Save my life!

mlz1413

OP you have taken the first step bu realising you can't carry on the way you have lived for the last 2 years. Also as you had £40k of savings before this dream job then you know how to save.

So you have to decide what you need versus what you want.

£1200 on horses is too much and I'm a horse rider and have owned. Rent should be around £20-£50pw depending on where you live and as you have plenty of time, then your wife can do everything else herself. ie DIY livery not full livery

Stop paying the Gardener and get out there yourself - it will help stop the boredom

2 cameras to do blogging - really?!

why don't you do more with your dogs - walks and training could seriously take up hours a day.

then use the rest of your on-call time to research what types of savings you really want to invest in.

Savingsideas

greenglide wrote: »

Start a personal pension scheme for each of you.

Stick loads of money in, tax relief on way in and you cannot access the money until age 55 (at present).

Seems ideal for somebody who wont save / reduce expenditure.

The issue I see with this is. We are both 26. We don't own a house or any assets at all.
This job will not last forever. Maybe a few years, maybe a decade if we are lucky.

If we need this money (not for fancy restaurants) is there now way to get it out?
For example if one day we want a mortgage or car?

I think this might be an option once we have a 50k nest egg to sit on.

mlz1413

crossed posts
if you really have that many rescue animals I can see where your money is draining away BUT you shouldn't have any time left over after all that!

Savingsideas

mlz1413 wrote: »

OP you have taken the first step bu realising you can't carry on the way you have lived for the last 2 years. Also as you had £40k of savings before this dream job then you know how to save.

So you have to decide what you need versus what you want.

£1200 on horses is too much and I'm a horse rider and have owned. Rent should be around £20-£50pw depending on where you live and as you have plenty of time, then your wife can do everything else herself. ie DIY livery not full livery

Stop paying the Gardener and get out there yourself - it will help stop the boredom

2 cameras to do blogging - really?!

why don't you do more with your dogs - walks and training could seriously take up hours a day.

then use the rest of your on-call time to research what types of savings you really want to invest in.

Thanks!

You are correct. We have hit a realization moment.
Regarding the savings. I wouldn't say we saved that money. It was more the case we simply didn't have the time to spend anything. Every month money went in and just sats in the account.

If I look back at those bank statements, I wouldn't be surprised If I saw our salary going in and not even 100 being spent in a month between salaries being paid in.

Regarding horses. The stable block with grazing is 900 per month. It holds 12 horses. My wife does them all DIY. It is very time consuming. Its what we need!

mlz1413

On the horsey front you need an agreement with your wife that the horses stop at this point! Or you will have 12 next time look!

Also what happens when this job comes to an end, what if the end is next year? would you have them put down when the money stops rolling in?

Re your father you have the time to sort out what social care and benefits he is entitled to and it would be time well spent. Again you won't always be able to pay his rent so you need to address this as it could take months.

Maybe do a deal that all the stuff you ebay will go to the homebuyers ISA you want to start. Then agree what is fair to spend on yourselves, family and on the animals, anything left over goes to a savings plan.

I'd recommend a fixed saving plan that you agree not be draw from.

atush

Go down to one horse. Have it where she can work (for free not money) to pay for the horses upkeep. No money earned, not against contract.

Dont rescue any more dogs, go to a cheaper contract, do your own gardening, go to pubs, no more fancy restaurants.

Do a spending diary to see where else you are wasting.

Jhoney_2

Nasqueron wrote: »

Use the horses to do the gardening

Have you ever tried pushed a lawn mower whilst trying to ride a horse?:D

bigfreddiel

Take up investing as a hobby

Flobberchops

Reading the OP, it sounds like you already know (or at least strongly suspect) where you're going wrong financially.

Earn more, or failing that spend less. It's as simple as that really.

Regarding the questions:

1) Depends on how much you're saving and whether you're going to be making regular deposits, regular withdrawals, or letting a lump sum sit there. Still, many here would argue that the best savings accounts are actually current accounts, there are some out there paying up to 5%, and also some Regular Savings accounts paying similarly generous rates (but usually very limited in terms of how much you can deposit).

2) It doesn't sound like you have the funds to really consider buying to let at the moment. A "sensible" investment strategy would be to find a platform that offers free or very cheap regular contributions to a passive fund, but it sounds like you want to make a hobby of it. In that case, there are plenty of trading accounts available out there. Just try not to lose your shirt, eh?

3) Plenty of hobbies are free or inexpensive. I used to do a lot of art, and my expenses were a pad of paper and a new set of pencils once a year. Walking is free. If you have the space, ditch the gym membership and shell out on a home gym, it will have paid for itself in a couple of years and you'll also save time and money on transport.

Bravepants

Yes you need something more in your life other than "stuff"...I discovered this site a few months ago; this and others are really helping me focus my life on what's important.


http://www.becomingminimalist.com/becoming-minimalist-start-here/


It's not for everyone, but see what you think.


Cheers,
Paul