Turning Straw into Gold: Creating Long Term Security & A Solid Home

southern_chick

“if your debt isn't gone within 2 years you're not being aggressive enough”

This has got to be the most ridiculous and unhelpful advice you could read so honestly ignore it. Your debt could be £500 or £50,000 so this could be totally unrealistic to pay in 2 years. You are doing amazingly well and everything that you can do xx

Chocolatefund

I've heard this before.

The logic behind it is that the longer you take to get rid of debt, the less chance of success. It becomes harder to stay motivated and you essentially give 'life' more chance to throw something at you that will derail your efforts. There's also the mathematics of saving more interest the quicker you can pay it off.

But yeah, it's a bold blanket statement that really needs more context.

I reckon you've got a good shot of nuking that post grad loan though.

MillQueen

Right, I am throwing out the quote, by popular consensus.

@southern_chick, it's £18,362, so to clear it in 2 years would be £765 per month, which would be difficult.

@Chocolatefund, I hear you about there being less chance of success if it takes longer.

My wish for speed is just because I am finding the debt quite draining to have hanging over me.

MillQueen

I really need to stop reading stuff, as it stresses me out. I just saw in the news that due to inflation we will all now apparently need 75k a year in our pension pot for a comfortable retirement. For god's sake, that's more than most people are ever going to earn a year. Can we collectively agree to throw this claim out too? All I'm going to do in my old age is stay at home in my hopefully paid off house and not spend anything.

I've stayed at home to work today which has saved me about £7.50 on petrol and I was hoping to do that on Friday too, but now I have to go in for a F2F meeting that's only half an hour - seems like a massive waste of time to spend hours travelling there and back. I'm in every other day, so must try to take my own lunches instead of buying expensive ones from the work canteen. It's about £7 for a baked potato. I've finished off the Overnight Oats which have been lingering forever (I'm back on the weetabix now!) and having a packet of dried pasta and sauce for lunch from the cupboard. A no spend Monday to set me up for a sensible week.

MillQueen

My water flosser broke this morning, so I need to buy another. Luckily, I started a repair and replace fund last month and there's £100 in it, so it's nice to have something set aside already. I was really excited to have this 😂. It will be about £30 to replace it, but I'll have a look around for a cheaper one first.

I'm at my desk eating greek yoghurt that I already had in the fridge and drinking free water from the office cooler, and I've got a pasta pot in my drawer that I can have for lunch. I drove here mindfully, going a bit slower instead of rushing, to save on fuel, so it can hopefully remain a low cost day.

On a mission to keep as much of my money as possible.

Dakota_Rose

The driving more slowly to save fuel resonates with me. I never used to bother my backside to be honest, but since owning a plug-in hybrid car with a small battery, I try to eke it out for as long as I can. I see it as a real victory if I can get home without using the petrol engine 😂. I’m now slower to accelerate than I’ve ever been driving the most powerful car I’ve ever had 🙈.

FootyFanDan

I think it is so difficult now regarding pensions and savings, everywhere on YT/Socials all you see is people saying you should be doing this and that. It sometimes worries me for the future and whether I will have enough. Although I have always paid into my work place pensions (for what that will be worth in the future lol). I am trying to catch up but there is only so much you can fund it whilst also living for the now as well.

vampirotoothus

Hi I got a water flosser for £12.99 on Ama zon, it's as good as the one that I bought for twice that.
Also, don't stress about the debts, they are going down, but you are also saving and planning ahead, which is where your money is going too. You are doing a great job! V x

MillQueen

@Dakota_Rose, that sounds like a fun challenge not to use the petrol and also a bonus of creating less air pollution. I would love my next car to be a hybrid, this current one is just a 1 litre petrol engine and is the most economical car I have had so far. I have found being in less of a rush helps with wellbeing too!

@FootyFanDan, I know it's everywhere all the things we should be doing with our cash. I get worried when I see all the things I ought to be doing with all the money I apparently should have left over at the end of the month. But I think the reality is for most people now that there is very little leftover after costs.

@vampirotoothus, £12.99 is amazing! I'll have a look on there thanks. Yes, the debts are going down, and thank you for saying these kind comments, it's comforting as I get stressed that I am not doing enough!

In other news, I am rejoining the gym, which is an extra expense but I feel it's worthwhile, as I used to get good use out of it. I went every day for years until I moved here last year, then with the mortgage payments being so big I stopped my membership. I miss swimming and going to classes, and I used the cardio and resistance machines every day. I have gained 2 stone since I stopped and my energy and stress levels were much healthier before. I looked at some local classes and because those are so expensive now, even if I went to a couple a week it would be as much as a gym membership, so I might as well rejoin and have access to all that in with the price. I feel quite guilty over the money but it's the only thing I do aside from work.

MillQueen

Sometimes you have got laugh. I just went on my laptop and my newsfeed says…

"COMFORTABLE RETIREMENT NOW COSTS UK COUPLES £1.2M, ANALYSIS SHOWS".

I think it was just yesterday that I was ranting about apparently only needing £75,000, so that's gone up sharply since yesterday's news 😂.