SF's road to mortgage freedom!

slowlyfading

Yes, I wouldn't put all my eggs in the property (including the one we live in) basket; I think a mix of shares, funds, property and something else? will give us a good mix and spread across the investment areas.

teabody

edinburgher wrote: »

That might be because a savings account isn't an investment?

Not starting an argument or being provocative for the sake of it, but it might be better to compare the relative benefits of BTL and another investment (say funds held in an ISA)? Savings accounts are risk free, using leverage to acquire investment properties can be very risky indeed!

I completely agree that if you do your sums and don't get greedy, BTL can be a good option for some. On the other hand, it can involve a lot of work if you want to maximise your profits and people get badly burned.

I've met people across the spectrum - from a couple who own 4 massive houses and successfully let out something like 30 individual bedrooms, to a girl who went bankrupt and has outstanding debts relating to 2 offplan flats she thought it might be clever to flip or rent out.

Hi Edinburgher, I certainly don't take it as an argument. Yes, I see how that came out....I tend to class savings/ISA's as the same despite the fact that they are not.
In fact I encourage your response for the benefit of Slowlyfading and other's who may read this thread as although I personally have had good experiences....Its not for everyone and as I have said in my previous response it is quite stressful!
Sum's are a must.....calculate the cost involved, have contingencies...it's a massive commitment! I am no expert x

slowlyfading

It's the weekend :j :j

I've been into town already - took a library book back, posted some thank you cards and had a browse in some shops. Me and DH got a £10 M&S giftcard for Christmas, so we're having the dine in meal tonight I'll be honest, I just want the pud :rotfl: I chose chicken stuffed with cheese topped with chorizo, rosemary potatoes, and then hot caramel and hazelnut blondies :drool: nom nom nom and all for free! Then, on the way home, popped into $ubway and got a sandwich for free using points, which was very tasty too so a very good start to the weekend!

Can you tell I love food?

We've not got much planned this weekend; we're both quite tired and not feeling 100% so just having a nice quiet one we'll probably watch a dvd tonight if we can agree on a film I need to do a menu plan and go food shopping later, though now I'm all comfy on the sofa, I don't want to :rotfl:

slowlyfading

I've just been food shopping, and, armed with my shopping list, it came to £28.65 :j :j this includes all food for the week (breakfast, lunch and dinner) so I'm pretty pleased with that

Our menu plan for the week is:
today - chicken curry, rice and naan bread
Mon - chilli and rice
Tues - leftover chicken curry and rice
Wed - quiche, potato croquettes and beans
Thurs - pizza
Fri - cod in butter sauce, potato croquettes and peas

The chicken curry is currently bubbling away in the slow cooker, which is making the house smell delicious Included in the shop this week is a reduced quiche (down to 35p!) and some reduced bacon (down to 65p) which has been put in the freezer for some tasty bacon sandwiches next weekend.

Not much else planned for today - it's bitterly cold here today so don't really want to venture anywhere else now. I've had a brief look over the budgets and it's looking okay - although our car insurance is due this month - and if we continue being careful, it'll be okay this month

pavlovs_dog

the thing with investing is that they make me realise how risk averse I am. My natural mindset is that I would rather have less but know it is safe (ie savings) than risk potential losses that can come with investments.

OH is dabbling with shares, and I tend to turn a blind eye. At the mo I'd rather not know how much he has tied up (think we're talking £ '00s rather than £'000s) than lose sleep over it if that makes sense?

think it is definitely prudent to think beyond the MF date and dream big. I can't see myself teaching until retirement (whenever that may be), but equally can't see myself doing anything else at the mo.

slowlyfading

I'm a bit the same as you - I'd rather know it was safe (through savings) but, as I've worked out, if we want to retire early, we need to have more growth and a better return (I sound as if I know what I'm on about! ) and with savings alone, that's not going to happen

But yes, it's a risk as we can't really afford to lose a lot either

edinburgher

Good afternoon ladies

It's always important to consider that there are different types of risks. While there are market and specific risks to consider when investing in shares, nobody ever talks about the shortfall risk of keeping lots of money in cash.

For example, CPI was 4.48% in 2011, 2.83% in 2012. Consider the net rate for the top savings accounts and then subtract those numbers - it's an ugly picture :eek:

You're both quite lucky in the grand scheme of things, as you have defined benefit pensions?

slowlyfading

Hello Ed I do have a pension through the teachers pension, but to be honest, I don't know much about it probably should read up on that at some point

But, as I don't intend to teach until I retire, I need other options too!

Good weekend?

edinburgher

Awesome weekend - thanks for asking

2 Nights in a lovely hotel room, with delicious food and a few drinks :beer:

3 hours of walking around my childhood town on Saturday, with beautiful views along the river Tweed and a visit to an award winning chocolatier. Also found the time to read a full weekend newspaper with supplements for the first time in about a decade.

I think we were the king and queen of leisure

slowlyfading

That sounds bliss