Christmas Presents

Great Christmas presents for the geek who has everything.

• Meccano 
• Lego
• Binary clock (for the living room!)
• Domino race
• Big garden loppers

I had a great Christmas! :)

(OK, the Lego wasn't actually for me.)

Rates

Today:

Savings rate on my ISA (4.75%) > my tracker mortgate rate (3.75%)

So I guess that answers the question.

Inflation is 4.1%, which is higher than the mortgage...what does that mean for the building society?

Mortgage vs inflation

From time to time, you hear of little celebrations: "I finished paying my mortgage this month!" On enquiry, you find that they won't really be much better off; their mortgage payments being £25 per month, or some incredibly low figure compared to a typical mortgage payment when you buy a house today.

This repayment amount presumably was a considerable burden on the monthly outgoings when the mortgage was taken out. The repayment schedule is not affected through the years, but due to general inflation, the amount becomes a less significant fraction of the income towards the end of the term.

While it is clear that over-paying the mortgage in the early years will drastically reduce the interest paid, is it worth bothering when the actual "cost" of the mortgage will probably decrease to such an extend that in 30 years you won't even notice the payments?

I'd get out a spreadsheet and play with some numbers...if I ever have enough spare cash to have to decide whether to pay back early or not.