To ask what % of your income you save?

[MorallyBankrupt]

I keep reading thread on saving and people say they have £50k saved and they save £2k a month, or people saying they can only save £50 a month and really worrying.

However, if the people saving 2k a month have a household income of 5k then as a % they are saving much less than people who say have 2k income but save £1200 a month.

So really, to understand how people priortise saving don't you need to work out the percentage you save compared to others?

At the moment we save 33% of DH's salary as we are trying to save for a deposit... He thinks this is too high as it means we are going without everything other than basic food and bills. He would prefer 20% and 'to live a little'.

Nothing, no savings

We put aside money each month to cover anticipated major expenses like servicing the car, getting it through the MOT, routine vets bills etc, Christmas & birthdays. That's probably about 10% of my earnings. But there is no room to save any extra on top of that. In this climate we are much better off putting money into paying off expensive debts (which we unfortunately do have) than tying it up in savings.

I do try and save but its hard. after paying bills etc aim to put between £150/£200 away. I dont have credit card debt etc but do have mortagage and personal loan. Every time I do get something in the bank it seems to be eaten up i.e need to pay for house repairs or get a bit of house maintenance done. I do have a works pension and pay into that and have about £50k equity in the house so try not to panic too much.

About 30% but a portion of that is going into shares (about 10% of income)

Saving is tough at the mo because interest rates are so low, unless you have an offset mortgage it may make sense to plough cash into debt payoff. My approach is to save in both low and high risk and when I have a bundle bump it into the mortgage. I am looking at an offset though to keep liquidity.

The %age you save is only extreme in relation to what you do with the rest. If you are doing without then it maybe too much.

OP do you 'pay yourself' first? DH and I have set up that our employers pay part of our income into our savings account and the remainder into our spending account. It makes it easier to live off less as you don't see that spike in balance. It is a psycology thing but I find it helpful to only see what I have to spend. I check the balance of our savings account every 6 months or so.

Hahah I check mine everyday! As of yesterday we have reached our first savings target which feels great it just means yet another month of buying practically nothing...

Well MB you have more willpower than me. I found that the more often I checked on the balance the more times I would dip into the savings to buy us treats! I check our current account everyday, sometimes 5 or 6 times to make sure cheques have cleared.

Why is it a problem for you not to buying things? Do you miss the rush of buying something or do you have the status thing where you wish to be one of those women who walk around a mall with a million and one shopping bags? I find shopping a rather shallow experience. DH wasn't into the whole savings thing until I offered sex as the reward for reaching targets. I didn't do it directly but I let him know I was much happier and less stressed so in the mood more often. It is a brilliant tatic as it is free - unless you get pregnant!

I know that we will not touch the money til we buy a house, so I just get my kicks looking at it rather than spending it!

I only miss buying things as we actually need things! DS really needs new jeans that don't show off his ankles plus I noticed today his wellies are 1.5 sizes too small..... Oops!

10-15%, plus another 5% or so into pensions.

I agree with your DH, reduce it down to 20% and live a little. It's easier to stay motivated to save if you still allow yourself a regular treat.

MB buy 2nd hand. I buy all of DD's clothes 2nd hand or from the clearance rack - has to be at least 70% off. I get bags of clothes for next to nothing and swap stuff with other parents. I get some real gems like ralph lauren dresses in a bag that cost me $5 and a beautiful bridesmaids dress that was over $200 new through a swap for a fleece top that DD doesn't fit anymore (it was in another bundle of 2nd hand stuff).

MB, what size jeans and wellies do you need, I may be able to help

DS is in 3-4 or 4-5 in the trouser department and 10 in the wellies he's massive!

0%. However I do put aside £90 a month in the car MOT / servicing / insurance fund and have life, illness and salary insurance as I'm a LP and am screwed if I lose my job.

I used to save a bit (all spent now) but have got into a habit of having days out and (cheap) meals with the kids. There were only so many trips to the park / library that I could bear.

oh sorry, my stuff is way too big!