First OP made. We're on our way!

killerpeaty

Ellie78 wrote: »

Yes after I put that post up I searched for "staircasing" and read as many threads as I could find on SO. A few people saying it's worked well for them but a lot of people either unhappy or advising against the whole thing. I made a couple of calls to our HA today to try and find out buying the other 50% and what would happen with the freehold but I need to call back tomorrow to speak to the right person. I think that's probably the right call for us at this point. Buy the rest now while it's affordable and hopefully get an easier sale in a couple of years. We'll see.

Did your phone calls to your HA bring joy? (Sorry I'm nosey)

As for your question regarding whether your 100% staircased property would need a SO mortgage, I had a little google and it looks like you should be able to get more mortgage coverage. https://hoa.org.uk/advice/guides-for-homeowners/i-am-buying/staircasing-your-shared-ownership/# (number 3)

A Frayed Knot. I love your username.

Ellie78

Hi Frayed Knot, thanks for reading and the useful info! We're definitely going to push ahead with staircasing asap and get onto a new low rate.
To answer your question as well Killerpeaty I haven't managed to speak to the right person at the HA yet but I at least have the right contact name now so will try again this week when work is less hectic. I'm up to my eyeballs in deadlines at the moment so everything else is on pause for a few days! Thanks for the link, I'll have a read

Ellie78

Couple of little unexpected money finds this week.

Used the lost accounts website (link found on MSE) and found an old savings account that had £2 in it back in 1996. Now up to a whopping £46 :rotfl:
I also sold some sterling silver jewellery I haven't worn for years that got me another £30.

Did have a bit of a splurge in the Swedish store this week though because we're decorating the living room and needed curtains, blinds and rugs. Oops.

Ellie78

Had a bit of profit from job No2 today so after putting some aside for HMRC I paid another £400 into the mortgage account to bring our total down to an even £36,000.

Also received a letter from the vet saying they owe us almost £200 after our pup's operation earlier in the year which is nice! Managed to claim back more on our insurance I guess. When that comes through I'll use all of it as an extra OP as it was already spent money as far as I'm concerned.

The lost accounts website might have found another little bit of forgotten cash too, I need to wait for the letter to arrive to see the value. I think the account only had a couple of £ in it in the early 2000's so I'm not expecting much! Every little bit makes a difference though right!

cat04

I've just come across your diary. Wow! Those over payments are amazing!! My DD is rounded up to the nearest £100, and I've been OPing whatever the interest added on is that month. I know it's nowhere near the level of your OPs but you've motivated me to make an additional payment of £50 off the mortgage
Fingers crossed you get a reasonable amount from the lost account!

longway2go

Wow!!!!!

You are doing absolutely amazing!!! Ai am definitely going to follow your diary and may pop a call to my lender to round up my monthly payment. I have only just started 2 after a remortgage in July. I aim to OP by the min of the interest added each month.

Ellie78

cat04 wrote: »

I've just come across your diary. Wow! Those over payments are amazing!! My DD is rounded up to the nearest £100, and I've been OPing whatever the interest added on is that month. I know it's nowhere near the level of your OPs but you've motivated me to make an additional payment of £50 off the mortgage
Fingers crossed you get a reasonable amount from the lost account!

Thanks Cat! The only reason I was able to pay so much at the beginning is because I had savings put aside for moving, which we've postponed for the time being. It helps having a second job that I can (for the time being) pay all of that income into the mortgage/savings etc. Even small payments make more of a difference than you'd think so keep going!

longway2go wrote: »

Wow!!!!!

You are doing absolutely amazing!!! Ai am definitely going to follow your diary and may pop a call to my lender to round up my monthly payment. I have only just started 2 after a remortgage in July. I aim to OP by the min of the interest added each month.

Hi longway2go, thanks for following! It's so addictive once you start noticing the difference you're making. I've picked up so many great tips from the diaries here, I'm sure you will too.

diggingdude

Some very impressive overpayments there. Well done. It's a great thing seeing the LTV improve I find

Ellie78

diggingdude wrote: »

Some very impressive overpayments there. Well done. It's a great thing seeing the LTV improve I find

Thank you! I'm a big fan of spreadsheets so it's great watching all the figures dropping!

Ellie78

OH transferred £2,500 from his savings into the mortgage account this afternoon which takes our balance down to £33,500.

According to my spreadsheet we've saved £20,000 in interest and knocked 11 years off our term so far!

Start of MFW
Remaining balance - £49,127
Remaining term - 25 years 5 months
Daily interest - £5.70

Current
Remaining balance - £33,500
Remaining term - 14 years 3 months
Daily interest - £3.90 (if I've worked it out correctly!)