How much is too much to spend repairing something?
The percentage rules people quote are a starting point, not an answer. What actually decides it is the repair cost against the remaining life, and how to estimate both.
beginner15 min3 min read
Money & Practical
Budgeting, bills and buying decisions, described as processes you can follow. These guides explain method — how to work something out for yourself. They are not financial advice and recommend no specific products.
425 guides
What should I do if I cannot pay a bill?
The practical order to deal with bills you cannot cover, and where to get free help.
beginner1 hr2 min readDo I have to pay tax on my savings interest?
Three separate allowances stack before any tax is due on interest, and most people never reach the end of them — but rising rates have pushed more savers over the line.
beginner12 min3 min readHow do I apply for probate myself?
The personal application route, in order: value the estate, deal with inheritance tax, apply, then administer. Most of the work happens before the application.
advanced4 hr4 min readHow do I avoid being caught by fake reviews?
The patterns that give away manipulated reviews, and where to look instead.
beginner15 min2 min readHow do I cancel something without being talked out of it?
What a retention conversation is designed to do, the phrases that end it quickly, and getting confirmation that it actually cancelled.
beginner25 min3 min readHow do I check my tenancy deposit is protected?
Which schemes operate where you live, how much can be taken, the deadline for protecting it, and what you can claim if your landlord did not do it.
beginner12 min5 min readHow do I choose a fridge freezer and what actually matters in the specification?
Capacity split, frost-free or static, climate class and noise decide how a fridge freezer lives with you. Almost everything else on the spec sheet is decoration.
beginner1 hr5 min readHow do I choose a washing machine, and what actually matters in the specification?
Four things on the spec sheet change your life with the machine — capacity, spin speed, noise and build — and most of the rest is marketing attached to programmes you will never select.
beginner40 min6 min readHow do I get a refund?
Asking effectively, escalating in the right order, and using the payment protections you already have.
beginner45 min2 min readHow do I keep a record that will stand up later?
Contemporaneous, dated and specific — what makes a record persuasive when it matters.
beginner20 min2 min readHow do I organise household admin so it stops piling up?
A system simple enough to survive a busy month — one inbox, one weekly slot, one calendar.
beginner1 hr 30 min2 min readHow do I organise household information so someone else could find it?
The household file that lets a partner, relative or executor act without you — what goes in it and what must not.
beginner2 hr4 min readHow do I organise the year's dates and renewals in one go?
A single afternoon that puts every renewal, service and deadline in a calendar with enough warning to act on it.
beginner1 hr 30 min4 min readHow do I read a contract's small print quickly?
Six things to search for that catch nearly everything that later causes trouble.
beginner20 min2 min readHow do I register to vote, and what is the open register?
Registration takes about five minutes online, has to be redone whenever you move, and quietly puts you on a second register that is sold commercially unless you opt out.
beginner10 min3 min readHow do I stop a contract auto-renewing?
Where auto-renewal hides, the notice deadlines, and the calendar habit that prevents it entirely.
beginner20 min2 min readHow do I work out what I actually need before I start looking?
Requirements written after browsing are descriptions of what you saw. How to derive them from how you will actually use the thing, and how to tell a must from a want.
beginner20 min3 min readHow does stamp duty work when I buy a home?
Stamp Duty Land Tax applies in England and Northern Ireland only. Who pays it, when it is due, how the banded calculation works, and the reliefs worth checking before completion.
beginner11 min5 min readHow much does a tumble dryer cost to run?
The honest answer is a calculation, not a number — but the physics behind it is fixed, and it explains why the spin speed on your washing machine is the biggest lever you have.
beginner20 min5 min readHow much notice do I have to give, and how much do I get?
Statutory notice and contractual notice are two different things, and which one applies depends on which is longer and which direction the notice is going.
beginner12 min3 min readWhat do I do if I cannot pay the rent?
The arrears thresholds that change your legal position in each nation, the help that exists before you reach them, and how to open the conversation with a landlord in a way that usually works.
beginner12 min5 min readWhat do I do if my employer has not paid me?
Wages not paid, paid short, or deducted without authority are all the same legal problem. The three lawful bases for a deduction, the Acas step you cannot skip, and the deadline that decides everything.
intermediate14 min5 min readWhat does a service charge actually pay for?
The lease defines what can be recovered, the law adds a reasonableness test and a set of disclosure rights, and the annual statement is where the two meet.
intermediate20 min3 min read
Going deeper: ToolFoundry
Interactive calculators — quantities, conversions, costs and sizing — rather than prose.
ToolFoundry is in development — GuideHQ covers the practical answers in the meantime.