Can I save ALL my salary

[MoneyDollar]

So for some background - I split up with my ex 3 years ago, this breakup resulted in my running up £30k in credit card debt in a year and a half (I KNOW).

As of next pay day I will of paid it all off.

I now desperately need some savings / to buy a house / be a functioning adult.

Is it unreasonable to save all my salary. I think I can live off my 'side' sources of income.

The reason I ask is this unreasonable is - do you think it will be to taxing to maintain the financial worry (one of the worst parts of this whole thing) and do you think I will still feel that 'oh no I didn't bring lunch what a waste of £3 guilt.'

Thanks all :)

Placemarking for the sidehustle

OP not sure if you can live without your salary but you can certainly live with whatever you’ve been paying off your debt each month so at least continue to set aside that amount.

And bloody well done you!

I would like to join in with your side earnings, please?!

@MoneyDollar You are the queen of budeting clearing those debts in such a short time.
Dh and I saved half his wages for a year to buy a house.
Every pay day I transfered anything left from the check before into savings and we started the pay period with the exact same amount each time. As the months went by I found us saving more than half sometimes and at least half on others. I though we did great. But you are amazing.

How did you get into debt when you have two very well paying jobs? Curious...

Sorry for filling the thread but I'm curious as to what the side income is.

You've paid off £30k debt in what.. 18 months! I don't care what you do with your salary! You're doing something right so keep on!!!!

Well done you.

this breakup resulted in my running up £30k in credit card debt in a year and a half

I understood this to mean that the OP accrued £30k of debt in 18 months, not that she paid it off in that time. Isn't that what you meant,OP?

I imagine it's taken a long time to pay it off so I'd let yourself have a few treats now as well as saving.

Read it again @AmICrazyorWhat2

@AmICrazyorWhat2 is right

The Op split up from boyfriend 3 years ago which caused her to rack up £30k debt in 18 months. She then paid off the 30k in.... the remaining 18 months. (18 months + 18 months = 3 years)

So yes- op cleared £30k debt in 18 months.

Who actually drinks cup a soups or 'cup of salt and other nasty things'? Yuck. Wish I could live off on the side earnings and save my main income.

I want your side income!

I’ve been saving like mad as my aim is to pay my mortgage off as soon as possible.

I’ve just taken 9 years off with a remortgage for the same price and it felt amazing. I did however keep some money aside for myself for treats.

I could understand the motivation to pay debts off in the shortest amount of time but would struggle to do that on an ongoing basis without the debt pressure

OK, two lots of 18 months= 3 years.

As in don't even buy yourself a coffee out of your salary?

How is this even possible?

Also deadly nosey to understand how you’d manage this and how having racked up all that debt you’re in this position so relatively quickly! 🤥

Well done though!

Nope @Livedandlearned, @AmICrazyorWhat2 did not notice/read how long it took OP to pay it off.

I think that no matter what you do, you are not going to shake off the guilt of spending £3 in lunch. Once you have struggled financially to that point and you have learned to live with very little, spending the £3 in lunch feels a bit of a waste because you know you could have done yourself for half.

In a positive note, if you have been living with little, you won’t find it difficult to save.

As the months went by I found us saving more than half sometimes and at least half on others.

Er...

I see the Mumsnet police are out with their HMRC accusations.

I think this sounds like a great challenge. I love a side hustle! Some months you’ll do it and some months you won’t. Be prepared for that.

Has anyone gone from this kind of debt creating spending to saving. And how long did it take for the saving to become a habit? I'd really like to learn the saving habit.

Only you can figure this out based on your numbers.

If I were you I’d start a budget. I use a programme/app called You Need A Budget and it’s fab. We went from £40k+ of consumer debt to great savings and pensions. It helps you allocate things into pots each month so you know what you have for everything. For instance, I’ve just renewed home and car insurances and I had pots waiting so I could pay the annual fee up front, now I’ll start saving 1/12th every year again for that purpose. It allows you to split your money up into different “jobs” without needing a million bank accounts.

Hollyhobbi

You’ll find them in school staff rooms because staff don’t get enough time for lunch but can take a hot drink down in a closed container. It’s either that or tea or coffee. We would rather have time for a proper lunch but if you are marking, speaking to pupils then setting out for Art, Science or PE you don’t get the time. I have missed lunch altogether twice this week. As I was on duty one day I hadn’t had a drink from 7am until 3:45pm because we are so far from the staffroom which is along two corridors and up two flights of stairs. I was about to go when the bell rang. We only get half an hour.
So please don’t be such a judgypants. On a good day I heat up my home made soup or have a sandwich.

I save 100% of my salary. Easier for me as we’re a two-income household so live off my husband's salary, save mine.

Well that would be rather easier, wouldn't it?

I think it depends if while paying off the 30k other people subsidised you. E.g people let you off normal living expenses as they were aware you had large debt to repay.
They may not ne so keen if you live the same lifestyle to build up savings.