My 5 Year Plan to a better life!

RosaBernicia

MuffinTops said:

Today I've logged onto YNAB and seen that they've doubled their prices from 01 December 2021, so I'm going to cancel.  I just can't justify that amount of money to help me keep an eye on my spending, especially when spreadsheets are free.  I pay yearly and this is due in February, so I'm going to set up a spreadsheet now and transfer everything over.  I never use the actual app so it won't matter that I can't update my spreadsheet on the go.  I'm so erratic with it too, so haven't really felt the benefit of it.

Owch!  I hope they're not going to try that on me - I do use it, but I'm also on a cheaper rate because I moved over from YNAB4.  They are just testing direct bank import which I think is a godsend, and saves the £4/ month I was about to pay out for SyncForYnab, so perhaps that is a factor - but double the later price is a LOT. 

Glad the house is coming together, enjoy your roast dinner! 

MuffinTops

RosaBernicia said:

Owch!  I hope they're not going to try that on me - I do use it, but I'm also on a cheaper rate because I moved over from YNAB4.  They are just testing direct bank import which I think is a godsend, and saves the £4/ month I was about to pay out for SyncForYnab, so perhaps that is a factor - but double the later price is a LOT. 

Glad the house is coming together, enjoy your roast dinner! 

Hello Rosa,

I did the same (converted from YNAB4), so we get a 10% discount for that, which is around $89 instead of $99.  When you next open the app it may tell you the same as it came up as a notification when I opened the app on my phone.

I've set up a spreadsheet but it's a lot more faffing, so I'm now looking for a free finance app.  A friend of mine mentioned one a few weeks ago that sounds promising and I'm speaking with her tonight so I'll ask what it's called and check it out.  I'll let you know how that goes.

The roast was lovely.  I was surprised how well the potatoes came out so I must now be used to my "new" oven.

MuffinTops

I'm loving my week off.  I went out for a bit yesterday as the weather is glorious right now.  My absolute favourite weather.  I also collected some craft machines from where they were stored, so I'm going to be setting those up today.  I'm just making myself some boiled eggs for breakfast and then I'll get on that.

I also found a box from Hobbycraft that I thought had an add on thing inside, but it was vinyl and foil which I'm stupidly excited about as it means I can start to play on my cutting machines today.  I fancy something that will be a challenge to weed (pull out the little inner bits that aren't needed for the image) so I'll look through the images I have and go from there.

Which means today will be a quiet homely day.  I have a call with a friend this evening and I'm really hoping that'll be it. I may cut my grass for the last time this year, but I'll see how involved I get with the office things.

Happy Hump Day!

RosaBernicia

MuffinTops said:

RosaBernicia said:

Owch!  I hope they're not going to try that on me - I do use it, but I'm also on a cheaper rate because I moved over from YNAB4.  They are just testing direct bank import which I think is a godsend, and saves the £4/ month I was about to pay out for SyncForYnab, so perhaps that is a factor - but double the later price is a LOT. 

Glad the house is coming together, enjoy your roast dinner! 

Hello Rosa,

I did the same (converted from YNAB4), so we get a 10% discount for that, which is around $89 instead of $99.  When you next open the app it may tell you the same as it came up as a notification when I opened the app on my phone.

I've set up a spreadsheet but it's a lot more faffing, so I'm now looking for a free finance app.  A friend of mine mentioned one a few weeks ago that sounds promising and I'm speaking with her tonight so I'll ask what it's called and check it out.  I'll let you know how that goes.

The roast was lovely.  I was surprised how well the potatoes came out so I must now be used to my "new" oven.

Cheeky ****ers did put it on the app, which I rarely use because I am generally on the laptop at some point during the day.  No email, no apology, fibs about the lifetime discount... very unimpressed as are many other customers, and similarly investigating other options.  They have offered a slight discount for those of us doing the function trial which is still unfair on those who chose not to.  Moneydance, Buxfer and Mint have all been mentioned, interested to hear any other recommendations. 

I did wonder about going back to a spreadsheet, especially as my situation is much less complex than before, but I do like the mindful approach of a full function package and had just got to grips with auto import!  So annoyed! 

RosaBernicia

Enjoy your crafty day MT 

MuffinTops

@RosaBernica I'm the same as you.  I'm really upset about the massive increase and am feeling the loss already as I'm trying to get to grips with setting up a spreadsheet.  I have a few bank accounts I use, which works great for moving money aside for things like yearly bills etc.  YNAB keeps an eye on all of those.  It hasn't happened without some issues though, so maybe I'll be gaining some new issues and losing old ones.

I checked when my YNAB year ends and it's in February so I've set a reminder to cancel it all 3 weeks prior as it comes from a card number, not a PayPal or Direct Debit payment that I have control of.  Thanks for mentioning other options as I forgot to ask my friend! 🙄 I'll look at the ones you've mentioned but I don't want to be back in this situation any time soon.  Maybe the spreadsheet is the way to go! 

MuffinTops

Well my day didn't go quite as planned yesterday.  Once I was more organised I started to properly look at the setup and it still doesn't work how I want it to 🤪.  I've watched some vlogs and can see the type of thing I think would work (it's a tiny room but I have a lot of machines) but keep spending money on things that I'm changing my mind about.  So, currently I have lots of garage shelving in here for the strength and durability.  But now I want to go back to what I had at my previous house with a long desktop behind my main desk and the Ikea Alex large cabinets beneath (instead of standard legs).  I'll either keep one lot of the garage shelving in here (and put the others in the garage, which was always my fall back plan) or I'll put them all in the garage and fix shelving to the walls above the desk.  The second option is my preferred right now.  I'm going to wait until the new year though to make sure this is what I want, but I can already see the benefits of this setup.

I've been into the garage today as I needed to find my work pass, Oyster card (it has some funds on there) and some other craft bits.  I found a box of vinyls and other cutting machine related items, but not the things I was looking for.  I think the things I currently want to find are in cardboard boxes and I'm not keen on opening them all to search at this point.

The plasterer has been in touch and is coming at the end of next week to get my lounge done.  I'm genuinely embarrassed at the overwhelming excitement I feel about that!  To get my lounge properly plastered soon would be amazing!  I will then need to get a door fitted and the skirting board done, but I can't book that until he confirms the dates he can do.  Besides, I can still order furniture etc and get those done while I have furniture, if the carpenter delay was long.

I should really have a think if I need any more electric points in the lounge too, because if I get those done before the plastering then it'll all be a great finish.  Hmmm!  Immediately I can think of two places, so I'll call the electrician tomorrow.  He's usually good at turning up quickly so I'll get that done maybe Tuesday of next week.

No other financial surprises today.  I've been keeping on top of all outgoings and think I'm set for a healthy month.  It'll be the first since I moved in, but that's understandable when there's so many little things to buy initially.  Now I feel I've gained some control based on having routines and specific budgets in place.  It's a good feeling.

Right, that's it for today.

MuffinTops

I wasn't able to get the electrician in before the plasterer arrived as he was able to start a few days early and the electrician couldn't come that quickly.  That's ok, because the important area that needs a plug point can get it through from the kitchen, as it's sharing the same wall.

So the plasterer has been here most of the week and will hopefully be finished on Monday.  That's the plan, but my house keeps revealing little surprises that are making the work so much harder for him.  He seemed so fed up yesterday with one of the "extra" jobs he had to do due to how the skirting boards had been fitted (I used the term "fitted" very loosely).  

He's also contacted a carpenter for me to sort out the skirting boards and other little bits and pieces left to do in the living room.  He's coming today to give me a quote.

The electricity in my utility room is also acting weird so I think that'll be the next thing I need to get looked at.  It's never ending and mostly due to the botch jobs the previous owners did.

Financially, life is comfortable.  After knowing I was all set for a healthy month I literally blew it a day later.  I went and ordered the cabinets I wanted in my office, and they arrived this week.  Once the plasterer is done, I'll get them built and this should complete my office.  I genuinely don't think I'll change my mind about that set up as I've thought of so many different alterations now and the option I've chosen gives me the best amount of room and storage.  I also ordered a drill and some shelving, and need to put those up too.  If they work out well, I'll need another couple of shelves and that should be done!  Then I'll need to move everything out of the room to get it plastered and decorated  I'll hopefully get back onto it all though in the new year.

I'm dreading the amount of painting I'm going to need to do on my next couple of free weekends!  I'm hoping the first lot won't be too bad as I'll paint floor to ceiling, plus the ceiling, a bright white.  The walls will then be painted a white tone.  I am considering keeping it all the brighter white, but it may look a bit harsh.

The shopping budget is working well.  Having an amount that I put aside every week and do my best to stick within that works well for me.  It's making me more mindful of what I'm eating too, because I don't want to waste my budget on rubbish and snacks.

I also traded in my shopping scan points for vouchers and have managed to buy many of my Christmas gifts.  They were all specific things that aren't likely to come up in the Black Friday sale, and I really wanted to just get it all started.  I also bought my friend a birthday gift as it's her birthday soon and I'm seeing her later today.  So I can now take it with me so she has it on the morning of her birthday.

I hope you've all had a good week.  

MT

RosaBernicia

Oh MT I absolutely feel for you - this place was previously owned by a bodger and literally everything has been messed with, from skirting to electrics to goodness knows what.  Please do get a proper electrician in just for peace of mind.  It will be so lovely when it's done properly and all yours. 

another_casualty

I think that you're doing everything in the right Oder in terms of your home being restarted from scratch so to speak .  It was one of the things I enjoyed when I moved into my flat.
I was lucky when getting things done as the flat was empty for approx 3 months while I was still in the rented flat around the corner . 

Your home will be great when it's finished , and the time will fly before you know it .
As for tradespeople , they all make excuses now and again. I was laid back with my main guy . ( remember James?) 
I could tell he was making excuses now and again , but I thought the best thing was to just be accommodating and never moan or kick up a fuss . It worked well for me . 
I can tell you're not that type anyway 😸

I'll leave it there ..