Money Diary: A Cardiac Physiologist In Sheffield On 25k
Last Updated 23 September 2020, 6:00
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Welcome to Money Diaries, where we're tackling what might be the last taboo facing modern working women: money. We're asking a cross-section of women how they spend their hard-earned money during a seven-day period – and we're tracking every last penny.
This week: "I graduated two months ago from a healthcare science degree, which I paid for through student loans, and started working as a cardiac physiologist almost immediately.
I rent a four-bedroom house with my boyfriend A and our housemate C. We moved in two months ago. We originally had a fourth housemate but he left abruptly. A and I decided to move in together so that we could still see each other during the pandemic, so a shared house seemed like a good step before just living with each other. We rent the biggest bedroom, which we share, and the box room, which we use as a study.
When I was 18 I got access to a trust fund that was set up for me by my grandparents. Because of this, I haven't needed financial help from my parents since then. Most of this money is now in fixed-term savings accounts that I can't access immediately as I am saving for a deposit on a house, so I'm conscious that I don't have much immediately accessible money in case of an emergency. I'm trying to save up three months' worth of expenses in an emergency fund, in case I lose my job or something. One of my siblings lives at home and is entirely financially dependent on our parents due to some long-term health issues. I think I'm in a very lucky position financially in that I have a stable job and savings to fall back on."
Industry: Healthcare
Age: 24
Location: Sheffield
Salary: £24,907
Paycheque amount: £1,732.62
Number of housemates: Two, A (boyfriend) and C (housemate).
Age: 24
Location: Sheffield
Salary: £24,907
Paycheque amount: £1,732.62
Number of housemates: Two, A (boyfriend) and C (housemate).
Monthly Expenses
Rent: £295.50 per month.
Loan payments: I have £56,663.20 student debt. I don't earn enough to pay this back yet and probably won't for a couple of years at least.
Savings? £8,340 in a Lifetime ISA. £16,000 split across several other savings accounts. The majority of these savings come from a trust fund that my grandparents set up for me when I was born. I recognise that this makes me incredibly lucky financially. The rest of my savings are from summer jobs (cleaning and waitressing) that I had while home from uni. Also several Monzo pots: emergency fund (£1,000), new bike fund (£575), holiday fund (£100), Christmas (£100) and driving lessons (£125). I'm trying to get into the habit of putting money into these pots on payday before I have a chance to overspend that month.
Other: Council tax £41, gas and electricity £18.21, water £11.15, £13.99 for contact lenses, Wi-Fi £10, mobile phone £10, £10 to World Bicycle Relief, £10 to Say It Loud Club (an organisation supporting LGBT+ asylum seekers) and £10 to Roundabout (a youth homelessness charity in Sheffield), £9.99 subscription to a local bike shop (this covers labour costs of up to £12 for minor repairs and two services per year for my road bike). I used to pay for Spotify Premium with a student discount but my parents kindly decided to start paying for Spotify Family recently, so I use this instead now. My parents have a Netflix account and I am a parasite. £30 per year for membership of the Academy for Healthcare Science.
Loan payments: I have £56,663.20 student debt. I don't earn enough to pay this back yet and probably won't for a couple of years at least.
Savings? £8,340 in a Lifetime ISA. £16,000 split across several other savings accounts. The majority of these savings come from a trust fund that my grandparents set up for me when I was born. I recognise that this makes me incredibly lucky financially. The rest of my savings are from summer jobs (cleaning and waitressing) that I had while home from uni. Also several Monzo pots: emergency fund (£1,000), new bike fund (£575), holiday fund (£100), Christmas (£100) and driving lessons (£125). I'm trying to get into the habit of putting money into these pots on payday before I have a chance to overspend that month.
Other: Council tax £41, gas and electricity £18.21, water £11.15, £13.99 for contact lenses, Wi-Fi £10, mobile phone £10, £10 to World Bicycle Relief, £10 to Say It Loud Club (an organisation supporting LGBT+ asylum seekers) and £10 to Roundabout (a youth homelessness charity in Sheffield), £9.99 subscription to a local bike shop (this covers labour costs of up to £12 for minor repairs and two services per year for my road bike). I used to pay for Spotify Premium with a student discount but my parents kindly decided to start paying for Spotify Family recently, so I use this instead now. My parents have a Netflix account and I am a parasite. £30 per year for membership of the Academy for Healthcare Science.
This article was updated to reflect a mistake in the amount under 'savings' - 24/09/20
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