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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 am a 22-year-old recent graduate from Glasgow. I count myself lucky that I still live at home with my parents, so my monthly expenses are low, but I plan to buy a flat in the next few years so am trying to improve my spending habits to save for a deposit. However, I am regularly caught between trying to save and splurging!
I started my first 'proper' job early last year in the construction industry in an office-based role and I took full advantage of earning a full-time salary during the first few months, including paying for a month-long trip travelling around China and Hong Kong, holidays to Cyprus and Switzerland, and building up a collection of expensive trainers and designer handbags. However, I am on a fixed-term contract which is due to end in the summer and although this is likely to be renewed, I still haven’t had any confirmation from the company, giving me another reason to improve my saving habits to give me a safety net if I need to find another job. This hasn’t stopped me planning a couple of holidays for this summer though!"
Industry: Construction
Age: 22
Location: Glasgow
Salary: £19,500
Paycheque amount: £1,400
Number of housemates: Three – mum, stepdad and younger brother.
Age: 22
Location: Glasgow
Salary: £19,500
Paycheque amount: £1,400
Number of housemates: Three – mum, stepdad and younger brother.
Monthly Expenses
Housing costs: £0 (my mum has conveniently forgotten our agreement for me to start paying 'dig' money when I started working full time).
Loan payments: £0 (being Scottish, my uni fees were covered by SAAS [Student Awards Agency for Scotland] and I covered the other costs of going to uni by working part time).
Utilities: £0
Transportation: About £150 for petrol (my car insurance and road tax are paid on an annual basis and I use my savings to cover both).
Phone bill: £0 (still covered by my parents; hopefully if they don’t notice it will stay that way forever).
Savings? I put £200 every month into a Help to Buy ISA and another £100-200 goes into my Marcus savings account. Any money I make through selling on eBay or Depop is transferred from my PayPal straight into my Marcus account (minus the selling fees) and if I have anything left over at the end of the month it also goes into savings (not that this happens very often).
Other: £18 for gym membership and £9.99 for Spotify Premium (the only thing that gets me through commuting to and from work every day).
Loan payments: £0 (being Scottish, my uni fees were covered by SAAS [Student Awards Agency for Scotland] and I covered the other costs of going to uni by working part time).
Utilities: £0
Transportation: About £150 for petrol (my car insurance and road tax are paid on an annual basis and I use my savings to cover both).
Phone bill: £0 (still covered by my parents; hopefully if they don’t notice it will stay that way forever).
Savings? I put £200 every month into a Help to Buy ISA and another £100-200 goes into my Marcus savings account. Any money I make through selling on eBay or Depop is transferred from my PayPal straight into my Marcus account (minus the selling fees) and if I have anything left over at the end of the month it also goes into savings (not that this happens very often).
Other: £18 for gym membership and £9.99 for Spotify Premium (the only thing that gets me through commuting to and from work every day).
Are you heading to a festival this summer? Would you be interested in recording your spending for a money diary while you're there? Get in touch: moneydiary@refinery29.uk
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