It's a Whopper - need to pay it off!

greenbee

I think I'm in the phase at the moment. Turns out the house is lovely when it's clean and tidy! And I'm NOT looking forward to the hassle of dealing with agents, solicitors, movers etc. 

Grass_Roots_2

Happy Tuesday!  Here’s a strange one, we received a strangers Tesco delivery yesterday, a whole weekly food shop.  My son took it in whilst we were out. 

No paperwork, not ours and despite ringing Tesco and asking them to collect we’ve heard nothing.  So I think it’s ours now 24. Hours later! Just need to get creative with some of the ingredients - not stuff I’d usually buy.  Asparagus tonight!  Anyone ideas for cod loin? 

Anyone had this happen before, so very strange!  Kind of money saving related as also giving me a glimpse of what a normal weekly shop looks like…..

Aimingforthegoodlife

Haha that is bizarre! Nope, never had a surprise delivery! I think your son has already got his MSE head screwed on, a fiver a lawn, fab!

CCW007

I had Mr M's try to deliver someone else's shopping recently - the address they wanted was around 13 miles away and a totally different postcode so no idea how he got to us!  Thankfully I was home otherwise OH might have accepted it. 

I also got delivered a leg of lamb once from Ocado that we didn't order - phoned them up to let them know immediately (was worried the driver might get in trouble) and they said as it had been out of the van for 10 minutes they couldn't accept it back so to keep it with their compliments.

Nurse2047

Grass_Roots_2 said:

Thanks @moneywhizz - wise words there. 

Wider question from me - Always on the look out for a new app and I’ve discovered ‘Sprive’ which automates little mortgage overpayments linking to your bank and mortgage account and  putting them aside for you - anyone used it?  Gimmick or helpful?  

Also can someone confirm the etiquette of mentioning business names on here - I can see people go to lengths to avoid using actual names e.g supermarkets but I’m not sure why and don’t want to break any rules! 

I use the Sprive app and find it really good and motivating. 

Grass_Roots_2

Popping back on here sheepishly after being all gung ho last year about my early pay off plans and reducing my grocery bill.

Reflecting on the year and my goals here are the wins and the 'needs more work....'

Wins
I've sorted out my back issues through a lot of exercise which has really improved my mobility.  I'm determined to keep this up this year as it has been truly life changing

I've got my daughter and son through GCSES and A Levels - with lots of associated dramas but we got there (Daughter on a gap year so still here although working full time, and my son is now at college)

Not sure if can count as a win but I've avoided to some extent the recent increases in interest rates by fixing for 10 years at 3.25% (an increase to our payments but not as devastating as it could have been with such a big mortgage)

Grocery bill - has reduced a little to circa £1000 per month - but this could be better.

Increase to income - both my husband and I have benefited from salary increases this year meaning our joint income is now £9,500 per month (increase of £650 per month)

Needs more work
We continue to spend more than we earn on a regular basis and are carrying debt outside of the mortgage - this is mainly home improvement projects (completed bathroom last year and divided our living and dining room into an office and living room so I can work comfortably from home).

I did make some overpayments (circa £2k) but then borrowed them back and I can't even remember why which I'm so frustrated by.

Our energy bill is extortionate and we are paying £500 per month now (plus get rebate of £67 from EDF each month but obviously this will end in April).

I am determined to make some progress on this mortgage this year - the shift from £578k when I first posted in Dec 2021 to today at £555K doesn't really feel like the step change I intended.  This time next year I want it to be £520K!

South_coast

OK, well firstly well done on the wins. They are definitely things worth celebrating. But with your income, you really shouldn't be spending more than you earn (I don't think I'm telling you anything you don't know here!) How did you get on with tracking your spending? 

You're looking to reduce the mortgage by £35k in the next year, which is an average of £2,917/month. How much does your monthly payment take off the balance, and how do you intend to make up the shortfall? Would it help if you made the mortgage OP a non-negotiable part of the budget and then tried to fit your other expenditure around it? You're paying around £50/day in interest, could you find £50 a day or a week to pay off to start trying to neutralise that cost? If you really want this, I think you're going to need to make it more of a priority. 

Good luck!

Grass_Roots_2

South_coast said:

 Would it help if you made the mortgage OP a non-negotiable part of the budget and then tried to fit your other expenditure around it? You're paying around £50/day in interest, could you find £50 a day or a week to pay off to start trying to neutralise that cost? If you really want this, I think you're going to need to make it more of a priority. 

Thanks @South_coast this is a really helpful way of looking at things.  I like this approach.  £50 a day would make a real dent.  I do need to prioritise this.  At the moment from our payment (which is just increasing to £2845) about £1800 comes off the balance each month - but £50 overpayment a day would mean another £1500 coming off - seriously worth doing.  I'm going to give it a try and log on here how I'm doing......

Off to see if Nationwide will accept a daily payment. Doing it each day would be more motivational I think for me.

greenbee

You can pay nationwide whenever you like via the app, but be aware of your annual OP cap. I have made multiple OPs in a day when doing month-end transfers ☺️

Grass_Roots_2

Made my first £50 overpayment today after working out how to do it - have decided I'll pay £50 off every day (either on mortgage or on my pesky Next Directory and Credit Card balances - credit cards are 0% but the Next Directory is a whopping 23.9%).  Going to clear that Next card in January if it kills me!

Making Dirty Macaroni for dinner tonight - Pinch of Nom recipe which is an old fave, and we have all the ingredients in. My 2 eldest kids are staying with friends tonight so just cooking for 3 of us and I'll freeze any leftovers for lunches next week.

Planning a relaxing New Year's Eve tomorrow - even though I'm an evening member only of my gym as it's so quiet over NY they are opening up so I can use the luxury spa facilities for free tomorrow so heading up there with a good book and some me time.  Was going to take my best friend with me but she has Covid so it's just me.  I'll sneak my own Diet Coke in (they are a health spa so don't serve anything like that!)  Whilst lying in the relaxation room I'll make my next £50 overpayment ;-)