On the road to financial independence and beyond
I am now asking myself whether I have been too complacent, or even smug, about my financial position. Was my portfolio as well positioned as I thought it was? I think it was the boxer Mike Tyson who said that everyone has a plan until they are punched in the mouth. I have been punched…
I had moved to London to start my first proper job in my early 20’s. At first, I moved into a hostel and shared a room and ate in a communal dining room and watched TV in a communal lounge. It was a more downmarket version of my student hall of residence from an earlier…
One significant cost that households have that they can take action to reduce is electricity and gas utility costs. According to energy market regulator Ofgem, the average dual fuel variable tariff as of April 2019 was £104.50 per month, or £1,254 a year, but the cheapest tariff available was around £880 a year, or just…
Having a car can be a significant benefit to an individual or family but can represent significant costs being incurred. A car can be one of the top five household expenditures but it is one where we can have and make some choices. A car incurs an initial purchase cost, and an interest cost or…
These thoughts are inspired by a post from a US blogger I follow on four things he gave up to retire early. According to him the four things given up were power/influence, big beautiful house, international travel, and guaranteed financial security. I will comment on these four and two more of my own. I feel…
As a parent of school age children this is a question I need to answer. Our children are aware that in most households one or both parents go out to work. Until recently this had been the case for us, most of the time, but now mum is ending her part time job to free…