MF to achieve our Devon Dream

lovemywestie

Hi everyone!
Starting this MF diary determined to keep up the habit. Am a longtime lurker on the Forum and read many diaries and really enjoy reading about people's lives, especially on the MFW board.  I've only ever posted a couple of times, I'm more of a lurker on SM, but for some reason now I feel compelled to document my MF journey...I'm not sure how interesting this to others but I'm hoping putting things down in writing will help me make sense of my money situation.

As the title says, we (partner and myself and a Westie - of course) dream of moving to Devon.  We adore the South Hams and Dartmouth in particular, and it is our aim to retire there.  We're in our mid-40s so retirement is a far way off, so the intermediate aim is to try to pay off the mortgage, save hard and then sell our house to buy in Dartmouth, and if we are mortgage free, maybe take on less stressful jobs to literally pay the bills and live a simple life.  This is a long way off but the dream sustains us!  In the meantime, we content ourselves with regular visits.

I will note some numbers in the next post to place a marker for where we are at the moment...

Ta ra for now

lovemywestie

I'm back with the numbers!

So, start with the debt...

Student loan: I'm not even going to look at the balance.  It will just lurk around, probably for the rest of my working life...

Mortgage: stands at 143,953.47 as of today, across two sub-accounts: 

 a) 72,801.08 at 1.33%, fixed until 31 Dec 2026

b) 71,1152.64 at 4.43, fixed until 31 May 2026 (new account as we bought a new house in April and increased the mortgage)

Something I will need to figure out in 2025 is what to do when the fix on b) is up.  Do I let it go onto the standard rate and then remortgage in Dec 2026, or shall I remortgage in May 2026 and pay an Early Repayment Fee?  Is the answer obvious to other people?  I'm a bit rubbish with logical thinking like this!  Now I'm thinking about it, seems the obvious answer is to pay the ERP as I think it'll be really small.  

Remortgage in May 2026 then.  See, this diary is already helping!

Luckily, no other debt.  

lovemywestie

Now on to the big spends of the year...

Have had a very spendy year what with moving house, from a modern 3 bed to a less modern 3 bed Victorian terrace with lots of lovely character; high ceilings, original fireplaces, two bathrooms and - my dream - a utility.  So far we haven't had any nasty surprises (apart from some condensation damp in the back bedroom which we hope some repointing will resolve in the spring) but we have enjoyed spending on the house to make it our own:

• All three bedrooms redecorated - 1K
• Landing, halls and stairs redecorated - 1K
• New fencing (essential to keep mutt from terrierising the neighbourhood) - 3K (I was stunned by this price but to be fair they did a good job)
• Double built in wardrobes (my dream) - 2.8K
• Ring doorbell wired in, light switches upgrades, mirror hanging - c. 125
• Electricial for when I attempted to change a light swtich myself but messed it up - £70 (stupid tax for sure)

Other bits and pieces, such as pots and plants for the garden...who knows.

Moving costs:

Solicitor - around 3K?
Removals - 1.3K
Estate agents fees - wiped this from my mind as it's so much money for not doing much (although to be fair they were great) - my notes tell me 2.2K.  Wow.
Survey - 600

So, had we not moved, we would have been considerably better off , especially as we had a teeny tiny mortgage but - you only live once, and we are so happy here, in a nicer area, nearer friends and amenities, with nice neighbours and a lovely cosy home.

We also have been away on three weeks away this year (mainly when decorating was being done and the wardrobes fitted) and have a fourth (Dartmouth, of course) booked for December when we hope the floorboards upstairs will be sanded and varnished while we're away (need to get rid of carpets due to mutt being prone to allergies).

Savings in next post, so I can look back and measure progress.   

lovemywestie

Savings as of 24/10/24

Premium bonds - £25, 355 (I know it's not the best place to hold cash but it's fun!  £600 won across last 7 draws)
Stocks and shares ISA - £8219.13 (up 19.98%).  I do a DD for 150 per month to this.  
Marcus bank: cash on hand to pay balance of holiday (oh so I do have debt lol) - 316 plus money set aside for floorboards = £1,716
1p challenge = £435.88 as of today, locked away in a Monzo pot!
Set aside for water bill: 77.95 (not sure when the next bill will arrive, it's been random since we've moved in.  Will have to add to this pot).

Total available savings = 35, 803.96. Some of this money is allocated already (floorboards; holiday) and I do want to build up this pot.  Coming from a single parent family where we were reliant on benefits, holes in shoes, no car, few holidays, having this money means so much.  I feel very privileged to own my own (mortgaged) home, run a car, and to be able to do nice everyday things such as have a coffee or a meal out and go on holiday.  I had a loving and happy childhood with an amazing mom (sadly not here any more) but the deprivations we suffered (the 80s on benefits were no joke, as I am sure it is still today) do make me very grateful for the comfortable life we have.


Might just note pensions here - no idea what is in my old TPS, but my current work pension (10% contribution, 7.5% employer contribution) stands at £28608.  Will report this every 6 months.

Current house value 255,172, according to Halifax, purchased for 250,000.

powerspowers

Welcome westie and happy new diary! 

One quick thought is you don’t need to combine the mortgage amounts, you can have 2 separate. Mine is in 2 that renew about 2 years apart which has helped spread the risk a bit in recent years. I do tend to stick with the same lender though as it’s competitive enough versus the pain of switching. 

I’d also have a think about pension savings as could be a more efficient way to save if you want the money at the point you retire. Not an expert just what I’ve picked up from here! 

Good luck with your mortgage free journey x

beanielou

Happy shiny new diary. 

lovemywestie

Thanks powerspowers and beanielou (forum legend!)

That's an interesting point about keeping to the same mortgage provider and remortgaging in two separate parts?  I guess it will depend on how competitive the rates are in 2026.  I quite like my current mortgage provider as they have a mortgage draw where there's the minuscule chance they might pay off your mortgage.  I like to dream!  A friend of mine did will £1K from the prize draw a couple of years ago so it can be done. 

Pension - I've paid into workplace pensions since I was 22 and currently make contributions to 17.5%, I'm pretty happy with that.  I'd like to retire early (maybe 60) (or at least take a less stressful job/work part time) so I will need available cash to bridge the 7 year gap.  

lovemywestie

Payday yesterday so here is the budget for November:

Salary: 3277.00
Extra income: 628.00 (payment for a bit of extra work completed in 2024)

Home

• Mortgage 779.52
• Mortgage overpayment 20.48 (transfer to Halifax)
• Council tax 149.00
• Groceries 350.00

Total 1299

Bills

• Mobile phone 1 29.99
• Mobile phone 2 10.78
• Sky 37.00
• Octopus 88.87
• Put aside for water bill and future gas and electricity (put aside 200 per month for utilities - transfer to Monzo) 111.13
• TV license 1 13.25
• TV license 2 15.00

Total 306.02

Dog

• Meds 73.00
• Pet health club 20.99
• Pet insurance 16.77

Total 110.76

Travel

• Diesel 40.00
• Travel to work (local office x3 visits) 20.00

Total 60.00

Other stuff

• Instant Ink 5.49
• Apple  (could do with a file audit and moving files to (free) work/PhD OneDrives as my personal files don't take up that much space) 2.99
• Guide dogs 5
• Donkey Sanctuary 5
• Monzo Plus 5 (contemplating ditching this)
• Gym for us both 53.00

Total 76.48

Savings

• S&S ISA 150.00
• Stupid 1p challenge that really annoys me but actually the money will go towards car costs next year (move into Monzo) 95.85

Total 245.85


Debt

• Bedroom furniture (completely forgot about this debt, furniture came on Tuesday): 23
• Student loan overpayment, as I will probably pay it off due to my income, so might as well chip away at it: 50
• Next bill (new mirror, completely forgot about this also) 80

Total 153.00

Personal spends (clothes, meals out, toiletries)

• Me 150
• Him 150

Total 300

Income: 3905
Outgoings: 2551.11

Left to be allocated: 1353.89


To do:
Put £1500 into bank current account for prize draw (and withdraw it out)
Transfer money to Monzo for various pots (utilities, our personal spends, etc.)
Pick up dogs meds
Pick up my meds
Food planning

lovemywestie

Peri-menopause insomnia strikes again (can fall asleep, can't stay asleep) so thought I may as well update here...

The good

• Money shuffle into various pots completed.  Just need to keep an eye on various DDs going out now.
• Moved (saved) £1100 into M4rcus bank account.  Trying to build an emergency easy access fund/cash pot for annual bills, as most of our cash is fairly locked away and I feel a bit exposed without access to ready cash.  I have a couple of credit cards but really want not to build up debt.  So some of the will pay for car insurance and tax in Dec.  Have left c. 250 in the current account just in case I've missed anything out.
• Was birthday last week. -£85 in cash as gifts.  £20 spent on a nice meal from our favourite independent burger place (burger, fries and a drink for a tenner - bargain!).  The rest is in cash in my purse.  Not sure what I will get with it, I did see a lovely robin's nest in Wait rose (£12) that I might treat the birds to, otherwise will tuck the money away until I see something I like.  I find it so hard to spend money on myself, it's ridiculous - poverty mindset.
• Joined C0-0p members scheme a couple of weeks ago which is a revelation. Our local C0-0p (10 mins drive away) is quite small and expensive, we wouldn't do a full shop there, but we've had a stream of £1 off shops, and have been getting 4 pints of milk for 35p/50p.  We drink a lot of milk so this is a win.  Will pop over in my lunch break tomorrow to get some more, picking up some bread from the lovely bakery at the same time.
• The flooring guy came to look at the floorboards and provide a quote.  The floorboards look good and they can fit us in when we are away in Dec.  This is great as I do not want to be here with our anxious dog while they make noise and mess.  Quote still to be finalised but around £1400 for master bedroom, hall, stairs and landing.  Floorboards are needed as the dog has allergies and on our last holiday (where there were all exposed floorboards/no carpet) he did not scratch/lick paws/shake his head once so we're going to try it here.  Also I love the look!

To do list - done!

Put £1500 into bank current account for prize draw (and withdraw it out)
Transfer money to Monzo for various pots (utilities, our personal spends, etc
Pick up dogs meds
Pick up my meds
Food planning

The bad

• Had various vouchers for C4ffe N3ro - spent £1 for two large drinks and a slice of cake (which was shared).  Unfortunately the drinks were meh, and the cake curiously tasteless.  Was relieved it only cost £1!  Sad as I love a C4ffe N3ro but our nearest one is a few towns away/45 minute drive, so we made a bit of an effort to get there.  Did combine the visit with going to our burger place and popping into Wait rose (again, we love Wait Rose but this is the nearest one to us now and is a trek away) so it wasn't a total loss.
• Not feeling brill, had covid/flu jabs last Thurs that left me feeling sore and under the weather. DP also has a head cold and is feeling pretty miserable, I'm hoping I don't get it as work is so busy - I worked 8.30-5.20 and then 7pm-10pm today and still have loads to do this week.  Did manage a lunchtime walk to Sainsbo's with DP and mutt, it took us 1hr 10mins to walk there and back with the mutt needing to sniff every fallen leaf, but the gentle walk in the daylight did us all good.

In the next post I'm going to sketch out the agenda for the rest of the month and also the annual bills/upcoming bills, as I do need to keep track of these.

lovemywestie

This month

We are meant to get a performance related pay rise by the end of this month - LM said I've been rated as 'exceeds' but no news yet on what the pay increases will be. 4.5% would be nice, but as we got a COL increase of 4.5% in April I think it'll be nearer 2-3%.  With tax, SL, Pension, it won't be much, but even £50 a month would be welcomed - it will pay for the bedroom furniture I forgot I took out on 0% credit!!

It's looking like a quiet month - we have theatre tickets for the 8th, and nabbed free cinema tickets for 31/10 (to see The Shining) - not sure if I want to go, as it is Halloween and I don't want the mutt to be upset by trick or treaters knocking the door.  We didn't get many trick or treaters in the old house, as it wasn't that sort of area, but this area is a bit more family orientated, so it might be busier.  If we do go, I've got a sign asking people not to knock the door, and we've already bought sweets, so if it's not raining, I will put the sign up and leave the bowl of sweets out for people to help themselves.

I've given myself 150 personal spends this month.  This is where I lose control.  Coffees, meals, food out, stuff for the house, I can easily spend £000's and have nothing to show for it.  Have put the cash into a M0nz0 pot so I can monitor it better.  

Trying to minimise going into the office to save on travel costs.  Am in London for the day next week, travel is all paid upfront by work, but I must remember to book a train ticket that includes the tube, otherwise I never bother claiming back the few pounds it costs for tube travel.  Will pack my own lunch - we never have time to pop out for lunch anyway as when we meet we cram a lot in, so if I don't pack my own lunch I always end up in Euston station buying a M&S meal deal for a ridiculous amount.  Will access Oct0pus code for a free N3r0 or Gr3ggs drink though.

Annual bills Round Up
I much prefer to pay annual bills upfront (to save cash where possible, also to minimise pesky, irritating DDs leaving my account on a monthly basis).  Before buying our current house, we had built up enough cash savings to pay them without any fuss.  But now, as cash reserves are depleted, I need to start saving carefully and/or cash flow them.

Nov 24
Pay balance on holiday - 316
We are contemplating leaving a day early for our holiday, breaking up the journey and staying in a TL hotel near the Severn Bridge parkrun (DP is a runner).  Hotel is 40.99 plus 20.00 for mutt.  Might book this on a flexi rate soon, so we can always cancel if we change our minds nearer the date.

December 24
Holiday - food spends, diesel.
Flooring - £1400
Xmas - only buy for three people, but one is DP, who I like to treat.  Food spends.
Car tax - 185
Car insurance - who knows
Various meals out for Xmas but work's is paid for.
A lovely three weeks off - I cannot wait

Feb 25
DP's birthday - I usually do a joint cash gift covering Xmas and birthday in December
Normally book a June holiday

March 25
Car MOT and service - the most nerve-racking part of the year 
Garden waste bin renewal 

April 25
House insurance
Amazon Prime
Pay balance for June holiday
Gym - need to leave gym and go to a closer/cheaper one

June 25
Pet insurance, auto-renewed last year but will get quotes next year as I want to increase his cover
Holiday 1 - Devon/Dorset - plus potential decorating of living room, dining room, kitchen, utility?

July/August
£29 will storage
Last minute cheap break?  Devon/Dorset

September - would like to go back to Suffolk, we went this year in Sept and had a great time
Ring renewal

October/November - pretty quiet for annual bills


Other things I would like
A shed,/summerhouse but how much are sheds and shed bases these days??
Lawn treatment guy - every three months, £22 a pop
Need to book window cleaner as they are filthy after the roof guys antics
White goods - tumble drier is on way out (survive for one more winter, please)

Right, feeling sleepier now so will try to get back to sleep! Ta ra

redofromstart

Happy new diary and welcome from a fellow perimenopause insomniac.