Part 255: Birthday Week

Hello and welcome back to Mortgage Advisor on FIRE.  This week I discuss house buying, time in the market, and look back on a great birthday week.

Weekly Update

It’s been a busy week as I’ve celebrated my birthday, and I’ve had a great time I’m pleased to report. 

On Monday Oana and I went for a walk along the canal from Kelham Island to Rotherham. We stopped for photos and lunch along the way, and it took roughly three hours for us to complete the walk.  It was so nice and peaceful, and we were able to see lots of ducks, swans, herons, and cormorants.  We also saw the new sculpture that’s been showcased in the local, and national news.

People are strange in both good and bad ways, and one of the good examples comes from when you are out for a walk.  You can walk down the street and pass someone without acknowledging each other.  However, those same two people passing each other in the countryside or along a river or canal, and suddenly it’s all “hello” and “good morning”.  It just goes to show how easily people will group themselves based on the most vague situations; we are both walking along the same river, for example. 

Birthday Brunch

We went for brunch on Wednesday morning with my Mom and her husband.  The food was amazing; I had salt beef brisket with hollandaise.  Oana had Turkish eggs.  We ate at Tamper in the city centre.  It’s a Kiwi-inspired restaurant although I’m not sure what the Kiwi influence is.  Ignoring that for a moment, the food is consistently great and it’s not surprising that you generally have to book in advance.

In the evening we popped down to my Dad’s place and ordered some food in.  It was nice chilling out with good food and company.  

It was a more low-key birthday than last year, but that’s what I wanted.

Time for gifts…

But what about my birthday gifts?  A few people chipped in to help buy me the Lego Titanic, which is amazing, but the service from Lego was poor.  The order was placed on Friday 6th September in the afternoon.  On the Lego website, it states that if you order before 14:30 you will receive it the next day in Metropolitan locations if you pay £18 for Express Delivery.  As someone living in a city centre apartment, you would think that qualifies.  

I knew I’d missed the 14:30 deadline on Friday but logically you would think that it would meet the deadline for Monday, meaning the order would be here Tuesday.  You would be wrong.  I spoke with Lego on Monday as the order was not yet showing as dispatched and they explained that the Express Delivery timescales only apply from the point the order is handed to DPD.

I was not given any explanation for the next day promise from the Lego website, but I was advised I would get a refund on the delivery fee.

On Tuesday I had to contact Lego again because the courier, DHL and not DPD as I was told, had contacted me to let me know the item would probably be delivered Wednesday the 11th (my birthday), but it might be later in the week.  At this point, we are in the delivery window expected from the standard, free, delivery option.  

Making the situation worse…

Lego advised that because the order was placed just before the weekend, it would cause delays.  I still don’t understand this explanation.  I told them I was not impressed and that the delivery would be an issue because I live in an apartment with no secure postroom.  Also, items are frequently stolen from the postroom.  So if DHL turns up and leaves the box, the likelihood is it will be gone by the time I get home. 

If I had a delivery window, I’d be able to wait for it as I normally do with DPD or Yodel.  All I had here was an aim to deliver on Wednesday, but it might be later.  If I wasn’t in when DHL arrived and they decided to take it to a collection point instead, I’d have a hard time getting the box home as it’s massive.  This is a model costing £589.  

Calling bullshit

I explained all this, and why I’d paid for express delivery, and how I wasn’t happy potentially having to cancel plans to wait in on my birthday for a package that might not arrive.  Lego said it wasn’t their fault and it was down to their courier.  I called bullshit on this; if they can’t exert control over their courier, perhaps they should use a different one.  Eventually, I was offered a £20 gift card as an apology.  I accepted.

As of Friday, I’d not received the £18 refund of the delivery fee that I was promised on Monday.  It turns out they cancelled the refund when they offered the gift card.  I was not impressed.  After more back and forth I was given the refund and the gift card.  It really shouldn’t be this difficult to deal with a retailer.  I’d not asked for anything unusual and had simply gone with what I was offered and promised.  It’s the first time Lego has let me down this badly though.    

Fortunate timing…

I didn’t wait in on Wednesday as I had plans for my birthday.  Also, for some reason, DHL doesn’t provide live updates.  DPD and Yodel show you where in the queue you are and where the driver is up to, i.e. you are stop 50 and the driver is on 23 of 200.  As we were walking through our courtyard I saw the driver ringing our apartment with a massive box at his side.  Good timing in the end.

This set is going to be amazing.  It’s over 9,000 pieces, whereas the next biggest set I have is Rivendell with just over 6,000 pieces.  Getting lost in a huge Lego set while listening to an audiobook or podcast is so relaxing, and it’s no secret that many autistic people feel the same way.

As the week drew to a close I accompanied my Dad on a viewing for a property he is interested in buying.  It was a group viewing with a young woman also taking a look at the apartment.  The viewing was completed by the agent and the owner had gone out.

It’s a nice apartment and I spent a bit of time looking at the person’s bookshelf and was amazed how many of the same books we had.  I could probably have an interesting chat with them, so I was sorry they weren’t home.  They also had a cat, but despite me wandering around going “pspspsps” I couldn’t find them.

My Dad likes the place and has put an offer in, which has been verbally accepted.  Property transactions are never simple though, and I don’t think he’ll feel like he can celebrate until contracts are exchanged.

Things to consider when buying a property…

The viewing I attended, and some of the questions I heard the young woman asking the agent, got me thinking about things people should consider when buying a property.  We don’t learn this stuff as a matter of course in school, so you’re relying on those you spend the most time with to give you information and advice.  

The Agent

There are some great estate agents out there, apparently.  The main thing to remember when looking to buy a property is that the agent does not have your best interests at heart.  They work for the person selling the property, and generally will only get paid when it sells.  They don’t have any obligation to you other than abiding by the law and basic professional guidelines.  The long and short of it is they are trying to sell you something.  Always remember this and take the information given with a pinch of salt.  The phrase, “trust, but verify” springs to mind.

Exit Strategy

If you are buying a property for cash, i.e. no mortgage, you might be tempted to ignore mortgages entirely.  This would be a mistake.

There are many reasons why a property might not be suitable security for a mortgage, such as the proximity of things like takeaways, garages, or other non-residential buildings.  The property might be in a flood-risk area, or it might be in a building that has safety concerns.  If you are a cash buyer there might not be anyone to point these things out to you, especially if you go for a very basic survey or simply don’t instruct one.  What you need to think about is your exit strategy.

Unless you are buying your forever home, you will need to either sell or let your property out when you move.  When selling, you need to consider the pool of buyers.  If you are only wanting to deal with cash buyers, your list of potential buyers will shrink quickly.  If you have a property that lenders are not willing to lend against, then you might find yourself stuck with that property.  

It’s for this reason that it might still be worth getting a small mortgage when buying a property because you will have something of a safety net provided by the lender, and you can always pay the mortgage off if you have the funds.  Granted, you will pay more interest and possibly some fees for arranging the mortgage, but it is something worth considering.

Remember, lenders want to make money and if they refuse to lend against a property there will generally be a good reason.

Present and future needs, and the local area…

It’s vital to consider not only your present needs but also what your future needs may look like.  Every time you move home you will incur costs and experience a great deal of stress.  Where possible, it’s advisable to minimise the number of times you move home.  It’s a bit like when you were a kid and your parents would buy you clothes to grow into.  

Another factor to consider is how the local area is changing.  Where I live, our apartment block was one of the first to go up.  Since then the number of apartments and homes within a few hundred meters has more than tripled I would guess.  There have been at least half a dozen new apartment blocks built, as well as a number of new eco-friendly homes.  

This surge in population has impacted on the availability of parking spaces and increased the need for other public services.  Although our area is considered one of the best in the UK (and according to a recent-ish article one of the best in the world) if the population keeps growing it will probably reach a tipping point.  

Who is buying?

One of the biggest mistakes many first-time buyers make is buying a property with someone they’ve never lived with before.  There is a huge difference between living with someone, and just sleeping at each other’s place most nights.  If you are just sleeping at each other’s, you always have the option to go home but if you are living together, you see each other at your worst.  If you are thinking of buying somewhere together, please try living with each other first in a rented place.  You may save each other a lot of time, money, energy, and stress.

A friend of mine is going through an awful situation at the moment because he made this mistake.  When he was much younger he bought somewhere with his girlfriend.  They split up and she continued living in the house.  It was agreed he would not pay anything to the mortgage, and she continued living there for years, having other relationships and raising her children there.  At some point, she stopped paying the mortgage and this impacted my friend’s credit rating.  Also, she put him back on the council tax at the property without him knowing and then stopped paying that.  Fast forward a few years and he’s now being chased by debt collectors trying to get their money for the council.  The property was repossessed by the bank, and that is another mark against his name.

Seriously, before you sign the biggest financial commitment of your life, please make sure you have done a trial run of living together first.  

Amazing Meal

On Saturday we went for a meal at Grappa in Sheffield, and it was fantastic.  I had a trio of bruschetta for a starter, and then lamb meatballs in a tomato sauce with pappardelle.  It was one of the nicest pastas I’ve had in the UK.  For dessert Oana and I shared tiramisu and it was lovely.  Oana and I have had lunch here before, but this was the first time we’ve had a proper dinner.  We’ll be going back.

There was one funny incident where Oana and my Mom had both ordered the same starter; mushrooms in a gorgonzola sauce served with toasted bread.  They served it on a flat wooden board.  A cheese sauce on a board.  Yes, as the waitress brought the food over the sauce was dripping off the board across the floor.  I think they’ll be switching to plates for that meal from now on.  

Gousto

On the subject of food, we are still enjoying our Gousto boxes.  The range of recipes is great and the food is mega tasty.  If you want to sign up please use my link below and you’ll receive a discount.

Gousto Referral Link

I’ve learned a few things from these recipes as well, such as the massive difference using stock can make to almost any recipe.  Also, using soy sauce instead of salt in many non-Asian recipes can work wonders.  Something else I’ve learned is that a small amount of marmite in a tomato-based pasta sauce adds a nice depth of flavour.  

Diabetes UK Step Challenge

I’m making great progress towards the 1,000,000 step target, and I’ve now completed over 600,000 steps.

From July 1st until September 30th Diabetes UK is running a step challenge to raise money for their cause.  There are three step targets to choose from; 500k, 1m, or 1.7m.  I had originally gone for the 1.7m steps, but it’s become clear I’ve bitten off more than I can chew.  I’m now aiming for the 1m target.  

You can follow my progress and donate here.

https://step.diabetes.org.uk/fundraising/david4047

Letters to Oana

If you missed it, Part 2 of the series Letters to Oana is now live.

Looking Back

Part 15 of the Looking Back series is also live.

What I’m Doing

Listening: Not Till We Are Lost (Bobiverse Book 5) by Dennis E. Taylor.

Watching: The Perfect Couple (Netflix).

I frickin love the Bobiverse series.  It’s a sci-fi series about a guy who dies and is brought back as an AI, which is then uploaded into a Von Neumann probe.  It’s batshit crazy and I love it.  There’s some interesting science but it’s not a science lecture; it’s entertaining and thought-provoking.  

Oana and I watched The Perfect Couple of Netflix and it was bad.  There are levels of bad when it comes to TV.  There’s bad, so bad it’s good, so bad it’s insulting, and so bad they have a choreographed dance number as the intro involving all the cast even though it makes no sense.  The only good thing about the show was Liev Schreiber who seemed to be having a great time.  

Website Stuff

It’s getting to that time of year when I need to pay to renew my domain and plan with my site host.  I will probably never make money from this blog but I would like to reduce what it costs me to run.  There are a couple of ways you can help and it will not cost you anything.

Sharing

If you share my blog posts on your social media you are helping me get more traffic.  The more traffic I get, the more ads the site serves, and the more ads served the more revenue I get.  It’s a few seconds of your time, but it will make a big difference for me.

Interactions

Liking and commenting on posts will help boost the site and attract more traffic.  

Subscribe

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Donations

This is the one that involves paying something.  I’ll never put the site behind a paywall.  However, should you wish to donate to the running costs of the site it would be greatly appreciated.  You can do this via the form below.  You can select one of the suggested amounts or choose your own.

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Financial Update

Assets

Premium Bonds: £14,050.00.

Stocks and Shares ISA: £91,925.53.

Fuck It Fund: £4,016.35.

Pensions: £82,534.00.

Residential Property Value: £234,044.00. 

Total Assets: £426,569.88.

Debts

Debts

Residential Mortgage: £185,693.35. 

Total Debts: £185,693.35.

Total Wealth: £240,876.53.

I have now maxed out my ISA for this financial year, and I’ve hit the goals I had for my ISA and pension this calendar year.  I wanted to get to £80k in both by the end of 2024 and I’ve smashed it well ahead of time.  

The priority now is saving money to use to fund my upcoming mini-retirement.  It’s unlikely that I’ll max out my ISA in the 25/26 financial year but if I can get to £100k in my ISA by the start of the new financial year I’ll be delighted with that progress.  Typical rates of growth on £100k should see it double every decade without another penny being invested.  

In reality it will take a little longer for my ISA balance to double in that way, as I’ll be using some of the income from the ISA to live off instead of being reinvested.  I would hope to be earning money again this time next year and so I can speed up the accumulation of my investment pot.

There’s no substitute for time in the market…

I’ve often said that if I knew at 18 years old what I know now, I’d be a millionaire several times over by now.  Time in the market is everything.  

If an 18 year old was to invest £100pm for twenty years, with typical growth they would have a little over £52,000.  If they waited until they were 28 years old and then invested £200pm for ten years, they would only have around £34,500.  It’s the same amount of money invested in each scenario; £24,000, but in the former scenario the interest has more time to work its magic.

Starting early, even if it’s just small amounts, can make an incredible difference over the course of a working life.  

That’s all for this week.  Thanks for reading and I hope you have a great week ahead.

Disclaimer

The views and opinions in this blog are my own, and do not represent the views or opinions of my employer, nor should they be considered advice.  

If you want personalised financial advice, seek an appropriate professional.  If you are in financial difficulty, seek advice via the resources below:

StepChange

MoneyHelper

Biolink 

You can now find all my social media pages by checking out my Biolink:

bio.link/davidscothern.