Help to keep me honest

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  • Dear diary and all,
    I suspected that spending had been creeping up a bit and indeed looking at my budget I can see that this has been the case. Looking at YNAB our discretionary spend categories averaged around £1600 per month for the 10 months up to March this year. In April we spent £2,000 so up by 25%. Also debt overpayments stopped in February and March. We have managed to pull things back a bit and this month made a payment of £673.
    We have been talking about how we will spend the extra money that will be available once the debt is gone and I need to reign this in a bit otherwise there will be pressure to spend money we don’t have. I need to maintain the mindset I have developed over the last couple of years.
    Still hopeful about the promotion and pay rise coming through, should find out in the next couple of months. I am aiming to put 50% of it into the pension and use 50% to allow us to so some of the things we have put off for so long.
    Going to see DS perform in a concert this evening, should be fun!
    Have a great day all.
    Aiming to early retire in April 2025 - DC pension currently £345k 
  • System
    System Posts: 178,077
    Photogenic Name Dropper First Post
    Community Admin
    All still looking good on all fronts. Am sure you will be wise with your spending after an initial splurge .
  • All still looking good on all fronts. Am sure you will be wise with your spending after an initial splurge .
    Thanks Cumbria, I hope you are right! :)
    Aiming to early retire in April 2025 - DC pension currently £345k 
  • Dear diary and all,
    I got some great news this week, I found out that my promotion has gone through! One of the senior managers came to see me in person which was a really nice touch. It was a long process which started last November, and to be honest I couldn’t quite believe it had happened, its still sinking in. It is effective 1st August so should see the difference from the end of August onwards. I have spoken to OH and we are going to split it 50% extra pension contributions and 50% as income.
    Have a great day all!
    Aiming to early retire in April 2025 - DC pension currently £345k 
  • Dear diary and all,
    Went to collect DS yesterday evening from Uni as he has to leave his accommodation by the end of the month. Quite amusing when we got home he asked us “What are you two doing this evening?”. OH and I looked at each other a bit bemused thinking, well sitting and watching tv of course, is there anything else? I think we may have become a bit staid and boring! Its nice to have him home, we will enjoy the Bank Holiday and then he needs to think about what he is going to do over the summer.
    On the money front, the debt is now down to £1000 and I am aiming to finally pay this off at the end of June. We are having a big decoration job done starting Tuesday next week. It will cost £900 but he is very good and his work is of good quality and lasts. Part of it is the hallway landing and stairs which is something I have not attempted in the past, but also it’s a time problem for me at the moment as well. We have had some quotes for carpets for stairs and landing (£850) and bedroom (£350). This is from a local carpet shop which we have always used in the past, very good service and their carpets seem to last. These prices are for quite good quality carpet. We can’t remember when they were last changed, at least 10 years and possibly 15. Anyway, since the price is quite high I have decided to hold fire until the debt is paid off and so we will probably get that done in September. Its hard to wait but after 2 ½ years of driving the debt down I want it gone for good now.
    Hope you all have a great bank holiday!
    Aiming to early retire in April 2025 - DC pension currently £345k 
  • System
    System Posts: 178,077
    Photogenic Name Dropper First Post
    Community Admin
    Faboulous news on your promotion , and now the last leg of the debt. You will be over the finishing line very soon.

    Your DS made me laugh with his question, I get asked the same question by my own DD but it is to gauge if I am free for baby sitting., All your plan for the house sound really good and well thought out.

    Have a good BH. Hope to be able to see you debt free next time I read your diary.
  • Faboulous news on your promotion , and now the last leg of the debt. You will be over the finishing line very soon.

    Your DS made me laugh with his question, I get asked the same question by my own DD but it is to gauge if I am free for baby sitting., All your plan for the house sound really good and well thought out.

    Have a good BH. Hope to be able to see you debt free next time I read your diary.

    Thanks Cumbria. That's funny about your DD :rotfl:
    Aiming to early retire in April 2025 - DC pension currently £345k 
  • Dear diary and all,

    DS and OH are both snoozing away so a good chance for me to take stock of things. I think I am going to organise these thoughts into short, medium and long term. I need to set this out since I can feel bad old spending temptations entering my head as we approach debt free date! If I set out my goals here then I can remind myself why we are doing things when temptations occur and stay on the right MSE path.

    Short term (1-3 months)
    Having DS at home has got me and OH thinking that actually over the summer we would like to have at least some flexibility to do some things as a family. Not sure what yet, perhaps camping trips and a short break to the coast. We need a bit of room in the budget for this, so we have decided to delay the new carpeting until after the summer. We will go ahead with the redecorating which starts next Tuesday. This means we will still hit the debt free target of end of June. Still need to keep an eye on the spending. I can see the grocery budget going up a bit now DS is home!

    Medium term (12-18 months)
    We can afford to get the carpeting done in September / October. Over the next 12 months I aim to achieve 2 things. Firstly, build up savings (emergency fund plus long terms savings) to a decent level, aiming for around £10,000 across the two. Secondly, build up a replacement car fund of £8,000. Our current car is 14 years old and has 146,000 miles on the clock. I would love to run it forever, but need to be realistic.

    Long term (10 years)
    I want to be able to choose what I do at 60. I’m not using the word retire since I don’t think I will retire in the traditional sense. But I want to be financially independent and be able to choose what I do. In order to do this I need to do two things. Firstly, when our mortgage comes up for renewal in October I will adjust the term to 8 years so it is paid off before I am 60. This will increase the mortgage payment by approx.. £300 since at the moment the mortgage is on a longer term. Secondly, I am going to increase my pension contributions. Pay rise for promotion should come through in August, so my plan is to put 50% of it into the pension AVCs. I have built a spreadsheet and along with other pension provisions I have made then it should be enough to retire/semi-retire at 60. I will get professional advice nearer the time.

    Since my LBM in November 2015 we have repaid £16,420 which is approx £530 per month. So now we can use that payment for something positive and useful!

    Have a great day all.
    Aiming to early retire in April 2025 - DC pension currently £345k 
  • Dear diary and all,

    This week has been really busy at work including a bit of travel and an overnight stay away. I used to do a lot of travelling in my previous job and to be honest I don!!!8217;t really miss it ! The painting and decorating of the hallway landing and stairs is finished, it has really lifted the house and brightened it up. It cost £950 which is a lot but well worth it. On the money front, still on track to make the last payment in just over 2 weeks time. To be honest although I do feel great about finally reaching the end of non-mortgage debt, I am only too aware that we have low savings and so are only one issue (boiler packs up, car etc) away from a problem. Its only a step on the journey. So the next priority will be to build up a decent amount of savings to cover for both emergencies and also replacing the car for example. Last night went to watch DS perform at a concert at his Uni where they performed songs from various musicals, fantastic night and really enjoyed it. This weekend is catching up on various chores whilst trying to relax and get over this week which has been a bit manic.

    Have a great day all!
    Aiming to early retire in April 2025 - DC pension currently £345k 
  • System
    System Posts: 178,077
    Photogenic Name Dropper First Post
    Community Admin
    Wishing you well over the finishing line . Enjoy the weekend.
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