I want to start a healthy saving habit
Giving up smoking last month will save Mandie Martin as much as £3,500 a year, but the 25-year-old radio worker is still struggling to build a savings cushion and get on to the property ladder.
She says: “I used to withdraw £10 from the cash machine every morning to buy cigarettes on the way to work — and I’d spend the change on coffee and a banana. I’ve stopped that now, so I should be able to start saving for once. Now seems an obvious time to review my finances.
Financial CV
Income £774 a month, after rent, phone and gym bills.
Rent £200 a month.
Objectives To get into better financial habits and start saving. Also wants to get on the property ladder with her boyfriend, possibly using the Government’s HomeBuy scheme, provided that the timing is right.
Dennis Hall gives Mandy advice in this Times Money Makeover. You can read the rest of the article on the Times website.
Cara Martin, 28, is a qualified social worker and works full time in adult mental health for the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust. She lives at home with her parents in the family home in the south of the city. “My financial goals include increasing my personal savings and working towards buying my own home within a year,” she says.