Advice with budgeting/saving

[Paradisefalls]

I love talking about money and budgeting and saving. I know I’m weird. But I agree that it is such a taboo subject still and I don’t know why.
Also why financial literacy is not taught in schools baffles me but that’s another discussion for another day.

I used to be terrible with money (like you said too much month at the end of my money) and the way I changed my mindset was to save for something specific (for me it was a holiday) - it’s a good motivator and it also makes you take that extra second of consideration before you make an impulse purchase - do I really want this or would I rather have this for my holiday.

I would say if you are starting out keep it simple. There is so much out there on blogs and YouTube it can be overwhelming.

I do my budget every month in the notes section on my phone (and have done since 2010). I write my income at the top then my bills and “x” amount that I want to put into savings. Savings is moved into a separate account that same day - pay yourself first!

Once I started I became a bit addicted and now my husband and I kind of gamify savings - it’s fun and we’re both super competitive.

Honestly though my biggest tip is put your savings away somewhere that’s not easy to access as soon as you get it and give it a purpose. You will be surprised how quickly it builds up.

Over the years I have saved enough for a house deposit, my dream wedding, dream 6 week honeymoon and just recently a new kitchen and I still have 5 figures in savings.

Oh one other piece of advice I live by that’s not directly related to your question - work our what you roughly get paid each hour and then every time you want to buy something think of it in terms of hours worked ie £20 per hour and you want to spend £50 on shoes - are they worth 2.5 hours sat at your desk?

 

[Bubblesandflowers]

The first thing is to sit down and write down all your expenses. Review your last few months bank/credit card statements to see where your money has gone. Group them together in categories so for example I have groceries, work snacks/food (for what I buy at lunch/breakfast at work), travel, clothing, toiletries, fun (can be books, cinema, etc). When you see that your money goes to those different places, you can start looking at where you can make small changes. I put a set amount each week into a separate bank account for me to spend and use whatever I need it for.

For example I saw most of my money was being spent at work on breakfasts. God I love a Pret croissant!! So I found easy fun recipes I could bulk cook and freeze for the mornings.

I will also have a look at annual expenses such as insurance, MOT, christmas, birthdays etc. Think ahead about what you will have to spend over the pay period.

Some people swear by the 50/30/20 budget. This is where you spend 50% of your after-tax pay on needs, 30% on wants, and 20% on savings or paying off debt.

There is lots of good advice on Money Saving Expert forum. I also found a lot through youtube videos. Mamafurfur is a popular account. There are lots of money bloggers/debt free journey community on instagram too. I enjoyed following people with a similar state of mind which helps me focus putting lots more to savings.

 

[Itsallaboutmememe]

I used to fritter money away on crap until I left my bank statement lying around
my fella had a fit about how much money I wasted on nothing
so I stopped buying crap and set myself a budget for each day-once it’s gone it’s gone-any left over goes into my savings
ive saved £420 since Christmas which doesn’t sound loads but it’s mine and I don’t touch it

 

[JoeBloggs]

I have always loved budgeting and a good spreadsheet! My mum works in banking so I have aways been good with money, my husband on the other hand

I work out all my bills, I then work out extras, so we put away money for Christmas, insurance (car, home etc) so we can pay in full each year. We also have an emergency fund. We also put include £100 for meals/takeaways. I have about 10 accounts (all thanks for mum) where I put money for each thing so I know what is for what.

Our bills (inc money we put away) is about 40-50% of our income. We then both get fun money which is out to do as we wish and for the kids, the rest then goes into savings.

When I met my husband he had about £500 of debt (10 years ago) It took me about 2 years to pay it off as I was a student and he was on a poor supermarkt wage, but we got there. We now have £30k in savings and are working to pay for an extension.

 

[Onecandream]

I love saving money. I’m a single parent household and have 28k in savings. I get excited about seeing the numbers go up! I only earn 21k a year and we still have a yearly holiday abroad too. I’m just really strict at budgeting £30 a week food shop. £10 a week into a pot for car insurance which I pay in full every year. My car tax is only £20 a year 15 a week petrol. I don’t drink or smoke and we do loads of free days out like walks/parks/bike rides etc where we take our own drinks and snacks.
I always ask for H&M vouchers for bday and xmas so I can buy my clothes with them. My rent and bills come to £911 a month. I just know where every penny is going which I think is the key. I lived at home til I was 30 though which I know played a big part. I’ve saved from being 18 when I worked 6 days a week. Before i moved out I had the money saved to buy a car in full and to furnish a whole house so I’ve never ever been in debt. I guess this is a major factor too.
A big game changer is taking food and drinks with you to work!

Also once a phone contract is up get a sim card only deal rather than a new phone! Saves loads.

 

[Ladyloulou35]

Lockdown has really show me where I am spending or where I was. I work next to Greggs . Coffee on the way in, usually for me and a friend as she was already in work I nearly always bought these, £3, 10am break coffee and bun , I generally copped for this too £4 lunchmeal deal £3 ish , tenner a day, £50 a week =£200 a month Oh and I have nearly lost two stone, so I hope it stays shut I crave a coffee every now and then but don’t miss anything else.

 

[hashbrown123]

I’ve managed to save over £2000 now and all my debts are paid off finally!!!! I’m so happy it’s taken me a year of saving to get to this point. So now I’m just trying to live within my means and save for a house/emergency fund/holiday.

I’m going to start budgeting myself £50 a week in disposable income. I sideline petrol money into another account already - £100 a month. Every Friday I’m going to work out what I’ve spent of my £50 and then I’m going to put it into another account as emergency for that month if it doesn’t get used it will then be extra on top of the amount I’m already saving! Hopefully this will allow me to save more! I also put spare petrol money into my savings for that month. Fingers crossed!

 

[Onecandream]

Wow, well done you!! That’s seriously impressive being able to budget and live well on a single salary. Kids ain’t cheap! Do you have any tips for keeping costs down for kids toys / clothes?

I have one son. He only really gets presents on bday and xmas. All his bikes have been second hand off Facebook. We got a carrera bike for £25. He’s not really into toys now but definitely look on Facebook for second hand! And then re sell ! He really doesn’t go without anything, He’s got an iPad which we bought in 2013, still going strong. we share a laptop. Clothes I mostly buy H&M. We keep clothes for years. I buy the next size up in most things. Recently bought him some converse in the John Lewis sale for £18. I cut off jeans to make into shorts when they are too short! They look really cool too. We just don’t need to buy that much really as I wash regularly. I’m quite a minimalist too so I don’t like drawers and wardrobes full of clothes for him. I also don’t go shopping. I order what he needs on h and m or Asda. I always select ‘price low to high’ on websites. I always make a coat do for two winters by buying a bigger size.
I’ve waffled on a bit there but just a few ideas.

Oh and thank you by the way

My kid sounds like he’s drowning in all his clothes in bigger sizes. I promise he’s not. He always looks nice

 

[GiftedNotFree]

I used to fritter money away on crap until I left my bank statement lying around
my fella had a fit about how much money I wasted on nothing
so I stopped buying crap and set myself a budget for each day-once it’s gone it’s gone-any left over goes into my savings
ive saved £420 since Christmas which doesn’t sound loads but it’s mine and I don’t touch it

Well done! Saving does take dedication if it doesn’t come naturally to you. I really wish I had been told from a young age how important it is to put money into savings and be intentional with your money! I’d have not wasted as much of it

Alas, every day is a day to learn and make smart money management decisions

 

[ChilliBean]

I’m loving this thread!

I recently started saving for a house deposit, and lockdown has done wonders for my savings account! (Always look on the bright side eh)

I’ve been doing LOTS of overtime at work (I’m a nurse) because the shifts need covering and let’s be honest there’s nothing else to do, so I’ve been having extra in my pay packet every month.

I have my wages paid into my bank account, I then transfer around £2-300 to my monzo for “everyday spending” (this was pre lockdown, I put around £50-100 in there every month at the moment) if I wanted a coffee whilst out, lunch with a friend, a book from the bookshop. Then £200 goes in my help to buy ISA and £150 into a separate savers account (rainy day fund). I also had a separate savings pot on Monzo that would automatically round up my spending and add to it.

I’ve currently started adding more money to my Monzo pot as they pay interest monthly and pre lockdown it was 0.80% but has now dropped again to 0.50% so will have to review whether it’s a good idea to keep money in there, currently earning only about 80p a month from it in interest!!

I’ve also been reading MSE forums about budgeting, saving, getting the most from your money etc and they’ve been very helpful.

I’ve recently signed up to all major supermarkets reward schemes such as Tesco clubcard, morrisons more card and sainsburys nectar card so no matter where I shop, I should get some eventual benefit.

the main battle for me is not to buy clothes, I’ve deleted all shopping apps such as ASOS and Topshop from my phone and unfollowed them all off Instagram so that I’m not tempted!

the tip about working out your hourly rate and thinking to yourself how many hours you’d have to work in order to buy something is a great idea. Really puts it into perspective the value of things/your time.

 

[GiftedNotFree]

All the advice on here is great. To keep you motivated and to stay on track, read MSE forums.

Yeah, I agree — I wish we could keep this thread going! I’m passionate about money management now so it’s fun to discuss

 

[Anonymous_Troll]

Loving this thread! I am horrendous with money and made some horrific choices in my 20s but I’m finally getting a handle on them and chipping away at my debts.

If anybody else needs a visual to help motivate them, just google ‘debtfreecharts’ and there are lots of free ones to choose from and they really do help!

I have a mountain of debt but genuinely enjoy colouring in another square of the tracker when a payment is made! Sad but true!

 

[Prinfluencer]

I had alot of wedding debt and a student overdraft from 2008 to clear. I made a dated spreadsheet of income, what comes out (everything from food, travel, rent/mortgage, od/credit card payments) and an allowance each month to spend on whatever. This allowance was variable - when I was really struggling it was 100 a month then it's gradually increased once I paid my debts off to around 300 this is after nursery fees and doesn't include my husband's disposable. I spend that on clothes for me and my daughter, beauty products, soft play dates ,nights out etc.

I put this allowance into a separate account and use my other just for bills.

In my spreadsheet I also forward plan for putting away for Xmas and holiday spends

 

[Lilooooo]

I’ve just spoken to the bank, my overdrafts have been getting out of hand with extra charges being added every 30 days with no way of keeping on top of them, but I’ve made a repayment plan with them and had any charges frozen.

I didnt want to admit that I was in over my head with debt, but its like a weight’s been lifted finally. Thanks for all the tips on this thread, i need to get myself and my finances sorted

 

[Boredinstagrammer29]

I also make these loads I don’t think the original poster needed help with debt but I find it helpful to map out how I’m going to tackle mine and incase anyone else does too (would like to add my credit card was for a car I needed to get to work, not any ridiculous splurges!)

 

[GiftedNotFree]

That’s great! Budgeting and being realistic about your means is the only way to manage debt. I paid off £16k in two years by being strict with a budget but still having a life during! It can be done then once you master managing your money it becomes like second nature and hopefully no more debt again!

 

[Tiredbones]

@orangelolly Prolific is really good, I've made £700 in 2 years, the studies can be really interesting. The only downside is there isn't an app so you can only check it on the website. When I'm on my laptop I have the Prolific tab open so I can see if studies come in. I also have the link saved on my phone so I can check it there, some studies can only be completed on a computer but you can reserve the space on your phone. Some of them fill up quickly

@Jc456 OnePulse have changed the minimum payout to $20 during lockdown, I've cashed out twice. I've heard people say you get more paid pulses if you open the app each morning, not sure how true that is but it's worth a try! Also completing the free pulses to get your price up on the paid ones helps

@Onecandream that's amazing well done! Living at home must have helped but it seems you've got in really good habits! I'm also a single mum with one son, he's never had tons of clothes or shoes. He's now 14 so wants branded clothes, and he growing so quickly clothes and shoes are only lasting 3-4 months, even when I've bought them bigger I'm trying to teach good money habits so he doesn't get in the position I was in

I use Monzo and have loads of pots for different expenses, school uniform, glasses, holidays, my son's sports costs, gifts etc.

I also have a Help to Save account, if you get tax credits/universal credit you can set up an account on hmrc, you can save up to £50 a month and the government will give you a 50% bonus of your highest balance after 2 years and after 4 years

 

[hashbrown123]

I’ve recently changed my entire outlook on money. The results have been great. I used shopping as an outlet for when I was stressed or when something went wrong... I took a few steps hopefully this is helpful-

- started budgeting money for specific things and using separate accounts to keep it separate. One for all my bills to come out of, one for petrol, one for joint bills with my partner, one for savings and finally one for spending. I budgeted harshly as I wanted to start saving! I saved £150 a month. The only accounts I touched after the initial payday was petrol and spending
- once I had a bit saved I started to pay off debt credit card and a £1600 loan but I saved the full amount needed to pay these off in my savings and paid them off all in one go (very satisfying!)
- cancelled any direct debits I wasn’t using or paid upfront for anything I could (I use the app headspace and it was a lot cheaper to pay for a full year than monthly)
- once id cut down as much as possible I then increased my saving limit and cut down my expenditure and budgeted myself harsher again!
- I also don’t take out any unnecessary direct debits I’m going to pay off car insurance and tax annually etc.

it’s been great I feel so satisfied and now aside from car finance (which I’m not going to be paying off in full) and a phone loan I’m still saving to pay off I’m debt free. Massive focus on saving now!!!

 

[Italy2]

Also I would like to say that I used to have 1 bank account for everything! 1 bank account for wages, spending and saving and it worked! I used to save loads before when I was at uni albeit I had less expenses back then.

So I really think that you don't need lots of accounts or saving apps to save money. You can do it all from 1 bank account. The point is to not spend. It sounds silly but it all just comes down to not spending money.

Of course if you are really good at saving and budgeting then you can have lots of accounts for different purposes and monitor them. Some people are so good at budgeting and monitoring their finances and they can keep track of all accounts each month and save money!

Unfortunately I'm not so good at maths and accounts lol so I keep it simple for myself with just 2 bank accounts now. Do what works for you! If you can keep on top of different accounts then excellent do it! If you think you'll get lost then keep your life simple, keep 1 account.

I know people who have 2 accounts as 1 for saving and 1 for spending and still dip into savings each month. I know I have done this before lol.

It takes patience and resistance to spend those £££ on payday lol and it comes with practice. Remember we are all learning haha!

 

[Anonymous_Troll]

Does anybody have any good side hustle apps? I see so many people in the debt free community raking it in from them but I struggle with consistency! Good ones I do use are:

Prolific - have made over £200 from doing academic surveys

Just started using Appinio which seems good and cashes out as a £10 amazon voucher.

Shoppix and ZIPZERO are good receipt scanning apps although with ZIPZERO you have to use any money towards a bill rather than being given the cash.

If anyone wants to try any of these, PM me and I’ll give you my referral code (lol @ sounding like an influencer)