Hazelnutty's New Start

Hazelnutty

Hi everyone :wave:

I've been an MSEr for many years although on and off the forums (I was a total addict of the families board when I was expecting DD) A lot's changed in my life in the last 18 months and it's a new start in many ways so I thought I'd come back and start a diary to help me get me on course. I could do with the support of you lovely people along the way

My ex & I separated (more or less totally amicably) and have divided our financial lives. I took on our new house on my own, which I could do (just!) by remortaging over a longer period (we would have paid it off in 13 years - now it's 25 ) and he took all the money - a division that made sense for various reasons. We now both have new partners now. Mine can't work and I'm supporting me, OH and DD on my salary (with child support from my ex and a kind gift of some safety net savings from my Mum so I wouldn't crash if anything happened).

So now I'm rebuilding. Since moving careers after finishing my PhD I'd earned a lot less than my ex so I've been getting used to having less now and needing to plan and prioritise more than before. I'm now into my 40s so if I can avoid being saddled with my mortgage into my 60s that'd be great!

I'm pretty careful and I save and budget for things like car insurance, holidays etc but after I've squirrelled that away, I'm not left with much to OP or stash for savings. I currently pay £670/month on approx £155k mortgage and top up OP to £700, so it's not much but I'm determined to increase it! I do what I think are Tilly Tidies every day (£1 + whatever pennies are in my current account) but I've just been transferring them into my general savings. That'll be the first thing to turn into an OP. Clearing out stuff for sale on F@cebook too although I've found it pretty frustrating (I work long hours and so get a bit fed up with flakiness). My OH is getting into batch cooking and we're pretty good generally with meal plans etc. But basically I'm pretty up for trying stuff to chip away at the mortgage :T

DD's calling me for stories so I'll carry on later! Thanks for listening!

Hazelnutty

And I'm back
I'm just starting to think about how to get going on the MFW path... I have a regular saver at N@tionwide about to mature (I've been feeding it from my small safety net) so thought I'd syphon off the interest as OP. If I can set up another reg saver @ 5% I can keep going (I also have a reg saver at the Saffron). It'll be small fry though so need some other plans. I guess I'm caught between saving (I'm quite risk averse as a person) and MFW so would be interested to know what others use - how do you set targets for/prioritise between OP and normal savings?

julicorn

Hi Hazelnutty, happy New diary! Can't wait to see how you get on.

As for the split between saving/overpaying: we've got savings goals for specific things, and an emergency fund of around 5 months essential outgoings (trying to get this up to 6 months over time, but then again our jobs are fairly secure), and virtually all the rest has been going towards the mortgage so far. This month, we've made 2 changes:
1) we've started putting some money into a stocks and shares ISA for longer-term investing, because early retirement is something that is quite important to me (got a fair few health problems in the family).
2) our mortgage interest is lower than the interest we can get with a marcus savings account, so for now, we're putting our overpayments into a savings account, and will be paying off a lump sum once our interest rate increases (most definitely July next year).

The main reason we're overpaying a lot arm is to save up to move into a bigger place in a few years, really.

Hazelnutty

Hi Julicorn! Thanks for stopping by!
I think I've got a lot more risk-averse since the separation - before I'd have seen 3+ months' bills as absolutely fine but now I'm thinking what if I have to replace the car? What if the boiler goes? XH was on commission so there would be the odd 'windfall' after a good month that gave us the capacity to get things done on the house, change the car, get some nice clothes or a meal out. My salary's fixed so I have what I have (and it's not keeping pace with inflation like many people) so every so often I have an 'oh b*gger!' moment

But actually I'm not in a bad position and it's OK that I'm only making mini inroads into the mortgage for now.

Pinkypig small steps today to health, happiness and financial harmony:
* Played a hockey match today to help out my old team so plenty of running around (feeling it now though) Match fee £10 (includes tea) (Only other spends DD judo and pocket money £5)
* Lovely post-match hot bath and putting world to rights with OH and bucket of tea
* Washing done and hung up on old styleee pulley airer thing my dad bought me (it's amazing!)
* CC checked for refund of fraud (luckily they declined the big ones and only one slipped through)
* TTs since payday added up (£5.69) will tot up and OP the day before payday

DD is desperate for a new high-sleeper bed and it's just generally hard for me feeling I'm always saying no, or let's look on FB/Freecycle, or wait. I don't think most of time she's that bothered about material things but her classmates are from more affluent backgrounds so playdates can trigger a feeling of inadequacy. Birthdays are a bit of a trial too:o

But generally I'm feeling pretty positive. I'm really happy with my new OH and we've just got kittens

PS We're having one of my favourite and v MSE dinners - tortilla base pizzas tonight, yay!

newgirly

Hi and welcome Hazelnutty sounds like you are pretty organised financially, I wouldn't worry too much about the overpayments not being as high as you may like at the start, those frequent smaller payments do all add up and make a difference. Congratulations on the kittens too

julicorn

Hazelnutty wrote: »

I think I've got a lot more risk-averse since the separation - before I'd have seen 3+ months' bills as absolutely fine but now I'm thinking what if I have to replace the car? What if the boiler goes?

For me, the emergency fund is pretty much just for covering loss of income. We have separate sinking funds for home repairs, replacing appliances, those sort of things, because while the exact timing is unclear, they are still inevitable expenses. So in some ways, probably even more 'risk averse' than you, but it also means that we can comfortably throw the leftover cash at the mortgage or investments, because we can really afford to, even if lots of unforeseen things happen in a month.

glass_half_full

Hi Hazelnuty,

Happy new diary!
Looking forward to following you on your journey.

GHF

Hazelnutty

Thanks everyone for your comments!
Newgirly - thanks! I have virtual pots in my main savings account for all sorts from kitten savings to car insurance so almost all my spare salary gets squirreled away. I think if I upped my OP gradually though I probably would be able to make it work as mentally I'd know I had less for any unbudgeted spends and entertainment... The kittens have just been such a delight - the best waste of time ever! It's been especially good for DD adjusting to a new pattern of life and for OH who has mental as well as long-term physical health issues. We're all just more chilled with them around.

Julicorn - yep I think that's it, knowing everything else is safe and covered then you can OP with a clear conscience!

GHF - thanks!

Hazelnutty

Afternoon all!

OK, so I mentioned the loft bed yesterday.... then up pops an add on FB marketplace for an !kea loft bed in my town with the desk underneath and a built-in wardrobe £120 (new price £300). I only have £40 in the home costs pot (after a recent boiler service) but have decided to go for it. She's been asking for ages and I should be able to sell her current bed, which has a trundle underneath. It's been a good incentive/bribe for tidying and homework so far :cool: It's being dismantled and delivered next weekend so I have a week of incentives to enjoy!

Otherwise all I've spent today is £2.60 on a Caffe Nero gift card (that I bought for myself a couple of months ago) plus £10 on a purse from my personal account. I get a small amount of money during the year royalties and licensing from my publications so I put that into a separate account for guilt-free spending. I only ever top up to £200 when I can and often it's a lot less than that. But it's quite useful for the odd frivolous spend which is often enough of a break from being frugal to keep me motivated and not feeling too down about lack of spending power! So anyway, I have a shiny new purse and no regrets

Bit of a DIY fail later putting up a utensil rack. It really is the simplest drill and screw job but somehow managed to go horribly wrong Had to unscrew everything and Polyfilla the holes. Attempt 2 to follow...

A couple of things on my mind at the moment. I have quite a bit of equity in the house (when we moved we were moving west-east and were able to get a bigger house for less than we sold for) so I could move and buy somewhere MF or close to it. I know I'd waste so much money and energy doing so, plus we've moved too much already. DD needs some stability. But it's such a tempting thought...

The other thing is decluttering and making some money back on things we don't need. I love decluttering so have no problem clearing things out. It's having the time to sell things! There a whole section of the storage room (should be the sitting room) full of things boxed up for sale. I have made a few sales recently of the things that are worth listing individually on my work sales list, Gumtree or FB but there's a whole heap of stuff that's really just car booty. I avoid Fleabay just for the hassle really. Part of me just wants to get rid of the stuff and send to a charity shop but I could really do with the cash for OP. Any tips on shifting stuff in a low-hassle way welcome!

Anyway, we've settled down to watch Hugo and have a relaxing Sunday. Hope you're all having a good one wherever you are and whatever you're doing

newgirly

Great news sourcing a new bed for a good price :T

Trixysticks

Fab news about the bed. I've noticed, that since starting my MF journey, if I really want/need something the universe finds a way to get it to me!