Date: May 2015 (2 posts)

Things just got interesting.  I had an estate agent come over this weekend, and they valued my property at £475k. This makes a big difference because it means the equity I'll have from selling, will definitely get me a nice place in the Sun.

Moving to Mallorca is now my number one option.

Initially, my parents were not happy with this. Worrying as usual, and only seeing the negatives. But I think, I've managed to get them to see the benefits of what I'm trying to do:

  • Own a property outright rather than renting here
  • I currently have enough income from current clients to maintain my expenses out there (so technically I could live there and not have to work again)
  • I could build up the business out there
  • Flights are only 2 hours. I could easily jump on a plane to meet clients here
  • Sunny 300 days a year
  • Relaxed standard of living. 
Yes, there are a few negatives. I don't know the language, or the area, but that's all a learning curve, and one I'm looking forward to.

I've been to Mallorca a number of times, and I love the place. I know a few good tennis resorts, and my friends could come visit whenever they want. The thought of not having a mortgage or rent commitments is so appealing, I genuinely think this could be what brings the old "happy" Ben back to life.ive

So What next...

Well, the first step is to sell my house, so it's going on the market this week. (Sad I know, but needs must etc...)

I think I'll need a few months to get my bearings out there and find a nice place, so I'll probably rent a place or a room over here for a few months, and Simon has kindly said I can set up my office at GGS head quarters so I can still work.

Doing this will mean that I'm in a great position to build up my business from out there without the stress of money. Once the business is growing (which it will), then hopefully I can save up enough to buy back over here, and keep my Mallorca place as a holiday home.

I'm actually feeling happier already just thinking about doing this. For seven years I've plodding along, struggling, without much changing. Obviously there's been some great highs in the past few years, but the underlying issue of money has always brought me down.

Maybe now is the time to do this !!!  In the great words of Billy Joel....

  • "Get what you want, or you can just get old" ... Vienna
  • "Do what's good for you, or you're not good for anybody" ... James
  • "Worst comes to worst, I'll get along, I don't know how, but sometimes, I can be strong"... Worst comes to worst

...But I love my house :(
Well, it looks like it's getting to a point where I may have to sell the house.  I've lived here 7 and a half years now, and I genuinely didn't think I'd have to sell it.

But let's face it, the mortgage is nearly £2k a month, and the last 6 months have been tough, I'm just not sure it's worth the stress of being here any more..

So, how did it get to this?

Well, as you know (From my previous blogs), before Christmas, I decided to focus purely on building up the new business, so I actually gave up working from my biggest client. Yes, this was a risk, but I believed in "So Easy" and I still do.

The problem I have is that it's a subscription based model, so it just takes time to build it up, and unfortunately, time isn't something i have, as I'm quickly running out of money.

So, this month, I can probably just about scrape my mortgage payment, and next month, I have a little bit of money coming from clients, so I can probably just about scrape next month too, but from then on in, I'm screwed.

I never thought I'd be saying this (in this situation at least), but I have estate agents coming to value and list the house next week. I still hope it won't come to it, but I have to prepare for the worst.

The biggest problem I have is that I won't be able to get a mortgage again, as I don't have guaranteed income, so that only leaves me with a few options.

What are my business prospects at the moment?

Well, Sealed with a Cherry made it's first sale today, exciting times !!!, but we need to be doing 2 / 3 sales a day if it's to have any impact on helping my payments.

I have a few So Easy clients lined up, but again, at £500 setup and £25 a month, it's not really going to make a dent.

Write from the heart are on board, a nice £2,500 set up and around £300 per month. That will help, but still not enough to keep the banks happy.

And then all my other little clients. They all add up, but I reckon at best, I have 4 months before I'm "FORCED" to sell up.

Right, my options..

If I sell my house, I reckon I'll end up with around £110k cash, (if I can get a good price). That's enough to possibly buy a place abroad, maybe Mallorca, or Portugal, so that's option 1. I could build up the business out there until I have enough cash to buy again over here, but at least I'll own a place outright and won't have to worry about mortgage or rent... And it's SUNNY !!!

Option 2 - Try and borrow some money off my parents, maybe as a loan, and I pay the loan payments. Let's say I borrow £20k, that will effectively give an extra 6 months. If I go down that route, it means if I have to sell in 6 months a) I won't have enough to buy a place abroad and b) I'll be selling in Winter... and that's not a good option.

Option 3 - I sell my house and rent. With the equity I have in the house, I could rent a nice place for around £1500 and have four years to build up all the businesses without any money worries. The big question then, is, can I get So Easy and Foxwood to a point where it's sustainable, and I can get a mortgage again? (And also maybe get Cherry to a good income for me (and Georgina, who has been a massive help in getting it off the ground, so it has to pay her as well)

The truth is, at the moment, I'm just not happy trying to survive to just pay a mortgage. I have no social life, no holidays, maybe a little bit of tennis, but zero luxuries, and unless I sell my house, I can't see that changing.

I do love the idea of living abroad, but really, is it practical? May be it's just the thought of moving again now that I have nice roots here, and that makes it a bit scary?

Realistically, I think my best option is to sell up, rent somewhere nice, have some cash in the bank, and make sure the business is making good cash in 4 years, which should easily be possible... But what if it doesn't? I have not property, no money, and no future... At least if I bought abroad, I'd still have somewhere to live...

Watch this space to see how the next chapter of my life unfolds.... One thing's for sure, it's gonna be an interesting few months.




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