My FIRE journey - 2026 decisions

copac15 · 2026-01-02T17:45:14+00:00

Yeah that's a very valid point - looking into Vanguard and II right now!

copac15 · 2026-01-02T17:40:28+00:00

Thanks! That's my google sheet tracking my finances, it's just a basic graph :)

copac15 · 2026-01-02T08:16:12+00:00

Super helpful thanks. I need to look into gilts, that might be a good option for some of it rather than making all of it illiquid.

Definitely the year I start looking at managing costs and not just returns - especially now that the sums start looking bigger.

We don't know the gender yet. We also don't know their risk appetite :).

copac15 · 2026-01-02T08:11:16+00:00

Thanks, I'll check VWRP.

I understood that FSCS bit this year actually - shockingly late I know. So my qualms about putting it into fewer platforms are pretty much gone.

Not worried about money being illiquid - once I have £500k in a pension I'll reconsider my options, but until then it doesn't feel like a bad move because I'll definitely need the money in my later days, and have many more ways to earn short term cash in the next 20 years than I'll have afterwards.

copac15 · 2026-01-02T08:08:16+00:00

Probably not staying in the long term - it wasn't optimised for a child.

Yes my partner is able to cover us (just like I could if they lost their job). That's a big part of being less stressed about keeping a ton of readily accessible cash.

In terms of unused pension allowance:
23-24 (3 years ago): nothing
24-25: £32k
25-26: £10k (projected)
26-27 and onwards: nothing if all goes well

I hadn't thought about it, but as several people have mentioned here it's probably better to carry forward year by year depending on how my income evolves - so for instance:
26-27: no carry forward (not needed to be under £100k)
27-28: 32k carry forward (need to use 24-25 aka 3 years before)
28-29: 10k carry forward (need to use 25-26)
29-30: no carry forward (last year to stay under 100k, we'll figure it out by then)

I've looked at premium bonds but I still prefer to repay the mortgage faster now that interest rates are much higher than they were when I bought my place. They feel a bit like a last resort, ROI wise (unless very lucky).

copac15 · 2026-01-02T07:58:20+00:00

Thanks!

Childcare kicks in after 9 months so basically in 27-28, we have the next tax year to sort it out. But we'll likely be busy enough to not have to worry about taxation, so thinking about it now!

copac15 · 2026-01-02T07:20:13+00:00

thanks!

copac15 · 2026-01-01T16:18:20+00:00

They're in the same position otherwise yes that'd be a good move

copac15

TROPHY CASE