Would you spend this?

[insiderrelly]

Won't bore you with the backstory but the last 3 years have been tight financially. I saved to buy a house on my own and had not a penny to spare, bought the house, spent every spare penny buying furniture for it and then sorting a car for work... normal life stuff!

I've only recently managed to start saving again and have built up a small amount of savings.

A friend wants to go on the trip of a lifetime this summer (booked with her other half who has since broken up with her...). it is somewhere I want to go but feel a bit reckless that it would leave me with 1,000 left. I am single also so no complication with spending in terms of a significant other. Although I can save a few hundred a month, I am aware it isn't a huge amount should a boiler break etc!

would you go? is it reckless or have I got an over the top view of spending after taking so long to save for the house? do people go on holiday with only 1,000 left to their name?!

Go!

I would go too!

I'd definitely consider it. £1k is a decent amount to have as a cushion. And what if the boiler doesn't break?!?

Just think about if it's your holiday of a lifetime? Would you want to go anyway, even if this opportunity hadn't come up?

I have always had in my head I would like to go to this place, yes. But it ha never been a reality because I haven't had someone to go with (wouldn't go on my own) and also because it never seem financially feasible.

true, the boiler might not break!

I think it just feels a bit reckless - I am on my own so nobody else to help financially/split the costs if something needs doing

Go.
But tell us where it is, £1000 for a trip of a lifetime sounds like a bargain

Go!!!!

You still have financial security and you may never get chance again. There are no pockets in coffins

The reason you saved so diligently is so that you can do something like this. You have to live eventually.

People go on holiday with far less... intact they go into debt to go into holiday. You are laying a fabulous future for yourself though with being as a financially savvy as you all. A very rough rule of thumb is that people seem to manage not getting into debt if they can keep circa 3 months costs in savings - different from salary. It’s circa though so if this is a one off cost that is a place on your bucket list then I’d be inclined to treat yourself and rebuild your savings... just this once 😀 Sometimes fate takes a hand and the opportunity might not come again.

hollow it isn't 1k, it is more, the 1k is what I will have left if I do this.

Go!

I'd spend my last penny on a holiday and worry about what may go wrong if and when it does! You need to be reckless sometimes.. life is far too short to be sensible all the time! Go on the holiday!!

nwqm that is true! I do have a loan repayment for half the value of my car when I bought it . I could pay off early but the repayments are fine and minimal interest..

Aha that makes sense!

I think my decision would depend on my work situation. Are you in a permanent job with more than two years’ employment (ie. full employment rights?). Do you work in a stable/thriving industry that is unlikely to be significantly affected by Brexit? Are there other options in your local area in terms of employment if for whatever reason you were to lose your job? Do you have significant earning potential which means you can reasonably expect to see your income grow in the coming years as your career develops?

Aside from that, given the extreme political and economic uncertainty at the moment, to be honest I would probably avoid any major spending commitments unless they were absolutely necessary. It may be over cautious of me but I’d rather be unnecessarily cautious than be caught out in a recession with no savings to speak of.

All of this is based on the assumption that you’re in the U.K. of course!

Life's experiences make you what you are, not what you have in the bank.

I have never met an interesting person who told tales of their bank balance, but I have met loads of interesting people who have regaled me with stories of travels.

ello yes in the uk. I have a reasonably well paid job, I could probably get another with relative ease, BUT who knows what will happen in coming months. that said, even if I kept saving, should the industry collapse in the next few months then I would be stuck regardless of what amount I had managed to save in that time. I am not used to throwing caution to the wind financially so the idea of spending so much in one go feels strange

You'd have enough left for surprise costs.

You have the capacity to continue saving every month, so that £1k will carry on growing.

You're a long time dead.

GO!

Flip it the other way....

Rather than what if the boiler breaks? Consider ‘what if I get ill.‘

What if you suddenly found you had a few months to live, how would you feel if you knew you would never get to visit this place?

Go!

"If happiness is the goal - and it should be - then adventure should be a top priority"

• Richard Branson

Okay, so he's a plonker in many ways. But, on this one, he's spot on 🙂

Hmmm it’s tricky. Is the trip something which will be more fun going together than going on your own? For example I can see how going with a friend to a Maldives villa would be more fun (and notably cheaper) than going alone. Whereas something like trekking Machu Picchu on your own is fine because you do it in a group so you meet the people in the group, if you see what I mean. So the fact that your friend has got a spare place to offer you is kinda relevant too. Can you give us some idea of what type of trip it is?

Invest in boiler insurance and go!

Worse comes to the worse, you can take in a lodger if you have a spare room, so you have capacity for financial emergencies.

You can save a bit more in the next few months to build your savings back up.
This opportunity isn't going to present itself again so take the opportunity then concentrate on saving again.

There will always be something to worry about but there wont be this opportunity again. Go!