Learning to walk before I run

edinburgher · 25 March 2023 at 11:10AM

@Suffolk_lass - I don't know if I'll be able to drop to 2 days at any point while we're carrying a mortgage. DD1 and DD2 will both be supported with an investment pot sufficient to pay the expected parental contribution for 4 years of uni. This is currently £12,000 in Scotland. We pay into these each month, as well as adding at least 1/2 of any generous cash gifts they receive, wee one off windfalls meant for them etc. Depending on their temperaments, this will either take the form of a (very) small income - so say £200/mth in future money and a wee cheque at graduation, or a lump sum if they have a valid need of this.

They will also be welcome to live rent free with us when they're studying (if that's of something that would interest them, I definitely frittered away thousands of pounds by trying to run my own home as a student when I was in no way financially prepared to do so).

All the potential changes that you have mentioned could happen at some point. I'm not convinced, however, that this is the current direction of travel. As you know, I've started a LISA for mortgage neutral purposes but there's no reason that a PCLS couldn't be used for the same purpose, leaving the LISA as part of a bridge to retirement. My ISA has next to nothing in it bar investments for the girls, it feels like every pound has about a dozen purposes at the moment!

£5 paid into LISA (£2.50 from TCB and the rest from a budget line). Feeling slightly skint, Mrs E gets paid on Tuesday.

edinburgher · 26 March 2023 at 12:00PM

Wow, that was a rotten Saturday, possibly the 4th? in a row. DD2 cranky and teething, all nerves grated. I was also feeling loaded with the cold. 1/2 a dose of Night Nurse helped, although it has taken me longer than usual to wake up today. Mrs E is going to take DDs out later on (visit to a potential childminder and walk in the park) and I will start drafting some sample competency questions for my interview (9 days to go)

Paid for our annual garden waste collection permit this morning, had gone up by 16%+ Somewhat irritating as I don't think we even used it last year as we spent most of the summer out of the house. Still, paid and won't be needed again until May 2024.

I applied a wee virement to this budget line (I'd budgeted slightly more than was required due to pessimism) and paid this, a few pennies of cashback from Ch@se and some Tilly Tidies into my LISA as a £13.04 payment (£16.30 once the bonus is applied). I am giving some thought to signing up for the 1% in 2024 challenge assuming it runs. If I pay the money into my LISA, I figure £1,600 of real money would just about meet the target.

Also paid £4.28 into my SIPP (£5.35 after tax relief).

Edit: Remembered to switch our utilities to mollusc (FIL sent me a £50 credit referral code). Heartbreaking to see our monthly estimate go to over £200 (and I know we're getting off lightly compared to some)