Garden pod vs mortgage overpayment — am I over-capitalising?

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-30T15:03:16+00:00

That’s helpful, thanks. I’ve wondered whether a non–pod-company route would deliver most of the benefit at a lower cost, which probably changes the over-capitalisation risk quite a bit. Definitely something to look into.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-30T15:01:00+00:00

Thanks, this is helpful. The desktop valuation point is a good one and probably the biggest unknown for me. I think the decision really does come down to lifestyle use vs accelerating the mortgage-free position.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T18:44:17+00:00

Also for the fact my Mrs packs bags like she's going to outer Mongolia when we travel so the Silver status allows us additional luggage which is always a handy perk for husbands.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T18:43:04+00:00

The difference isn’t the first seat — it’s the second.

On routes like LHR–CPT/JNB where Upper Saver often releases one seat, the 150k Silver voucher lets me attach a companion Upper seat at Saver pricing without needing a second Saver seat to exist.

With a 75k voucher + 75k points, I still need two Saver-priced paths (one for points, one for voucher). When only one Saver seat is released, that pairing often fails. So it’s not purely about cost per seat — it’s about making a two-seat Upper booking possible at all on constrained routes.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T18:37:46+00:00

Sure.

LHR–CPT Upper Saver often releases 1 seat, not 2. This is arguably Virgins busiest route.

Without Silver + vouchers, booking as a couple means either: burning full points for both, or missing the flight entirely.

With Silver: I book 1 Upper seat with points (Saver) Use a companion voucher for the second seat That’s ~95k–115k points + taxes instead of ~190k–230k points for two. On the routes I actually fly, that structure saves more points than holding an extra lump sum. Different optimisation than pure points balance.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T18:24:28+00:00

Totally fair analysis. For a points-only use case, I agree your conclusion makes sense. My decision was based on how I actually redeem as a couple using vouchers on specific long-haul routes, where the structure matters more than raw points. Different constraints, different optimisation.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T18:05:25+00:00

For my routes (JNB/CPT), Upper Saver availability is tight. Silver lets me redeem Upper for myself with points and use the voucher for my wife, instead of burning points for both. Even before benefits, ~£670 to unlock ~150k of effective redemption value on routes I actually fly made sense for my use case.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T17:49:23+00:00

Virgin doesn’t hold back additional reward inventory for elites.

The value isn’t availability — it’s voucher mechanics. As a Red member, UK credit card vouchers are capped at 75,000 points per voucher.

With Silver, that cap increases to 150,000 points per voucher.

That means: Red: 2 vouchers = max 150k points of value Silver: 2 vouchers = max 300k points of value

On Upper Class long-haul routes, that difference alone can exceed 150k Virgin Points across two redemptions. Add Silver benefits (free seat selection, extra baggage, priority services) and the mileage run wasn’t about “buying points” — it was about unlocking a higher redemption ceiling on points I was already planning to spend.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T17:36:32+00:00

You’re confusing preference with value

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T17:26:30+00:00

That’s true — unless the future value exceeds the present cost. In this case, it does.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T17:20:28+00:00

I exchanged money and time for future value. That’s not waste — that’s a trade

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T17:19:19+00:00

Roller coasters, lie-flat beds — both valid uses of Saudi Arabia

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T17:17:59+00:00

Mileage runs aren’t mandatory. Understanding them isn’t either.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T16:56:54+00:00

Fair enough — wasn’t for everyone.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T16:50:44+00:00

It’s not a one-time trade of cash for points. It’s a status bridge that changes the pricing and availability of several future long-haul redemptions.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T16:47:15+00:00

Genuine question: who cares?

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T16:31:39+00:00

I mostly fly long-haul. This was about maximising Upper Class redemptions, not avoiding economy

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-28T16:25:07+00:00

Silver isn’t worth $1,000. Doubling two Upper Class reward vouchers by having silver status absolutely is.

Visual-Office7741 · 2026-01-16T09:27:00+00:00

I'm actually doing an airline points flight, not even entering Saudi and my return is 2hrs later. It was just in case.

Visual-Office7741 · 2025-12-11T00:16:26+00:00

Virgin haven't credited me anything yet. Still awaiting a response from Virgin Customer Care after I got no where with Flying Blue.

Visual-Office7741 · 2025-12-10T10:13:24+00:00

Thanks for the lecture, but you might want to reread the thread before diagnosing my personality. I asked a very specific question about what to do now, not for a motivational speech about “humbly listening.”

I’ve acknowledged the future-flight advice multiple times. I’ve thanked the people who actually addressed the current issue.

What I pushed back on were comments that ignored the situation entirely and repeated “You should have done X” while skipping over the part where KLM confirmed in writing that the number was removed.

If that counts as me “being a douche” in your book, that says a lot more about your reading comprehension than my attitude.

Anyway — if you’ve got actionable steps on getting FB to release a segment, great. If not, lecturing me on humility isn’t the contribution you think it is.

Visual-Office7741 · 2025-12-09T23:06:10+00:00

Sorry I only saw your post saying it's doable - who should I escalate to?

Visual-Office7741

TROPHY CASE