fuddle's 'the bottom rung is broken' diary

fuddle

4 years after bankruptcy and repossession my family are still no where near being able to put money aside for a mortgage deposit. We've very little in the way of surplus income but time is ticking away and at 33 and 37 we're fast losing our only hope of getting back on the housing ladder... that's time.

I say ladder. I don't have any aspirations to climb the ladder. As long as we can get on that bottom rung we'll feel like we've achieved a goal.

So, in our case we have to fix the rung before we can climb onto it. This is my diary documenting the journey from here to the moment we get a mortgage offer.

At the moment I feel like the only way to save is by shaving the outgoings and believe me when I say they're already quite bare by now. I'm an OldStyler by heart and really rather frugal as it is. I will begin by doing the only thing I can do right now and that is to hunt out a tin to turn into a savings pot.

silvasava

Hi Fuddle - you will get there. You and your DH have the determination and focus. Don't worry too much about your ages - My DH & I started late too but we did manage it even though it was touch & go sometimes!
Good Luck - I'll be keeping an eye on you

LittleMissKitty

Hi fuddle, you seem focused and that's the most important thing. Looking at your posts I'm sure you know the drill but little bits do add up. Best of luck on your journey. Kitty x

timetogrowup89

I find breaking things down in to small goals helps... Have u tried that? Like a monthly target? Then anything leftover once you reach that (even just the odd £10) can be to treat yourselfs?

Once my debts gone, I will be reading back from this diary for tips on saving for a mortgage!!

Good Luck!!

Northern_Lassy

Good luck Fuddle, I'm sure you will get there!

fuddle

Thank you for the support everyone

It's all about little and often at the moment but every £ is a step closer and a £ is better off supporting the journey than no money at all.

I should say that I'm in the process of looking for work after being a stay at home mam for the past 5 years and also have a back up plan of being booked on a childminding course.

I'm handy with crochet and in two minds whether to make and sell children's hats via folksy/etsy. Everyone needs to have a bargain right now so not sure whether its a viable option.

WantToBeSE

Hi Fuddle.

I reckon selling the hats is a great idea. I'd make 10 to start with and see how they sell before making anymore. Especially with Summer coming up, kids hats will be popular

Good luck!

fuddle

I've been looking into sourcing yarn for the hats and I just don't think it a goer. I'd need 1 ball per hat and at £2 per ball at the cheapest (ignoring wilko's at £1.35 per ball as their colours are too bland) I don't see how I can make much more than £2 for a hat in these times, especially factoring postage costs.

We are going to move at the end of our tenancy (week before Christmas!) because 1) secondary school catchment area and 2) it looks as if our new neighbours are not very considerate people and I'm getting upset.

We have 6 months to save the fees incurred in moving through agents (first month rent, deposit, agents fees in the hundreds) we will get our deposit back off this place but experience tells me there is a few weeks wait.

It pushes any desire to save for a deposit right back as the here and now is what we have to focus on.

I've applied for a secondary school teaching assistant job this week and had a refusal letter from a part time shoe shop position.

fuddle

I abandoned my diary as it dawned on me that hope of getting on the housing ladder was all but impossible.

That was then but so much has changed.

We're looking at the real possibility of moving from Industrial Teesside to the South West coast with DH's work. He has to be down there by December 1st. My family and I (two children, girls 5 and 9) will be down after christmas.

Housing is a real issue. We're talking of a flat for the rental prices down there as opposed to the cheaper 3 bedroom new build house we rent in the north east.

We're all super excited for the move and even for smaller cosier flat life that awaits us. That has got me thinking though. To buy a ground floor flat (ground floor incase of mobility issues later in life) well, now that could be in our reach in the future. So there's hope.

Work wise I notice that last time I posted I was applying for positions back in schools. Having been a SAHM for the past 5 years I wasn't getting anywhere.

I have decided to work through a distance learning course about working in the health sector in the hope of gaining employment as a carer when we get down south.

It's all very exciting but I'm all too aware that life never really treats you as you think so I'm expecting a few hiccups and changes and/or stresses along the way.

I feel like repairing that rung on the ladder but right now the only thing I have to use is duct tape... but at least it's positive thinking

Mara_uk7

Fuddle hello !

Just found your diary, and thought Id drop in this bit of advice, My neice knits hats to be sent out to Africa or somewhere where prem babies need them .... She gets all her wool from the charity shops for less than 50p a ball sometimes. Worth a look ?

fuddle

Definitely worth a look. I don't get in charity shops near as often as I would like due to parking in the town - I'm a right tight wad :rotfl:but do get a snifty gander when DH is able to drop me off and pick me up.

The prices on Folksy frighten me. I appreciate that hand crafted items take time - boy do I - but I'd like to sell at a good price while covering my overheads and making a little profit. A good price, even if quite low, just won't match the likes of Primark and that is my worry.

Thanks Mara-uk7