Get a grip !

MovingForwards

Enjoy your long weekend!
Hope the meter fitting went ok.
One a day week in the office isn't too bad. Gives a slight change of scenery.
S&p chicken sounds great.

Your savings are increasing nicely and I'm sure your September budget will be good.

Skint_yet_Again

Have cleared all the junk in the hallway this morning and sat here since 12. The time for the engineer was 12-4pm. Just had a call to say they are not coming to fit the meters now due to “system” problems. 😕

At least they are crediting my account with £30 as compensation. 

Not sure when I will be able to rearrange for a Saturday when DS & gf are both out / at work. Can’t be when they are on nights, can’t be when they are in, unless they can stay in their room for 2 hours with power off for part of that time, as the meters are in the hall & there will not be space for them to pass the engineer while he is working kneeling on the floor by the meters. 

savingwannabe

So sorry about the lack of engineer's visit, I would re book it anyway hopefully DS and DGirlfriend can go for a long walk or a morning or afternoon out while it is being done or chill in garden? Glad you got £30 as compensation and well done for clearing doorway.

Skint_yet_Again

Have woken up with a sore neck this morning. I think it’s from all the sitting around (resting!) yesterday. I was trying to work out my pension while waiting for the gas man. Mind blowing 🤯 & I was sat on the sofa looking down / writing notes hence the sore neck. 

Still, at least I “earned” £30 and I still have 2 days off with Monday being a BH. I just need to work out how to get the money into my bank account as I think they are crediting it to my gas & electric account. I forgot to ask. I am already £135 in credit after my august meter readings so I am already going to have a big credit for winter. Maybe I can reduce my next direct debit by £30 and then put it back up to normal the following month. Will give it a try. I am going to put the money towards DIY jobs when DF comes to stay in October. 

Plans for the next 2 days are just to wash bedding, mow lawn & clean the hob, plus the usual dog walking. I wiped off all the grease on the hob at 5am this morning 🤢 while the dog was scoffing her breakfast. She is snoozing now so I will walk her later about 8am

My local friend is still struggling with covid & been signed off by the NHS for another 10 days with an extended covid isolation sick note. Hope it is not long covid, have been so worried for her. She is a tiny size 6 at the best of times and has been really stressed trying to sell her house for over a year with it falling through twice, so I think she is so run down it has knocked her for six! 

My other local friend has been to a music festival so will be staying away from her for a while as covid seems to be rife after these things. Might as well still be careful about it. Have had a text from the Dr to book my flu jab so I must get on with that today & work out a suitable time to book
around work times. 

savingwannabe

Your poor friends, I am avoiding all the festivals as the people i know got Covid despite taking precautions when they went to them in the holiday. I can see work colleagues are at one now. Yikes. You are doing the right thing.

I hope your neck eases. If you can wrap in a warm towel with lavender that may help. Well done on flu jab invite. I havent heard anything yet. 

MovingForwards

Try not to overthink your pension and break it down to bite-sized working out future potential numbers. Have you worked your outgoings for when retired as you may not need as much money as you think.

Sorry the meter wasn't done. I thought all companies did compensation as a bank credit rather than account credit, double check their website.

Hope your friends get well soon and your neck eases.

Skint_yet_Again

Thanks SW you have reminded me that I have a heat pad which warms up in the microwave so I will dig that out. 

Walked for an hour with the dog. We ate free apples from the trees & blackberries on the way. 😁

All food will be from stores until after payday

breakfasts -  bacon sandwich.  Beans or cheese or Marmite or marmalade on toast. Boiled eggs

Lunches - oven fish & chips. Cajun Chicken wraps with tomatoes & cucumber. Jacket potato & tuna Mayo. Pulled pork chinese pancakes with shredded spring onion & cucumber & hoisin sauce

Dinners - Chinese chicken curry & chips. Salt & pepper chicken & half pack micro rice with stir fry veg (pepper courgettes onions tinned sweetcorn. Chicken & peppers in black bean sauce & half pack micro rice. Chicken & peppers courgettes fajitas with wraps & cheese. 

Snacks - tinned peaches, yoghurt, cheese & crackers, choc ice. 

Skint_yet_Again

Thanks MF, still working on the pension figures. I checked the email from Eon Next and it says they usually pay it into your energy account. Will post up some figures for pension later I will need to get it all out of my head 😆

Skint_yet_Again

Ok so this is my thinking so far. 

Pension 1 age 60 £4535 & 
Lump sum 13706

Pension 2 age 67 £2262
State Pension 67 £9372

So from age 67 I should be fine 😆 unless they get rid of the state pension 😳

There is no way I can continue this job until I am 67. I am thinking of taking early retirement at 57 in 4 years time. 

Pension 1 age 57 £3936
Lump sum £12680

Total cash/savings including lump sum should be approx £40000. 

No mortgage (sell/downsize) & possibly more equity left to add to £40000 after paying moving costs, but that is unknown so not adding anything for that at the moment. Plan to sell in the next 2 years so will have a better idea then. 

I intend to look for a part time job, something less stressful, from age 57 to age 67 until other pensions start. If I can’t get another job 🙈income will be 
Pension 1 currently £3936 = £328 per month. Savings £333.33 = £661 per month

Outgoings will be
Food £150
Council tax £125
Annual bills £100
(Clothes / annual insurance / dentist / glasses (free eye tests / free prescriptions) 
gas & electric £60
water rates £45 (maybe less if get a water meter)
mobile £10
Car savings £50
Petrol £40
Entertainment £50
tv licence £15 (freeview)
xmas / birthdays £15 = £660

Its a very rough plan so far but it appears to be doable? Is there anything I haven’t thought of ? 

MovingForwards

Pension comments:

Just because there's a lump-sum option, it doesn't mean you have to take it.

If those are defined contribution pensions (eg with av1va, n3st, sc0t w1ddows etc) not taking the 25% would mean receiving a higher monthly payment.

If they are DB (employer) pensions then potentially taking the 25% and dropping the maximum amount into a pension (at the moment £2k something) generates about £750 from gvmnt which can immediately be taken back out. 
- you may need to do it from savings and use the 25% as living expenses due to pension recycling.

If you downsize before retirement, free up some equity money, that can be dropped into a pension over a couple of years, again getting the tax relief. Even if you open up a SIPP or something and have the money sitting as cash, not investing it, you still get tax relief.

One thing to be aware of is when you start drawing a pension, you're limited to how much can be paid in to any. Be mindful of this if you get a job afterwards.

On to your potential outgoings:

How will you fund replacing your car?
How will property repairs / maintenance be funded?
How will white goods etc be replaced?
Is the CT inclusive of single discount?

Miscellaneous:

Have you run numbers through a benefit calculator to see if you'll be entitled to anything (pretend you're at SPA and guess what your leftover savings and pensions will be).

If you retire early and can't work again, claim PIP, if things decline at SPA claim AA (both have been around in some form for years).