Get a grip woman!

Suffolk_lass

Well, the credit card bill is the right side of £1900 (positive face) but it does mean the opportunities for TTs this month is going to be limited. We are also away for two weekends, so there will be extra expense there.

I have decided to track our spending (so not bills, all the other stuff) and I've set up a little tracker using similar headings to Busy Mee1, but with holidays and miscellaneous (probably DH un-tracked mostly). I need to do my month end figures while it is the weekend as my head is so full of work in the week that everything else (including sleep, it seems) has pared back to survival levels. I will be back a bit later

Suffolk_lass

Suffolk_lass wrote: »

DEBTS

[STRIKE]£110,621[/STRIKE] £104,663.39 (£5,957.61 paid so far) - Mortgage
[STRIKE]£3,476[/STRIKE] £2,476 (£100)- DH's car (payment on 22nd)
[STRIKE]£8,755.54[/STRIKE] £6,367.68 (£2,387.86) - Barclays Finance for double glazing

Total [STRIKE]£122,852.54[/STRIKE] £113,507.07 - that is £9,345.47 or 9.23% paid off so far.


SAVINGS
£10,914.14 (aiming for £10,000+£2000) Emergency fund today - realised I need £12,000 to clear the 0% CC in September so carrying on.
£12,420.20 S&S ISA with Fidelity International (original £10,000 4 years ago, no further capital added)
£5,910.25 DH's S&S ISA with Charles Stanley Direct
£3,131.75 2 year Bond with Skipton BS @ 4% Finishes in early 2018
£10,947.52 7 year bond with Skipton BS - matures Oct 20
[STRIKE]£38,630.43[/STRIKE] £42,776.43 Total actual cashable savings

Shortfall -£70,730.64 (all debts)

This was our position 12 months ago. I am bumping it forward so I can take shangaijimmy's advice and compare last year with one year on.

Suffolk_lass

DEBTS


Mortgage [STRIKE]£110,621[/STRIKE] 72,999.64 (£37,621.36 paid so far)
Barclays 0% Finance for double glazing [STRIKE]£8,755.54[/STRIKE] £1,193.94 left (£7,561.60 paid off)
[STRIKE]DH's car - paid off on 21st Aug 17 £3,476 £0 (£3,476)[/STRIKE] all finished!

Total [STRIKE]£122,852.54[/STRIKE] £74,193.58 - that is £48,658.96 or 39.61% paid off so far.


SAVINGS
£12,927.40 Emergency pot
£12,580.71 S&S ISA with Fidelity International (original £10,000 some years ago, no further capital added)
£8.318.13 DH's S&S ISA (with Charles Stanley Direct]
[STRIKE]£3,155.32 2 year Bond with Skipton BS @ 4% Finishes 31 Jan 2018 - This will be used to reduce the mortgage![/STRIKE] all finished
£11,330.58 7 year bond with Skipton BS - matures Oct 20
[STRIKE]£38,630.43[/STRIKE] £45,156.82 Total actual cashable savings and 16.89% better than when I started

Shortfall -£29.036.76 (all debts)

Just to qualify this because the mortgage payment has not gone out between the end of May and end of June posts so this figure is unchanged.

Also stock market volatility (probably all the business threats to leave the UK, combined with High Street decay and retraction) have reduced our limited stock market exposure.

Suffolk_lass

Year on year comparison -

Mortgage - £31,663.75 paid off
Loan - £5,173.74 paid off
Car - £2,476 paid off
Total debt reduction this year - £39,313.49

Savings increase over the last year is just £2,380.39

Total deployed to balancing the books is £41,693.88

Superficially impressive but it falls short of my hopes of between £45k and £50k in total. It seems that we will not be debt and mortgage free by the time I retire, or when DH stops work in 2019, but we can see how we are going to get there within the next three years.

I may have to think about this. My pension will come with a lump sum and I could look at using some of that or even taking a slightly higher lump sum and reducing my monthly payment. Hmm!

mark55man

WOW impressive

My advice don't sacrifice monthly payment for lump sum unless (and this is unlikely) you get a spectacular commutation rate. One years feel good for clearing it againt 30 years of lower income - you might end up regretting it. don't let the temptation of clearling that last few K of debt fool you into a poor decision when you are really monstering the debt.

If you need more details ask a question on the pensions board they are a lovely bunch sharp as razors but so helpful especially if you listen

Busy_Mee1

That is really impressive Suffolk Lass.

All the advice I have been given is to take the maximum lump sum and a smaller pension ( think you have civil service pension) This is because your lump sum isn't taxable, however you do need to weigh this up against how many years you think you might live and when you want access to the most money.

In our situation we need more money to fund our earlier years of retirement because we will also have our SRP when DH is 66 and I am 68. We will also be using part of our lump sum to pay off our remaining mortgage. We both have civil service pensions so our combined pension will be enough to live on, even if it is reduced. We would rather have the money whilst we are young enough to travel and enjoy it.

There is a really good Modeller tool on the Civil Service Pensions website that you can play about with, to show what happens if you change your retirement date or vary the lump sum you can take.

mark55man

With all due respect it is about the worst advice I have seen about pensions. sacrificing money at low ratios 12:1 just to avoid a little tax now (which wouldn't be payable only on the first 25%)

enthusiasticsaver

I would suggest you model your outgoings and income to see how tight this will be. I agree that taking a larger lump sum in exchange for a smaller pension will have substantial ramifications but I don't think you are as far off spa as me so presumably you will get another £8500 then. Model a few scenarios with quotes from your pension company. The stock market is flat at the moment so selling s and s isas is not a good move. Is your pension DC or DB and were you planning on taking it immediately?

The mortgage seems to be your biggest headache. Do you still have the 2nd property you can sell? Is downsizing an option? I seem to recall your house is expensive to maintain, high council tax, thatched roof etc so maybe selling up and moving elsewhere, repaying the mortgage and realising some equity may be the way to go?

Busy_Mee1

mark88man wrote: »

With all due respect it is about the worst advice I have seen about pensions. sacrificing money at low ratios 12:1 just to avoid a little tax now (which wouldn't be payable only on the first 25%)

In pure financial terms it will be calculated over a number of years but much depends on what you want to do with your life and your other circumstances. Horses for courses and everyone needs to do their own maths.

Suffolk_lass

Lots of great feedback and food for thought. mark88man your comment re not taxable on only the first 25% relates to 25% of the fund value, not the lump sum. Just to confirm a few points:

[LIST=*]
[*]It is a CS pension, and I can take it without reduction now I am 60.
[*]Our plans are to travel while we are fit enough, and to take our time and do it in comfort
[*]For both of us, SRP is 66
[*]We do have the second house but it is occupied by our Son and two friends of his (and he owns some of it so selling would make him homeless - so not an option) - we are exploring him paying us as if it were a mortgage, from the lodger money - a parental mortgage, if you like. This would give us an additional income, which is what makes commutation an option.
[*]We could sell our house but we are looking forward to a few years here before that (and we will down-size then). I am looking at a retirement community to be built locally but it feels too early at the moment
[/LIST]

It all feels do-able but I must not let £60/month interest (and my hatred of paying it) influence me to too great a degree.

However, if interest is £60 a month, I need an awful lot of maxed-out 5% savings accounts to shuffle to make that much income over the same period - hence my focus on paying it down.