Noor77's personal budgeting thread

Re: More thoughts

I am near Cabra Libary as it happens ElderDog...and I go there sometimes, but I'm not a member.
I've been on the medication for 2 years now, and I will ring VHI up about claiming money back. Anything would be welcome!

I'm finding it hard to imagine Eddie as a secret splurger!

Re: More thoughts

Consider getting text bundles and trying to text people instead of ringing.

And internet shopping (I like Superquin, haven't been that impressed with Tesco) might help with your groceries. If you have the space in your house try ordering anything you want which will keep for a few months - if you do this every two or three months you should only need to buy fresh fruit and veg, milk and bread otherwise.

you're only young once

I think you are doing really well already, you're young, you've obviously got a good job, you've paid your way through a post grad course, and you've got your own place. Give your self a pat on the back! Sure you could save more, and now that you're serious about it , you should be able to. How about giving your self a reward to look forward to? For example a holiday? At your age, you should take take the opportunity to travel- once you're married with kids its so much more difficult.

Don't compare yourself to other people- the fact that you obviously spent some years in college means that you havent been earning as much as people who perhaps have been working for more years- and often graduates start off with lower earnings until you reach a certain level of experience.

Re: you're only young once

Thanks Vanilla, you're probably being too kind though!

I just worry because I have NO savings - zero, zilch, nada. So if the unexpected happens I'm not too prepared financially. I wonder how much I should start to save and how I should save it.

From some peoples replies I have started to feel that maybe I am spending too much, although it certainly doesn't feel like it!

Perhaps I should have become a nun in an enclosed order and I wouldn't have to worry about any of this : ))

Re: you're only young once

How to start saving - open an instalment saving account, or other account where the money is simply taken out of your account a few days after payday. That way, if the money isn't there when you think about buying a new magazine or going to the cinema you just won't do it. But you will have saved.

In your case you have made a go of it since you seem to be increasing your SSIA by a small amount later this year - just try to increase it even more.

The only way to start saving is to *DO IT*

You have correctly identified a major problem with your financial situation - you have no savings. Yes, you have a house and mortgage, but if you need money in a hurry would you be prepared to sell the house or re-mortgage ? If not then you need to establish some savings.

z

Re: you're only young once

How many times can you change the amount you are allowed put in to your SSIA account?

I'm embarrassed now by how well all you people are able to save and manage your money, it's really impressive. I obviously have a few defective finance genes...or else holes in my pockets...

savings

I'm in a similar situation, I'm 22 and have a mortgage with partner I pay €420 a month (he earns more than me but I insist on paying half in case a dispute ever arises) take home €1390 car loan €320 I also have a credit union loan of €3800. The only savings I have are €2700 in the credit union, which are tied to my loan and €30 a month into the SSIA, which can sometimes be a struggle to scrape together.
I'm financially fairly screwed but have gotten used to tracking my spending and surviving on a set budget. Monday to Wednesday I spend little or nothing, maybe pick up bread and milk on the way home, bring my lunch to work or go home for lunch as I live near.
My saving grace is that my car loan expires this time next year and SSIA expires in May next year, so now I put small dents in the credit union loan (€200 a month + interest) and will finish it off once my car is paid for. I also have a Credit Card which I clear every month whether I can afford it or not.

Re: savings

Hi Sinead

What kind of budget do you set yourself for the week then? I must admit, any time I've ever set myself a budget it has gone completely pearshaped within only a couple of days. Something always seems to pop up - like a birthday or a new utility bill etc... It feels like trying to organise chaos!

Noor

Re: budget

Is it possible to live on €100 a week (obviously not including bills etc...)?? I'm thinking of trying it for a while, so that I start saving. Will allowing myself just €100 mean that my socialising will be confined to my tv room?!!

budget

well when i get paid every month i pay the mortgage, car loan, credit union loan and clear the credit card. Then I'm left with pretty much nothing! Children's allowance covers the €30 a week for my daughter's playschool fee so I just put €30 into 4 envelopes. I have a free childminder (mammy!) without which I would be comlpetely lost, it wouldn't be worth my while working if I had to pay creche fees (but that's another debate!) I get €80 a week on the Back to Work allowance which covers my weekly spending, petrol, newspapers, groceries etc.

I try to plan ahead for birthdays but I have to admit sometimes my family members have to settle for a birthday card and a few scratch cards. I don't go out unless I'm brought, and then I have a free babysitter and usually end up walking home when we run out of money. One day my daughter asked me if we were poor but we're not really cos we have everything we want, and we're managing to go on holiday this year (which is where the credit union loan comes in)

Re: budget

Wow Sinead,

You're a bit of an inspiration. I hope you have a fantastic holiday.

I'm just going to have to start getting strict with myself. I kind of just float along a lot of the time when it comes to money. At the moment I have a grand total of €85 in my back account - and no savings! But I am getting paid tomorrow, and I'm going to do out a budget and really try and stick with it this time.

Re: budget

Well in a nutshell, yes, you can survive on €100 per week. I do the budget up for our household, so it's a joint working but here goes.

We have a net income of €3600 per month, between the two of us.

Food €400
Petrol €250
Mortgage €730
Child Expenses €300
ESB €55
Gas €45
Phone/Internet €70
Home Insurance €40
Life Assurance €30
Car Loan €335
VHI €100
SSIA €130
Clothes €200
Totals: €2685
Over: €915 - This figure goes by standing order into our separate Credit Union Accounts on a weekly basis. We then withdraw the more expensive household costs as and when we need them. Examples include; car insurance, car tax, car maintenance, doctors expenses.......................
So we would save in and around €7,5K per year after the other expenses.
FYI, I'm 26 & Mr Mo is 25

Re: budget

You've definitely got it sussed Ms. Mo!
I find that the things that really eat in to my cash are things like having to buy birthday gifts, going out to celebrate someones birthday, generally any type of socialising. For example, re: gift buying this month, so far:

anniversary present for parents - €80
birthday present for friend - €40
birthday present for dad - €40
birthday present for another friend - €30

and that's only this month : (

Re: budget

Ok, so that's always a sticking point in our family.

Mr Mo's family are prone to buying large presents, and I'm not. So what we do is agree a set amount through the year for presents. If it's a parent it's X amount, if it's a brother or sister it's Y amount. Then we try and stick to that.

We substitute the clothes amount for the presents instead - so we might not buy as much clothes for little miss or ourselves and buy a present instead.

Any other money from overtime/winnings during the year goes straight into savings as well.

Yes, I have a gambling habit, LOL, sort of - Bingo once a fortnight. Fortunately, I happen to be very lucky & have won over €3K in the past 8 months alone. If I weren't lucky I wouldn't go. BTW, the money for that comes out of the food bill!

Re: budget

What do you do with your winnings Ms. Mo?!

I only spend about €100 a month on clothes, I'd love to be able to spend more. A friend of mine bought a coat a couple of weeks ago - on plastic of course - for €850! I think if I had that money available I'd rather spend it on a holiday : ))

Another "gift" type thing that drains my resources is that every time I visit my parents I bring them stuff. I see them about every 2 weeks and might give them stuff work €40 each time - you know the usual...wine, chocolates etc... They are always telling me not to but I can't help myself!

Re: budget

I have read your posts with interest Noor. A practical suggestion for the presents is to st a small budget aside and buy stuff in the sales - put aside in a 'presents' box until needed. It does not even have to be terribly personal, just well chosen things which will do for various occasions. You can easily cut your presents budget by 75% that way.

Which brings me to the next topic - having a budget. You are on the right track but there is still a feel of 'I really can't help it, money just runs through my fingers'. It's very simple - if you want control, then take control. If you want to go aout and spend €100 on a night out, fine. But understand that you have chosen to do this, and you can only spend that money once. If you only spend €50, you will have the other €50 left.

What you spend your money on is your choice. This is where a spending diary is good, as it tells you exactly where your money goes and enables you to take control. If you are spending money on stuff that does not give you pleasure, then you can cut that expenditure.

I was interested at the spend on magazines, because I also used to spend quite a bit of money on these, until I realised how little time I spent reading them and how unsatisfying a read most of them were. I now buy only one or two magazines instead, and read lots of books. I buy some books, but also use the library and exchange books with friends. A lot more reading pleasure for a lot less money.

So make you choices, and do a little planning. You will see great savings just out of that process I think. While you are at it, set up a direct debit to a savings account with a longish notice period. You will soon get used to the money not being available to spend, and you will watch your savings grow.
cheers,
Diziet

Re: budget

Well they either go into savings for Christmas/Holidays or there's always something that needs doing in the house!

As regards parents, I try not to bring value gifts such as chocolates/flowers/Wine etc, except on special occasions. They would appreciate stuff like making cups of tea, helping with the housework/shopping, going for a walk with them etc, more so. Especially when we both have younger brothers/sisters who wouldn't be able to afford the same, it creates a family inbalance. If you know what i mean?

Re: budget

I do know what you mean. I have a brother but he is to young to be even bothered about gifts and the like!!

I just feel that my parents are so nice to me that I want to give them at little bit back, plus they live in a different city so I don't see them that frequently. They are very good with money, so I think I definitely must have been found under a cabbage and they picked the wrong child!!!

Re: budget

I am near Cabra Libary as it happens ElderDog...and I go there sometimes, but I'm not a member

All you need to become a member is some id and/or a utility bill with your address. Membership allows you to borrow from all Dublin City Council library outlets. Cabra is my semi-regular branch too so I might see you up there sometime!

I've been on the medication for 2 years now, and I will ring VHI up about claiming money back. Anything would be welcome!

As mentioned several times already you should be entitled to tax relief on medical expenses over a certain amount in any one year. You should also look at claiming this for previous years if applicable. I posted the relevant links earlier. You should also see if you qualify for the Drug Payment Scheme which caps the amount that individuals must pay per month on prescription medicines.

You should also read the guides/links that I mentioned earlier.

Apologies if I'm repeating myself but I'm not sure that the message got through earlier.

How many times can you change the amount you are allowed put in to your SSIA account?

The SSIA rules don't set a limit on the number of changes but individual SSIA providers may have their own rules in this context. Best to check with your own SSIA provider. For regular savings you would be well advised to prioritise your SSIA above other regular savings options. It won't be too long now before it matures and the benefits are significantly better than alternative regular savings plans.

Stepping back a little, and perhaps getting a bit more philosophical, I reckon that you need to ascertain what your general life goals are short, medium and long term and then let these determine your short, medium and long term savings/investment strategies. There is no point attempting to save just because you thing it's a good thing, the right thing to do or what others are doing. You need to figure out what's appropriate for your situation and then plan accordingly. Some of the books/resources mentioned earlier may help with this task. There are also lots of other resources on figuring out how to identify your life goals etc. I enjoyed reading some of the ones available for free in case you find them useful.

I just feel that my parents are so nice to me that I want to give them at little bit back,

Not being smart (honestly) but why not skip the pressies but forego the €250 per month mortgage subsidy from them once you know that you can afford to?

spending diary

I've been keeping a spending diary on an excel spreadsheet for 3 months now and its made a huge difference. After the first 6 weeks I saw how much I was spending on fast food and dramatically cut down on that (and started going to weight watchers at the same time!) Also newspapers and magazines, I now buy the odd glossy (usually U mag for €1.50) and buy 2 or 3 papers on a sunday, go to the library for books and internet (€2 per hour) so I don't bother with a landline at home, spend €10 or €20 a month on my mobile. I do treat myself occasionally, I spend about €100 getting my hair done every 3 or 4 months but very rarely buy clothes. I need a new suit for work and my first port of call will be the charity shops, friends of mine are disgusted when I tell them this! I don't often buy things in charity shops, but I do LOOK from time to time in case I find a bargain