Not really saving

[CharlieMM1]

Looking to see if this is normal as I am a bit worried. Please be kind.

We have a mortgage of just under 1000 a month but we overpay so pay in approx 1,500 a month. It should be finished in about 4 years. We have two young kids in paid nursery. I have a decent salary (65k) and my partner similar, but since the nursery fees started I don't really save anything.

I don't consider myself a big spender at all. We don't go out anywhere expensive and live what I consider to be a very modest life.

I am going to sit and pick through where my money goes to ensure I am not missing anything, but I guess I wanted to guage how normal or unusual this was to start.

Before kids I used to save quite a bit each month. All money I have saved had already gone into house.

I don’t think you can think about every stage in the same way. Back of the fag packet maths says that in the next ten years you can save an additional 100k at least, taking the first four years as mortgage pay down, then switching to savings. Over that horizon, things look much more comfortable.

Definitely assess your pension situation!

I’m only familiar with DC pensions - for those you’d be checking your total pot size (including schemes with former employers), how much you’re contributing now, and how much your employer contributes. Then have a go with a few different pension calculators to see how things might play out at retirement, if you’re in the mood.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/budget-planning/#spreadsheet

Use the MSE budget planner to track everything. It makes you consider things that can be easily overlooked, such as haircuts, car tax, and other expenses. It can be quite sobering (and disheartening) but worth doing, and will save you money in the long run.