Prosperous soul, mortgage neutrality & creativity Year 2

savingholmes

savingholmes said:

I've had a go at calculating costs of moving:

Stamp duty up to          £2500 £3600 - £5100 - depends on value of house - over the border is a lot dearer!
Legal costs circa          £2500
Professional removals £3000 £1500 - depend on how much I declutter and whether separate garden pot van move
 and how much needs dismantling
Porting mortgage            £200 plus valuation fee I think of £149. 
Proper survey                £600-900 
  
So I could need £8200 £8,549-10349 I am currently at £6,272 £6,292 for total savings so a further £1,928  £4057 to find. If it wasn't possible to port my mortgage - I'd probably stay a while or pick a different house. 

I've updated my likely costs. Removal costs have dropped but if I buy over the border stamp duty goes up dramatically.

savingholmes

savingholmes said:

Before the valuation - ideally I'd get the following done (with help if possible):

1. Weed the garden - particularly between cracks in paving
2. Move the bins (again)
3. Tidy random items in the garden, put the hose back on its wall hanging reel (again)
4. Finish off bits of paint around the house that need touching up (banisters, ensuite, kitchen, room of doom and DD has some peeling paint)
5. Touch up kitchen tiles
6. Declutter and tidy
7. Tip run - for wires, batteries, old curtain pole, old blind
8. Charity - take bag of stuff to charity. Ideally find more stuff to donate
9. Clean windows and mirrors

Before professional pictures: 

1. Pressure wash hard landscaping
2. Finish fence painting
3. Stage house - e.g. Hang more paintings and mirrors, mostly remove stuff
   

These are all jobs that could expand to fit the time available so I need to be wary of that. What I get done is very dependent on whether I get help. My cleaner is back next Wednesday before the valuation but I imagine I'll mostly need her to clean. My handyman may or may not be back.  has promised to come tomorrow

There's a lot I didn't get done since the first set of valuations - and a lot that needs another layer of stuff to go / get sorted.

I have to go into work today - but when I return I want to focus on the kitchen tiles and see what I can do to resolve them. Then focus on other paint touch ups including kitchen cupboards.

I need to shower and get to work.

My Nwde £100 arrived. So that's going straight off a CC.

savingholmes

My gas bill for last month was less than £17 - partly nice weather, partly DD here less. It suggested I drop by monthly payment by £28. I am roughly £225 in credit for gas so that makes me happy.

mark55man

How exciting for you SH

Don't under-estimate how much stuff would cost to replace and the inconvenience of doing without in your new place - but a great time to make decisions about letting stuff go.  That said £3k is a lot of money to spend - imagine taking a bag of that much cash into IKeyear and how much of your house you could do from new

savingholmes

Thanks Mark - I agree. I've had some quotes now for £1.5K or less so that seems more reasonable.

I went to Dun31m on the way home. I have a D0rma offcut that I've used a superking bedspread for 22 years now. It is stained (coffee and ink) in places - so I'm going to wash it and potentially use it as part of staging if it cleans okay and the stains are hidden but perhaps leave it behind when I move. I have bought a new one with a botanical garden type pattern - and some matching pillow cases. The bedspread RRP is £155 and I got it for £98 so that didn't feel as bad... Let's not talk about the pillow case prices!! Some of their other stuff was 20% off so got a few other things too including a couple of new pillows. 

DD chose a quilt cover off the internet a while ago and it doesn't fit properly. I'm debating resolving that. The bedsheet also isn't deep or long enough. She never told me so I was unable to send it back which is frustrating. I only found out the day of the first valuation. I've just bought a sheet that does actually fit so plan to wash that and then put it on. She may complain it's not soft enough - but I was going for colour more than anything. I'm thinking of literally covering her whole bed with the older bedspread mentioned above as it just looks messy. Alternatively I've considered getting a new quilt cover for her room possibly with new quilt - so I can just swap them over the day of any viewings and I know that it's sorted. I need to stage DS's room too and get rid of some stuff out of there.

In theory the handyman is coming tomorrow so hopefully we can make good progress and he can help some stuff leave my house for good.

My friends have offered to do professional photos for less than £100 so that sounds reasonable to me.

Flossymuldoo

Wow, sounds exciting on the house!!! I did think about you on Sunday as I’d remembered you had a viewing. I’ll keep my fingers crossed that you hear back!

savingholmes

Thanks Flossy.

Being honest - I've worked today. Been shopping. Packed and unpacked the dishwasher - and put the bedspread in the wash. That's it. Good job I'm due help tomorrow. Just hope they both turn up. 

savingholmes

Well I slept really badly, heat and possibly no meds. Monday's tablet organiser was empty but I didn't know if I'd just used the wrong set Sunday. I didn't get to sleep until gone half one ...

I made DS's bed look good yesterday with what I already had. Debating what to do in DD's room. I also filled a bag for charity with clothes before bed. Lots to do. May just get up now and make a start.

My ankles are really hurting currently. I know losing weight would help but no mojo currently.

jwil

Sleeping in this heat is so hard.  You are making loads of progress.

savingholmes

Thanks Jwil. I noticed you were up early too.

I've filled another bag with curtains, blankets, a dressing gown etc. Even more amazingly - I've just dropped both bags off at a textile bank. Well impressed with myself  I'm not always even awake at this time.

Today I need to work but besides that I want to achieve the following with help from cleaner and handyman:

1. Take out the contents of the airing cupboard. Check what is trash / donatable. Only keep best stuff.
2. Move a cube unit from the upstairs 4th bedroom into the airing cupboard. Mostly complete with its boxed contents.
3. Hang all the clothes DD is planning to sell on Vin%3d up in the wardrobe where the unit is now - to get it off DS's floor.
   
4. Move a desk out of DS's room and list it for sale/donate if it comes downstairs in one piece. DD has potentially got me a free artist desk with easel RRP £120 - but even if that doesn't come off I'd still like that desk gone.
5. Move the toybox DS made off the landing and back into the corner of his room. Check what's in it - put sentimental toys inside so keeping all sentimental stuff like that together. Rehome / trash / donate what's left.
6. Move all the carp off the landing (above and next to the toy box) - ideally to trash/donate - however there's some tech equipment I have no clue what to do with. Either way it needs to go elsewhere. So irritated that Ex who specialised in all that left so much gear behind - as I don't know what I can safely dispose of and what I need to take out i.e. which bit of kit is the hard drive and any memory and which bits I can just tip.
7. List for sale / donate a bureau in the garage.
8. Donate/list for sale some ik3a flatpack unopened stuff in the garage.... [roll eyes]
9. List a mirror of DD's for sale on FB.
10. I may list a table in the lounge too or get the handyman to disassemble it for me so my lounge looks bigger again.
11. May get him to move a small cupboard out of the lounge. Rehome / donate / trash the contents and the box on top of it.
12. Ask the handyman if he'll take some spare metal from the garage. 
13. Handyman due to repaint the kitchen ceiling.
14. Handyman to power wash outside. 
15. Handyman hopefully to assist with furniture moves.
16. Cleaner needs to clean - but ideally help with some of the list above.

  I'd best get back to it. I've done one lot of washing and that's now going in the dryer. There's a second load already in. Now to test the moment of truth and see how well the bedspread cleaned up on 60 degrees.