2020++ - smiling and waving and looking so fine

doingitanyway

Good goals achieved and to be achieved. A nice mix. Your weight loss has been outstanding. 
All power to your elbow for 2021

savingholmes

Hi Mark - are you worried your car won't pass? You normally get a better price second hand with a full mot place. I wouldn't dream of buying one with so little left...

mark55man

I am completely and utterly certain it won't pass.  This is the reason I am selling it.  It just makes it more difficult for the purchaser if there is no current MOT. 

I am looking for (as I have done before) someone with skill and time to fix it and make themselves a few bucks.  I paid £700 for it in 2019 - I am expecting to get about £400-500 back. 

My target market is the jungle that is ebay used car sales

mark55man

My niece did a great thing using an app called a second a day - you great a 365 second long video from clips of each day.  So I'm not quite there yet, as 364 pictures of me at my laptop doesn't fill me with creative delight, but I am going to try and say something everyday on here.  That'll do nicely!.

This morning I spent an hour unblocking my paper shredder which one of my DC had left a little blocked and over the month since last use the shreddings and absorbed moisture and needed to be chiselled out.  Very satisfying to get it working, and I'm half way through my pile of stuff to do.

Also had a think about using CC3 to do a balance transfer to cover DS1 van loan that I am supporting him with during his time at Uni.  However, the cost of the BT would be £270 and the interest cost would be £470.  So for £200 over 3 years, I think I will bear the cost rather than fiddle about.  Plus he will be picking up the payments once he has finished Uni - so it might be that he ends up bearing that cost and it will just be easier if its all in his name.    

savingholmes

Good luck with your car plans and whatever you decide re the van. I let DS pick up a loan with a 20% interest cost - but on the basis that he wasn't learning his lesson and hadn't changed his habits.... Hard to watch though

mark55man

Thanks as ever SH - my aversion to interest being paid by family has become almost obsessive - to the point where I would bend quite a lot out of shape usually to do so.  Its just in the case of the Van (now sold, but the debt remains), it felt that such a backwards step.  If I was eligible for a 0% fee 0% Card I might reconsider, but won't be looking until CC2/CC3 are gone

Which brings me to a thing I have (not really) talked about - EFs and my magic money pots (a variety of odd benefits at work, and ad hoc lump sums (think gig economy) from my OH) and which are usually there to save the day. Along with a healthy amount of credit,  I have used these pots as my EF (often just kicking the can down the road).  So as an extra target for this year, I am going to try and build up a dedicated EF in an account which has no other purpose.  I think a target of £2K (£2021?) for 2021 will be a start, and I can accelerate this later.  Will start with my council tax savings.

I think I will use my OH solo account as the repository, as its not used much (we are mainly joint!), I don't have ready access, and a lot of the "gig" money goes in there anyway so it feels right + would be useful in the emergency of me not being around (temporarily or permanent, but more the latter) 

savingholmes

I think a dedicated EF is a good way to go. Mine is mixed in with my savings pots - but it's working okay at the moment. Once we're debt free I want dedicated EF and different savings pots. 

mark55man

Spent this morning shaking down my utilities
* Gas/Elec - spent an hour trying to get BG to reduce the DD that they doubled in Jan even though I had a credit balance.  No luck so I will see how winter goes, and then move in May if I need to.  Not counting a saving but not counting a cost as it is what I signed up for
* Which - I thought I cancelled this in November - but now its definite - £10pcm saved - 120 at year end
* SKY BB and TV - just got out of contract so some things were going up but removed movies (we now have Netflix at 1/4 of the price), and will almost certainly change BB to Virgin - Movies saving £15pcm 180 at year end.  The BB may well save another £10pcm + £75 amazon voucher = £195 at year ed
* OH Car insurance - no bargain to be had, so just rolled on
* pure gym - froze membership again as I'm not going anywhere near at the moment - so that will be 3*29.99 = £90 if we are not covid clear by end of Feb I will just cancel and restart when it is clear

So for a mornings work could be up £585 at end of year.  With a few more to go !!

savingholmes

Great wallet work out!!

doingitanyway

It just shows what can be saved with a few hours work...