The trials & tribulations of a 1st time landlord & investor

daisy_1571

Morning, thank you so much for response that all makes perfect sense now. Wow that's a lot of rent £1800 a month??? That's a great saving on your guardian properties then and is understandable. I was basing it on edinburgh £500 for a nice flat in a decent neighbourhood and I thought 500 is a lot of money lol. You can see why I thought 700 seemed a lot in comparison for what you were looking at.

Good luck with the long term plan, can see dg point of view but times change, there's been other people in the house since then, you have both been together in other flats since then etc but also understand what she means. Will be interesting to see how it all works out for you.

Daisy xx

TallGirl

Yes prices are crazy here in zone 2 just mad really glad it makes sense to want to live like this.

Went to see flat which was suppose to be two bed but wasn't it's £700 £50 more a month and still only a one bed. Bigger kitchen and there was three to choose from one block smelled like someone had died and the other two one was so grim orange and purple ceiling you would have had to paint it all. Bit lost now don't want to turn down the one we have but prospect of moving twice plus where do I put my stuff. In storage is an option going to look in a bit before golf. Something might come up before we move in so annoying though

TallGirl

Went to see storageo option it will be around £120 a month crazy money when I could pay £50 (plus extra council tax) more for an extra bedroom and get some use out of it too. Still no two or three bed options and we decided the uncertainty is too much so would rather take what we have been offer and should by some miracle there be a two bed come up we can view it and will be priority for it as we're existing guardians. Paid the deposit fees and first months rent and will email to explain we are taking it but if bigger comes up we will have it. We are planning to do the final bit of moving out on the 28/10 so loads of time. At least we have somewhere and we can make it nice for the time being and always move again.

Final dilemma is I could just get rid of the stuff I need to store but I would get peanuts for it and we are both happy to have the furniture in a place we get together when we move back down. I'll have more of a think and so hope a two bed comes our way it would solve this.

Playing golf today DG isn't as she can't play in the completions. She lost it again on the course yesterday it's not good but she expects to be perfect and when she isn't it's all doom and gloom. Stupid thing is she is getting better she's hitting the ball much further after her last lesson. Got lesson today too but not until 4.30pm so I need to play at 9.20 then go back and pick up DG.

I need to sit down and work out my spending £1555 on rent and deposit will get £300 back from DG for rent and £600 is the refundable deposit so £355 is the fees which I'm paying. I've used the savings I've been trying to top up to pay which really isn't what I should should have seperate savings to use for this sort of thing.

We're also going to book a weeks bootcamp been meaning to do this since August but the price if £995 and then a week or so before camp it drops to £795. We held our nerve but when the week came we wanted and had time off for it was fully booked. I saw on intagram she's now offering a 20% discount if you pay the deposit by end of this month so that's worth it. As I started working we might as well go in 2018. There's another 5% off if you pay by bacs so I'll do that which brings the price down to £756 :T and we won't get that any cheaper as it's Feb 2018 and she's holding the prices from this year. I need to pay £336 now and then the rest six weeks before. I'm thinking I need that budgeting software YNAB as I'll end up with so many pots.

Anyway I've got £249 left until payday really chuffed with that. There will be more expenses with moving like van hire, buying a ladder, washing machine, more sturdy boxes etc.

TallGirl

Righ money got too messy so have moved things around and opened a new saving account that will eventually build up to the £10k wasted money. So far I have had to borrow my initial payment back plus £1000 but this will change once I get paid and DG pays me half the rent. So signature will be updated to show minus £1000 but it will be easier and I can also use it for holiday savings etc rather than have it sat in my current account. Should make life easier. Only spend today £2 got a drink bought at the golf club and a portion of chips was lunch courtesy of the club too.

Golf awful but lesson good so need more practise. DG has started to realise it's all in her head this meltdown every time we play can't wait for her to get over it.

Paid deposit for boot camp can't wait and will join gym once we move the old membership runs out tomorrow so no point in paying more for that one. Feeling very tired as played golf but what a lovely day it has been and so hot. .

Weekend gone so quickly wish I could have done more but hey ho lunch is done for tomorrow and should be low spend week. Payday should be Friday first full salery will be so nice.

SuzieSue

TallGirl wrote: »

Paid deposit for boot camp can't wait and will join gym once we move the old membership runs out tomorrow so no point in paying more for that one. Feeling very tired as played golf but what a lovely day it has been and so hot. .

.

Is it a fitness bootcamp you are going on?

TallGirl

Yes it's fitness and diet things have gone down hill since I started back at work I've not been to the gym for months. Membership cancelled but there's a job right across the road from our new place so no excuses plus living on the fifth floor should help.

Going in a bit later today to go to another location I can get coffee in Waitrose before I get there which is nice. I'm on a course Tuesday and Wednesday so not a lot in the office this week. Board meeting Thursday so late finishes.

Still thinking about my stuff and storage etc it's so hard if we don't get bigger place. Wouldn't mind opinion from MSE if I should get rid or not maybe I'll do a post on the family board it's kind of that I think. Or house moving board.

This is what I have
Black four seater cube dinning set, I had two chairs stolen last year so bought two new ones to make the set complete four months ago. It's in very good nick but seven years old. Cost to replace £450 spent incl original price £400. DG likes this and wants to keep it.

Dining room table and six black chairs it's Danish and it kind of matches my two coffee tables. I have a smaller table now so I want to keep for chairs but what about the two spares. Table itself extends to eight can't remember original cost but selling the table now I would get maybe £50 if that. DG doesn't love it but says it's ok.

Sideboard from made.com paid £350 I think I like it but the doors don't sit properly so I don't think it can be sold for more than £20. Matches everything we have in our current lounge and good storage just not sure it will fit in one bed flat. DG likes it,

Other stuff are main things i need to keep such as travel covers for golf bags, Cary golf bags for summer, pictures that will get ruin in old house loft etc etc.

Cost of storage is £120

wishingthemortgaheaway

Is that cost of storage in London? What about storage meat to where your rented out house is?
Also, is the £120/mth for a 24 hour access commercial storage facility? Are there places with more restricted access designed for longer term storage that are cheaper because it's not as flexible?
I really don't know the answer to these questions, they are just thoughts I've had whilst reading your diary.

TallGirl

Thanks Wishing much appreciated yes that is London I did get quote for down South and it's much cheaper and I was going for that firstly however if we are able to get two bed really soon I wouldn't have to do the 140 mile round trip to drop it off and then Coles t it plus we could get things in and out like we need it say suitcases and other stuff. Worth a thought though.

Email from property company apologising for sending us to two bed that was one bed they do have other two beds but they aren't ready for viewing yet. They have sent documents for signing agreement guessing rent starts when it's signed so holding off for two days as out of the office and it's 30 pages that needs printing and scanning our scanner only does single pages.

Look forward to my courses the next two days will be good to catch up with my industry tomorrow and I know the trainer plus course Weds is with DG which will be nice to spend the day together.

No spend today free coffee in Waitrose lovely and brought lunch in. Need to go and make lunch for tomorrow or I will have to spend money. Weds has lunch provided.

Called the two pension companies I'm transferring out of one won't accept the certified copy of my passport it's done by a solicitor but it hasn't got solicitor on it just her roll number and no date. Sent my driving license to them let's hope it doesn't get lost in the post. Mind you need it change my address soon anyway.

Second pension I emailed 21/8 asking how to transfer out (£1555). Reply 4/9 can't find policy emailed back copy of screenshot. Heard nothing. Chased today on hold for 15 min cannot find it, gave all the detail as told them I'm looking at it online I've got log in. No can't find me so I have to send in letters they have sent me. I've found my welcome letter and the one they wrote when I left. Joke is it's less than a year ago since I started it and I left in March 17 not exactly long ago. What if it had been a lot of money and say I had died how would they ever trace it. Boody idiots I hope no one on here has to deal with BenPal. I can't wait to leave.

TallGirl

Course was good and nice to catch up with people I know in the same line of work tutor and me go back a long way which was nice.

Email from guardian the nice new one a two bed has come up but not ready to be viewed yet. We think it's max fifth foor but there is no lift and no door entry system but it would be great and there might be a smal balcony too well for the front door. Will email them tomorrow or maybe Thursday when we upload our signed tenancy agreement for the one bed. Trying to spin it out so we don't ha e to move twice.

No spend day yeah got £164 left to Friday so can top up the savings plus will get £300 from DG for the rent. Course tomorrow has free lunch and I might get free coffee in Waitrose. Can't wait to so the money shuffle and get the savings account back into plus. Will be so nice getting my first proper full wages since March.

Taken my garden furniture inside and cleaned it ready for storage and looked at the black cushions box it's nice but starting to get old and not worth storage so might just leave it here. A shame as it was quite expensive but hey ho can easily be replaced. Cushions will need to be stored but can be inside chairs loads of room. If we get two bed then we can use a curtain divider from here nice track that gets fitted in the ceiling and can be pulled across all the stuff. Might fit a desk in too might not. Well let's see if we even get to view it let alone get selected to have it.

Night night everyone so tired after DG having the alarm on for 5.30am. We can leave at 9.30 tomorrow it's a ten minutes walk yeah

TallGirl

Spend today £3.25 on latte forgot Waitrose cup and no tea and coffee until lunchtime on course. Also bought DG a coke 65p. Took £40 cash out like the new ten pound notes very nice. So that's £122 until Friday so should end the month on minus £500 only but that's £2000 missing in savings really. Look forward for seeing wage slip should be at work by now.

Tomorrow DG is calling guardian company to see if viewings are open for two bed. It's on the 5th floor so thinking of hireing man with a van or proper removal company there's no lift. Anyway it's not ours yet we still only have a one bed which I will get the license agreement signed for tomorrow ready to send to DG to upload with hers.

Will be good to get back to work but two days out training has been good too. Early start tomorrow lots of catch up on.

End of he quarter so want to do financial update for me looking at my kind of portfolio. Hopefully view that two bed Saturday and might known Monday which one we get and can pick up keys etc. Been to golf was ok but DG annoyed about her drives lesson Sunday should help hopefully.