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Learning to walk before I run
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edinburgher said:The builder has come out to collect a key for Monday - I guess he wasn't a con artist after all!
£28.20 paid into my SIPP (£35.25 after tax relief). I only hope and pray that all these payments count for something some day - at the moment everything just seems to go down
We will get there Ed9 -
Ouch El. My sipp has lost about 10% - but yours is worse. Have you looked at what you are invested in as to why and whether there are any 'safer' options given you are still investing?Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £174.8K Equity 32.77%
2) £3K Net savings after CCs 6/7/25
3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £22.5K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.1K) = 28.2/£127.5K target 22;12% updated 6/7
4) FI Age 60 income target £16.5/30K 55.1%
5) SIPP £4.6K updated 6/7/256 -
savingholmes said:Ouch El. My sipp has lost about 10% - but yours is worse. Have you looked at what you are invested in as to why and whether there are any 'safer' options given you are still investing?5
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How are those lovely little ones?5
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Hopefully all is OK with your build since Monday. I imagine the demo bit has taken place now, knocking holes (assuming it was not too hot to work up there) - we mostly sat in a field with plenty of ice to hand, wiping pooch down to keep him cool. He loved licking ice but it was odourless so once dropped on the grass, he struggled to find them again. Anyway, back now and checking my fave diariesSave £12k in 2025 #2 I am at £4863.32 out of £6000 after May (81.05%)
OS Grocery Challenge in 2025 I am at £1286.68/£3000 or 42.89% of my annual spend so far
I also Reverse Meal Plan on that thread and grow much of our own premium price fruit and veg, joining in on the Grow your own thread
My new diary is here3 -
Hope build has started well. Exciting times!4
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@Alchemilla - excuse the delayed reaction - it's all a bit wild at the moment! DD1 is great, her usual enthusiastic and loving self, I think she appreciates the extra dad time as mum is busy with DD2. DD2 is a good wee sleeper (usually about 10 hours at night with perhaps 1-2 feeds). She is, however, a bit of a banshee (good pair of lungs on her etc.)
She's a wee cutey just like her big sister and is starting to develop a personality, smiling and almost giggling
Sorry I've been quieter than usual, there is a lot going on. Builder has now put in the Velux windows, knocked down the old 3rd bedroom wall and replaced with a re-positioned stud wall that will be used to run water pipes into the loft. They've also stripped out carpets, skirting boards, door frames and vinyl flooring downstairs and the electrician has been out to start work today. There have been a few maddening miscommunications (like throwing out £1,500 of carpet when I thought it was being taken up temporarily and not including the cost of the radiator or flooring the staircases in the quote). In fairness, the carpet couldn't have been re-used, but it was the shock of the thing that got me. I have taken to writing things down a lot moreNearly 24,000 notes have slipped through my hands, with more to follow!
We have started looking at some lovely hard flooring to replace our old carpets. At the moment something like strand woven bamboo is the frontrunner - incredibly tough, attractive, warm underfoot and "interesting", which is an obvious requirement. Free samples en route from 3 different internet suppliers, the high street has failed us. Also hoping to order some Velux blinds this weekend, there is a sale on.8 -
A lot of progress.
Ouch to the missing carpet and the spend.
Off to Google your flooring 😃Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £174.8K Equity 32.77%
2) £3K Net savings after CCs 6/7/25
3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £22.5K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.1K) = 28.2/£127.5K target 22;12% updated 6/7
4) FI Age 60 income target £16.5/30K 55.1%
5) SIPP £4.6K updated 6/7/255 -
Lots of good progress there! Most vexing miscommunication though - I feel your pain 🙄 Hope things proceed peacefully and smoothly and you are back in your glorious shiny new house very soon!5
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Delurking to say I have strand woven bamboo flooring in a caramel colour. Second house I've used it in an I expect I'll use it in the next one. You can usually find offers from one supplier or other. I have insulated underneath it where it's on concrete, and it's usually warm. Just make sure that whoever installs it leaves the correct expansion gaps.5
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