Staying on track to be MF and ready to support my daughter at 18

Kat78MFW

Just caught up on your diary. I've missed so much! Congratulations on paying off your mortgage. You need to update your signature! It must feel amazing to own every last brick of your home.
Congratulations on your awards as well and it sounds as though you are having fun with the new puppy. Glad your daughter has settled in well at college. So sensible that they are doing a one week in / one week online rota. I wish they would do that in secondary schools too.
Merry Christmas all x

ElmoR

Reading everyone's diaries makes me feel that some lists are needed. One for looking back (and feeling positive) and another to set some goals. If you aren't planning for a specific destination or set of goals, then don't be surprised if you don't arrive where you hoped to be - kind of thing.

2020 was ...hoping we don't have another like it. On the positives, and despite it all, DD did well in her GCSEs, moved schools, is happy in her new subjects, not scarred (as far as we can tell) by the losses/bumps along the way and that right of passage age group/rituals.Family-wise we are all happy and well too. Bumps there in lockdown, but the NHS did us proud. And the mortgage is gone I may even have worked out how to change my profile signature - finally?! I'm going to add the greenhouse building and veggie successes too. They are significant because they represent a positive move away from work obsessive lifestyle. And, and, the puppy too. Wow! Looking back, we've been extremely lucky and fortunate, I feel very grateful.

2021 then (this is a starting point, will need to mull and firm these up...):

1. Continue with the family focus, not sure how to express this as tenable goals? Maybe health ones - so lose the bit of weight that has crept back on? Spend more time with loved ones and less time work obsessed? How does that work into goals/actions?

2. Finances - start to build the retirement plan and money chest. This requires some spreadsheeting and I'm still running blind on this. Will look for suitable books...Will continue with the Trussell Trust and Wildlife Trust monthly charity payments.

3. Home maintenance odd jobs - those jobs that never get done. Clear out of extraneous stuff could fall into this heading too. Make a list and start picking them off...

4. The luxury, it-would-be-nice-to achieve-goal, am thinking this could be to install solar panel heating set up in the greenhouse and extend the veggie growing season?? (I was given a heck of a lot of growing sacks as pressies too )

That all makes me feel a bit overwhelmed, time for food...

Have a happy new year all

ElmoR xxx

ElmoR

Hello all

Well that month zoomed past quickly, nearly at the end. It's all starting to feel very groundhog day though, stretching out for a long time too. We were saying last semester at work that this wasn't sustainable so I suspect a few wheels will be coming off the cart at some point soon. Not that any managers notice or care.

Anyway. A sort of plan has emerged that will hopefully see me retire a bit early at 60. I did some sums and think I have a target, well three targets...

Target 1. This is the amount needed to bridge the gap from 60 to 67 before a state pension (hopefully) kicks in and is £70K.

Target 2. An amount that would allow a new(ish) car purchase of £10K, relocation costs (like solicitors, movers etc) £10K, and £30K for any home remodelling required (new kitchen or bathroom type thing), total for pot 2 is £50K (on top of pot 1).

Target 3. Is a luxury, would be nice, maybe total fantasy, additional pot of another £50K to be able to allow a home upgrade - like a barn conversion (I did say fantasy), without having to take on any new mortgage.

I'm not going to add those 3 together because it fast becomes unrealistic, but if I chunk it down and aim for one first, then we can see how it goes over the next few years...the timer has started this year, eight left to go...the spreadsheet is set up. Today, we are at 36.8% of the first target with 90% in savings accounts earning very little interest and 10% in Vangu@rd60 lifestyle plan. That sum also includes our emergency money though, so not sure it's wise to shift more into markets in case we need it.

It feels good to have something to aim for and get me out of bed and earning those pennies. In the meantime, we tick over at home and continue to support our chicky.

In other news, the puppy keeps us busy and on our toes. She has doubled in size in just a few months. Still growing fast, huge ball of fluff that she is too. Not been in the greenhouse for a couple of weeks - hopefully my over wintering plants are doing ok out there...

Of the other goals on my mind over the Christmas holidays, weight is the one going least well. January has been a nightmare with weight piling on at a scary rate. I need to seriously get a grip I think it's the stress of work and the massive mountain range sprawled out in front of us all, it has me chomping chocolate and toast like there is a nuclear war in half an hour, so eat what you like.

That's the news from here abouts

Time to catch up on everyone's diaries...

Stay safe and well, ElmoR x

pjcox2005

Congratulations, if you're now looking at pension then the pension board is quite decent for early retirement although you have to accept that some have very large pension figures 
Key tends to be working out how much you need to live on in retirement but you should have a good idea based on the budgeting you've been doing to clear the mortgage.
Next will be holding savings in the right place, either pension or Isas if you need access to the money, and probably considering a stocks and shares isa so your money should grow as you save. All the best.

Cheery_Daff

Ooh, love your targets ElmoR! Really nice to put specific numbers on each of the different scenarios and work towards them with percentages, love it.

Bit groundhoggy here too, although fortunately I have less of the dy to day stuff this side of Christmas so that makes things a little easier- the wheels were definitely starting to come off in December

Good luck with your exciting targets! Love the garden and greenhouse ones too, great idea to focus on other things to make work seem less prominent

ElmoR

Thanks for stopping by @Pjcox2005 and @Cheery_Daff. The pensions forum board seems a bit more hit and miss, with less community feel than here? Or maybe I haven't tried reading enough there yet?

The FIRE spreadsheet is up and running and it now has some detailed spin out sheets to able parts to be seen in more detail. I find that chunking various smaller goals down a bit gives me more motivation. You can see it happening. Done a bit of shuffling on where monthly savings go now, and changed pension contributions to take better advantage of tax relief. It feels right to do that now, feeling more secure financially with the mortgage millstone gone. Nothing else financial to report this month, it's more of a 'let the dust settle' time.

So, sorting out the hobbies stuff...made it into the greenhouse and most plants survived the super cold weather and frosts as far as I can tell. Still on the go, we have coriander, parsley, garlic, spring onions (these are growing on slow motion), and some iris reticulata and pansies. The tiny irises in a pot are now in the garden looking lovely. Think I'll wait a bit longer before putting the pansies out. According to an online gardener website, the last frost hereabouts is around 3rd week of Feb/2nd week of March latest. So this weekend I have chitted some potatoes. They can go outside to the greenhouse, in sacks, from mid March and outdoors a few weeks after. I think I'll have enough space   Got some onion sets too and pondering when to put them into initial growing trays in the greenhouse - maybe mid march? And some tomato seeds...

Finding time to get to the greenhouse is tricky because the puppy still needs watching constantly. We don't like to leave her in the pen for long, it seems mean, so she ranges round downstairs and that requires an eye out on what she might be chewing/eating/destroying. Poor thing injured herself too, a deep wound that needed antibiotics etc. That's been a big faff and expense. Cooping her up indoors while she mended was a problem too.  Hopefully sorted now though.

Weight still mushrooming Taking the pup out doesn't help burn calories because it is so stop/start at this stage. It can be stressful too because she still lunges at other dogs/people. Yes, we have been going to training classes etc. Got to look forwards to that getting better as she gets older?!

Ah well. Things are ticking along...

Have a good week all,

ElmoR x

powerspowers

New targets sound good. I think it’s important to have something to work towards otherwise why get out of bed? And even if your plans change it gives you more options. 

Love the early spring flowers! I can’t wait to get gardening 🧑‍🌾 

ElmoR

Hello all

About to take a deep dive and try to catch up with everyone's diaries! I do dip in every so often and cheer you on privately! What time I do get for forum reading, I've been trying the Savings/Investments and Pensions/retirement forums, but there isn't the community feel 'over there' and some of the sums discussed are a different planet. I wish there were a place where MFW could move on to that is more community/chat based.

Anyways, the three goals. It's still tricky to mail everything down and work out what is going on, even with new spreadsheets. I've also found that checking the value of Stocks and shares ISA/ pension pot, is not as pleasant as watching the mortgage whittle way. Too much volatility and the risk that it all might go *poooof* in a crash (though yes I do realise it usually recovers). So, even with saying all that, we are at 51% of goal 1 achieved. Not bad for only being on it for 4 months (!) post mortgage, though it does include the savings that were for the dream holiday last year that didn't happen.

It's weird how very few 'normal' people ever talk about finances. Luckily my step father in law is very knowledgeable about investments etc. Have been picking his brains. The money that used to siphon off to the mortgage OPs is now automatically siphoning into either a S&S ISA or an additional SIPP that I decided to set up. My work pension is one of the largest in the country but has been chronically mismanaged for nearly two decades. It did seem like a good idea initially to make OPs into that pension, but the OPs go towards DC only, not benefits. When you look at how their DC investments have done the past two decades, you have to wonder how they could do so poorly with the scheme. So I make the minimum payments to get the employer match, plus some AVCs for additional years set up 20 years ago, and the rest is now heading to my own 'portfolio'.

Deciding what my portfolio should look like was tricky. Step father in law helped though I sort of already was convinced by passive investing methods. My only foray into investments in the past was an investment trust with £50 dripping in every month from my daughters birth date. Despite all the market ups and downs, the money has more than doubled compared to what was paid in. So that was a positive experience and a lesson in "pay it in, forget about it for 10 years minimum".  Which I suppose is why watching them every week or month is a bad idea.

In other news...the greenhouse now has garlic, onions, and shallots on the go. I think it's too soon to start the potato sacks out there just yet. The sweet peas are doing well and I may plant them out next month.

The puppy is adorable. Still hard work training her but fewer mad zoomies. She is massive too now. Very floofy. Daughter back at sixth form and seems happy with her subjects. No burst covid bubble, at her classes or our works, yet and now it's the Easter break. Let's not ruin the happy vibe by mentioning work

Hope you are all well, stay chipper too, it's chocolate egg time soon...

ElmoR xx

Kat78MFW

Hi Elmo - good to read your updates.  I'm glad your daughter is happy with her sixth form subjects - what has she taken?  My daughter and I have been looking at the virtual open days for our local VI forms as she will have to apply soon.  I really hope it will be safe to go and look round in person in the autumn before she applies. We've also been looking at universities to help her decide which A-levels to take.  I was doing some more sums last night to see if we are on track with savings to support her at uni.  A spanner in the works might be that she is thinking about doing a undergraduate degree with integrated masters so we could be looking at four years instead of three.  She is also thinking about a placement year option - maybe if she can get a paid placement she will be able to save some funds towards the final two years herself.  This would help as we have our youngest, who is three years younger, to support through uni as well, if she wants to go. 
Your targets and plans to help you retire early look amazing.  I'm so impressed with your progress towards target 1 already. 
Have you already broken up for Easter?  We still have four days to go here - just keeping everything crossed for no close-contact cases for the girls or DH at school so we can have a lovely relax over Easter.  

ElmoR

Thanks @Kat78MFW Get your DD to virtual open days asap and capitalise on her wanting to do a degree/knowing what she wants to do. Our DD has thrown us a serious curve ball by announcing she wants to be a pilot and not bother with University. DH and I are still wide eyed and jaws on the floor. We are hoping it is just a phase

The schools here broke up a week earlier than some it seems. Still doing the covid test face pokes through the holidays though. We were discussing that this age group has had their 'growing up' stage suppressed. Normally they would be out having driving lessons, meeting friends in the evenings, trying to drink illegally at parties etc. None of that happening. We noticed that the new first years at Uni had some maturity issues this year too - childish (sadly in a few isolated cases some more serious misogynist nonsense too) things happening in Teams chat and in interactive sessions etc. Not what you'd expect at their age /stage in life. I seriously hope that the next academic year involves more face to face at school and uni.

Finances. Quite a few things to say here this month. I would like to come out as a "ditherer". I've been unmasked.

The FIREside chat thread has come at *exactly* the right time for me, so many many thanks to edinburgher for his brainwave. I'd had some chats with another kind forumite who is close to her retirement and that made me realise that I have been missing many pieces of important information and that my plan for the next 10 years has so many holes in it, you can spit peas through it. While we know what we'd like to achieve financially, I now realise that the accounting of what we need to get there and the mechanics of how we do that are shittyshittybangbang (I made that word up but it seems appropriate) - Cheery has started a new language for lockdown, so I thought I would join in. Anyway, I'm sort of happy because I have a new mission in sorting the proper plan out.

I'm avidly reading people's FIREside chats, following their reading tips and pondering. With a side of dithering.

March was a great month for money, two savers matured and I've ripped that cash out of the pitiful interest rate accounts and moved them between mine and DHs S&S ISAs. I also now set up two new SIPPs, one at H&L (a fancy pants one by all accounts) and another at Vanguard (with the Retirement target 2030). Am going to scratch my head and try to work out how much regular contributions to make and what split between the ISA and SIPP(s). Then there is the revelation that I set up a regular SIPP/ISA set of payments this month, while not realising that the work pension additional, additional over payments took 2 months to stop, and I'm not staring at a bank account that's empty or overdrawn. Somehow we managed both going out this month. Maybe it's sustainable?

In other news, greenhouse plunged back into frost temperatures this week. Have brought recently sown tomato seeds indoors to germinate. I used the coir plugs and plopped a seed into each one of 45 plugs, surely a few will grow and survive? The puppy has had a terrible impact on the lawns. I've tried re-seeding patches, but the seed isn't growing - maybe the cold nighttime temperatures are inhibiting the growth still? Or maybe it's because I'm using cheap wilk0s seed?? Pup continues to be a big floofy pooch, sometimes well behaved and others not. She is angelic at training sessions and a monster out on our own when the mood suits her. The cats seem much more relaxed around her now.

That's all the news here

Hope everyone is well, stay safe

ElmoR xx