Single Parent with Mortgage

JillyC8

Hi,
I'm 53 with two children aged 15 and 17 and I have a mortgage till I'm 70, and currently owe £98000. I'm starting to panic about the length of my mortgage and never seem to have any extra to pay it down. It isn't a large house and downsizing wouldn't save me much. I'm also on shaky ground re my job and would like to change jobs soon but would face a reduction in pay, which I don't mind as long as I can cover outgoings. Maintenance payments will end in a few years and although I expect my children to work and contribute, I'm looking for a more long-term plan to allow me to continue to live where I live now.
I'm concerned I won't find it easy to find work at my age, if/when I lose this job. Loose plan is to take a few thousand out of small pensions I have, to help pay down the mortgage but it won't amount to much. Any ideas?

cod3

Hi Jilly

I am also 53, single for years, with two kids and am on a lowish fixed income. I used to look at all the double income diaries here and think I could never afford to overpay (no offence to these diarists). A change in circumstances in the summer made me look long and hard at my finances. Why were we always skint? Money seemed to evaporate out of my purse every month, but now I know where every penny goes and I am able to make overpayments. Apologies if you are already doing this, but this would be my first suggestion. Can you make the money you earn go even further?

My younger child left school in the summer (the same week his father died and my financial light bulb moment happened) My son has now left home to go to uni so we should be poorer again, but there are swings and roundabouts for every change. I am no longer having to fund expensive school trips and uniforms, for example. This month, elder child got a full-time job so that's a plus. As you can see from our wee saga, circumstances are fluid so don't commit to something like spending your pension unless it is an absolutely last resort. You never know what opportunities may be around the corner

JillyC8

Thank you Cod3, your post is uplifting. I hope I am able to find a way through all this worry and hardship. My biggest fear is becoming unemployed and being 'unemployable' due to my age. I've read so many horror stories about this.
I've been independent for years but have only recently begun to worry so much.
Can I ask if you have a long mortgage? I think I can make some overpayments, but need to bulk out a savings pot for emergencies first ... or so I've been advised. 3-6 months apparently although that will take me an age to save up.
Jill

cod3

My mortgage should have lasted until I was 66, but I have managed to knock 18 months off it since September. It is a lower mortgage that yours so we are not comparing apples with apples, but the same rules apply I guess. I would really struggle to find another job due to health issues so am keen to get rid of my mortgage.

The best idea for now is to build up that emergency pot, particularly if you don't feel your job is secure. Even if this means putting overpayment dreams on hold for now.

Santa brought me a new calendar so I will be ticking off those no-spend-days in 2019 :money:

JillyC8

Fantastic progress for you - I hope to get down to paying off by age 67 if I can over the next few years. I've recently been sorting out switching providers and have saved a bit, so Im doing what I can to release some money for overpayments. I hope to have at least £3k in an emergency fund before I start making over payments. One big expense for me is fuel/car due to my commute so I'm considering whether to take the pay cut and work closer to home. I'll be poorer but probably happier if I can sort. It's a toss up between staying where I am and ho.di g out for redundancy or cutting my losses and trying together a local job before I get too old!

Busy_Mee1

Hi Jilly and welcome. Lots of us joined these boards because we were worried about paying our mortgages off. You will find the focus of having a diary and lots of support from like minded others will really help.
I would recommend starting to track every penny you spend so that you can understand where your money is going ( I use a spending app, others use a pad and paper but it doesn't really matter ). Knowing where your money is going will help you to make choices about where you can happily save money. The biggest saving people usually find is on groceries, just by switching to Aldi/Lidl and meal planning you can really keep costs down.

Also focusing on the small things really helps, lots of people Tilly Tidy ( round the pence off their bank accounts), do surveys and sell stuff. They then use these small amounts to pay off their mortgage. It is surprising how quickly these small amounts add up and start reducing your mortgage.

Good luck and try not to worry

JillyC8

Thank you Busy Mee, I'll start a diary today! I'm pretty good at budgeting generally but have never kept a day-to-day diary. No doubt it will throw up a few surprises and I know I need to look at my grocery shopping.

selloptape

Hi Jilly,

Sorry that you’re feeling worried, there’s loads of time to tackle this so please don’t worry, and so much help and support on the boards here

I also recommend a spending diary, find this so helpful to keep tabs on spending and identify savings. This year I’ve used this info to set a budget for next year that should allow me to save every month.

To keep grocery spends down I join the grocery challenge threads each month on the old style board.

I’m also a single parent with teen so will be interested to follow your journey - good luck

JillyC8

Thanks selloptape, I will check out the grocery challenge - sounds interesting!

A_Frayed_Knot

Welcome,

just wanted to say that I was one month off my 52 birthday when I took out my 1st mortgage on my own :eek: that was due to finish at my 70th birthday - so very similar, although I don't have kids, I do have a very low income (nothing like a "normal" average) but have still just managed to clear it a few months before my 59th birthday.

Just be inventive for making and saving extra pennies, and o/p them trying to get your mortgage balance at the end to 00.00

Good Luck and reading other diaries really help with loads of other :money: ideas.

JillyC8

Frayed Knot - that is amazing! How on earth did you do it so quickly? Was it down to keeping a diary and just throwing the extra at the mortgage?