New Grad DFW

moneyonmymindsam

Nice to have a book fund ready and waiting - well done on that !


sam x

ab_saver

moneyonmymindsam wrote: »

Nice to have a book fund ready and waiting - well done on that !


sam x

Thanks - I love reading but devour books whole so the kindle had the potential to become very expensive to keep up with my book habit. I've got loads of free ones but I do like some more modern literature too. I have cashed out another £5 from SB (total cashed out £25 in 10 days! That does include the £10 sign up bonus).

I'm feeling very positive now - someone quite a bit more senior than me at work has told me I'm good at my job 3 times in 2 days! :j:j:j My uni meeting was ok - supervisors very understanding that I have a full time job including loads of unsociable hours. I have a plan of action, but it will require a fair bit of work over the next few weeks. Another old project is nearly done and may soon get published .

I checked my payslip and they appear to have got it right this month Plan for tomorrow is to pay the CC, get my 2 regular savers sorted, and send some over to the EF. My bank has an alternative savings account with a slightly better interest rate, but I need at least £1500 in to qualify... one to think about but I think it'll take me a while to get there.

This has been a long month financially and otherwise so I'm glad it's coming to an end. Onwards and upwards (or bed-wards in my case...).

moneyonmymindsam

Great news on the SB


Enjoy your break - hope you have a great time


Sam

ab_saver

Forgive me moneysavers, for I have sinned...

I may have bought a designer handbag :eek: :eek:

It's on sale and significantly cheaper than I could ever get it in the U.K., and cannot be found in the U.K. any more.... BUT it was £160 of pure frivolity.

I'm having a wonderful time away - but it's been very expensive. The cost of things here is much higher and the exchange rate is 25% worse than a year ago, so my money doesn't go anything like as far. I am using my revolut card so I'm getting the best rate I can.

My mother tries to spoil me and take me shopping and whilst my parents have bought me lots of new clothes etc. (for which I'm very grateful), I have ended up spending quite a bit of money. I have a job and my own income so I don't want to feel dependent on my parents and don't want it to be said I don't put my hand in my pocket. My parents get it and say they don't expect me to reciprocate as my disposable income is still far less than theirs.

Ahh - I don't want to take advantage of their generosity but I can't afford to pay equally and they know it.

I knew this holiday would be expensive so I'm trying to remain calm. There are lots of things that can be bought here that cannot be bought in the U.K. - and we have been taking full advantage of sales and outlets (think £90 jeans for £18 etc.)

In other news my parents are coming back to the UK this year. I have already sent my mum the MSE weekly email, and told her all about the cheap energy club, cashback sites, and all the various loyalty schemes.

ab_saver

In good money saving news, I have set up my FD 5% saver with £100 for the time being- and calculated the daily interest as 1.3p!! Better than a slap in the face with a wet fish - and of course the daily interest will go up as the balance goes up.

ab_saver

Well... last night I ended up having a eureka moment - one you might call the "OMG I could actually afford a house" moment. There's a big new development in the city we live in and want to stay in, with the last few houses from the first phase for sale and the second phase underway. Based on my current salary and our current deposit, and the wonderful MSE mortgage calculator, we could afford a nice 3 bed semi... :eek: :eek: :eek: AND the repayment would be less than my rent, let alone less than our combined rents!

However, it makes more sense for us to wait a year or so to find out whether we'll be staying longer term - and be in a better position with savings etc. Let's just say that the idea of buying a house this time next year just got real!

Had a good rightmove window shopping session with my mum, and she said, "you know you could always use the money you'd say to pay it off quicker" - an MFW at heart?

Suddenly my house fund has gone from pie in the sky to an achievable future... ahhh!

(I'll have to clamp down on the designer handbag buying though :rotfl: )

moneyonmymindsam

Oh I do forgive you ..lol as I love a good bag, What make is it?


Wow that is great news on the House potential. So exciting.


You can do it - Look your house fund is £1k already!!!

moneyonmymindsam

ab_saver wrote: »

In good money saving news, I have set up my FD 5% saver with £100 for the time being- and calculated the daily interest as 1.3p!! Better than a slap in the face with a wet fish - and of course the daily interest will go up as the balance goes up.

That sounds good - keep it up! :beer:

ab_saver

The bag is L.K. Bennett.

I know I'll get there with the house- I'm prioritising that but it seems at the expense of my shorter-term savings (for holiday, Christmas, car etc.)

When I get back that's going to be the big push - to start saving into a short term pot that isn't for the house and isn't my EF either.

For now I'm going to relax and not worry about it too much for the 3 days of my holiday that remain.

ab_saver

It seems like forever ago I updated my diary. I'm now back from my lovely holiday, went into work on Friday, which was extremely busy, and am now doing some uni work as I stay up late before nights this week.

The OH has just left, having spent the weekend here. We celebrated Valentine's day yesterday, with small but meaningful gifts and a lovely lunch out. We then came back and watched some films (we used a Christmas voucher to buy a blu ray player and OH bought some discs on offer). Today has involved some work and some relaxation.

Money wise I'm doing ok - there's not a huge amount left, but I need very little, and doing nights this week means any spending other than an emergency pint of milk is simply out of the question. I paid for my flights out of this month's pay, so it feels like there hasn't been much left, but there isn't much on the card this month, and it shows me that I can save a bit extra every month without any noticeable hardship.

I change departments again in April, and will go onto very slightly more than now due to more hours - even though they will be more sociable. I'll change departments again in June, and for those two months my pay will go up substantially as the hours will be much less sociable. The extra money will be handy and has been provisionally earmarked for the driving lessons/car fund. The fly in the ointment is that from April I will have to start paying back my student loan, so that will probably swallow up most of the temporary pay rise!