Emergency fund - how much?

[Dimblebimble]

We've heard that it's good sense to have an emergency fund built up, particularly around with uncertainty around Brexit. But how much is enough? So far we've saved around £5k and we were initially aiming for 6k. We both have other savings we're adding to, but he 5k is in a separate fund that we're not going to touch.

My question is, how much is enough? We both pay 800 a month into joint account for mortgage and other expenses. So to cover 6 months of expenses we'd need almost £10k! Is it normal to have this much in savings that are never touched? How much do you have saved/ are you aiming to save as an emergency fund?

(For context we're both 29 and about to start a family. We own our house (with mortgage) but need to save a lot to move to a nicer area with good schools (hopefully in 2-4 years))

Three to six months of expenses is a good starting point. The more insure the income the more you will want to lean towards 6 months worth.

Consider what the emergency fund will actually get used for - emergency plumbing, becoming unemployed (how soon until income is replaced?), major car breakdown (routine maintenance is part of your monthly budget but unexpected things can happen). Sudden need to go to visit a sick relative.

How much would make you feel secure? Would £10k make you feel secure or do you want more? The amount is a very individual decision based on your risk tolerance.

You are planning to move in under 5 years so just pile as much money up as you can. Call some of it emergency fund, house moving fund, house buying fund. Lump it all together and separate it when you have a clearer picture of how much is needed to go towards the house, how much is needed to cover moving costs etc. You may end up with £30-50k... the more the better, as then the lower the mortgage needed.

We don't usually have a massive amount in emergency savings, enough to cover the boiler breaking down for example but not a new (second hand but decent!) car. We do however overpay the mortgage every month so we could not pay the mortgage for over 6 months now before we got into any difficulty with our lender. With savings rates so low it works out no worse than having the money in the bank.

I think how much you need depends on many things - your income and contracted outgoings, your T&Cs at work so things like if you get sick pay for how long etc and how sympathetic your employer is to you working more flexibly if there is a problem. If you have dependents who might need you to take time off. How old your property and car are.