We’d like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum.
This is to keep it a safe and useful space for MoneySaving discussions. Threads that are – or become – political in nature may be removed in line with the Forum’s rules. Thank you for your understanding.
📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!
Giving every £ a job
Comments
-
I love shopping from home. Enjoy the holiday vibe!LTotal Debt Dec 07 £59875.83 Overdrafts £2900,New Debt Figure ZERO !!!!!!:j 08/06/2013
Lucielle's Daring Debt Free Journey
DFD Before we Die!!!! Long Haul Supporter #1242 -
I still can't get over the difference in mindset that having holiday spending saved for in advance gives - no more coming home to a faint sense of dread knowing I'll have to add up the CC bill and work out where to pay things from...! These days I just tend to keep track of things while we are actually away too.
I love a UK holiday with ferry travel involved as you probably know - rolling on to the boat always feels like the real start of the holiday!🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her3 -
Totally agree, @EH. Back in the Spendy Decades, I'd get to halfway through my holiday & every visit to the cashpoint or offering up of my debit card for payment would be accompanied with a sense of dread as to just how long it would be before the appearance of that well known message "You have insufficient funds", meaning of course, that I'd spent not only all of my own money, but all of my overdraft as well.
F2025's challenges: 1) To fill our 10 Savings Pots to their healthiest level ever
2) To read 100 books (46/100) 3) The Shrinking of Foxgloves 8.1kg/30kg
"Life can only be understood backwards but it must be lived forwards" (Soren Kirkegaard 1813-55)3 -
Ouch to cat care costs... that one could be a problem for me in future too...
Glad you had a nice holiday though.Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £171.8K Equity 36.37%
2) £2.6K Net savings after CCs 10/10/25
3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £27.9K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.25K) = 34/£127.5K target 26.6% 10/10/25
(If took bigger lump sum = 60.35K or 47.6%)
4) FI Age 60 income target £17.1/30K 57% (if mortgage and debts repaid - need more otherwise) (If bigger lump sum £15.8/30K 52.67%)
5) SIPP £5K updated 10/10/251 -
@EssexHebridean - although I didn't quite get my holiday budget right I'm glad that there was at least a budget that covered a big chunk of the costs. Our car ferry took us across the Solent to the Isle of Wight which is such a lovely place.
@foxgloves - the "insufficient funds" message was very familiar to me too and you're right it really meant insufficient of my own money and also at the limit of the bank's money too.
@savingholmes - HRH The Cat was well looked after and in his opinion worth every penny of the overspend.
I made progress on the asset transfer today. Papers signed and witnessed and the first associated bill has been paid. HMRC are due to update me in 5 working days on progress on papers I sent on 4th May. I'm on track to finalise everything by 31st May (fingers crossed).
in sensible money saving news, the pre-holiday panic buy of some stylish but comfortable walking shoes has been dealt with. The shoes have been returned as they were just about stylish but definitely not comfortable. I could barely hobble round the room in them let alone contemplate going for a walk in them.
4 -
I think comfortable walking boots are a holy grail item...Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £171.8K Equity 36.37%
2) £2.6K Net savings after CCs 10/10/25
3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £27.9K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.25K) = 34/£127.5K target 26.6% 10/10/25
(If took bigger lump sum = 60.35K or 47.6%)
4) FI Age 60 income target £17.1/30K 57% (if mortgage and debts repaid - need more otherwise) (If bigger lump sum £15.8/30K 52.67%)
5) SIPP £5K updated 10/10/252 -
A nice day today - a walk on a beautiful common with picnic lunch overlooking a pond. We took 3 bags to the charity shop and remarkably 2 of those bags had been filled by DH. We bought a couple of DVDs for £2 for Friday film night. Fakeaway was hoisin pork and noodles and spring rolls followed by lemon sorbet.It was a spendy day as we did a Lidl shop, bought some books and games for the grandchildren at the charity shop, bought a birthday gift and my Avon order arrived. Eek there's been a lot of money spent today. Spendy day tomorrow too as we are out with friends for dinner. Will aim for no spends from Sunday to Wednesday and that will mean a small underspend for the month. Purse needs to stay shut after tomorrow night.5
-
Well done on the Fakeaway and the walk and the decluttering. Lots of positives in that short paragraph. As to money saving - you're pretty good at that...Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £171.8K Equity 36.37%
2) £2.6K Net savings after CCs 10/10/25
3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £27.9K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.25K) = 34/£127.5K target 26.6% 10/10/25
(If took bigger lump sum = 60.35K or 47.6%)
4) FI Age 60 income target £17.1/30K 57% (if mortgage and debts repaid - need more otherwise) (If bigger lump sum £15.8/30K 52.67%)
5) SIPP £5K updated 10/10/252 -
Sounds like all the spending was well planned and considered and that you've got value from it - and that is the main thing isn't it!
Your fakeaway sounds delicious!🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her2 -
thank you @savingholmes and @EssexHebridean
a lovely surprise on Saturday when our friends paid for our meal. They'd spent a weekend with us a few months ago and wanted to say thank you.We got our spending reward from chase today which was nice, although I need to adjust my thinking to acknowledge that the higher the cash back = the higher the spending.
Budgets re-set to zero although I was slightly thrown by a 31st May petrol spend rather than a 1st June petrol spend. However, all adjusted and sorted now.4
Confirm your email address to Create Threads and Reply
Categories
- All Categories
- 352.1K Banking & Borrowing
- 253.6K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 454.2K Spending & Discounts
- 245.2K Work, Benefits & Business
- 600.8K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 177.5K Life & Family
- 259K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 16K Discuss & Feedback
- 37.7K Read-Only Boards