£40k in savings and don't know what to do

rkrkanji

Hello everyone,

I am 25 years old, and came from a pretty poor working class family.

Whilst I was at university I received quite a bit of handouts/sponsorships and schlorships money (i was a bit of a geek back in the day). I also worked pretty much most summers and during term time and actually came out of uni with a bank balance of +£15k. I also had to take out a student loan for £4k a year and went to uni for 4yrs so actually owe £16k plus interest/inflation. As I really don't know much about investments I decided just to deposit the money into a isa which pays 3%. I have yet to pay off my student loan.

Anyway after uni, I got a job in Australia in the mining industry. Australians salaries in the mining industry are pretty crazy. I have been working for 1.5yrs now, I started on $60k (£40k) a year and in my second yr it rose to $80k (£53k) this year.

I find it pretty hard to spend money (funny as it may sound), but i feel a lot of guilt if I buy something expensive. I think this may have been due to my upbringing and not having much money. So buying luxury stuff actually me feel guilty (I can't imagine why people would spend so much money on a expensive car). Also, I don't drink too much and I think that is where most people salaries tend to go. I started logging how much I spend each month and its usually around $1.5k a month without budgeting much (including rent, food, shopping, going out...). And so the rest of the money I saved. I was saving roughly $3-5k a month and now have a bank balance of £40k. £18k in my UK isa (which pays 3%) and $35k (£23k) in my Australian account which pays 5.5% minus tax.

Now I don't know what I should do with the money. I have no desire to buy a ncie car or even a house (the thought of the commitment in a mortgage or the fact that I would have to continue working for x many yrs to pay off the house, is what puts me off!).

I don't actually enjoy the working life, I find it pretty exhausting. I am not sure if this is a stupid idea, but would one day just like to work a few hours a week doing something fun. I thought if I could save enough I could just live of the interest and work part time. Is this a stupid idea? Any other suggestions on what I should do with savings? Should I maybe stop saving? pay off the student loan? save for a house even though i don't want to?

Bangkok_Owl

Have you thought about going travelling for a year? You could travel on a budget to suit you and maybe return with more ideas about what to do with the rest of your savings.

atush

First of all, if you dont' want a house or a car but want to retire early or have an unrestricted lifestyle you need to save- and save hard. In cash, but also in equities.

Eventurally you will build up a fund that will provide enough income for you to live on.

But somehow I do think your priorities will change (you may want to opena business, marry, start a family and might change your mind about a home etc). Living out of a suitcase or at the whims of a landlard can pale over the years.

Plus you may find your mining job isn't long term so you won't be earning like that forever?

So save, and invest.

jamesd

It's not a stupid idea. Start to learn about investments like funds (unit trusts, OEICs), not just savings. Investments are what it takes to generate the income you need to live on without working.