10 years to clear £334K - our FIRE journey

KajiKita

Really glad the pay rise need has been anticipated and planned for 😊👏

I always thought cast iron baths robbed heat from the water - why I always preferred a plastic / polymer one. 

I’m having a similar struggle spending savings on projects we are agreed on, as I was really enjoying finally having savings! 😉😂

KK

CCW007

CCW007 said:

House is a do-er upper - we knew it was a 5 year project and we're still working on it 7 years later   Not a straight wall in the house but it is lovely.

@redofromstart reminded me about this comment from 2022.  We are now 9 years into the 5 year project but I have a feeling things are going to ramp up this year!  I can't imagine we'll have everything done by the end of 2024 but hoping to have made substantial inroads to the list of jobs.

Last weekend was an epic effort to get ready for the plasterers, culminating in working all night on Sunday (with a one hour nap around 4.00am).  Huge chunks of plaster and render came off the walls in places so it ended up being a bigger job than anticipated.  Two plasterers were here working hard for two days but one of them will need to come back for a day.  Unfortunately the earliest he can do is 1st Feb but have said we're happy to be flexible if he gets any availability earlier so that's worst case.

Gives us time to choose floor tiles and order skirting from the timber yard.  And a few days break from having any major works to do.

OH has a road trip in April and has a car he needs to get ready so that will be his focus between now and then - I'll be project managing the kitchen as much as possible.

Then the plan is to get onto the wet room in May - so probably need to start researching and looking for trades people for that.  Impressed with our plasterer so might ask him for recommendations for a carpenter etc.

In the meantime, given that we are going to need to continue living in chaos until the new kitchen is fitted, my focus is going to be on decluttering to reduce the amount of stuff we have piled up everywhere.  We can move the kitchen table back in when the plaster has dried, replumb in the sink and potentially rewire in the cooker so that will help reduce the impact but the cupboards / food / other appliances will need to stay in the conservatory, utility and living room so anything I can do to reduce the carnage will help. 

CCW007

Timetable for kitchen:

Thurs 1st Feb - final plastering, will need time to dry
Friday 8th - Thursday 13th Feb - painting, two x mist coats, two x top coat?
W/C 19th Feb - flooring laid and skirting fitted
29th Feb - kitchen due to be delivered
W/C 4th March - kitchen fitted?

I've got the week before Easter booked off, can't come soon enough!

CCW007

Some actual MFW news - £6.16 cashed out from PA and OPd to mortgage.  Total £258 / £520 so almost half way to target with 9 months to go.

savingholmes

Well done on the OP.

I feel for you on that amount of upheaval over an extended period... Mantra - it will be great when's its done!

redofromstart

Sounds like a sensible plan to me. We have the same problem with the wonky walls. Drives Mr Redo potty as he tries to work out the best visual straight to work from rather than an actual straight.

CCW007

savingholmes said:

Well done on the OP.

I feel for you on that amount of upheaval over an extended period... Mantra - it will be great when's its done!

Yes that phrase has been used a lot over the last couple of months!  Sounds like you have your own upheaval with the packing though.

redofromstart said:

Sounds like a sensible plan to me. We have the same problem with the wonky walls. Drives Mr Redo potty as he tries to work out the best visual straight to work from rather than an actual straight.

Ha, yes we have exactly this issue. The wall the dresser was on was so wonky that the dresser was touching the wall at the bottom and about two inches away at the top with varying degrees of gap down its length 🙄

Another £7.40 cashed out of PA.  Need to do about six loads of washing now we're not creating quite so much dust 😁

savingholmes

I'd struggle with that level of wonkiness!! 

Yeah - I am dealing with a lot of upheaval too. I will be very glad when it's done.

CCW007

Went shopping for floor and wall tiles yesterday - now thoroughly bamboozled!

Got quote from kitchen company for them to fit - need to check it over as it's pretty high but given that cabinets are going to need to be adapted and the worktop needs to be cut and joined in a number of places (including a join which is not 90 degrees) we are keen to avoid getting into any issues if something goes wrong.  Their fitter - their issue!

Finance has been agreed for buy now pay later - we've paid 10% deposit so the remainder will go on finance with nothing to pay and no interest for 12 months (£29 fee to settle up).  So the money can stay in our savings earning 5% until 11.5 months in! Interestingly the fitting costs can go on the finance deal as well so that's a bonus if we do go with their fitter.

We seem to have talked ourselves into a new TV as well - ours is 14 / 15 years old and was top of the range when we got it.  We have loads of AV equipment which clutters up the living room, in the interest of decluttering I'd like wall mounted TV and soundbar.  It would also free up some sockets which would be useful.  Old TV can go in our bedroom when we redecorate and move in there.
 
Checked the prices and Currys seem to be good and have a discount off the soundbar.  I can get 6% discount on a gift card through work scheme, we can pay for the gift card on cashback credit card then I can do the transaction through TCB and get 3% so all in all I think we worked out that would be another £80 off! 

Bad timing with other expenses but doing the kitchen has made me realise how cluttered our house is.  Added to the fact we want to get a cleaner - we said once downstairs was done we would do it.  The visual clutter is not good for my mental health and we can't have a cleaner if they can't get to things to clean so this is a step towards that goal. 

Listen to me justifying it to myself

savingholmes

I have a cleaner totally worth it. Your other purchases sound well thought out too. Don't sweat it. MSE is about getting a good deal not necessarily going without on things that improve our lives.