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The 'scenic route' to mortgage freedom...

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  • savingholmes
    savingholmes Posts: 28,974 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    I found with window quotes giving them an incredulous look multiple times caused them to halve their quote... just a thought... I didn't go ahead as by that point they'd lost all credibility.

    I feel your pain. Good luck with it all. 
    Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
    1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £174.8K Equity 32.77%
    2) £1.6K Net savings after CCs 14/8/25
    3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £25.3K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.2K) = 31.1/£127.5K target 24.4% 15/8/25
    4) FI Age 60 income target £16.5/30K 55.1%
    5) SIPP £4.8K updated 29/7/25
  • PiggyBankShaker
    PiggyBankShaker Posts: 1,164 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Morning world,

    As is sit in bed typing this the smell of banana and chocolate bread is wafting up the stairs. We had a huge bunch of banana that were just about to turn and DH has transformed them into two loaves.

    Last night I made risotto with asparagus, spinach and sugarsnap peas (all YS) and tonight DH is making 'Hipster Brunch' which is basically like a very fancy vegan cooked breakfast, again a lot of the ingredients are YS. DD is making apple crumble in cookery class in school so we can have that for dessert. 

    The final dumpy bag of slate chippings is meant to be delivered this morning which means we'll be able to start using our driveway again.

    Some more builder types came around last night to have a look at out kitchen / bathroom, they seemed okay, but one of the guys said something that annoyed me so it sort of put me off them. Hopefully we'll have a few comparable quotes by the end of the week and we can book the work in.

    Going to view the ridiculous house today. I am 99.9% sure that we won't be interested in it, but it'll be a useful exercise to gauge what is 'speaking' to us. The last few houses we've viewed have all be quite conventional and disappointing so maybe this one might spark some excitement? If it does we can use that info going forward even if this particular one isn't 'the one.'

    The £16 from TCB has landed in our account and my expenses have been controlled but not paid yet, we could really do with them asap, because when we did the money shuffle DH forgot about his personal pension payment and we've less than £200 between us. I get paid again on the 15th from my 2nd job but we'll most likely have to take money out of savings before then.

    The only other thing to report of that I'm still feeling a bit 'stretched' mental health wise. I have noticed more and more coping mechanisms kicking in (avoidance is the main one) I love both my jobs and I don't really want to give either of them up, but I feel I never have enough time to fully unwind, I'm either busy or tired and I know from previous experience that its not sustainable in the long run and has a real danger of turning into burnout.

    Stay safe out there moneysavers.
    • Mortgage over-payments to date: = £16,746
    • Original redemption date: August 2043
    • Current redemption date: July 2041
    • Debt: £15,930
    • Savings: £12,430
  • savingholmes
    savingholmes Posts: 28,974 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    What strategies do you use to minimise burnout?
    Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
    1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £174.8K Equity 32.77%
    2) £1.6K Net savings after CCs 14/8/25
    3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £25.3K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.2K) = 31.1/£127.5K target 24.4% 15/8/25
    4) FI Age 60 income target £16.5/30K 55.1%
    5) SIPP £4.8K updated 29/7/25
  • PiggyBankShaker
    PiggyBankShaker Posts: 1,164 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    What strategies do you use to minimise burnout?
    Nothing healthy @savingholmes! Mainly avoidance, procrastination, shopping - not so much 'minimising' it, just the behaviours that I notice when I'm in danger of burnout. I'm trying to be more proactive about it though. I went for a run last night, cleaning and tidying helps, but I have to be careful not to use this as a form of avoidance, like doing it when I should be working for example.
    • Mortgage over-payments to date: = £16,746
    • Original redemption date: August 2043
    • Current redemption date: July 2041
    • Debt: £15,930
    • Savings: £12,430
  • savingholmes
    savingholmes Posts: 28,974 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    What strategies do you use to minimise burnout?
    I went for a run last night, cleaning and tidying helps, but I have to be careful not to use this as a form of avoidance, like doing it when I should be working for example.
    While it can be avoidance - there is evidence that putting your mind on something else helps you solve other problems unconsciously as you are giving your brain time to process. This is particularly the case with routine tasks and activities that soothe your nervous system / release endorphins etc. What I'm trying to say is ditch the guilt. When I go in the office - I'm blown away by how much time gets 'wasted' / spent on building 'human capital' aka chatting... 
    Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
    1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £174.8K Equity 32.77%
    2) £1.6K Net savings after CCs 14/8/25
    3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £25.3K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.2K) = 31.1/£127.5K target 24.4% 15/8/25
    4) FI Age 60 income target £16.5/30K 55.1%
    5) SIPP £4.8K updated 29/7/25
  • PiggyBankShaker
    PiggyBankShaker Posts: 1,164 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Thanks @savingholmes - I'll bear that in mind and not be so hard on myself!

    A quiet day yesterday at PBS Towers. I did some cleaning and tidying - 15 minute blitz in two rooms, then a longer clean in DS's room, it just needs a little more attention and it will be grand. Anyway, I certainly feel better for having achieved something. Today my plan is:

    • 15 min blitz bathroom
    • 15 min blitz DS bedroom
    • 15 min blitz playroom
    • 15 min blitz kitchen
    The gravel for the drive just arrived we I'll spend a bit of time raking that and then I have to pick DS up from school and take DD for Pony Club.

    • Mortgage over-payments to date: = £16,746
    • Original redemption date: August 2043
    • Current redemption date: July 2041
    • Debt: £15,930
    • Savings: £12,430
  • savingholmes
    savingholmes Posts: 28,974 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Enjoy gravel spreading! That could be therapeutic too depending on how you look at it.
    Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
    1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £174.8K Equity 32.77%
    2) £1.6K Net savings after CCs 14/8/25
    3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £25.3K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.2K) = 31.1/£127.5K target 24.4% 15/8/25
    4) FI Age 60 income target £16.5/30K 55.1%
    5) SIPP £4.8K updated 29/7/25
  • PiggyBankShaker
    PiggyBankShaker Posts: 1,164 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Monday again - 

    DH's brother and two of his kids came and stayed on the weekend and boy was it tiring! They were here for only 25 hours but it felt like he didn't stop talking the whole time. One of his son's had at least four meltdowns over his mobile phone and neither of them would eat our food. When they left I went to bed for two hours and fell straight to sleep. It really makes me appreciate the calm oasis that our home normally is. His brother spoke a lot about money and it made me think about the choices that we make and what we prioritise, either consciously or unconsciously and how DH and I are doing pretty good, but maybe we could find ways to do better.

    I get paid on Wednesday (still no sign of my expenses) and we're almost out of cash until then. But we only need to do a top up shop of fresh fruit and veg and bread, so we can manage.

    The house painter has said he'll come on either Tuesday or Wednesday and get started, and once he's done that'll be the entire of the front of the house finished. The people who lived here before us had done quiet a lot inside but they hadn't touched the front at all and it was a total mess. Over the last 18 months we've transformed every inch of it (mostly DIY and on a tight budget, but the odd splurge where it really counted) and I'm so please with how it looks now.

    I'm doing overtime in my 2nd job on Wednesday so a colleague can attend a funeral and then I have the weekend off so I can attend a writing retreat. I'm looking forward to being there but not the 4 hour drive there and back.

    Anyway, that's all for now. Stay safe moneysavers.
    • Mortgage over-payments to date: = £16,746
    • Original redemption date: August 2043
    • Current redemption date: July 2041
    • Debt: £15,930
    • Savings: £12,430
  • savingholmes
    savingholmes Posts: 28,974 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Love the sound of a writer's retreat. Please tell us what it's like.

    Family visit sounds challenging. Over now
    Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
    1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £174.8K Equity 32.77%
    2) £1.6K Net savings after CCs 14/8/25
    3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £25.3K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.2K) = 31.1/£127.5K target 24.4% 15/8/25
    4) FI Age 60 income target £16.5/30K 55.1%
    5) SIPP £4.8K updated 29/7/25
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