Ruby's Bought a House, Now I want to Own It!

BravingSaving

Fantastic well done! 

ruby_eskimo

Morning all, had a real win this morning already.  Sent a speculative email to my hairdressers last night asking if they could put me on the end of their very long list for a haircut, preferably in a late afternoon / evening slot, only to then get a call from them this morning asking if I could come in this evening as they've had a cancellation.  As I haven't had a cut since October last year and the weight of my hair is giving me headaches, I jumped at the chance.  Apparently the current wait is about 3 months with them (they're a very popular salon in the main town here) so I'm happy to have been able to jump the queue just due to luck really.  They're also offering 20% discount to NHS staff so I'll be saving a little bit there.

On the topic of self care I also ordered a few skincare bits yesterday to replace the things I was running low on and made sure to earn some cashback where I could, which will go in the emergency fund when it clears.  

ruby_eskimo

Not much to report around here until payday on Friday really.  Haircut went well and was a pleasant experience, was given the 20% discount but then also tipped my hairdresser £5 so didn't save that much but to be honest it was fine.  Have been adding the odd £5 here and there into the emergency fund when I've managed to get cashback or have cashed out of prolific which is good.  

Went to check my payslip and it wasn't available yet but noticed the new link to our pension summary.  Had a quick check and it looks like my old employer hadn't updated it since 2015!  Messaged the twitter support and they said it looked strange and now have updated it now to reflect up to the end of the 18/19 financial year.  Still looks rather depressing but I know the value will increase when they add on last year's contributions and I have about 35 years till I reach pensionable age so lots of time to add to it if I continue in the NHS and lots of time to up the savings as well as paying off the mortgage asap.

BravingSaving

My pension fund is depressing as well  good for you though noticing it wasn't up to date - how many people don't even look and just presume everything is in order?

ruby_eskimo

I know!  I only noticed because it had my pensionable pay for the last couple of years on there but no record of the contributions or what my employer had paid.  

Just realised that I forgot to post the exciting news that I've officially passed my MSc now!  So happy that it's behind me and I didn't get too bad a mark if I do say so myself.  Not really sure that it will actually help me in any way with my career but at least I got some professional development finally and I didn't have to pay for it!  

Ellie78

Well done!

ruby_eskimo

Thanks Ellie, took a while to get there but get there I did.  This is actually my second MSc, not that I'm bragging as the first one was about 10 years ago and I just did it because at the time I needed it for the field I wanted to go into which I didn't end up actually getting a job in.  This one I actually wanted to do and did put a lot of effort in so glad it all paid off.  Although I am now done with the academic world I think!

Got my payslip today and they've actually managed to stop the automatic student loan payment which is good.  It means that for the first time, I get to see what my actual take home salary without any kind of deductions.  Means I have a little extra for next month and just need to work out where I want to put it.  Might split it between the emergency fund and the LISA or just chuck it all in the LISA to make sure I get close to maxing that out this year.

Had a departmental meeting yesterday where they told us all that the office will be open from the 3rd August but there is no expectation that anyone actually goes back.  I spoke to my manager and said maybe one day a week would be good for me, possibly from September onwards but I would probably be driving into London rather than getting the train. It would work out cheaper at only £15 to park all day plus the petrol rather than the £40 a day for the train fare, plus I wouldn't have to get up at 4:45 in the morning! 

BravingSaving

Congratulations! That's brilliant. Brag away - you've worked hard for it! 
The thought of getting up at 4.45am does not appeal to me for any reason whatsoever! I would want to avoid that too. Train fares are so expensive - as a family of 5 its very rare that its cheaper to use public transport for anything no matter how extortionate the parking is. 

South_coast

Go you on the two MSc's! I (under)graduated 14 years ago, and haven't been able to bring myself to set foot in a library since, so I'm very impressed! And being proud of yourself is not bragging 😀

ruby_eskimo

Thank you both.  BravingSaving I was ok with the commute and the cost because I could use my ticket to get around London if I was going out after work but in the current climate I don't think I'll be going out that much!  South_coast I just about managed to drag myself through the door of the library a couple of times over the almost three years but definitely no more I think.

Have just pulled the trigger and bought myself a new coffee machine.  Found a good deal with argos that saved me £50 on the model I was looking at and saving for.  Borrowed a little bit from my "fun" money pot to cover the difference but looking forward to collecting it tomorrow and no longer having to mop up my kitchen counter after each use.  Plus it comes with a hot and cold milk frother so my husband is happy that he'll have flat whites on tap.