Prosperous soul in the making

savingholmes

It turns out BB is paid in arrears. Ex says he's happy to pay the next one - but that I might as well switch while he's here to help me get it set up. Looks like I can save £5 pcm and eventually get £68 cash back. However I have a slight dilemma as I can potentially get a cheaper deal if I wait for them to send in the login details as my new energy supplier. However - I've been waiting a while and still not had them... Think I might be better just going for it - it's an 18 month contract. 

I've checked when my first CC 0% runs out and it's 27/3 which is slightly longer than I thought in payday terms so think should work out. I think my 6 months interest free deal though is likely to run out within a month or so of that so need to be careful - although I can always txfr it on if needed. My phone contract runs out the following month - so hoping to go on a sim only deal for a bit then to increase my available funds... 

I'm definitely going to need £50 min from DD a month from December - that's just to cover the extra CTax - not even anything else. (I won't tell her about the free months LOL). She's mostly buying her own food though. Had some mixed positive news in that someone can give her a lift when she's at her site rather than the training centre - which means we shouldn't have to drop her off or pick her up. The bad news is though she'll be home those weeks in the evenings and mornings using utilities. But it may make my adjustment easier in the run up to xmas so its swings and roundabouts I think.

savingholmes

This was from a walk a few days ago. 


Trees are so uplifting

Fortune_Smiles

I have one of these for my art nook.  My eyesight is really poor in low light but I find I can see perfectly with this.  You can add other lamps to the post too if you need to.

Fortune x

savingholmes

Thanks Fortune. I will consider that too.

Really gutted went to eat my batch cooked pasta and Bolognese sauce but it tasted vinegary so binning. Gutted. Need to check whether the one I didn't add pasta to is ok. I had planned to make cottage pie.

Will have a jacket spud, cheese and beans instead.

DD has just announced she's getting her nose pierced. I think she was expecting pushback. I just think it's a stage and I will leave her to it...

enthusiasticsaver

Nice to hear your plans for the house when it is just your space.  I agree with the others that you are better making it work for you rather than have resale value in your mind. None of the stuff you mentioned would be a big problem for new owners to reverse should you decide to sell.  Of our four bedroom house only two are really set up as bedrooms as one is set up as a music room/library for me with my piano and books and  another a hobby room for my DH.  We removed our bath and put in double walk in shower against "well meaning" folks advice.  The only time our bath used to see water was when I cleaned it whereas the double walk in shower was a boon when my husband came home after his recent open heart surgery. Not sure why people are so preoccupied about resale value of properties when surely a primary purpose of a house is a home. 

savingholmes

Thanks @enthusiasticsaver for sharing your story. I think too often we live with compromise for years because we might need to sell one day - rather than addressing the issue if and when we come to sell. We've lived here 16 years and the house is fairly neutrally decorated for precisely that the reason... The soft furnishings are bright though. It will be interesting to see if I decide to add colour pops to the wall or wallpaper murals or similar once I have the place to myself. I quite like the ones where it looks like you are in a forest. Would only do that in 1 room. I think too with Insta people's tastes are changing / they are more open to colour anyway. I wonder if it's the EA's that aren't. I can cope with other people's paint choices but I doubt I'd buy a fully wallpapered house - far too much work to undo if I was doing it myself!

Cleaner's been so the house looks and feels better again. I'm dropping her hours from 3.5 to 2.5 and she's okay with that. We'll see how it goes... Maybe longer term I can reduce her hours some more but she travels to come to me so I didn't want it to be unviable for her to come. I told another neighbour about the divorce - and he offered his help if I ever needed it which was sweet. That reminds me I need to feed a neighbour's cat.

Ex has said he'll read the water meter tomorrow and ring them. They sent us an estimated bill today. It should have come down massively with DS having moved out over a month now - and DD being mostly away for the last 2.5 months.

No details have arrived for the energy company which is frustrating as I want to resolve the BB - as they are the cheapest in my area. I'll give it until the end of tomorrow - but if it's not come - go ahead via £co anyway. I should then get £68 back vs £60 if I did it via this site. I keep playing with my spreadsheet. Definitely need to rein in any spending while things settle.

I have to go into work tomorrow for a couple of meetings but I think the social will do me good. I am due at the balance class tonight and tomorrow. Seeing a friend for a meal on Friday. BIL is coming at the weekend - I assume on Saturday - to help. Just need things to keep moving. Waiting to hear from my property solicitor which is frustrating. TBF she said she'd work on it this week - and didn't give me a more specific time. I'm really worried if she takes too much longer it could jeopardise my desired completion date of a week on Friday.

Hope you are all having a positive week.

girlatplay

We moved into our flat almost 14 years ago.  I always said it was just a stop gap and we would only be here 5-6 years.  Life had other plans.  I only did what was necessary as I didn't want to spend too much on it.  Looking back, I should have just done stuff.

savingholmes

Thanks GAP

Yes too often we leave things that are an easy fix too. Hoping to start tackling those frogs soon.

Ex just spent half an hour with me at the bottom of the ladder getting stuff out the loft. Need to clear a passageway to go downstairs and clear my bed so I can sleep but progress.

He reckons there's about 14 boxes left up there. 

He's rescued some unused underlay from a couple of years ago for me so I am hoping to use that in the room he's sleeping in when he goes and possibly in my bedroom if there's enough. May be one or the other. 

Relieved there's progress. Been trying hard not to nag.

Blackcats

It's good to read about your ideas and plans for your home.   I turned my shed into a summer house/shabby chic shack - I bought some odd rolls of mismatched wallpaper and borders for £1 a roll and made a tented style ceiling and I got all my old paintings that were stashed in the garage and put them up - completely random art covering the walls, an old sofa, rug and table and it works really well.  And I've got an old CD player down there for music.  It's the complete opposite to the house where I have everything co-ordinated and matching.  I often take a cuppa to the shack after work and listen to music to unwind in a different zone.  

BellaLasagna2018

It’s interesting what you are saying about colour, resale potential and EA. I’ve viewed a few houses lately. One of them, the owner was still living in, and clearly it was decorated to her taste, lots of knickknacks around. I had a clear idea of her tastes and her hobbies, and I loved that! Had the house not been near a noisy, busy road I would have put an offer in. 

Maybe I’m lucky that I can be in a house and visualise what it could be, if I put my stamp on it? Or maybe EAs have brainwashed us in thinking if it’s not white or magnolia, we can’t picture ourselves living there? I don’t know. 

My home at the moment has got white walls with feature walls, and a lot of colour added from pictures and textiles as I make patchwork quilts. Having viewed a few properties online and in RL, I know my next home will have a lot of colour on the walls. I won’t shy away from it. It will be my forever home, so I don’t really care about the resale potential. I care about making it a comfortable retreat for my partner and myself. No wallpaper though! 😂