Mortgage free & able to live the dream!

SWSEGirl

I froze my gym membership today, I really want to support this local business, so I will start paying again as soon as they are open. I also renewed my phone contract, so I'm saving a grand total of £4.74 a month there! I'm paying £10 per month now, so that seems ok.
I also have a beauty subscription that I will be cancelling on Monday - I'm getting back to being frugal!  

caeler

I'm with you on that @SWSEGirl I'm constantly crunching numbers, monitoring spend and moving around pots.  I find it strangely soothing too, for me it is more about having a focus right now.

Bargainhunter30

We were planning on moving right before DS started school, but circumstances meant we moved a year earlier. This worked out great for us as DS made friends at pre-school and is in the same class now with these friends and also meant we had settled in and met people before covid happened. I'm an avid believer in everything happens for a reason. I would tell my old self to relax, enjoy the ride and everything will happen as it should. You're doing a great job of paying down the mortgage and getting yourself ready for the next step. Also sounds like you're doing a great job with DS and an understanding parent will be such a benefit to his development x

IndiJonesi

Great philosophy you've got going there @Bargainhunter30 and I'm in agreement about everything happening for a reason.  Well done on the frugality @SWSEGirl; getting to the next LTV will be quite an achievement.

SWSEGirl

Thank you so much for the encouragement. I've definitely overstretched myself this month - I paid £2000 to the mortgage, even though I knew I would be a little short, which was silly I guess. 
Subsequently my Mum was rushed into hospital and I have spent more money on trying to get essentials to her (since we aren't able to visit, and I'm a long way away). I can always transfer the money from my savings, so it's not the end of the world - and it is not as though I have been profligate - it's more important my Mum has what she needs, as it sounds as though she will be in hospital for weeks, if not months.
In more positive news, I have submitted my first tax return, and the tax owed was slightly less than I had put aside, so that's a positive - I guess the surplus I can put towards getting through until next payday! I am just waiting for HRMC to accept my return then I will pay - hopefully with lots of time to spare before the deadline.
 

SWSEGirl

There seems to be very little to report with ongoing lockdown....
Money is tight this month - but I knew it would be, I threw everything at the mortgage, so may need to dip into savings, but that's ok - I am pleased I committed money to the mortgage, and I haven't frittered the rest, it has been spent on things for my Mum, who is still in hospital, speech therapy for my toddler - and that's about it!
I have paid my tax bill, so that feels good.
I keep trying to think of ways to make some extra money - I really need to start throwing more at my pension, and try to reap the benefits of compound interest. In my current job, I could move to 5 days per week - but until my toddler goes to school, I would quite like to preserve our day together, so I can focus on his speech and development. I perhaps need to focus on pushing my career a bit - although room for progression is limited - senior roles are quite few and far between.
I'm wondering if I should start to invest my time in a side project - something that might sustain me beyond my current career.....

TallGirl

You are doing great and it is a fine balance between mortgage freedom and pension savings. I paid mine off nine years early but did not have much of a pension as I started work late and was on a low paid job. I was lucky I inherited money I could pay into it but if I was to do it again I might have done more 1/2 and 1/2 to get the tax uplift when rates are so low. Sound like spending a day with your son is well worth it saw your had applied for benefits for him hope you get it if not appeal. Most appeals win! 

SWSEGirl

Thank you TallGirl, I know I need to focus more on my pension, I just feel a bit stuck with it at the moment, and not particularly clued up on pensions. I think my first step will be to bite the bullet and open my LISA, then increase my contributions to my workplace scheme. I don't actually know if I should be opening a separate SIPP or just increasing monthly contributions to my workplace scheme, even though my employer won't match them? I'm thinking of increasing my pension contributions by £100, and then maximising my £4000 per year into my LISA - which means I need to find an additional £433 per month in total. If I do this, I would need to reduce my mortgage overpayment to approx. £1550 - which is still a considerable amount - I just see my pension as being such a far off entity.....

SWSEGirl

After reviewing my pensions - I have a quick question. My pension from my old employer is with Aviva and currently has about £17k in it. It seems to perform relatively well on the whole - is it worth continuing to make direct debit payments into this fund? Or should I open up a new SIPP? I'd rather keep everything as simple as possible!

SWSEGirl

Sorry to bore on about pensions - it has been my point of focus today! I've managed to get through to our pensions department today, who tell me that the minimum contributions are 5% - which is a lot more than my current deductions and employer contributions, so I am now totally confused. I am hoping they allow me to backdate contributions, so I can make the most of my employers' contributions too.
My current calculations based on my pension forecasts (which I know probably can't be relied upon!) indicate that I could expect an annual income of £23,250 (including state pension) by 65. This is achieved by me contributing roughly 6.5%. 
I still don't understand the tax free lump sums - are these simply paid out when I reach state pension age? If I choose to take them, would it impact the annual income figure? 
The overall totals are lower than I would like, but I feel comfortable with the contributions for now, I will increase them if I go back to work full time, or receive a pay rise - or if we manage to pay off the mortgage of course!