I have a dream...to be a money magnet!

Miss_Money_Magnet

Morning
I need to start trying harder to overpay a bit more. Keep wondering if Im going to get made redundant!!! I have overpaid £200 off my latest wage but am going to try to get these up to £400 over the coming months. I also save £200 a month in my s & s isa. Im aware I havent got much in cash now so Im going to replenish my energency fund over the next 2 months and then try to build up 3 months wages in cash.

I have been consistently overpaying at least £100 a month but because weve increased the mortgage its just a drop in the ocean.

I absolutely love our dream house and it has transformed our family life as we are always out in the garden but I need to get the years down as I have no intention of working as hard as I do now into my 60s.

Our mortgage has another three and a half years to run so my short term goal is to improve the ltv to get a good rate next time.

Ive just taken out a monza account which I am using for my spending money and so far I love it! Any spending shows instantly and you can add notes in it. I actually stuck to my budget this month for the first time in living memory!!! Which given its the school holidays is no mean feat. I set my budget in ynab, then when I get paid I put the money in all the different bank pots. It works for me!

Miss_Money_Magnet

I am plodding along. Have increased the mortgage standing order to include the £150 overpayment to reduce temptation, so it goes off automatically.
My new years resolution is to stop dipping into my pots so much. I think in reality though it is that it has taken this year for our finances to stabilise after the house move and also my partner has had a quiet year at work which means Ive covered more of the outgoings. Im expecting this year to be more settled.

My goals for 2019:
Reduce food budget and put the extra to overpayments
Get rid of balance on 0% card (house renovations for move)
Save £1000 in emergency fund
Have more weekends away
Stop habit of spending on cc
Increase regular o/p to £200+ per month at some point

selloptape

So inspiring to read that you are now in your dream home, that’s lovely, good luck with the rest of the journey!

Miss_Money_Magnet

Thank you Sellotape.

I have been playing about with the mortgage overpaymeny calculator and I know I could really do with upping my standard overpayment to £250 per month. Think I will play about with my ynab budget to see if I can cut somewhere else.

Can definitely see that my scope to overpay should increase over the next year, but if I can start paying £250 a month then I know Im on track.

Miss_Money_Magnet

I have decided to try to get rid of the remaining balance on our 0% credit card- the last of the house renovation debt. If I can get rid of this then the £100 a month dd can be diverted to my mortgage overpayment.
Ive done a few tilly tidies and have sold a few things on facebook and have reduced the balance by over a £100 already. About £900 to go. Challenge on...

Miss_Money_Magnet

Have managed to reduce the 0% cc balance to £777 with a few cut backs, account jiggling and a facebook sale. I am hoping with a bit of luck to get rid of the rest next month.

I will then increase my regular overpayment to £250.

Ideally I want to increase it even more but thats the next step..
I have had a real spending fast this month. Took lunch every day. Watched every penny. Its amazing what a difference it makes. I can only manage it for short periods though....

jodles16

You have been doing some amazing work! Congratulations on all the interest you have already saved!

Hoping that you wont be made redundant and that they are just worries!

Jodles

Miss_Money_Magnet

Thanks for the message Jodles! Will pop over for a read of your diary.

Ive got the cc down to £365 and will get rid of it altogether soon, and have increased my regular overpayment to £265 a month. I hope Ill be able to make some ad hoc over payments as well.

My energy bill has gone up quite a bit and my home insurance renewal has gone up- will shop around and look on topcashback I think. Just a pain!!

Miss_Money_Magnet

Yay!! The credit card is down to zero- Ive phoned up and closed the account. All money spent on renovating our home is now paid off. My only debt is now the BIG mortgage.

Miss_Money_Magnet

Have decided to try a new approach to my money. I have a few other bits of money that drip in over the month which I tend to not account for in the way I do my wages. I am going to try cutting spending from wages to all basics/bills and any other spending has to come from my other money.
On this basis, I am going to attempt to o/p £600 this month...

Worth a go and see what happens. If I could keep that up we’d drop below £200,000 in about a year and a half which would be amazing.

Here goes...