Making every day count in sunny (not all the time, bit of a misconception) Spain

Shrewbie · 9 September 2018 at 8:01PM

It was the support from these forums that helped me pay off a good chunk of debt (7K) around 7 years ago. It really helped me then and again now in recognising when the spending JUST HAS TO STOP….

So I rid myself of the 7K debt… fast forward a few years to 2016, I was living in London and earning a good salary, not in debt but still never managing to save a sausage, watching vast numbers of my paycheque disappear each month on various fun but frivolous activities. I decided enough was enough and a change was needed.

I absolutely loved my job but had reached my max earning potential in that role and it was time for a change. Luckily I received a small windfall and had enough (I thought perhaps a bit naively) to quit my job and relocate to Spain (which I have always wanted to do) but not before backpacking around central America and living like a Queen in Colombia for 6 months.

(this was much more spenny than it needed to be - shoestring was not a word in my vocabulary during those months!)

So, today I work as an autonomo (freelance) teacher here in Spain. That means my income is not fixed per month, as we do not get paid for holidays. And spain has A LOT of those! Add in the long unpaid summer and I have really had to start thinking about how to make my money stretch and work for me. I am not sure if it is worth posting an SOA as my income will vary month on month, but I am going to have a think about how I can best manage this.

I need to pay off debt, it is a comparatively small amount and then I need to save. But what for? I suppose I am an ambitious person but historically have always thought myself a bit lazy for never having the motivation to really pursue one career path. Having grown up (a bit) I recognise that perhaps I just suffer from being one of those people who is interested in everything, but not enough to specialise in one thing.... jack of all trades etc.... so it seems I always have itchy feet, mainly to travel but also for a new career/country and this can be expensive!!

I have been really inspired over the past year to start this diary (particularly by kirstypoos, frugaldom and doing it anyway :A) there has been a lot of free time in the holiday to read and muse and soak up the great advice that can be found on these forums and elsewhere.
I DO still want to travel and experience new things but I am aware my age may be against me soon and I also want to save up for a "death-gage" (think frugaldom coined that one!) free house of my own.

So currently my debt stands at £3617 which is made up of £1K overdraft which I need to clear ASAP and a 0% CC. However I will be receiving a large deposit which is being returned when I leave my current apartment next week. This is in euros so after that has been paid off the total debt should be around £2178 just on the CC of course. My debt is in £ but I will be converting € to pay it off.

I need this debt to be gone by the end of 2018.

In 2019 I am aiming to save around €7K , plus €1K for an emergency fund and €1K for a travel fund. I think I’ll keep my savings in € for now, but would appreciate any advice from expats on this one! Just as i was getting to grips with the various savings accounts in the UK, I decided to change countries and now I have no idea what I am doing!

Anyone who wants to come along for the ride is more than welcome!! :beer:

Shrewbie