Saving up for a house can be very hard. In the UK rent costs the average worker 30% of their monthly salary.
But there are easy wins to have in saving up! We list them below.
1. Set a Monthly Budget
As much as this sounds cliché, it is just the plain truth. Yes you work hard for your money. Yes you can buy whatever you want with it. But is it all necessary? Or is it just ‘that thing’ in trend?
Remember how popular these were before they went out of fashion?
Being smart with your money means you buy more of what you need instead of what you desire.
2. Review Your TV Subscriptions
Even though online media subscriptions are taking off (Netflix movies are winning Oscars) there are still many people forking out cash for digital TV.
The likes of Virgin TV and Sky were must haves 10 years ago. But with the roll out of high speed fibre internet to a large part of the UK most people will have access to a reliable internet connection.
TV packages can cost up to £80 per month!
Ditch the pricey contracts and switch over to a cheaper, flexible option.
Amazon Prime, Netflix and Now TV offer affordable packages instead.
3. Try Out Freelancing
That party trick you roll out when you’ve had 4 glasses of wine? No one wants to pay for that.
But if you have any useful skills that you’re not getting much of a return from, think about signing up to a freelance site.
COVID forced many people to stay in their homes – with many thinking about taking up a new hobby or skill. Some of the examples we’ve seen with a lot of demand online include:
- Creative writing
- Graphic design
- Voiceovers
- Translating
- Social media marketing
It can take a while to build a reputation on gig worker sites – but people can make a decent side income from it. Some are even able to make gig work their full time job.
Top platforms to start from:
- Fiverr
- Upwork
- Clickworker
4. Cut Down On Your Subscriptions
We mentioned previously about switching over from TV subscriptions to an online version.
But what about all of your other monthly subscriptions? People sometimes forget the other monthly payments they make in the background.
Music – Spotify has a free version – as long as you can take the adverts in between.
Shopping – You might think you’re saving money with unlimited deliveries for the year (ASOS) – but these plans are designed to have you buying clothes more frequently.
Meals – We all like a convenient food box coming to our door now and again. But Hello Fresh, Gousto and Simply Cook will eat into (we don’t apologise for that) your budget. Buy fresh ingredients from the Sainsbury’s local and cook the meal yourself.
Snacks – Graze boxes appeal to the crunchy people. But if you learn to visualize every nut in the box as a bit of your deposit crumbling away – you’ll quickly change your mind.
Individually the cost of each subscription might be cheap. But they are not together.
5. Play Video Games
Are you an amazing gamer?
There’s a world of opportunity in this field. The gaming community has always remained strong – needing valuable guides and tips.
Game Streaming
Some people live stream their in game play on platforms like Twitch for other gamers to learn strategies. If you get enough viewers this can pay cash.
Games Journalism
Other people write reviews of games on gaming blogs and get paid for it.
Gaming Tournaments
If you’re not interested in any of the activities above but are just really good at gaming – try entering an online tournament that pays prize money.
6. Trade Down Your Car
Expensive cars mean expensive maintenance. For someone trying to save for a house, maintaining a flashy car should not be anywhere near your to-do list.
Save part of the money you make from the car sale to buy a cheaper one.
7. Buy Second Hand
If you want new – you have to pay more. But not everything needs to be new all the time. And if you can go for second hand on a few items you can save big.
Electronic goods are sold with big discounts as second hand, with some having a good life remaining.
Items like computer monitors, printers, TVs and microwaves can all last a long time with the right care.
8. Change Your Food Shopping
Save your weekly pennies from Waitrose and head over to your local competitor.
Recent research shows shopping at Lidl or Aldi can be 40% cheaper than other rivals – saving you £85 a month!
Find your local Aldi and get started today.
9. Cut The Air Miles
Beaches are great. But you only get to use it for your two week holiday and you save for a whole year to get there. Sacrificing your vacations is the hardest feeling in the world.
But it does bring you a huge step closer to building that deposit.
If you find it impossible to give up the full vacation, think about going on a shorter break for 4 days instead of 7.
Staycations have come back to the UK in big fashion, so make sure you check out your UK options too. Many people are finding holiday cottages replace villas very well! This brings us to our next tip..
10. Get Yourself A Railcard
With up to 1/3 off train ticket prices for people up to 30 years old, this is a great offer to take up. The cost of a 26-30 card is currently £30 – but given the price of trains these days that money is easily made back up.
11. Clear Your Debts
When lenders assess you for a mortgage they do look at your outstanding debts, including your credit cards.
Some people believe that by not repaying their credit card debts, they save more money in their bank account which can be used for a larger deposit.
But this is not the full picture.
A lender will look at a person with high debts as having higher outgoings each month. And this has a direct impact on how much a lender will allow you to borrow. We do a full post on this here.
Having outstanding credit card debts also mean that you’ll be paying interest on the balances. Try and reduce them as best you can so you benefit in the medium term.
12. Protect Your Gadgets
The cost of your smartphone has rocketed over the past few years. An iPhone used to cost £200 new, but these days the latest models will set you back £1,000 on even the most basic specs.
No one wants to face a big bill for replacing something as pricey as your phone.
Case
Keep your phone in a protective case to give it some chance when you let it go for a diving session out of your hands.
Screen Cover
If you’ve got a habit of leaving your phone in the same pocket as your keys – you’ll remember that feeling of regret when you discover the ‘artwork’ your metal has decided to do to your screen. A few covers are inexpensive and will
Insurance
If you’ve got a shaky record with keeping your phone intact, think about signing up to some insurance. It does cost more out of your pocket now, but if you end up having to make a claim it will likely pay for itself.
13. Put in Some Overtime
If you’re in a job that pays extra for doing more hours, put some extra work in and save the shillings! It will be a bit of a shock to the system if you’re not used to it – but in this case hard work will literally pay off.
14. Sell on eBay
Up to 3 million people in the UK are hoarders. They find it incredibly difficult to get rid of any possessions. The truth is a cluttered home is harder to clean and ends up stressing out the people that live in the mess.
If you have anything you don’t need anymore, sell it. For clothes, apply the 6 month test – i.e. if it hasn’t been worn in 6 months then ditch it. If you can’t get your items to sell – donate them to charity instead. You’d be surprised how fulfilling it can feel and someone else gets to enjoy them.
Clearing out your clutter also helps to reduce your moving costs – which are surprisingly expensive
15. Open an ISA
An ISA is basically a specific type of bank account in the UK where there is no tax charge on the money that is in the account.
Research has shown that people who set up a separate account like an ISA develop a great savings mindset and actually manage to put away more money. The most basic type is a Cash ISA.
Instead of trying to save from whatever is left after your expenses for the month, try to save some money before you start spending your wages.
Another kind of ISA is a lifetime ISA. This lets you save up to £4,000 every year in the account. When you are able to finally pay for a home the Government will add another 25% to the amount that you saved. But make sure you can afford to keep the money inside for this kind of ISA, as if you withdraw your money for another reason you are currently charged a penalty rate.
16. Switch suppliers on your house bills
It’s so easy to adopt the ‘do nothing’ approach when looking at your bills. Switching suppliers is a hassle and you normally have to do it on the phone with a high pressured salesman. It’s also really boring. But it is true that it can save you a lot.
Make things easier and use a comparison site like Uswitch to get a feeling of the savings if you decided to switch your energy, broadband or mobile phone contracts.
17. Cook Your Own Meals
Being able to eat without so much as rinsing a pot is nice. But it comes at a cost. Besides being expensive compared to homemade food, meals out can often increase your calorie consumption.
Swap the fine dining with home comforts and learn a few recipes.
18. Learn some DIY
Are you hopeless with a bike chain coming off? Or what about putting together a set of bookshelves?
Learning DIY skill can help in two ways:
- You can buy cheaper items that require you to finish them off. A good example of this is most flat pack furniture from IKEA. These items can save a lot of money for when you are renting a place
- With your new found skills you can offer to help other friends for a few pounds.
Another great benefit of learning the DIY skills now is that you can put all of your knowledge into overdrive when you finally do get your first home!
19. Saving apps
We all know how long and boring it is to stare at our bank statement. Most banks have given up on sending paper statements out in the post and now focus solely on emails that people don’t read.
Now is the time to utilize the wave of free money management apps to help you give your finances a good kicking.
Yolt connects with your bank accounts and displays all of your purchases in simple categories – perfect for those who turn away from ugly spreadsheets.
20. Try going meat free
Ok – we know this one is a real stretch. Meat eaters clearly like their meat and it’s taken the world an enormous effort to even dent this animal instinct.
But putting the politics and ethics of meat eating aside, meat products do tend to form a significant part of the food budget.
It’s certainly worth trying some meat free alternatives a few times. If you do end up liking it you can sub our meat for 1 or 2 days a week. Or maybe you’ll totally convert and become veggie for life.
This recipe book offers quick 30 minute veggie meals.
21. Car Boot Sale
If you thought rocking up at 9am to a good ol’ fashioned car booty was dead – think again. The communities are still thriving and cover a lot of areas in the UK.
Entrance is normally free – although to fund the costs of the events the organisers will usually preserve the first hour of trading to those who want to pay get the best deals before anyone else. But it is a car boot sale – so the entrance fee is usually single digit pounds.