How much would you want in savings before you would relax a bit?

[baoap]

I’m feeling so stressed and to be honest I can’t remember when I wasn’t stressed about money. I’m on my own with ds (5) and since he was 2 I’ve pretty much obsessed about feeling more secure. I have managed to save 17000 but our basic expenses are 1,500 a month. I can only save 300 a month at the moment and often it gets wiped out for example last winter with a huge heating bill that just couldn’t be avoided. I feel miserable living like this. I sometimes wonder what amount I’m trying to get to that would make me feel better, I guess 50 or 100k but that’s obviously not going to happen.

It used to be that sufficient saving was defined as being able to live for a whole year with no income. These days, I'd be more inclined to think of it being better to havesufficient for two years.

Have you posted this before? They say three months expenses. A lot of people have no chance of doing that. You are making yourself miserable. It's going to be a joyless childhood for your DS if you carry on.

What proportion of single parents is that realistic for?
It's more important to overpay your mortgage, have good insurance covers and minimal debt.

I will never have two years savings just impossible

Single parent with two teens and I have £6k in savings, which I'm not currently adding to. I feel fortunate to have anything, but would feel a lot more comfortable with twice that. It would see us through three months in an emergency if we really tightened our belts.

You have left out one of the most important things, your age. You could be 25 or like my mate 49 with a 5 year old.

Pressure on single parents is always immense as sole provider. I was under impression that 6 months living expenses was considered good.

I have had some big unexpected bills recently so I am down to my last £7K now and there is another bill to come. I had managed to keep it over £10 the whole year until now but I am saving £400-£500 a month so if nothing else happens I will be back up to £10 in 6 months or so. My goal is to have £20K, that is what I can live off (cheaply) for a year.

If you have £17k to fall back on you're doing ok for now.

Thanks I am 44. I don’t have anyone to fall back on no family etc so it’s very overwhelming a lot of the time. Dreading winter.

If you have more than £16k savings and say lost your job, you wouldn’t be entitled to any universal credit etc.

I’d feel ok with 3 months expenses. BUT as a single person also made sure I had decent life/illness cover. Also do you have a pension?

sounds to me like you can definitely relax a little op. Well done saving so much - that’s an amazing effort on one persona salary x

We have just enough to cover bills for three months if DH loses his job. Ideally I'd like about 20k savings but I'm PT at the moment so it's the odd £100 here or there that goes into it. Once I'm back FT then I'll definitely be able to contribute a much bigger sum to the pot to increase it.

A lot of that depends on whether you're paying a mortgage or loans etc within your £1500?

Wow you're doing well! I'd love to have that level of savings. Two kids here, husband works full time and I'm around 2 days a week. I'd say we have three months of expenses saved and I thought we were doing ok! Two years expenses as a PP said would be about £60k.... How would you even begin to save that much as an average person with one salary?!

Really kind thank you for saying I am doing well! I feel like I’m doing absolutely rubbish most of the time! I wish I could stop this constant panic but it’s always there

I don’t think there is a magic number that would stop you worrying; it’s all about mindset. My DH constantly worries about money, despite us having an insane amount. £17k is great, you should be proud of yourself and acknowledge the security you already have.

I would say my goal is to have 10k saved for the maintenance/repair of my old house and another 10k in case of unemployment. So with 20k I would breathe easier!

Right now I have about 8K :).

I have slightly more in savings than my annual salary after tax. I am only just starting to feel a bit more relaxed about spending any money. This doesn't mean "holidays of a lifetime" or other extravagant purchases. More like taking my mum for lunch or taking her on a weekend trip to Europe couple of times a year.
I am on a fixed term contract for 60% of my hours so there is a real possibility that I will need to use some of this money at some point after this financial year.

46% of brits have less than £1000 in the bank.

I'd say you're doing quite well!

@RomeoRivers what is an insane amount to you? I agree it’s mindset a lot of the time, I can’t stop the panic

OP if you’re the same poster who is obsessed with needing to have their mortgage paid off you need more help with your anxiety than your finances.

What proportion of anyone, single parents or otherwise, is that realistic for? I didn't say it was achievable, but the OP asked for an opinion. The general definition of financially independence is one year, but as I said, with the current economy two is more likely necessary.

I agree that overpaying the mortgage is not a bad option, however it is also very useful to have cash flow.

Most businesses fail as a result of insufficient cash flow, and it doesn't matter how much you have on paper if you can't pay an immediate bill. Thus, I would recommend a balance of overpayment but also savings.

An insane amount is deliberately vague, but shows that some people are always chasing more than what they have.

In the worst case scenario e.g. you lost your job, how much time would £17k buy you before you would be in trouble… If your necessities are only 1.5k a month, then you’ll have nearly a year to find another job before losing your house, therefore you are totally fine.

@baoap I think you're doing well, but I totally get where you are coming from. I think I could relax properly at 40k but I realise I'll probably never have that much. I have about 20k and I'm a few years younger than you.. I have no children but I don't own a property either. So I suppose it's all relative. I did start to relax a bit when I hit 20k but I do worry a lot that it's just not much at my age.. however I've really worked hard especially in the last 5 years or so, and considering I've had poor mental health all my life which has meant some periods of unemployment and minimum wage jobs, and no family support I think I'm doing ok 🤔
We can only do what we can. I put my worries down to anxiety.

I do think the permitted threshold for benefits purposes should be increased, especially now rents are higher than ever. I don't think it's high on the government's agenda, however