Powers’s mortgage free thread

powerspowers

Hi YBS app has finally updated:
part 1 £39,524 3.05% fixed to 31.07.27
part 2 £43,726 1.72% fixed to 31.05.26

we opted to pay more off part 2 as the fix ends soonest and working on the assumption that interest rates will still be higher rather than lower. 

Part 2 has a 10% OP limit which resets 22/4. part 1 is 50% so no worries about breaching that! My plan is to shuffle OPs into another account until the OP limit resets as don’t want to have to phone up again. 

powerspowers

Thanks Beanie & South Coast! Happy New Year everyone! T is poorly so we had a quiet one in at home and now avoiding the weather. 

Revisiting my goals for 2024

Save £3600 to overpay mortgage in December 🏡 done 🍏

Save £1000 for summer holiday with the boys🚂 done 🍏 

Increase long term savings pots by £600 each 🇮🇸 🚗 new vehicle pot has been spent slightly earlier than planned and currently have £2k tucked away for 2026 special holidays 

improve my fitness by exercising 3x a week 🏃‍♀️ 🚲 I’m keeping active although not always 3x a week, I’m more of a big day out at the weekend binge exerciser  😂 🍏

Adventure wishlist
⛰🏕 hike and wild camp lasting 2 nights
🚴🏕 cycle camp with boys
🚴 cycle Northumberland coastal route ✅
🏔 adventure with mum ✅
🏃‍♀️ run edale skyline
Lots of adventures in 2024, really pleased even if it wasn’t the ones originally planned!


House jobs
🚽 finish en suite 🍊
🏠 finish conservatory ceiling 🍊
🏡 clear up front of house🍊
👷‍♀️sand kitchen worktops⛔️
🔨 Lay patio⛔️
some progress here. I might do some of the conservatory over the next few days if T continues to be ill, I did some filling a few days ago but it’s slow going as my shoulder hurts to reach overhead. I’m classing it as combined physio/decorating  

Money jobs
💷 change to a more ethical bank 
💷 increase charitable donations to £150pm 
Charity donations are at £110pm - I’m going to have a look at these today. 

Overall a really good year, 2025 goals incoming… 

powerspowers

Money jobs
💷 change to a more ethical bank 
💷 increase charitable donations to £150pm 
Charity donations are at £110pm - I’m going to have a look at these today. 

Bank switch requested ✅ I’ve never done this before, been with the same bank since I was 16. They are demonstrably evil and weren’t helpful when I was in debt so I’ll be pleased to switch, get a nice bonus as well. So far so easy, we’ll see how it goes 🤞 

I’ve also set up a DD to a local organisation so charity donations are at £135pm. I’m not quite sure whether I want to support another new cause or review what I already donate. I do know that giving regularly is important to me so will revisit this one. 

powerspowers

I love the start of a new year and thinking about what I want to achieve and what it may bring. I’ve applied for PhD funding so there should be news of that by the summer and an expected start date of October. I’ve also started wheels in motion around having time off to go on a longer cycling adventure with my mum, so a lot of goals fit with that, both financially and fitness! Here we go…

Goals for 2025

Save £5000 to overpay mortgage in December 🏡 I’ve set up a fixed term saver paying in £250pm so the rest will be smaller payments throughout the year and we usually pay a larger amount each in December. 

Save £3000 for summer adventure 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 🚴 currently £1025 in the pot

Increase big birthday holiday fund by £1000 🎉  ✈️ 🚂 

Up my cycling mileage and support my recovery from shoulder injury 🏃‍♀️ 🚲 I’ve signed up to a 200km a month cycling challenge and will get back in the gym to strengthen my shoulder 

Put the work in to support a more adventurous future:
🥾complete my GG walking qualification 
🚴 improve my bike maintenance skills
🍏lose weight. I am the fittest I’ve ever been but also the fattest. I was hoping that the exercise and going veggie would take care of this but clearly not. First step is to weigh myself (I don’t own scales) and set a realistic target. 

Continue to chip away at the house jobs, focusing on small wins and paying for help when needed 
🚽 finish en suite 
🏠 finish conservatory ceiling 
👷‍♀️sand kitchen worktops
🔨 New shed

Make sure my money matches my morals
💷 change all accounts to a more ethical bank 

Do one thing a week to feel more connected to people in my life 💛 I’m in a bad habit of being too busy for people but actually spending too much time on a screen. Going to make a concerted effort to keep in touch with people, even if it is just via said screen! 

powerspowers

Win this weekend- we’ve painted the conservatory ceiling! It needs another coat but I’m determined to move it to my done list! 

Bit of snow here, I’m going to light the fire and get cosy. 

powerspowers

Todays win is setting up the nhs weight loss app and getting on the scales. Calorie counting is a right faff but I think I need to reset how much food I think I need to eat. App suggests a goal of 4kg to lose, which takes me down to the weight I was in 2022 when I was thinking of losing weight 😖. Onwards and upwards/downwards 😝 

powerspowers

Had a fabulous day walking on Saturday but it then wiped me out for yesterday- too much sun/dehydration = migraine. Still fuzzy now but working from home. 

Tandem account has matured so £188 in interest appeared in my account. I’ve paid £50 towards the mortgage as 25% was joint money and the rest to my adventure fund. Happy Monday! 

powerspowers

Mixed news this week- I found out I wasn’t successful on the phd funding and didn’t get through the first stage. I’m going to get some advice on how much I need to change to reapply and look at either a spring or winter reapplication. I’m feeling a bit deflated about it but lots of people have been really supportive so that’s a positive. 

In better news, I’ve earned the first £75 of my switch bonus and now have 3 months of £25 to chase, as long as I remember to use the correct card I’ll manage it. 

I’ve also made really good progress with my walking qual, I’m feeling almost ready for my navigation assessment in 2 weeks time. Going to have one more practice walk this weekend, hopefully this lovely weather sticks around.
 

Diet has been ok, I’m hovering around my 12 week goal already, there’s a bit more I want to shift. This weekend has been poor so back on it today. 

Money wise, things are ticking along although will need a bit of a push to meet some of my goals. Mortgage is at £81,930 with £800 in the pot for when I can OP again. Practically in the 70s and my lender thinks we have 40% LTV, I suspect house value is a bit more but I’ll take that as a win. 

onwards & upwards wannabes xx

powerspowers

Productive week!
T has made progress on the en suite and we’ve had a quote for the plasterer. 

We’ve dismantled the shed. I was gobsmacked that someone paid £100 for it as it was rotten and the roof was going, they also helped dismantle it and we’d have to pay to tip it so win win win. Need to order new shed. Think we are going 2.5m x3m. There was talk of an insulated shed/office but we’d be looking at £6k at least and it’s a nice to dream rather than a need! 

We’ve also ripped up the dangerous decking, dug out and T has laid 3/4 of a patio. Filled a skip with rubble. 

And I’ve finished the conservatory ceiling and had a good clean round. Just waiting for the floor to dry then we can put furniture back. 

All in all, a productive few days! Back to work Monday for a rest. Also need to find the rest of the house as it’s somewhat a tip, not helped by half the contents of the shed that is currently in the house. 

I also passed my navigation course so just need to do some paperwork & one more walk to get the qualification to take youngsters out in the hills. I’m already eyeing up the next stage in October. 

Trying to get back on the diet bandwagon as I’ve put weigh on this week rather than losing it. 

Enjoy the rest of your weekends wannabees xx

powerspowers

Quick money update, sold my ebike for £700. I’d have liked more but there are tons available second hand now that have been sat in peoples garages whereas mine had done considerable mileage! We also sold a bike rack to go with it but T paid for that one originally. 

That gets me to my savings goal for this summer’s adventure. Plans are ticking along nicely, 9.5 weeks to go!