For once in our lives...we've come into cash!!! £30,000!! AIBU to ask WWYD?

[Stripedmum]

Well it's only gone and happened - we have money! Yippee!

We are now thinking of extending. What would you do with the cash?

Congratulations!

I'd clear off any (non-mortgage) debts and then use a couple of thousand as 'mad money' to treat yourselves to some things you've perhaps been yearning for.

And then I'd wait. Put the rest of money in as good an interest earning vehicle as you can find and leave it there untouched while your thoughts season. 5 months down the line, you'll be over the shock of the good fortune and might be thinking very different thoughts.

Yes to paying off any non-mortgage debts and putting it aside for several months.

It's so easy to fritter away, sadly.

I'm rapt for you! :)

I am going to be the boring one. You don't have a lot of equity in your house, so I don't think it's move or extend, I think it's pay a chunk off your mortgage. Maybe keep £2k back for a holiday.

Yes I am extremely dull, but I paid off the mortgage on my (little) house by my early 30s and then went about saving to extend it. I always enjoyed the look on people's faces when I said I was paying for the work in cash from savings.

If I were you:
A lovely family holiday (nothing crazy, just somewhere nice, and enjoy a rest, getting c

...cooked for etc
Few additional treats, maybe an iPad or something like that.
Some on savings
Extension to the house.

Enjoy :)

Special holiday - have only ever done Butlins and camping since our honeymoon, so an adventure abroad would to of my list now DD is a bit older.

Replace the family car with something decent secondhand.

Redecorate/furnish our bedroom - 11 years in this house and we've done everything else - it's hideous and we really need a new bed.

All going well that would leave about £10k to stash in a long term savings account, or more likely, pay off a chunk of the mortgage.

I'd love you all to have a £30k windfall too.

Congratulations.

This is what I'd do in your circumstances:

2k for a bit of fun
20k off the mortgage
8k in Lloyds Bank shares (read the forecasts)

20k off the mortgage would save perhaps 140-150 pds per month. I would put 100-120 of that into a savings plan, possibly an ISA linked one and slip 30 a month into a savings account for stuff like Christmas or general extras.

Sorry to be so boring - well not that boring because I'm advising a stock market gamble and you could double the 8k in 18 months to two years.

Hold on to your hats to hear my thrilling plan

Get loft done.
Not even a useable room with stairs. Just a pull down hatch, floored, and shelved. i bet that would free up loads of real downstairs space if you could easily access all that stuff that's currently in cupboards, under beds, and under the stairs etc.

Holiday .

Mortgage.

When you were skint did you ever 'borrow' money from anyone that you should repay? Parents etc??

Put your details into this calculator

pull this face >

unless your loan is paid up within 12 months pay it off now

the sensible advise

do you have 3-6 months salary as a rainy day back up in a relatively easy access account? if not that first before paying off any of the mortgage as you can't access that money again

25% equity in your house is roughly 60,000 so by having an extra 20K put by you have 25% equity which gets you much better mortgage deals that your current 17% equity. However, do not tie 25k up in repaying mortgage as if you ever needed it say for a redundancy etc it would be inaccessible unless you have offset mortgage, if you are near the end of present mortgage deal an offset could be an idea while you decide, you will not find a savings account that pays after tax more than your mortgage interest rate

my idea would be

1. 3-6 months salary in savings, emergency fund
2. increase equity to at least 20%
3. £2-5k for treats, good holiday, new nice clothes, christmas, better car if necessary
4. check house is anything on last legs freezer washing machine etc

5, serious discussion as to whether extension is the best idea or saved towards a move

an offset works with linked account

your mortgage 195K you have 28K in your nominated account ( you have spent 2k on holdays etc)

so each month instead of paying interest on 195K you actually pay interest on £167K

1. if payments remain the same the money that would have been the interest on the 28K goes to paying off capital instead hence reducung term of mortgage so instead of taking 20 years to clear mortgage it would be paid off in 17.5 years approx
2. if you decide to decrease payments as you are paying less interest but repaying same amount of capital ie not reducing term of mortgage you will be about £75-85 better off each month which could then be saved for holidays approx £900-1000 a year

if 2 years down the line you spend £15k you are then still offsetting 13K so paying interest on 182K not 195K

hope that helps

Oh ignore me,offsetting is a much better idea

Agree with 3-6 months of emergency money. If you literally don't have anything extra ie £100 then keeping some back in a fund would be sensible.

The other thing to ponder would be could you use the money for training or something to improve your income long term?

I'm watching this thread with interest as we are in a similar position.

I don't know if anyone has mentioned this but is the 'gift' eligible for tax? I thought you could only be given about £3000 from one person without needing to pay tax on it.

Of course the person giving you the money may have already thought of this and paid it. Just check OP.

I don't want to rain on your parade, but I'm not sure how much of an extension you will get for £30K.

Personally I would keep £10K for emergencies, and pay £20K off my mortgage, but I am old and boring and have done the buy to let thing, etc.

And I would obviously have to use some of the emergency money for a brilliant holiday.

A gift? Of 30k? Wowzer! I've just asked cap in hand if my parents would mind buying me a book for uni costing 25 pound!

We don't have ANY extra money

More space would be a luxury rather than a necessity

You have two very small children. No savings or spare money. Why on earth are you thinking this money should pay for an extension that you don't need or a lifestyle change?

For goodness sakes unless you need to move and are really unhappy where you are, or are totally cramped in your home, save the money and perhaps plan a nice family holiday.

You could open a savings account for DC, for future driving lessons, cars, school trips.

It really pisses me off to hear people getting a chunk of money in there hands and simply planning how they are going to spend it.

Sorry, I know i'm uppity. My husband has a name for me relating to my attitude towards money... but it is offensive so i won't share it

Congratulations!!!

Put away an amount equal to a year's expenditure for emergencies so that you will never be side swiped by joblosses/illness then use the balance to pay down the mortgage. Your monthly bills will be reduced for ever enabling you to have small treats every single month.

And yes, perhaps a small celebration but don't go mad - ? weekend away somewhere relaxing.

I am also old and boring.

*their hands. God, i'm illiterate.

With £30K I would either;
pay off my mortgage and get a new kitchen and bathroom
Or;
Move to a better house (as it would give us a much better down payment than just selling this house).

i would pay a chunk off your mortgage (maybe £15/20k) but keep monthly repayments the same, hence clearing quicker and saving 1000's on interest

have a nice holiday/days out treat for family

put rest into premium bonds, hence giving you a chance every month to win, i often win £25 a month, still waiting for the million but also means if you need money asap you can get it out

I live in a council house so I wouldn't spend any of it on the house, except maybe a lick of paint and I don't have any debts to pay off other than the £30 I owe my brother.

I would learn to drive and get a cheap car

Take all of my family on holiday (camping as the kids love camping but lots of places to visit)

Open savings accounts for each of my siblings, DD, DS and my parents. (the younger siblings, DS and DDs would be in accounts they can't touch until they are 18)

Have 2 really nice days out with my kids (so they could plan a day each) with some money to spend in the gift shop wherever they decide to go. - DS has been on about falconry courses all summer and DD wants to do a day as a zoo keeper. - both of which sound fantastic to me.

Put the rest in a savings account so I've got money for any emergencies that crop up/for bits the kids need.