Moving to zone 1 in London, is this enough money?

McCloud1

I'm 27, I've decided to go back to education and am starting evening university this October whilst continuing to work full-time.

This means that I have to move from my wonderful spacious apartment in the suburbs to a shoe-box in central London, and due to time constraints between university/work it pretty much has to be in zone 1, where rent is eye-wateringly expensive.

My monthly take-home is £2,950 after tax and pension contributions, my credit card bills/personal loan payments total £450, leaving me £2,500 for rent, bills, food, and everything else.

Most studio flats in suitable areas are £1,500ish plus bills of around £200, this would leave me only £800 for food, clothes, entertainment, and anything else.

Do you guys think that this is a realistic sum to live on? I'm concerned because I spent most of my 20's in crippling debt and it's only been the last 2 years that I've been financially comfortable, and I don't want to revert to the old days of begging family members.

The worry is making me reconsider my degree even though I know I really want to do it, because I'm worried I'm signing up to 4 years (part-time) of poverty when I could be saving up for a house and finally enjoying having plenty of disposable income.

I can slightly reduce my costs my getting a room mate, but even then it's only a £200-£300 difference, and tbh I'm done living with people, I'm going to need laser-like focus to study whilst holding down my job so would rather not have the distraction.

I would be grateful for any thoughts.

quantumlobster

If you can't live like a king, even in central London, on £800 (after bills) per month, you're doing it wrong.

NineDeuce

How long is a piece of string? Whether you can live is all subjective to your spending habits...

If at worst you live like a pauper, then that's enough. If you spend over £100 each time on your nights of entertainment, then you will have to be careful.

Get a Saturday job in KFC and you will be fine I am sure...

McCloud1

quantumlobster wrote: »

If you can't live like a king, even in central London, on £800 (after bills) per month, you're doing it wrong.

No doubt I am doing it wrong, I have a history of being terrible with money and am only comfortable now because my salary dwarfs my current expenses!

I don't live like a king now and I have £1,800 disposable each month...

Candyapple

1. What is the nearest tube to where you work?
2. What is the name of the uni?
3. How many evenings per week will you be attending?
4. What time do you finish work / start class?
5. When you say bills of around £200, have you factored council tax in this?
6. Do you think you can hack 4 years of living in a studio apartment holding down a full-time job and studying?

McCloud1

NineDeuce wrote: »

How long is a piece of string? Whether you can live is all subjective to your spending habits...

If at worst you live like a pauper, then that's enough. If you spend over £100 each time on your nights of entertainment, then you will have to be careful.

Get a Saturday job in KFC and you will be fine I am sure...

Appreciated, I'm asking because I want to see the general consensus to judge against. I know I'm bad with money, so if most people on here think it's 'borderline' then I know it's not enough for me, however if it's easily enough then I might stand a chance.

I pretty much went from being hopelessly in debt from 18-25 to being comfortable with far more money than I need overnight, so I don't really have a baseline for the cost of 'sensible' living.

McCloud1

Candyapple wrote: »

1. What is the nearest tube to where you work? Moorgate is less than 5 seconds from my office door, however I work from home 3 times a week
2. What is the name of the uni? Birkbeck, its part of UoL and on Malet Street in Bloomsbury.
3. How many evenings per week will you be attending? Three.
4. What time do you finish work / start class? Classes start at 6pm. I technically finish work at 17:30 but you know how it is in the City, I often work at home until late
5. When you say bills of around £200, have you factored council tax in this? Yes, council tax on studios seems to be cheap, and many of them have heating/hot water/broadband included in rent
6. Do you think you can hack 4 years of living in a studio apartment holding down a full-time job and studying? Lol I ask myself this question daily. I hope so, but I don't know, I am spoilt in my current circumstances, and maybe I will break when confronted with the harsh reality of the direction I'm going in.

Answers in red above.

Candyapple

It all sounds do-able on your salary assuming you live frugally, it will come down to how focused and dedicated you are about getting this degree.

You will literally be living like a hermit for the next 4 years - work, eat, sleep, study, repeat as you won't have time for anything else. Ask yourself honestly if you think you can hack it, it's not an easy thing to do let alone being confined to just one room for all of your living/studying and home working space for the next 4 years.

Are you doing the degree for 'fun' / a career change / or to better your current career?

Might be worth filling this out to see the lay of the land:
http://www.stoozing.com/calculator/soa.php

Let's say you spend £150 on food per month, that would leave you with £650 to cover all your other expenses which works out just over £20 per day.

What about travel? Is your aim to be within walking distance of your uni, or will you need to get a bus/tube? That would need to be factored in.

steampowered

There are lots of people in the city who work late but don't live in Zone 1 (though I agree when you are working late commuting times is a very important consideration).

You could consider a cheaper area like New Cross or Peckham, which is still very well connected to central London.

It sounds like you'll be very busy with work and study, so may not have much time to spend in your flat! It sounds like a studio would be fine, but personally I'd go for a 1-bed in a slightly rougher area.

camptownraces

Can you negotiate an earlier finish with your employer? - if not, you will find it difficult, unless those college evenings coincide with the days you work at home.

Seems to me that it's your time that is borderline, not money.

I don't think you can reliably get from Moorgate to Birkbeck in 30 minutes using the Underground. The trains will be crowded and it will take a few minutes to get to the surface using the lifts at Goodge street (no escalator as I recall), plus crossing the main road and walking at speed to the college.

McCloud1

Candyapple wrote: »

It all sounds do-able on your salary assuming you live frugally, it will come down to how focused and dedicated you are about getting this degree.

You will literally be living like a hermit for the next 4 years - work, eat, sleep, study, repeat as you won't have time for anything else. Ask yourself honestly if you think you can hack it, it's not an easy thing to do let alone being confined to just one room for all of your living/studying and home working space for the next 4 years.

Are you doing the degree for 'fun' / a career change / or to better your current career?

Might be worth filling this out to see the lay of the land:
http://www.stoozing.com/calculator/soa.php

Let's say you spend £150 on food per month, that would leave you with £650 to cover all your other expenses which works out just over £20 per day.

What about travel? Is your aim to be within walking distance of your uni, or will you need to get a bus/tube? That would need to be factored in.

The idea is that I live within walking distance of both work and uni, Covent Garden or the southern part of Camden, using my Oyster card only if I'm running late.

The degree is to change careers, I've spent years hating my job but not leaving because I'm not qualified to do anything else that pays comparable salaries.

God it sounds awful when you put it like that, but I know I need to go back to education to change my circumstances and I don't know what else to do .

£150 on food...I spend £75 every 4 days on shopping including toiletries and cleaning products. I'm so screwed aren't I....