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Prosperous soul embraces creativity & mortgage neutrality
savingholmes
Posts: 29,129 Forumite
Today I completed on my biggest ever mortgage - £202K and switched from interest only between 2 of us to repayment on my own. I took the term for as long as I could - so 22 years - which means I would be 73.5 by the time I was actually free. There has to be a better way!
Financial info:
Financial info:
- Currently have c£1479 left to clear off CCs but they are both at 0% and I am debt neutral due to EF.
- EF of c£2K and am trying to keep it that way and grow it - but the next few months I have big car bills so may not be totally possible.
- I am trying to be debt neutral currently rather than debt free - as my recurring nightmare is losing my job and being unable to pay such a big mortgage.
- My job is pretty secure with reasonable pay, great sick pay coverage, redundancy pay and a DB pension so while I want a bigger EF and it is a high priority for me it is not as essential as it would be for some.
- My monthly mortgage payment used to be £130 and is now just over £800 more!!
- It's a 5 year fixed rate at 1.84%. It has hefty ERCs but I can theoretically pay up to 10% a year without penalty.
- Freshly divorced after a very long marriage - this is my first month of paying previously joint bills on my own - so doable but also a challenge as I am used to a second lot of money coming in part month which won't be there.
- Thankfully the new mortgage payment comes out next payday not this so I have time to clear remaining divorce related bills.
- I have healthy life insurance cover for my kids (age 18 and 23) - and am in the process of transferring a joint life policy into my sole name and making sure it is set up as a trust.
- I am in the process of doing a new will.
- My 18 year old DD is an apprentice and is partly at home and partly away with work. My DS is living away.
- Even if I repaid as small a figure as £20 pcm - over the term that would reduce my mortgage by 6 months - taking me to 73 instead of 73.5!! My current debate is whether to pay it directly off the mortgage (certainty) or do it via pension - so get 25% uplift.
- By age 55 I will have accrued full state pension and should be able to get it at 67. (I have checked multiple times).
- As I am only 3.5 years away from being able to access a pension (if desired) - I am seeing a SIPP (self invested pension) or equivalent - as the most likely route to mortgage freedom. I have one valued at £3,643 yesterday - so a long way to go before it's of much use!
- I had to give Ex half of one of my earlier DB pensions - but that still left a CETV of over £180K. If I can transfer that in a few years time - while I would want to leave it there and grow it on while I am earning - it would give me some reassurance of a 25% tax free lump sum to help repay the mortgage when I need it. This would knock circa 5 years off the mortgage which would take it down to normal retirement age at least. If I can't transfer it - it is due to pay £3 or 4K at age 65.
- I have a second DB CARE pension that is currently due to pay out c£9K p.a. from age 67 - or if I stayed all the way until then - closer to £25k.
- If I was mortgage free I would need around £26K gross to live on I reckon. So if I retire at age 67 I should be more than covered and probably financially better off than I am now - given I pay 8.5% into my work pension currently and have a hefty mortgage and life insurance premiums.
- The question is how much earlier can I 'retire' achieve 'financial independence' so I can pursue my creative side more fully.
Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £171.3K Equity 36.55%
2) £2.6K Net savings after CCs 10/10/25
3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £30.9K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.25K) = 35.5/£127.5K target 27.8% 14/11/25
(If took bigger lump sum = 62K or 48.6%)
4) FI Age 60 income target £17.1/30K 57% (if mortgage and debts repaid - need more otherwise) (If bigger lump sum £15.8/30K 52.67%)
5) SIPP £5.1K updated 14/11/25
1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £171.3K Equity 36.55%
2) £2.6K Net savings after CCs 10/10/25
3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £30.9K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.25K) = 35.5/£127.5K target 27.8% 14/11/25
(If took bigger lump sum = 62K or 48.6%)
4) FI Age 60 income target £17.1/30K 57% (if mortgage and debts repaid - need more otherwise) (If bigger lump sum £15.8/30K 52.67%)
5) SIPP £5.1K updated 14/11/25
17
Comments
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So what's this creativity I hear you ask?
- I self published a book last year, am half way through writing the second in a trilogy and have plans for the third.
- I have written 10,000 words of another book, multiple poems and have unpublished non fiction writing.
- I love acrylic pouring - a type of art - and plan to make more time for that.
- I love glass painting, card making, decoupage, pretty much any kind of art and craft - but tend to go abstract as I am not yet a confident 'sketcher'. I plan to learn to draw.
- I am considering becoming a 'furniture artist' i.e. upcycle furniture.
- The biggest obstacle I need to overcome is self-criticism and perfectionism and actually letting go of stuff.
- Throughout my life I've tended to give things away instead of sell them - however - I need to value myself and my work more and actually sell.
Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £171.3K Equity 36.55%
2) £2.6K Net savings after CCs 10/10/25
3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £30.9K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.25K) = 35.5/£127.5K target 27.8% 14/11/25
(If took bigger lump sum = 62K or 48.6%)
4) FI Age 60 income target £17.1/30K 57% (if mortgage and debts repaid - need more otherwise) (If bigger lump sum £15.8/30K 52.67%)
5) SIPP £5.1K updated 14/11/2514 -
Happy new diary SH - subscribed 😁
Fortune x
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6623005/happy-days-in-our-golden-years/p1?new=1
Working at Living6 -
Happy new diary! Here's to creative freedom 😊 xCurrent mortgage (1 Jun 2022): £289,501 - originally £351,999 got to love London sized mortgages!
OP Goal 2022 = 3.75% in OPs: £6,975 / £13,200
Emergency Fund Target: 3 months saved ✅
7 -
Here's to your new exciting future wishing you all the very best x7
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Woo - happy new diary and even happier new life!🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her7 -
I found the best thing about doing it by yourself is that only you can mess it up & the worst thing about doing it by yourself is only you can mess it up. I was so surprised at how my everyday living/housekeeping costs came down.
9 -
Thanks Fortune, EH, 4Seasons, Rugbymad & Bad Memorybadmemory said:I found the best thing about doing it by yourself is that only you can mess it up & the worst thing about doing it by yourself is only you can mess it up. I was so surprised at how my everyday living/housekeeping costs came down.
I am hoping my costs come down. Time will tell.
Still waiting for login details from the mortgage company and confirmation of the size of my first payment.
Even if I don't manage to OP I am still due to make more mortgage progress in 1 year than we have in the 15 years we have lived here.Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £171.3K Equity 36.55%
2) £2.6K Net savings after CCs 10/10/25
3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £30.9K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.25K) = 35.5/£127.5K target 27.8% 14/11/25
(If took bigger lump sum = 62K or 48.6%)
4) FI Age 60 income target £17.1/30K 57% (if mortgage and debts repaid - need more otherwise) (If bigger lump sum £15.8/30K 52.67%)
5) SIPP £5.1K updated 14/11/2510 -
Welcome to this neck of the woods Savings. May you have many happy hours here chasing down your dream.
TxWhat I do not give, you must never take by force.
Mortgage outstanding - 30/12/22 - £25,900. 31/01/23 - £22,300. 28/02/23 - £20,500. 31/03/23 - £17,500. 30/04/23 - £15,800. 30/05/23 - £13,800. 31/06/23 - £11,300. 31/07/23 - £9,800. 31/08/23 - £8,300. 30/09/23 - £6,000. 31/10/23 - £3,000. 30/11/23 - £1,200. 06/12/23 - £00.00
God save us everyone, As we burn inside the fire of a thousand suns, For the sins of our hands, The sins of our tongues, The sins of our fathers, The sins of our young. Linkin Park7 -
Happy new diary! Haven't been around much lately but wanted to wish you every success in this new phase of your life, you deserve it! X7
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Great time to lock into a fixed rate mortgage. Best of luck I shall follow your diary posts.
Any small overpayments can help and I agree with emergency funds, I was able to utilise mine when I left my job, thankfully I was back in paid employment 7 months later......
Yes the pension is important, great if you can balance payments to both in my opinion.8
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