What's a good level of savings?

Jet Black

Streetwalker wrote: »

How the heck can you save a 1000 a month Op?

I started this year and while its hard if you commit you could do it.
My breakdown is:

Rent: €500
Bills: €120
Petrol/tolls: €120
Food: €150
Savings: €1000
= €1890

Tying to save for a deposit so I've stuck to it for the last 5 months. Biggest expense I found was food. I bring my lunch in to work and stopped ordering takeaways. Saves a fortune.

Greentopia

DoYouEvenLift wrote: »

They're their priorities. If saving and making money were their priorities I'm sure they'd be doing that provided they're hard, or more importantly smart, workers. A lot of people who think they can't save money really could but they just have bad spending habits which are easy to fix with a bit of will power. A good example is people who go out for lunch everyday and spend at least €5, that all adds up and right there is an extra €100/m needlessly spent when they could prepare much better food and for cheaper at home and bring it in with them.

I take your point about small things adding up, but being a hard or smart or however you want to phrase it... worker doesn't always equate to riches no matter how frugal or canny a saver you are or how much you prioritise savings. Some jobs are great but just don't pay that well. The arts for example...ask me how I know :roll eyes: not in that area full time any more now though.

NotASheeple

SCOOP 64 wrote: »

Single at 30, no commitments ,Very Bad!

Or maybe just wise.

lcwill

You should check out Mr Money Mustache - a great blog about personal finance and financial independence. It is based in US but makes sense anywhere.

Saving 1000e a month is great - saving more than 50% of your income (as you seem to be doing) is even better. Very impressive.

Keep building your money pile but also get some targets. What do you want to do with your money - saving for a deposit, building a rainy day fund, pension? Depending what your plans are you can then decide whether you can invest it long term/forever (stocks)or short term/a few years (high interest savings account).

KBC do an instant access account offering 3.5% interest on regular savings of up to E1000 a month until you reach E50,000. Keep piling your E1000 a month into that and you might actually have some DIRT worth claiming back if you eventually buy a house.

posturingpat

NotASheeple wrote: »

Or maybe just wise.

Agreed.Whats with the world and people having to be tied downand married with kids before they turn 30,or ever for that matter?

Emsloe

A couple of years older than you with around double your balance. Living with family at the moment and about to go back to work after caring for a sick relative for a few months. When I live by myself I can manage to save €1k -€1.5k a month with minimal misery.

No mortgage or kiddos.

The J Stands for Jay

retalivity wrote: »

I am older than you and have less savings.

Rents a bitch.

Maybe rent a cheaper bitch. Or just have a **** instead.

bilbot79

lcwill wrote: »

You should check out Mr Money Mustache - a great blog about personal finance and financial independence. It is based in US but makes sense anywhere.

Saving 1000e a month is great - saving more than 50% of your income (as you seem to be doing) is even better. Very impressive.

Keep building your money pile but also get some targets. What do you want to do with your money - saving for a deposit, building a rainy day fund, pension? Depending what your plans are you can then decide whether you can invest it long term/forever (stocks)or short term/a few years (high interest savings account).

KBC do an instant access account offering 3.5% interest on regular savings of up to E1000 a month until you reach E50,000. Keep piling your E1000 a month into that and you might actually have some DIRT worth claiming back if you eventually buy a house.

dirt? Claim back? Wha?

The J Stands for Jay

dxhound2005 wrote: »

Back in another lifetime people had to save a set amount each month for two years with the building society (banks did not offer mortgages back then) in order to be even considered for a mortgage.

If banks didn't do mortgages, how did they pay the bills?

TallGlass

I have always been a saver, bit up and down. Really made a go at it this year started in Jan saving 1000€ per month. Have at this moment 5,000€ but my current account is 25€ so will be dipping in and with payday 3/4 weeks away. Basically savings went out the window, have a holiday this month so 500€ gone, then will try my hardest to budget really don't want to dip below 4,000€.

I'm 25, pay no rent at home, just have a car and me and the GF do things together. Would say two problems, need to give cash up at home and cut back on this unlimited socializing budget I seem to have.

I got paid last Tuesday and have spent 500€ so far on College deposit 100€, NCT 28€, Pizza/Food 50€, Ticket for GAA 15€, Car repairs 130€, Top up 20€.

Leaving 157€ spend on mainly drink and taxis I am guessing.

Think I will be sitting in till the holidays !

Bubbaclaus

I currently save 700 per month. It's transferred out of my current account the same day I'm paid so that 700 is locked in. I budget my month then around whatever's left.

Hopefully getting a wage increase soon so I can push this up towards 1,000pm.

jester77

needhelpguy wrote: »

What's a good level of savings? I'm a 29 year old guy, 30 this year - single no commitments and I've €20k saved. Is this good/bad? Manage to save 1k a month at the mo but think I should have more saved.

What level are other people at? State your age and commitments, for perspective.

So you are nearly 30, which means you have been working about 9 years if you take the average graduation age. 9 years is 108 monthly salaries, so you have managed to save an average of €185 per month. Not exactly super, but better than a lot of people.

Tabnabs

six months net salary is a good target for savings. Anything on top of that can be spent or invested as required.

kippy

jester77 wrote: »

So you are nearly 30, which means you have been working about 9 years if you take the average graduation age. 9 years is 108 monthly salaries, so you have managed to save an average of €185 per month. Not exactly super, but better than a lot of people.

To be fair to the OP, they've done very well to save that much. There are many people who don't save at all in their 20's for whatever reason - sometimes a combination of not earning that much but having high living expenses.

scdublin

Going by my mates of the same age, that's pretty good. They'd probably think you were incredibly rich actually. Have you been saving for long?
I like to think I'm a very good saver as well...always good to have money for a rainy day but it's nice being able to spend some of it on sunny holidays away too

The Dark Side

Have 7 separate savings accounts with the OH.
2 Credit Union Accs
3 Investment Accounts with direct debits from our current acc every month
2 Bank Saving Accounts.

Use them for different purposes - kid' education, holidays, car purchases etc

We never take out loans to buy stuff other than a mortgage.

I've always been a disciplined saver and like to cut unnecessary expense out of my life so I can treat myself to the things I really want.

Geuze

Greentopia wrote: »

These people saving 1k a month...have kids and a mortgage do ye? I'm guessing not. :pac: fair play if you do and still can, it's just that I don't know many people who can save €100 a month, never mind a grand with a few kids to clothe, feed and educate and mortgaged up to the gills.

I have a mortgage + wife SAHM + kids + car, and save approx 25% of net income, 800 pm.

Geuze

This lad is unreal for saving:

http://www.askaboutmoney.com/threads/32-year-old-hopes-to-semi-retire-by-40.116679/page-5#post-1432807

See post 92.

AppleBottle

I'm 24, no commitments and I save a little per month. I don't want to go into details about the amount. I did save when I got a job before college at 17/18, saved a good amount too back then but I had to use those savings and was back to square one when I graduated college. I started saving again this year. I'm not hoping to have spectacular savings by the end of the year - but just something there if I need to dip into it. Really thinking about it now, I could actually put away a little more than I do already. I usually still have money in my account by the end of the month.

lcwill

bilbot79 wrote: »

dirt? Claim back? Wha?

First time buyers who buy before 31 Dec 2017 can claim back any Deposit Interest Retention Tax (DIRT) they have paid since October 2014.

DIRT is a tax you pay at 41% on any interest you get from the bank - it's deducted automatically by the bank.

The idea is to make it slightly easier for first time buyers to save a deposit by letting them off the tax on interest they receive while saving.

If you are reading a thread about saving you should find out what it is because you probably pay it.

massdebater

I'm 28 (29 this year) and have roughly €35k saved (plus I live in a mobile home worth €10k which I will be selling after xmas). I quit my job last xmas to travel and I've probably spent about €7k since then.

When I was working, I was saving close to €1500 every month in a normal office job (non managerial) and that's including drinking twice a week, holidays every year, owning 2 cars etc. I was just always a hoor for saving. Single with no mortgage or dependents makes a huge difference though.

Lia_lia

I really should save a lot more than I do, I'm desperate for dipping into my savings. My boyfriend earns less than me but manages to save way more.

I do however put 10% of my wages into the employee stock purchase scheme at work, which is a fantastic way of saving! In six months I made a grand "free money". It's pot luck really, but your pretty much guaranteed to make money, on my one anyway.

c_man

*bumpity bump bump*

Well New Year, lots of people including myself start looking at our savings. Was talking to a friend yesterday about it and was shocked at how little stock ( :pac: ) he puts away for a rainy day, he said around 5-10%. Now he's in the same boat as myself (single, professional job, no 'real' commitments as such) but fair play, he's enjoying life to the full with multiple holidays etc.

How much do you manage to stash away? I've usually been good in this regard but have had a lot of unexpected expenses recently so want to get back in the habit. I'm aiming at about 25-30% of my income going straight into a savings account (direct debit ones work best for me, I can't spend it if it leaves my account as soon as I'm paid ). Should I be aiming for more?

I'd really like to be a position where I could put a decent deposit on my own place in the next year or two. I'm sick of house sharing.

Chain Smoker

I think what's more significant is how difficult you find it to save money.

I'm 25 so the figures are lower, but I usually have a tier of savings. There's a sum I'd basically never touch unless absolutely necessary and another that fluctuates but generally grows unless I've no income for a patch.

messy tessy

c_man wrote: »

*bumpity bump bump*

Well New Year, lots of people including myself start looking at our savings. Was talking to a friend yesterday about it and was shocked at how little stock ( :pac: ) he puts away for a rainy day, he said around 5-10%. Now he's in the same boat as myself (single, professional job, no 'real' commitments as such) but fair play, he's enjoying life to the full with multiple holidays etc.

How much do you manage to stash away? I've usually been good in this regard but have had a lot of unexpected expenses recently so want to get back in the habit. I'm aiming at about 25-30% of my income going straight into a savings account (direct debit ones work best for me, I can't spend it if it leaves my account as soon as I'm paid ). Should I be aiming for more?

I'd really like to be a position where I could put a decent deposit on my own place in the next year or two. I'm sick of house sharing.

I'm 28, single, no dependents and manage to save (on average) 35% of my income each month. I am going to set up a DD at the end of January for this amount - as you say if its not in my account it can't be splurged.

I am hoping for an aggressive year of saving (!) so I can afford my own place within the next two years. I have the deposit for an apartment saved already, but as my rent is pretty cheap for the area I am in I am trying to build up a bigger lump sum, unless the apartment of my dreams comes along!

kjl

About a year ago I had over 100k saved, then I bought a house and most of that disappeared.

I am back up to about 20k savings now, plus have a load in my pension but I don't really keep track of that.

hairyslug

Me and herself are in our mid 30s, late last year we decided to move house so had to start saving.
We were amazed how much we were able to put away each month, it was not enjoyable, money went on necessities and that was it.
We joked about it earlier in the week that 12 months ago we never thought we would be have this much, granted in 8 weeks time it will all be gone on the mortgage

ohbygod

I'm a 29 female owe 10k in the credit union have 0 saving's I'm living week to week my finances are a mess

I'm in my thirties and have spent all my savings on my education. I'm not in a position to save anything at the minute but oddly enough I'm not too concerned. Sometimes it can be stressful but living has taught me that at the end of the day it really doesn't matter if you have 50k or 2k, it can still be a wonderful life or a pretty crap one regardless.

valoren

Savings amount is subjective. You can't simply say that you need to have x amount saved by y age.
Everyone has different incomes and expenses.

As a general rule, I would suggest the advice from the Richest Man in Babylon which advises you should pay yourself first.

A part of all you earn is your to KEEP.

No less than 10% should be saved/invested permanently, before you spend anything. It should remain untouched.
You can do whatever you want with the remaining 90%.

Mint Sauce

Had savings as well until I blew most of it on a house, and its associated new contents, improvements, costs, etc etc etc.

Have recently started saving again after breaking even for a while, due to still buying things for it, extra bills etc, but have aways tried to keep a minimum amount for security, and avoided purchases that were not necessary at that time. I'm not saving a fixed amount every month, but still try and put aside a bit.

draiochtanois

This post has been deleted.

I have 2/3 of a large vodka bottle in savings

draiochtanois

draiochtanois wrote: »

There is lots of potential for matchmaking on this thread, out two savers together and they can hook up and buy the place of their dreams together

Or finding myself a sugar daddy! :pac:

Mint Sauce

Strawberry Milkshake wrote: »

I have 2/3 of a large vodka bottle in savings

I do similar as well, chuck any small change into one of them empty 5l water bottles. In fairness it never gets to more than a few inches deep, but always get couple hundred euro out of it once or twice a year.

donegaLroad

could this be another revenue thread? :eek:


*if anyone has mentioned that they have savings in an off-shore account, go back and delete!

timmy880

I'm 27 and have a fiancée....... What on earth are savings?

ASoberThought

30 year old male here.

Working since the age of 14 and have about 500 euro saved. I don't owe anything and never have. I've always had a well paying job and squandered thousands on drink, drugs and bouncing around from country to country.

I plan on getting 3-6 months rainy day fund behind me and generally spending my 30s being a bit more careful with the finances.

The Backwards Man

I said it before and I'll say it again, saving purely for the sake of saving is pointless. The same 8x4 will hold the lot of us, so enjoy it while you can, and if you can't spend it all, invest it, put it in a pension or give it to me.

I think I posted that in this thread before. . .

messy tessy

draiochtanois wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

haha!!

I'm single and a catch!! Form an orderly queue guys

TeaBagMania

ohbygod wrote: »

I'm a 29 female owe 10k in the credit union have 0 saving's I'm living week to week my finances are a mess

This is about the time most women start looking for a husband

c_man

messy tessy wrote: »

haha!!

I'm single and a catch!! Form an orderly queue guys

I'll need recent statements from your bank and any other institutions with which you hold monies. Also require a credit report. Please inform me of any non-monetary assets you hold and a rough estimation of their market worth. I will do likewise, and we can then have each others solicitors draw up some initial contract. After that, the romance begins :cool:

posturingpat

c_man wrote: »

I'll need recent statements from your bank and any other institutions with which you hold monies. Also require a credit report. Please inform me of any non-monetary assets you hold and a rough estimation of their market worth. I will do likewise, and we can then have each others solicitors draw up some initial contract. After that, the romance begins :cool:

Here was me thinking that was your idea of wooing the lady :P

messy tessy

c_man wrote: »

I'll need recent statements from your bank and any other institutions with which you hold monies. Also require a credit report. Please inform me of any non-monetary assets you hold and a rough estimation of their market worth. I will do likewise, and we can then have each others solicitors draw up some initial contract. After that, the romance begins :cool:

You had me at non-monetary assets

TeaBagMania

messy tessy wrote: »

haha!!

I'm single and a catch!! Form an orderly queue guys

pics or it didn't happen

c_man

The Backwards Man wrote: »

I said it before and I'll say it again, saving purely for the sake of saving is pointless.

I can't agree with that. It gives me piece of mind to know I have enough cash sitting there to see me through a tough time, or to just up and leave and start something else. I see it as a form of freedom tbh.

c_man

c_man wrote: »

I can't agree with that. It gives me piece of mind to know I have enough cash sitting there to see me through a tough time, or to just up and leave and start something else. I see it as a form of freedom tbh.

You're right. Having money can give you freedom. I remember what is was like to be able to head to London for a weekend without a hard save or buy a lovely pair of shoes and not worrying about my finances after. Or just filling the car up and driving to wherever I like and spending a night or two.

Money does create certain opportunities but I think my current attitude to not having much of it comes from my state of mind during my times of plenty. I despised my job and was very unhappy.

Of course a little running away fund would be nice

team_actimel

I'm not good at saving for a rainy day as a lot have mentioned. Fair play to ye! I'm 26 and I only have €400 in my savings A/C. I have no loans or children. I basically just save for holidays and usually go on 4/5 foreign holidays a year so I suppose every month or 2 I'm saving like mad for the hol!

The Backwards Man

c_man wrote: »

I can't agree with that. It gives me piece of mind to know I have enough cash sitting there to see me through a tough time, or to just up and leave and start something else. I see it as a form of freedom tbh.

Aye fair enough, but I'm talking more about the hoarding mentality than just putting a bit by. There's no point sitting in a cold house with ten coats on you when you have the price of a lorryload of coal in the bank.

Shurimgreat

I think a safe level of savings is enough to cover your lifestyle for 6 months out of work. So the first 3 months you could relax and after that you'd start to panic.