Skinny Latte's Mortgage Mugging

Skinnylatte

Bennettxoxo wrote: »

Just read through your whole diary. You've had quite the journey so far but you've made amazing progress.


Good luck on the rest of your MFW journey!!

Thank you Bennttxoxo, do you have a diary?

Thank you for sticking with me Seasidegal, I'm enjoying your diary. It's motivating to come back and keep posting when people read it.

So yesterday was my first proper day back being scrimpy. Total spend of £32.23.

I already had my bike booked in for some smart new handle bar tape, which set me back £22.50. But my bike is my pride and joy and we do a lot of miles together so I will justify the spend.
I also purchased a photo frame from Oxfam for £2 which fits a picture of my niece and nephew and looks gorgeous, so that's a happy spend.

Then just £7.73 in Aldi for tea and a small top up shop. I've got into the habit of shopping daily, as I spend so little time at home, and have been eating out a lot. But I'm not away now until Monday so today I will meal plan until Monday and do a shop.

Yesterday I set up Monzo card again, and transferred £270, which is my budget for groceries and 'spends' for the rest of August - £239.81 remaining.

I'm so confused about the best way to payoff the mortgage. Overpayments of £193 monthly, or lob it into pension bee and et the tax relief. I've put a post on the mortgage board to see if someone whos good at maths can figure it out for me!

So today, cycle up to the gym for yoga, meal plan and do a frugal shop at Aldini, hoping not to also come out with a canoe, potted plant or any other item that I just can't live without.

dawnybabes

Welcome back,

Does your income include your air bnb ?

Bennettxoxo

Skinnylatte wrote: »

Thank you Bennttxoxo, do you have a diary?

Not yet.


We are currently waiting (very impatiently) for the bank to make a decision on whether they will lend on the property we've found. I've been reading lots of diaries to get some ideas as we're looking at a 35 year mortgage to allow us to renovate the property and have a low monthly mortgage payment. Need as many ideas as possible because I do not want to be paying a mortgage until I'm 60! :eek:

Seasidegal58

Hi skinny - hopefully you'll get some good advice from the mortgage board - some of them are pretty good with figures over there!

The Oxfam purchase was excellent! And you can't neglect your beloved bike!

I'm always intrigued when I go to Aldi with all the different stuff they have for sale in those middle section containers. They had a container full of shoes once - but they were real old fashioned types like what my nans used to wear - and that's going back some! Still I do like Aldi for my top up shops - the price of their coffee pods is amazing!

Enjoy your yoga!

Skinnylatte

Welcome back,
Does your income include your air bnb ?

Hi dawnybabes, thank you. No I've not included the AirBnB as it's not really an income. It just about breaks even once I've paid the mortgage, all the bills and Mrs M. So it's just sat paying for itself really.

Seasidegal58 I hope you've had a great day, thank you for stopping by.

Bennettxoxo You're very wise, I wish I'd had that foresight when I was much younger :mad:

I had a lovely day today. Spends were £6.30 for lunch at my favorite scone cafe, I cycled there after yoga. Along with £18.54 in Aldi, which should take me through until Monday when I head north with work. So £214.97 left in the budget. Which is actually £44.70 less than it should be, so I need some no spend days already! OK tomorrow will be a no spend day!

I finally made a decision on the mortgage, I'm going to overpay £93 a month, plus any extra I have, and £100 a month into pensionbee. I set up the DDs today so all sorted. This should see it sorted in around 10 years, so hopefully any overpayments on top I can make will bring it down to 9 years just in time for my 60th

Seasidegal58

Good luck with NSD day today! Your plan sounds excellent!
x

Skinnylatte

Seasidegal58 wrote: »

Good luck with NSD day today! Your plan sounds excellent!
x

I managed a no spend day today. It was sooooo hard! The number of times I wanted to go get a coffee, chocolate or just anything with sugar in it! Eventually after googling, quick honey desserts, I came up with quite a nice recipe from what I had in the cupboard. Crush a shredded wheat and mix it up with honey, dollop of greek yogurt and enjoy. It was actually really nice, or maybe I was just desperate!

I guess for a long time I was scrimping because I had to pay off my debts. When they were paid and my income went up I suddenly had spare cash I wasn't used to, and I just spent it on what I wanted. I never really got a plan together. Hopefully this time I have a solid plan that I will in the main stick to. If we don't have a plan, what do we have?!!

Yesterday I had a good look in the cupboards, and tired to make meals out of things that had been hanging around for ages.
So tea yesterday was chick pea and pickled beetroot salad, I just bought some rocket and feta to go with it, very yum.
This evening I made a chilli with turkey mince, and tomorrow I'm trying pickled beetroot risotto.
Strangely I have prunes and chai seeds in the cupboard and I've just found a recipe for prune and chia porridge, so I'm off to prepare that for the morning.
I'm quite enjoying this challenge!

Tomorrow is cycling with friends, but the weathers not looking great, so it might just be lunch.

Total left for this month is £214.97 should be £248.6 so -£33.63 astray.

Right off to make my prune porridge!

Seasidegal58

Hope you enjoyed your prune porridge! I make a version of your Greek yoghurt and honey dessert - I use any available breakfast cereal I have to mix it up!

Having a solid budget and plan is the basis of getting rid of your debts and a stress free financial future. I couldn't believe how much I wasted once I had a good hard look at my finances when I decided to tackle my debts head on. And even now I'm debt free I sometimes feel like there's something hidden away inside me that could creep out to demolish all the good work. It's the same as being a recovering addict!

I hope you get out cycling with your friends. Weather here is very changeable - very windy- one minute sun, next dark clouds!

Skinnylatte

Seasidegal58 wrote: »

Hope you enjoyed your prune porridge! I make a version of your Greek yoghurt and honey dessert - I use any available breakfast cereal I have to mix it up!

Having a solid budget and plan is the basis of getting rid of your debts and a stress free financial future. I couldn't believe how much I wasted once I had a good hard look at my finances when I decided to tackle my debts head on. And even now I'm debt free I sometimes feel like there's something hidden away inside me that could creep out to demolish all the good work. It's the same as being a recovering addict!

I hope you get out cycling with your friends. Weather here is very changeable - very windy- one minute sun, next dark clouds!

I know what you mean about the addict thing, and I'm much more likely to spend when I'm tired or stressed.

I had the prune porridge for breakfast, but the rest went in the bin. The prunes were fine, but the chai seeds had a really funny texture, a bit like frogspawn.

There's was loads of chill left last night, so I had it with pasta tonight and saved the beetroot risotto for another night.

It was too windy to cycle today so we walked instead, had a lovely lunch for £12.50, but when I got back to the car I had a parking ticket :mad::mad: £25, very cross with myself. I simply didn't see the signs that said 40 minute maximum stay.

I've opened a Santander account and activated the 7 day switch thing. ( I hope it all works) I've been with the NW for decades, there was a bit of an emotional attachment. But it makes no sense to stay there when I can get an extra £7+ a month for simply switching. And use it to pay off the mortgage 3 months earlier!

I'm thinking of doing some matched betting, I did it a few years ago and it paid for a holiday to Zante for my son and I. If I made £1000 by Christmas, that would take another 2 months of my mortgage. I'd have to revise how to do it, as it was a bit complicated, but worked well once it was all set up. :think:

Tomorrow, going to try and cycle again weather dependant, and off to see Lion King with some friends. (Oh and yoga of course!)

Hope you're all having a lovely weekend.

Skinnylatte

Lovely day today, yoga and bit of cycling. Went to see Lion King with some friends, we were all crying like babies in the first 5 minutes :rotfl: Brilliant film, the animation was amazingly life like.

My Airbnb guests said there was a funny smell coming from the sink, so I despatched DS with an armful of sink unblocker and disinfectant, seems to have done the job.
I paid for this with a load of coins from my piggy bank! Do you have any idea how longs it takes to feed £7.70 worth of coins into a Sainsburys self service check out til? As it's a business expense I've transferred the cash into my mortgage, which brings Augusts over payments to £12.13 so far.

I was planning on having a new bathroom done in September, only the bathroom man rang to day to say he'd had a cancellation and could start a week on Wednesday, which is awesome, but I'll need to get the money together pronto.

The other expense I need to forecast for (apart from the underfloor heating!) is my sons 21st in December, he want a watch, and his GF wants to throw his a surprise party, which would be awesome but not cheap. He has said he doesn't want a party!!
The watch he has his eye on is £800 :eek: I mean who needs a watch that costs that much!! Would it be an investment? He would go with a second hand one, so I'll consider it.

I can't remember what I spent today, But I have £172.17 left which is £8.60 a day until the end of the month.

So that was the weekend, back to work tomorrow, which consists of a bit of admin then a looong drive to Scotland (think of the milage claim ) Energy levels have been a bit low today so I'm off for a long snooze. G'night xx.