to be MF and worked towards that but once the final payment was paid it was all a bit underwhelming.

If you had asked me 10 years ago which I would have preferred I would have probably (wrongly) said paying off the mortgage.


I don't really get what your asking with the rest of it....

However the govt has put a large spanner in the works with the removal of child benefit (and no I don't think it was right that I was getting it but I had budgeted it in)

Ok so you have to change your plans as things will be tighter but why consider making them even tighter still by diverting more of your salary to your pension considering your probably accounting for every penny as it is.

I know that whilst the mortgage remains I will continue to be a tight ar*s and perhaps that is unfair on the kids.

Bringing the kids up correctly is more important than what money can or can't do.