Peering over the hill...

Grogged

Hello @Zola., @savingholmes and friends.
Sorry for being away for so long, I've had a bit of covid, which took the wind out of my sails.
I'm back to being near normal again and see I have a bit of catching up to do.
Hope everyone has been safe and well. 
Take care, G.

Zola.

Oh no! That's awful, I hope you are feeling better now!    Were you bed-bound?

The terrifying thing is I know of one person who had been double vaxxed, yet still caught covid some time later and was very sick.  Ok now though.. 

Grogged

I've been double vaxxed as well, still managed to catch it. ☹️
I spent a day under observation after collapsing, but after that scare, spent rest of it at home.
Well on the mend now, just get breathless at times.

savingholmes

Sounds like it got scary for you. Hugs. Glad you are on the mend...

Cornish_mum

Oh my goodness I am so sorry to hear that you have been unwell. I wish you the best for a speedy recovery CM

Grogged

Thanks both!

Grogged

The MrsG June SIPP Update

 

This is the story of the good SIPP MrsG which started her voyage in June 2020 with an investment of £1,440 and two transfers from previous pensions.

 

This is a catch as I was unable to post in July.

As we start it’s second year, hopefully it won’t be a case of the terrible twos…

A modest gain of £480 (of which £250 was contributed by MrsG and the tax man).

A modest rise of 1.5% excluding contributions. Like most months from now, it will be about balancing the portfolio.  In the short term this means prioritising investments into VMID and V3AM.

 

As MrsG earns no income, her maximum contribution per year is £2,880, which the kindly tax man will top up to £3,600 with tax relief.

 

The aim is to get a pot of £50,000 by retirement in 2035.

Mr Spreadsheet is comfortable that we’ll at least double that, giving a annual pension of either £2,000 from income, or £6,000 by cashing in some investments every year.

 

Current contributions are £250 per month (£200 + £50 tax relief). 

 

The portfolio is fully invested, with the aim of keeping a running cash balance of £6 to cover the quarterly charges.

 

The aim is for simple 6 fund portfolio that replicates much of what a LifeStyle or retirement fund would do, but at a cheaper cost overall.

 

Weight Symbol Investment

83%                     Equities

8%         VMID    FTSE 250 UCITS ETF

21%       VHYL     FTSE All-World High Dividend Yield UCITS ETF

23%       VWRL    FTSE All-World UCITS ETF

29%       VEVE     FTSE Developed World UCITS ETF

2%         V3AM   ESG Global All Cap UCITS ETF

17%                     Bonds

17%       VAGP    Global Aggregate Bond UCITS ETF Distributing

 

May                    £14,503

June                   £14,983

 

We made the decision to include some ESG (environmentally sound) investments and have started to invest in their newly launched Global ESG ETF fund.

 

The annual income is £121 (0.81%) - £10.15 per month.

The annual portfolio investment return is 10.9%.

 

Annual values are calculated as (current value / portfolio age in months) * 12.

 

The bond funds pay dividends monthly and the equity funds quarterly.

 

The current weighting is 83:17 equities/bonds, the plan is to move to 80:20 by retirement.

 

Being a small pension, we want to maximise its overall value, the strategy is investing more in what is profitable and less on what isn’t.  We’ll do this by allocating each month’s payment according to the overall contribution made by that share.  What we won’t be doing is selling anything, so it will be a gradual process.

 

This flexibility allows the right weightings to be maintained going forward.

The portfolio is balanced monthly from contributions, tax relief and dividend payments.

 

The portfolio is held with Vanguard, which whilst not the cheapest, is close for the level of investment and peace of mind.  It also helps that there are no transaction costs, so every penny can be invested.

 

Stay safe,

G.

Grogged

The MrsG July SIPP Update

 

This is the story of the good SIPP MrsG which started her voyage in July 2020 with an investment of £1,440 and two transfers from previous pensions.

 

This is a catch up as I was unable to post in July.

As we start it’s second year, hopefully it won’t be a case of the terrible twos…

A small gain of £430 (of which £330 was contributed by the quarterly dividends, MrsG and the tax man).

July was a mixed month, whilst finishing ahead, it was a bumpy ride.

Again this month, money was allocated to VMID and V3AM roughly 50:50.

 

As MrsG earns no income, her maximum contribution per year is £2,880, which the kindly tax man will top up to £3,600 with tax relief.

 

The aim is to get a pot of £50,000 by retirement in 2035.

Mr Spreadsheet is comfortable that we’ll at least double that, giving a annual pension of either £2,000 from income, or £6,000 by cashing in some investments every year.

 

Current contributions are £250 per month (£200 + £50 tax relief).

 

The portfolio is fully invested, with the aim of keeping a running cash balance of £6 to cover the quarterly charges.

 

The aim is for simple 6 fund portfolio that replicates much of what a LifeStyle or retirement fund would do, but at a cheaper cost overall.

 

Weight Symbol Investment

83%                     Equities

9%         VMID    FTSE 250 UCITS ETF

20%       VHYL     FTSE All-World High Dividend Yield UCITS ETF

23%       VWRL    FTSE All-World UCITS ETF

28%       VEVE     FTSE Developed World UCITS ETF

3%         V3AM   ESG Global All Cap UCITS ETF

17%                     Bonds

17%       VAGP    Global Aggregate Bond UCITS ETF Distributing

 

June                    £14,983

July                      £15,414

 

We made the decision to include some ESG (environmentally sound) investments and have started to invest in their newly launched Global ESG ETF fund.

 

The annual income is £193 (1.2%) - £16.12 per month.

The annual portfolio investment return is 11.3%.

Both of which have been helped by the quarterly dividend.

 

Annual values are calculated as (current value / portfolio age in months) * 12.

 

The bond funds pay dividends monthly and the equity funds quarterly.

 

The current weighting is 83:17 equities/bonds, the plan is to move to 80:20 by retirement.

 

Being a small pension, we want to maximise its overall value, the strategy is investing more in what is profitable and less on what isn’t.  We’ll do this by allocating each month’s payment according to the overall contribution made by that share.  What we won’t be doing is selling anything, so it will be a gradual process.

 

This flexibility allows the right weightings to be maintained going forward.

The portfolio is balanced monthly from contributions, tax relief and dividend payments.

 

The portfolio is held with Vanguard, which whilst not the cheapest, is close for the level of investment and peace of mind.  It also helps that there are no transaction costs, so every penny can be invested.

 

Stay safe,

G.

Grogged

The June Update

This is a short catch-up as I was unable to post in July….

Usual money stuff first; gossip, tea and biscuits follow...

 

Mortgage

End 2020            £87,985

Jun 2021             £83,998

Change               £3,987

%Change            4.5%

Overpaid            £3,324

Jun 21 OP           £55

 

The goal for 2021 is to pay off £10,000, with a view to paying it off in full in 9 (stretch of 8) years.  We’re scheduled to pay £8K off through normal payments.  I will look to make between 2 and 4 extra payments throughout the year.  Our NW mortgage is structured so that if you OP by at least £500 you get to either instantly reduce eth term or monthly payment.

Currently at £361 of the £2,000 target for 2021 and snook into the £84s!

 

EF/Cash

End 2020            £24,550

Jun 2021             £28,150

Change               £3,600

%Change            14.7%

Target                 £27,300

In Jun 21             £297

 

The plan for 2021 is to add a month to the EF and continue this every year going forward.  This will enable early retirement if needed (although not by much!).

Each month I aim to open a new 12 month high interest (lol) account to try and maximise the EF savings.  This will ultimately provide a years buffer, the excess will be held in PB, etc.

Due to the low rates on offer, when the Marcus matured, we moved £5,000 into PB, rather than opening a new monthly account.  With average luck, we should “win” 4 times a year, which would match or beat the current high interest savings rates on offer.  That £100 (4x £25) works out at 0.64%.

Pensions

End 2020            £221,400

Jun 2021             £251,300

Change               £29,900

%Change            13.5%

Target                 £350,000

In Jun 2021         £297

 

Pension (as dividends if taken today)

Annually             £4,784

Target                 £8,761

Monthly             £396

The state pension would be added on top of that (another £9K at today’s rate).

This could be boosted by drawing down on the capital, etc.

 

The big ii pension portfolio is managed on the same philosophy as MrsG, except it has more funds in it.  These all do the same job as the Vanguard funds but pay better dividends and are all long term holds.  Still continuing to rebalance, which have been timed around dividend dates.  Where transaction costs have been incurred, they have been covered by the incoming dividend payment.  As it stands today, it should pay £9,800 in annual dividends, which combined with the state pension is our minimum pension requirement.

There are 3 more investments that are now significantly overweight, rebalancing these (one per month) should see the dividends increase by a further £200 per year.  All dividends are reinvested using the monthly free regular investing feature.

 

We are mortgage neutral with our savings, so if needs be, at least the mortgage is covered.

 

Grogged Towers News

The new job in June was mostly handover, so I can’t say it was the most exciting start to a role.

Everyone in the new team seems nice and there is stack of stuff piling up to be done…

Stay safe,

G.

Grogged

The July Update

This is a late entry as I was unable to post in July….

Usual money stuff first; gossip, tea and biscuits follow...

 

Mortgage

End 2020            £87,985

Jul 2021              £83,334

Change               £4,651

%Change            5.3%

Overpaid            £3,384

Jul 21 OP            £60

 

The goal for 2021 is to pay off £10,000, with a view to paying it off in full in 9 (stretch of 8) years.  We’re scheduled to pay £8K off through normal payments.  I will look to make between 2 and 4 extra payments throughout the year.  Our NW mortgage is structured so that if you OP by at least £500 you get to either instantly reduce eth term or monthly payment.

Currently at £421 of the £2,000 target for 2021 and snook into the £84s!

 

EF/Cash

End 2020            £24,550

Jul 2021              £29,000

Change               £4.450

%Change            18.1%

Target                 £27,300

In Jul 21              £863

 

The plan for 2021 is to add a month to the EF and continue this every year going forward.  This will enable early retirement if needed (although not by much!).

Each month I aim to open a new 12 month high interest (lol) account to try and maximise the EF savings.  This will ultimately provide a years buffer, the excess will be held in PB, etc.

Due to the low rates on offer, when the Marcus matured, we moved £5,000 into PB, rather than opening a new monthly account.  With average luck, we should “win” 4 times a year, which would match or beat the current high interest savings rates on offer.  That £100 (4x £25) works out at 0.64%.

Pensions

End 2020            £221,400

Jul 2021              £254,000

Change               £32,600

%Change            14.7%

Target                 £350,000

In Jul 2021          £2,639

 

Pension (as dividends if taken today)

Annually             £5,364

Target                 £8,761

Monthly             £447

The state pension would be added on top of that (another £9K at today’s rate).

This could be boosted by drawing down on the capital, etc.

 

The big ii pension portfolio is managed on the same philosophy as MrsG, except it has more funds in it.  These all do the same job as the Vanguard funds but pay better dividends and are all long term holds.  Still continuing to rebalance, which have been timed around dividend dates.  Where transaction costs have been incurred, they have been covered by the incoming dividend payment.  As it stands today, it should pay £9,800 in annual dividends, which combined with the state pension is our minimum pension requirement.

There are 3 more investments that are now significantly overweight, rebalancing these (one per month) should see the dividends increase by a further £200 per year.  All dividends are reinvested using the monthly free regular investing feature.

 

We are mortgage neutral with our savings, so if needs be, at least the mortgage is covered.

 

Grogged Towers News

I suppose the firs thing to address is that I had a short bout of Covid that’s taken a while to recover from.  I’m now firing on at least 3 cylinders and feeling better every day.

Apart from the doom and gloom I did get a nice father’s day gift – a three month cheese subscription from the cheese geeks.  And very nice it’s been to. 😊 🧀🍷

July seems to have good from a savings and investment point, but I don’t know why, but I’m not complaining.

I’ve just about restarted the new job again, lots to do and most of it is new.  It’s nice to have a challenge, but it’s off being the new boy again.

We’ve also been playing the new game of shouting at the Olympic coverage. We’ve mainly been watching the highlights show.  Which either shows too much or too little of the events.  It’s also fun (and hopeless) playing dodge the results, so we pretty much know who’s won what by the time we get to the highlights.

I’m also starting to catch up on the diaries I’ve missed, apologies if I haven’t read yours yet – but lots seems to have been happening!

Stay safe,

G.