What did you do? Live for today or think of the future
Discussion
A few recent threads had me wondering what choices people made in their lives in terms of the decisions they made,reasons and was it the right one;
So I'm working full time have a mortgage (Mr average Joe with 3 bed semi detached place), but like to over pay at the moment with rates so low to aim to cut the years right down or of course have a small mortgage payment per month for the same length.
At same time I like to live life so I cant say I've watched life go by, I've built a kitcar last couple of years although a bit on going and went on holiday to Florida a couple years back and then Australia this year. Things I feel privileged to do.
But what do you then do with your spare income when you'd literally be buying something for the hell of it (on this forum probably a car or saving for that next new car), save it? invest it? Overpay mortgage? buy new place up the housing ladder?
I decided saving was never going to return the rate of over paying the mortgage and the benefit of a smaller mortgage when rates increase. I'm 31 so young in terms of work life / end goals but I know what you do now can effect your life much more when older, like pensions.
What did you do in your late 20's early 30's stage of your life. Live for today or think of the future?
So I'm working full time have a mortgage (Mr average Joe with 3 bed semi detached place), but like to over pay at the moment with rates so low to aim to cut the years right down or of course have a small mortgage payment per month for the same length.
At same time I like to live life so I cant say I've watched life go by, I've built a kitcar last couple of years although a bit on going and went on holiday to Florida a couple years back and then Australia this year. Things I feel privileged to do.
But what do you then do with your spare income when you'd literally be buying something for the hell of it (on this forum probably a car or saving for that next new car), save it? invest it? Overpay mortgage? buy new place up the housing ladder?
I decided saving was never going to return the rate of over paying the mortgage and the benefit of a smaller mortgage when rates increase. I'm 31 so young in terms of work life / end goals but I know what you do now can effect your life much more when older, like pensions.
What did you do in your late 20's early 30's stage of your life. Live for today or think of the future?
Had a kid pretty early (just turned 19) so that focused my mind a bit on completing college and getting a full time job!
From then we had an endowment mortgage for as much as we could afford even whilst renting (this was before endowments fell through the floor), we were lucky we managed to cash in before it went completely belly-up, and it meant we had already paid off x years of our mortgage on our new home.
We had quite a few years of been pretty broke - but I was working and paying a mortgage, private pension etc, so you could say we weren't flat broke but no frivolous spending.
By the time I got to my 30's my daughter was a teenager and we'd nearly finished paying the mortgage off, we could afford to go on nicer holidays (Florida a couple of times, some foreign city breaks, again, nothing massively extravagant by any means).
Now we own 2 apartments local to us and rent them out - it means that the mortgage for them is practically covered by the tenant, and we'll benefit from any increase in house prices (one of them has gone up 37k in a couple of years - bought as a reposession).
Still not loaded, but I drive a car I like and have a 56" TV what more could I want
Makes me glad I didn't overspend when I was younger - I might have had something more exciting than a brand new S reg Fiat Punto as a first car but then I wouldn't have been as financially secure as I am now.
No regrets!
From then we had an endowment mortgage for as much as we could afford even whilst renting (this was before endowments fell through the floor), we were lucky we managed to cash in before it went completely belly-up, and it meant we had already paid off x years of our mortgage on our new home.
We had quite a few years of been pretty broke - but I was working and paying a mortgage, private pension etc, so you could say we weren't flat broke but no frivolous spending.
By the time I got to my 30's my daughter was a teenager and we'd nearly finished paying the mortgage off, we could afford to go on nicer holidays (Florida a couple of times, some foreign city breaks, again, nothing massively extravagant by any means).
Now we own 2 apartments local to us and rent them out - it means that the mortgage for them is practically covered by the tenant, and we'll benefit from any increase in house prices (one of them has gone up 37k in a couple of years - bought as a reposession).
Still not loaded, but I drive a car I like and have a 56" TV what more could I want
Makes me glad I didn't overspend when I was younger - I might have had something more exciting than a brand new S reg Fiat Punto as a first car but then I wouldn't have been as financially secure as I am now.No regrets!
It's all about balance for me. I've always overpaid my mortgage, but on the other hand I've always left enough for a fun life as well. I've known people who exist at either end of the scale and there's no way I'd want their life, so I've tried to find a place in the middle where I'm most happy, which is of course very individual.
Bit of both but always been cash-poor insofar as never really having a balance in the black. Whilst its fair to say I have squandered a lot on living life quite extravagantly, I've also made myself cash poor by having large mortgages and contributing to a pension from 16 onwards, both of which made things tight cashflow wise but ultimately have performed well in terms of assets, just illiquid ones.
I've also blown a s
t load on cars, this being PH of course.
I don't do money in my pocket all that well so I think by committing to fairly hefty savings devices in a non-traditional sense such as the mortgages and the pension have been useful to me. With the money left, I've spunked it on cars, holidays and going out 5 nights a week on the sauce for the past 20 years.
Would I do it the same way again? Probably. I've got some awesome memories, I've done some awesome things of which I have no memory, and I've had fun, on the whole. I would probably have cut back on some of the needless extravagance of the past as I look back and don't see "value" in some of the spending, but perhaps I needed to pay the cost of those lessons.
Who am I trying to kid? I'm out on the lash all weekend and off to look at a new car this weekend. Fook it. Put me down in the live for today category.
I've also blown a s
t load on cars, this being PH of course.I don't do money in my pocket all that well so I think by committing to fairly hefty savings devices in a non-traditional sense such as the mortgages and the pension have been useful to me. With the money left, I've spunked it on cars, holidays and going out 5 nights a week on the sauce for the past 20 years.
Would I do it the same way again? Probably. I've got some awesome memories, I've done some awesome things of which I have no memory, and I've had fun, on the whole. I would probably have cut back on some of the needless extravagance of the past as I look back and don't see "value" in some of the spending, but perhaps I needed to pay the cost of those lessons.
Who am I trying to kid? I'm out on the lash all weekend and off to look at a new car this weekend. Fook it. Put me down in the live for today category.
Serious Q?
I find it very hard to spend money. I am a hard-core saver and it's getting worse as I get older. The funny thing is that, the more I save, the tighter I get. Suffice it to say that I had paid off two mortgages on places in London by the age of 34 and still own them both, as well as making some fairly significant investments since the age of 25 or so.
And yet, despite this, I struggle to splash out on anything! This morning I bought a new case for my mobile 'phone (cheapo Moto G, should you be wondering) and was careful to buy the quite adequate £3 one rather than the much nicer one for £8.
So, to answer the question, 'Think of the future'.
Oli.
I find it very hard to spend money. I am a hard-core saver and it's getting worse as I get older. The funny thing is that, the more I save, the tighter I get. Suffice it to say that I had paid off two mortgages on places in London by the age of 34 and still own them both, as well as making some fairly significant investments since the age of 25 or so.
And yet, despite this, I struggle to splash out on anything! This morning I bought a new case for my mobile 'phone (cheapo Moto G, should you be wondering) and was careful to buy the quite adequate £3 one rather than the much nicer one for £8.
So, to answer the question, 'Think of the future'.
Oli.
zcacogp said:
Serious Q?
I find it very hard to spend money. I am a hard-core saver and it's getting worse as I get older. The funny thing is that, the more I save, the tighter I get. Suffice it to say that I had paid off two mortgages on places in London by the age of 34 and still own them both, as well as making some fairly significant investments since the age of 25 or so.
And yet, despite this, I struggle to splash out on anything! This morning I bought a new case for my mobile 'phone (cheapo Moto G, should you be wondering) and was careful to buy the quite adequate £3 one rather than the much nicer one for £8.
So, to answer the question, 'Think of the future'.
Oli.
I think for me it's a case of choosing the areas I save in and the ones I spend in. Like you I have a cheap phone case, but inside it is a brand new iPhone 6 I find it very hard to spend money. I am a hard-core saver and it's getting worse as I get older. The funny thing is that, the more I save, the tighter I get. Suffice it to say that I had paid off two mortgages on places in London by the age of 34 and still own them both, as well as making some fairly significant investments since the age of 25 or so.
And yet, despite this, I struggle to splash out on anything! This morning I bought a new case for my mobile 'phone (cheapo Moto G, should you be wondering) and was careful to buy the quite adequate £3 one rather than the much nicer one for £8.
So, to answer the question, 'Think of the future'.
Oli.
Equally, I'd think nothing of spending £1,000 on a set of slick racing tyres or double that on a new bike, but I make my own lunch each day because I'm horrified at the idea of buying lunch! I also wash my own car most of the time. What one chooses to spend and save on is something that defines us all and is very individual.Future, I will spend it, just a matter of when
I often worry about loosing my job and having to take something that doesn't suit because I have no option
My family are very sensible with money, girlfriends are awful
My parents in their 60's are having the time of their lives, basically doing what they like, but they were frugal all their lives. However dad had a brain tumour issue last year, if he'd croaked it it might have been a different matter.
I often worry about loosing my job and having to take something that doesn't suit because I have no option
My family are very sensible with money, girlfriends are awful
My parents in their 60's are having the time of their lives, basically doing what they like, but they were frugal all their lives. However dad had a brain tumour issue last year, if he'd croaked it it might have been a different matter.
RobM77 said:
I think for me it's a case of choosing the areas I save in and the ones I spend in. Like you I have a cheap phone case, but inside it is a brand new iPhone 6 Equally, I'd think nothing of spending £1,000 on a set of slick racing tyres or double that on a new bike, but I make my own lunch each day because I'm horrified at the idea of buying lunch! I also wash my own car most of the time. What one chooses to spend and save on is something that defines us all and is very individual.
Yes, and that's an interesting outlook on life. People who don't know me that well think that I am tight. However I'm not - I do spend quite a lot of money on some things when it seems to be worthwhile. I think the point is that I hate waste, therefore I hate spending money on things that are not good value. Equally, I'd think nothing of spending £1,000 on a set of slick racing tyres or double that on a new bike, but I make my own lunch each day because I'm horrified at the idea of buying lunch! I also wash my own car most of the time. What one chooses to spend and save on is something that defines us all and is very individual.Buying a very expensive coat is something I am happy to do once every 15 years or so as it is not a waste. Good quality shoes/tools/advice likewise. Buying expensive electronics is something I refuse to do as they become out-of-date very quickly and hence are a waste. Buying things that are not necessary is a complete waste, so I don't do it. And I'm entirely with you on the idea of making lunch, not buying it (although I work from home so it's not relevant to me.)
This is getting off topic quickly ... sorry OP!
Oli.
Shnozz said:
Bit of both but always been cash-poor insofar as never really having a balance in the black. Whilst its fair to say I have squandered a lot on living life quite extravagantly, I've also made myself cash poor by having large mortgages and contributing to a pension from 16 onwards, both of which made things tight cashflow wise but ultimately have performed well in terms of assets, just illiquid ones.
I've also blown a st load on cars, this being PH of course.
I don't do money in my pocket all that well so I think by committing to fairly hefty savings devices in a non-traditional sense such as the mortgages and the pension have been useful to me. With the money left, I've spunked it on cars, holidays and going out 5 nights a week on the sauce for the past 20 years.
Would I do it the same way again? Probably. I've got some awesome memories, I've done some awesome things of which I have no memory, and I've had fun, on the whole. I would probably have cut back on some of the needless extravagance of the past as I look back and don't see "value" in some of the spending, but perhaps I needed to pay the cost of those lessons.
Who am I trying to kid? I'm out on the lash all weekend and off to look at a new car this weekend. Fook it. Put me down in the live for today category.
All good responses, however the last line in this one had me spitting tea everywhere!I've also blown a s
t load on cars, this being PH of course.I don't do money in my pocket all that well so I think by committing to fairly hefty savings devices in a non-traditional sense such as the mortgages and the pension have been useful to me. With the money left, I've spunked it on cars, holidays and going out 5 nights a week on the sauce for the past 20 years.
Would I do it the same way again? Probably. I've got some awesome memories, I've done some awesome things of which I have no memory, and I've had fun, on the whole. I would probably have cut back on some of the needless extravagance of the past as I look back and don't see "value" in some of the spending, but perhaps I needed to pay the cost of those lessons.
Who am I trying to kid? I'm out on the lash all weekend and off to look at a new car this weekend. Fook it. Put me down in the live for today category.
That's probably biggest difference with me I guess, early 20's out thursday nights till sunday almost every week. Although did drive some nights...now out with mates for drinks, max once every month. (drinks = alot)
By sounds of it I am the middle ground, so that's something. anyway off out tonight, heading down the casino to stick everything I own on Black
I'm 48 but have been fortunate enough to be employed by a large company with a very good pension scheme since I was 22, so have never had to give any real consideration to provision for retirement.
With the pension sorted I have been much more "live for today" all my life really. I bought brand new motorbikes when I was in my early 20's, and flash cars as well, I had a brand new Yamaha FZR1000 EXUP and a 4 year old Toyota Celica Supra when I was 24, all on loans or finance because I could manage the repayments, and didn't want to risk saving for a few years then getting hit by a bus without reaping the benefit. I remember signing the finance deal on my Ducati when I bought it new in 1998 and not being entirely sure I would be able to repay it (there were changes happening in work, if they went one way I'd be fine, the other way I'd be struggling). We pushed ourselves to our limit to buy the best house we could manage about 11 years ago, then 8 years ago I increased the mortgage to buy my dream car.
It's only over the past few years I've really started thinking longer term, but I still retain the stupid streak and I'm happier for it. I have things that I could never have had if I'd been more cautious. But then there have been times when I have been lucky that a risk went my way.
With the pension sorted I have been much more "live for today" all my life really. I bought brand new motorbikes when I was in my early 20's, and flash cars as well, I had a brand new Yamaha FZR1000 EXUP and a 4 year old Toyota Celica Supra when I was 24, all on loans or finance because I could manage the repayments, and didn't want to risk saving for a few years then getting hit by a bus without reaping the benefit. I remember signing the finance deal on my Ducati when I bought it new in 1998 and not being entirely sure I would be able to repay it (there were changes happening in work, if they went one way I'd be fine, the other way I'd be struggling). We pushed ourselves to our limit to buy the best house we could manage about 11 years ago, then 8 years ago I increased the mortgage to buy my dream car.
It's only over the past few years I've really started thinking longer term, but I still retain the stupid streak and I'm happier for it. I have things that I could never have had if I'd been more cautious. But then there have been times when I have been lucky that a risk went my way.
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