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?

Adikia I want YOU to have a windfall of 30 grand. You totally grounded lovely lovely person. I demand you go and buy a lottery ticket immediately. I have sent you some luck.

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

Why is that then catinabox? It's not as if the OP is asking which brand of chocolate she should spunk £30k on. She has been given the money to put them in a position where they are better off in the future and she is having a bit of fun with it and taking on board sensible financial suggestions.

If you are in the position now where you manage each month without going into debt then I would suggest you lock it away for 12 months and actually think about what you want to do with it. Brittania do a 12 month fixed account which gives 2.03%. However, if you are disciplined and organised you could put £5k in a Lloyds vantage account (you and DH could have three accounts each). They will pay 3% on £5k but you have to put a £1000 in a month so would have to be moving the money around. We came into money a few years ago and did exactly this (locked it away for 18 months to figure out what we wanted to do with it). Good luck!

I don't know chipping it just does! I really resent spending money too frivolously or unnecessarily and hate not having savings. I have had chunks of money sat in savings for a few years here and there. Used for emergencies, deposit on house, wedding etc. Like i said, my DH has a name for me which is quite rude!!

I would put £20k on the mortgage (this might reduce your payments by £50-100 a month so more treats one term), £5k on a holiday and £5k on a one off in the house - 'doing' a room. Currently, it would be my bathroom but. Enjoy it :)

Thanks catinabox. tbh a smaller win would do me at the moment, enough for a day out and maybe some sweets for on the train

catinabox go on, what does your husband call you?

Hmm - somethings are probably better left unsaid these days.

Catinabox - I can understand wanting savings behind you and I can understand wanting to save for special/big things (and I said earlier on that I wouldn't spend it on frivilous things) - but I really don't understand why threads like this make you angry. No-one has said 'piss it all up the wall doing x' have they? Pretty much everyone has said something 'sensible'. There's no point in just putting in a regular bank account.

Uh...

Right - absolutely need to do this emergency money thing. DH job is very secure, mine not so. Perhaps £5k.

Re. the tax thing - I have heard about the £3k gifting thing. They are holding it until we decide what to do. Ie. if we choose extension they can pay directly. I have to be honest and say I have no idea what yhe law is on doing that and so will have to check it out. I suppose with there being four of us each of us could get a £3k gift and the rest is then taxable?

MUST get life insurance. DH has it - I don't

Will have nice chat with DH tonight about it (like we've done every night since being told). The sensible decision is the paying a chunk off the mortgage and keeping payments the same + £5k for emergency...however i just don't think we could bring ourselves to do this!

Maybe a compromise on extension (20k), 5k savings, 5k overpayment.

Tax thing could be an issue...

Frivolous and unnecessary are subjective though. Holiday? Great, I would, but surely comes under the frivolous and unnecessary heading?

chipping yes. Someone did ask and the general mumsnet audience are reasonable enough to know that i am not being anti semetic. I know it's a bit offensive.

No lots of good advice on here. I whole heartedly approve.

I'm thinking about maybe moving some of my money into premium bonds actually. With interest rates so low at the moment it would make sense.

Shall we move away from that particular can of worms?, lets not spoil a lovely thread.

OP- how many people are giving you the gift? If its 2, they are allowed to give £3000 to each person, tax free. So if there are 4 of you, one will give £12,000 and so will the other, giving your family £24,000 tax free.

(Cat next time your H calls you that, I would remind him how utterly offensive he is being)

Just don't blow it all - some yes - all no.

As you have a mortgage I assume you'll have mortgage indemnity with it - if you have then personally I wouldn't bother with life assurance but that's just me.

I think I would want to make life easier for a few years rather than possibly spend the money now. I would want to know how much I would save on the mortgage each month if I paid of 28k. So I went and used a mortgage calculator and stuck in 150k at 3% to see the repayments were 1047 per month over 15 years, then I knocked of the 28k and the repayments went down to £852

So I would pay of 28k of the mortgage and have 2k for holiday and a good christmas.

As having someone put £200 extra in my bank every month for the next 15 years would be lovely. Or as the above poster says pay of the same and reduce your mortgage quicker.

Thing is it means over 15 years you would save 36000

obviously you may have less time left to pay of your mortgage, but if you had more time left you would make more money. If you interest rate is more again you would make more money

I'm shocked at the good advice on here. It makes me feel quite appallingly bad with finances.

Excusetypos - yes two people! I didn't even think of that and I doubt they will have either. Excellent advice we can really benefit from.

The other idea was to just do a few things to really change our home for the better but that wouldn't cost a ridiculous amount. Like knocking the wall down between kitchen and dining room to give open plan effect and converting garage.

I know this is a totally indulgent thread but I hope others have been given food for thought too. We feel really lucky

Where are these high interest savings accounts whereof people speak on here?!

OP, it sounds as though you have your head screwed on. We had a little windfall last year ("only" five grand, but it saved us at a very tight time) and now 'tis practically all gone, but I will never forget the heady, giddy joy of receiving it. I can't imagine what 30k would be like!

catinabox, thanks for the reply. I did ask! Your husband is a cheeky sod and his ears need tweaking. I say that as a partial Jew myself. :) And that's all that needs saying about that.

OP before you start planning too much...just have a think about mortgage overpayment.

Use a calculator like this one www.moneysavingexpert.com/mortgages/mortgage-overpayment-calculator

I put your details in, £195,000 mortgage and guessed an interest rate (3%) and it said if you paid £30,000 off the mortgage you would save £28,000 in interest alone and knock 5.5 years off the term.

A saving of £30k in interest effectively would double the money you had been gifted. You'd be dropping your final mortgage payment by £60,000

Something to think about (but check terms of mortgage etc etc to see if you can over pay without penalty.)

loads of people beat me to it!!

15 grand savings.
5 grand doing up the house/garden, replacing electrical items etc.
10 grand to spend on a fabulous holiday.

I would clear a loan and then use the rest to reduce the mortgage. I would immediately see the benefit as I wouldn't have the loan re payment and the mortgage would be less so I'd be a few hundred better off each month.

The other idea was to just do a few things to really change our home for the better but that wouldn't cost a ridiculous amount. Like knocking the wall down between kitchen and dining room to give open plan effect Oooh that i approve of!!

Open plan is lovely and not frivolous at all. It's great being able to sit round a big table with all the family.

maltesefalcon me too. and yes i will. no more shall be said.