From £6000 ----> £9000 in 2023.

NinjaSavingKat

EDIT May 2023 - I have reached my £6000 goal and this is being tucked away in a high interest easy access CHIP account. I am re-jigging my goal to fill my sink funds now including a possible amazing dream. Onwards to £9000. 

EDIT January 2023 - my original goal was £2600, then £6000 in 2022. I managed this and propped myself up for the year with car repairs, cat food and the like all paid for in cash and now have £3000 cold hard cash.... but I want £6000 again...;-)


EDIT - my original goal in 2022 was a simple £2600. Now the money-saving-hootenanny has well and truly caught hold and I have smashed that target, it only seemed fitting that I set another target within the same year. Onwards to £5500.  £6000. Might as well have a nice rounded figure eh? 


Hello Money Savers, 

It's been a very very long time since I posted on MSE.

I distinctly remember how the accountability aspect of having an MSE journal allowed me to stick to my goals more easily.... and the feelings I might have to confess at the end of everyday!.. .. so here I am with one focused on my savings goals. 

I have other financial savings goals I want to achieve this year but they are more focused on the payments I know will need to be made (car insurance etc) and the items that I know I pay for on a regular basis. The very specific £2600 is the long term savings I want to build up, build on and TRY not to touch. 

I cleared all my debt in 2013 and went travelling in 2014 then came home in 2016 and have faffed around for too long, travelling now and then and doing expensive cooking courses and walking expeditions. Spent the latter end of 2021 paying off the credit card that I took my eyes off. 

So I am starting at £0. In an attempt to be sensible...;-)

You have to start somewhere though right. This will however be a boring old thread of how a low income earner will save relentlessly through the year. I have already resigned myself to not going very far anytime soon as saving is my first goal.  I used to earn a LOT, so I have been on the other end. It doesn't bother me as I have more of a life right now with a simple job.

I have saved to go travelling for 2 years after my debt-busting journey, so am not averse to commitment, focus and sacrifice. However I do not have a specific goal right now, just the knowledge that being my age with no emergency fund at least is a bit stupid.

So my rules..

1. Pay all bills first. 
2. Pay all savings second. 
3. Live on whats left. 
4. Do not use credit card.

I spent the last 3 months scrimping, saving and selling what I could. To pay off a near £1000 credit card in 3 months. So I know it can be done. I just need to be sensible along the way as life happen, I have an old car, an old cat, a tooth that needs seen too (broke it on a candy cane I took off the Christmas tree..) and a very badly paid job.

As much as I could live on the bare bones I need to be able to keep petrol in the car, buy coal as the house is freezing and generally live a little (although not much).

I have a Vinted account that needs a kick up the !!!!!!, I have applied for a job that I will hear back from in a week or so, and the prospect of a promotion at work to get more money in, and a garden on the go fo fresh veg and free fun. 

So.... Onwards and Upwards. 

NinjaSavingKat

Prepare to be bored. 

• Car Savings Account / £45 per week = £2340 yearly

This has to cover insurance in March 2022 and March 2023. I pay in full so around £350 each time. Repairs this year were about £300 / new tyres at the front £100 / then MOT (£35), Tax (paid in full) £170 and potential issues along the way as the previous year the unexpected repairs were more around £500-600. 

I have a few aesthetic basics that I need to consider. Albeit my little car has character some aspect are getting annoying (always having to unlock car from passenger side.. )- another £200.

Yes I could buy a new car, but my mechanic said keep it until it dies. Its a 2003 VW and he says he sees newer cars coming in with worse problems. As my family all have VW we have a supplier for parts, the mechanic tells us what we need, we buy them and he fits them. On occasion the local scrap yard will have what we need. 

The rest of this money will go towards getting a new car - mechanic states that will be in 2-3 years. 

This also covers all petrol which comes to around £45 (full tank) every 2.5 weeks. I don't go anywhere..;-)

• That Other Account / £40 per week = £2080

My health is my ultimate life goal. I don't go or do anything else.

Gym / Monthly Supplements / Dentist / Cat Random's (like teeth clean which isn't covered by insurance - £150)

I workout 5 days a week and need a few things to keep me going. This is a life thing not a January 2022 thing.

I have located a vegan protein shake that doesn't taste like dirt so stick to it despite it being £38 a bag... ,I guesstimate 2 a month but sometimes I don't need it (days off) so its around 1.5 bags a month and they are consistently on offer.

I need new trainers due to having used my old ones to death and will budget (£150) for this. It will be the last thing I buy but its something I can't overlook. 

I have early on-set arthritis in both knees and consistent injury in my right. I found a company that sells vegan supplements for bones (condroitin and glucosamine are shellfish based) but this has taken me time to realise I can't do with out it - I stand all day at work and its being exacerbated everyday so I need to be careful.

I have used them for 2 years and am in considerable pain if I forget to take them for a week (£60 every 3 months - very cheap / affordable).I also take monthly immune support after having COVID in August.  (Another £30-45 a months - depending on where I buy them, offers on different websites, and how long each product lasts.)

I get the feeling this will all come at once and I will be left with a surplus of states money and THAT will be when I can get a proper grasp of how much this will all come to. 

I like to be consistent, so would prefer a once a month purchase of everything from one site but it just doesn't work like that. 

The cat teeth clean was a jolly great surprise last month - due end of January. Starts at £150 and may end at £400. Not covered by insurance as seen as "general up-keep". Thrills. 

• Bill Account / £30 a week = £1560 a year

Phone / Gym / Gym Program / Netflix / Cat Insurance

I have estimated £8 over each week and have "rounded up" - this will cover any anomalies albeit I don't foresee any here as its been consistent for over a year.

Phone is paid off and am on the lowest option monthly option I can get.

Gym is the local leisure centre and very very cheap,  programme is self-motivated and changes every 4 weeks. Been on this for nearly 2 years. It won't change.

Netflix is Netflix. I have no TV programmes or other entertainment options. Spotify is used in the gym as the free option.

The cat is 11 years old, is insured and I am going to review her insurance company due for renewal in March. As mentioned above - doesn't cover a teeth clean under aesthetic. 

• Rent / £50 a week = £2600 a year.

I am lucky - I know that. I will be potentially increasing this soon to cover the internet but my parents have a plan that I need research which includes long distance phone calls that they no longer use. 

I have cleaned the house ( mother is a hoarder) while living here and have taken on the garden now for my Dad. It's my way of helping without increasing finances as my mother is desperate for me to have some savings. Its a win win. 

I have a Hyperjar card for my Mum so its her fun spending money which she loves. 

• Tithe / £35 a week. Not Tracked. 

This is a religious belief. Not open for discussion. Listed her to be entirely open about where funds are located. 

• Remains - £75 a week - £3900 a year. 

So this is for everything else. Mainly food as I shop online for weird ingredients, and the local Asian store for goodies. 

This will have to cover coal as well as I am freezing in my house (possibly 1-2 bags a week), haircuts (once or twice a year for £35), toiletries (currently working through crazy amounts of samples) if they are ever needed. Make-up - same stuff over and over so will shop around when necessary, happy to stick to cheap brands though and open to suggestions so search online.

Skint_yet_Again

Hi @NinjaSavingKat well done on paying off your debt and good luck with your savings. I look forward to following your journey and pinching any good ideas 😆 Good luck with your new job/ promotion 🤞

savingwannabe

Hello Ninja welcome, good luck in your journey. I am v happy to meet you! Good luck, we are all saving slowly on here and try to cheer each other along. 

Try to take sandwiches to work and if poss sell anything you dont use. Those are two tips i will add if they are any use i dont know.

NinjaSavingKat

Hello fellow savers - so lovely of you to drop by. 

@Skint_yet_Again ...I might fill in the above blank post with my money saving go to tips..;-).. My mother is the ultimate penny pincher so there may some interesting ideas.. 

@savingwannabe - you are SO right. Work lunches can seriously add up. I work in a place that provides free lunch but never anything for me as I am of the vegan variety..lol! I have been making and carrying lunches from way before I even started debt busting. Twas a learned behaviour from mother. *see above.. lol. 

It's par for course now or I starve. I spend a lot of time on food, and sometimes skip a weeks shopping here and there as I know I can make multiple meals from all sorts of weirdness. I like making something from the weird random bits in my fridge. It can prove interesting at times...;-)

Am slowly getting rid of clothes on Vinted, albeit that is slow progress. I have used Ebay but got rid of them after they screwed me over on a £500 product. 

How do you sell things?

MovingForwards

Welcome fellow penny pincher!
Most of us in this section don't earn much, we make it stretch far though.

Your savings goal sounds achievable. I find it easier to break the overall target into bite size pieces, keeps momentum going.

One of my favourite tips is rounding the account and moving the pennies, 1p - 99p to a dedicated savings account. There's a few interesting accounts paying 2% - 3% as the interest helps reach the top of the mountain.

NinjaSavingKat

Hello @MovingForwards .. good to know I am not the only one on a low income...;-)

I have, over the last year guestimated what I need to have aside so as to not have a few months where every last penny has to be put aside in a blind panic. It would be classed as an over-estimation but I would rather have that than be short and have to take money from elsewhere. 

So - I have rectified the blank post above with my main concerns and eventual tactics. See what you think. 

I will look at the whole moving penny thing - I usual have everything so tight there is nothing left so it will be slow progress. How much have you saved up doing that?

NinjaSavingKat

So - tomorrow is pay day (weekly hence expenditure break down) .

After a spend at Superdrug on the 29th December I have used money that was elsewhere and now needs to go back in. 

There will be no money in the LT saving account this week which annoys me but these little things are important to record.

I could have done without every single item I purchased bar the concealer for £4. 

I spent £68.93. For shame. 

I use a specialised shampoo for hair loss. Its on sale. Salon size with conditioner. £75 for both. Will not be buying this as I found a dusty bottle of Tresemme in the cupboard. If I miss the promo that's on me. It will be a lesson in why being prepared is important. 

Dentist next week Friday 13th (Nice!). Cracked a temporary crown eating candy canes off my Christmas tree. Don't judge..;-).

Estimating £75-£130 to fix. Money put away in the OTHER account this week will have to be used as well. Fingers cross it won't be too awful. 

Phew! 

MovingForwards

Your budgets look fine, I would suggest keep searching to see if you can find the supplements cheaper.

I'm sure you'd be able to make a vegan protein shake cheaper than what you're paying. Again, it's something to look into.

I never kept track of my round ups and added them into my various accounts. If you look up the 1p a day savings challenge and 52 week savings challenge, you'll see how it can build up.

savingwannabe

I think  you are doing great. I started keeping a spending diary and that has helped me so much but it took ages for me to stop buying bits and i still struggle. I am a sucker for a red coat and also perfume. lol. Selling on marketplace is free and vvv quick. 

NinjaSavingKat

A grand total of £15.16 spent in Asda this morning. I go super early on payday at 6am before the gym open at 7am. Beat the crowds, be methodical, use a list, plan meals (loosely)  and hopefully not get distracted. 

Free massage today as I'm being a guinea pig, an otherwise simple day of pouring over cook books and filling the freezer with meals to make the work week easier. 

Supplements yes, worth searching for a better picked option. However those I have tried have cost me £20-£30 anyway. Few companies do samples so I vowed to stick with what I know and like and make allowances elsewhere.

However no harm in trying other new companies that may have emerged. I'm just loathed to pay £3 a sample and £4 delivery to my neck of the woods..🤣.. 

The company I use offer a subscription service for a £4.99 discount so it's an option perhaps.