This week: “I’m a 31-year-old freelance content manager living in south Yorkshire. I moved here with my partner, B, at the beginning of last year from London (where I’m from). The move up north was motivated by our struggle to get out of rented accommodation and on the property ladder, as well as a desire to try living somewhere different at a slower pace. I found it really hard at first! Since then, we’ve bought our first home and are settled into our new life here, making regular trips to visit our families down south and various other friends who are scattered around the country. I’ve been self-employed since 2021, making the jump after feeling frustrated at the opportunities that full-time employment gave me. B and I now operate as a limited company. We work mainly in the third sector with lots of different clients and projects. I really enjoy how varied my work is — even when it’s stressful, I haven’t regretted my decision. I can get quite anxious about money so I’m always trying to find a balance between enjoying the money I work hard for and not making too many frivolous purchases, especially as our house needs work and we’re getting married next year.”
Occupation: Freelance content manager
Industry: Third sector
Age: 31
Location: South Yorkshire
Salary: Variable. On average I make around £45,000 a year.
Paycheque amount: Variable — this month it was £1,700.
Number of housemates: One: my partner, B (and our dog, A).
Pronouns: She/her
Monthly Expenses
Housing costs: £695 for my half of the mortgage.
Loan payments: I pay for my undergraduate student loan annually as part of my personal self-assessment so this isn’t a monthly expense for me.
Pension? Yes, I pay £200 through my business.
Savings? I have an easy access savings account, which has about £4,000 in it, and a cash ISA with £4,000 in it. B and I cashed out our separate LISAs to purchase our first house together at the beginning of the year. We now have a joint savings account which has £14,000 in it set aside for our wedding, honeymoon and house improvements.
Utilities: £176 council tax, £41 TV licence, £21 life insurance, £58 gas and electric, £44 water, £18 pet insurance, £50 phone.
All other monthly payments: £10.50 contact lenses, £2.99 Apple storage, £20 Trussell Trust donation. Subscriptions: £4 Spotify, £3 Patreon, £11.99 Astrology app.
Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
I did a three-year BA with a student loan. My mum was just above the threshold for additional financial support so I supplemented the loan with a weekend job at a department store in my uni town. During my summer breaks I joined the NHS staff bank and worked for my local NHS trusts.
Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money?
We didn’t talk about money and it became a heated and avoided topic after my parents’ divorce. We were middle class but as a single parent with four children under the age of 10, my mum’s NHS salary had to stretch quite far. Everything felt tighter the further away we got from payday. She relied a lot on my grandparents or other family members for financial support, which became an issue later in life after my grandparents passed away. My mum expected her children to provide the same level of support, which we were not always able to do. Now, due to buying and selling our family home in London, moving to a cheaper area of the country and benefiting from a comfortable pension with no children to look after, my mum has been able to build a large safety net for herself, which has made things a lot easier.
If you have, when did you move out of your parents’/guardians’ house?
I moved into my first shared flat a few months after graduating university.
At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself? Does anyone else cover any aspects of your financial life?
When I moved out after uni. I cover all aspects of my financial life, although I know my life is made a lot cheaper by sharing it with B.
What was your first job and why did you get it?
I worked as a babysitter for local families. I used this money for gigs and clothes (as a London teenager in the age of indie sleaze and underage music events, I went to a lot of gigs).
Do you worry about money now?
I carry a lot of money anxiety from my childhood but being self-employed has made me feel more in control of my finances than ever before. I have to keep on top of where my money goes, how I spend it and how I earn it. This has given me a clear understanding of how much my time, energy and skillset is worth and what I want to do with it. We have been working quite hard for the past few years to reach certain financial goals — going freelance, sustaining our business, moving, buying a house — but ultimately our move out of London was motivated by a desire to slow down and not always be chasing a higher paycheque. I’m trying to remember that!
Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income?
After my mum sold the family home, she gave each of us £20,000. She called this my inheritance, and wanted me to spend it while she was alive. I put this in a LISA and used it to purchase my house with B earlier this year. B’s mum made a similar contribution and we wouldn’t have been able to buy our house without it.
8 a.m. — Wake up and go check on the dog, A. He’s waiting at the bottom of the stairs so I bring him up to our bedroom for a morning cuddle.
8:30 a.m. — Up, shower and skincare.
9 a.m. — Over breakfast my partner, B, and I discuss our monthly salary and dividends payment. As we operate as a business, our income is always shared — we pay ourselves the same amount even if one of us brings in more money. Last month was a lower income month for us as we were waiting for a large invoice to hit, which this month’s salary benefits from. Our salary is £1,047.50 and our dividend payment is £2,000 each. We pay this into our joint account, put £190 away for tax, transfer £1,700 each into our personal accounts and leave the rest to cover our mortgage and general shared expenses.
9:15 a.m. — Despite having a joint account, we also have a Splitwise to keep track of other expenses that one of us may pay for. B regularly gets the food shop on his credit card for Avios points and I owe him £115 so I transfer that over.
1:30 p.m. — Walk A with B, discussing accommodation options for two family weddings next year that we need to book. Weddings are increasingly costing the same amount as holidays for us so we need to keep the spending down where we can.
3 p.m. — I’m heading to London today for an event with my friend, C. She bought the tickets as a Christmas present so I’ll accept a gnarly travel day! Log off and get driven to the station by B. I already have my train ticket (although I really don’t think advance tickets are that much cheaper anymore). I buy a Kit Kat and mints for the train, £2.50.
5:30 p.m. — Will I ever get a train that arrives on time? Arrive late and dash to the Tube to meet my friend at a restaurant before our event, £2.80.
6 p.m. — Catch up with C over delicious sushi. It’s spenny but a treat as B doesn’t like fish so I never get the chance to eat it at home. £32 for my half.
8 p.m. — Walk to the venue for our event. Thankful to C for such a kind gift, even if I do have to leg it for the last train north as soon as it ends, £2.80 for Tube.
10:32 p.m. — Manage to catch the train, pray for no delays…
Total: £155.10
1:10 a.m. — Arrive back home, delayed (of course). Call an Uber as the train is pulling in and get home to a double-locked door. Wake B (and A) up — B is very apologetic and A is very excited — before tumbling into bed. £6.98 for Uber including tip.
8:45 a.m. — Woken up by the sound of rain. Get ready quickly as both B and I are in-house (meaning online) for a client today, who has also asked for a catch-up. I see B has bought our close friends their shared birthday present on the joint account — a gift card to Mangal II, £37.50 my half.
9:30 a.m. — My mum messages to say that she’s booked one of the wedding accommodation options B and I were discussing yesterday (without checking with us first, of course). Update B and send her our share of the deposit, £37.40.
10:30 a.m. — B and I join the catch-up call with our client, who sadly lets us know that the organisation is going through redundancies and the team we are working with is impacted. This means that our agreed working contract will end in two months. I’m worried for the team I work with but also stressed about what this means for us. I don’t have a lot of time to think about this as it’s a busy morning and I’m straight into another meeting.
12 p.m. — Take A for a walk before he goes to the groomer. Get absolutely drenched in sudden rain and apologise for dropping off a wet dog. Pop to newsagent’s to pick up a Vinted parcel.
1 p.m. — Home with B and cook lunch of Costco dumplings while talking about the client call. Get a bit upset as I had a quiet patch last year that really knocked my confidence in being able to find new work. B is optimistic that the change will open us up to new opportunities as we’ve worked with this client for years, but I am less sure.
2 p.m. — Afternoon of social scheduling and content editing. I also do my delay repay claim for my train last night/this morning.
3 p.m. — B picks A up from the groomer, £25 for my half from the joint. Not my favourite expense (and they’ve raised the price since last time) but it keeps him happy and comfortable. A had surgery earlier this year so was looking uneven post-shave. He comes back and immediately zoomies for five minutes straight (A, not B).
5 p.m. — Still feeling low so log off and do a barre and Pilates exercise video on YouTube to shake off the funk.
7 p.m. — Quickly make and eat dinner of romesco pasta before B drops me off at a pub on the other side of town to meet my friend Y for a writing session. We’re both working on our long-suffering novels and it’s been really helpful to have an accountability buddy. Get a shandy when I’m there, £4.20.
9:55 p.m. — Made good progress! Say bye to Y and get an Uber home, £9.90 including tip.
10:30 p.m. — Bed.
Total: £120.98
8:40 a.m. — Wake up and B’s left a coffee on my bedside table, what a gent. Get ready and head to my desk with some overnight oats.
9:30 a.m. — Delay repay comes in for an embarrassingly low amount.
12 p.m. — Today I’m working for the same client as yesterday so cracking on with some ongoing requests. Break for lunch of leftover romesco pasta.
1 p.m. — Bump into the neighbour on our way to walk A. Last month we had to get some work done on our roof and as it’s a terraced house we previously thought the issue might have been a shared cost so wanted to update her.
3:30 p.m. — Call with an agency I work with regularly about a new project they’ve asked me to take on. I’ve been working with most of my clients for a few years now so I know them quite well. They feel like colleagues and I enjoy the catch-up.
5 p.m. — Down tools and do a Pilates workout followed by a dumbbell HIIT video. Doing exercise helps me mark the end of my working day. In London I’d walk about 70 minutes to and from work to decompress so I appreciate finding space for that now I work from home!
6:20 p.m. — Hair washed and plopping (if you know you know), I make tamarind tofu and pickled veg while listening to my new favourite podcast: If I Speak by Novara Media.
7 p.m. — Settle in for a chill evening of watching telly while I scroll Vinted and various department stores for wedding shoes. I bought my dress in the January sales and I’m trying to keep all the other elements equally affordable. I also want to feel confident in my outfit — a feeling that’s rare for me — so I’m planning to try everything on multiple times so that I feel comfortable wearing it ahead of the big day. Send a few options to my mum for her opinion.
10:30 p.m. — Bed.
Total: £0
7:40 a.m. — Wake up to A jumping onto my feet. Coffee and scrolling commences.
9:30 a.m. — At my desk with overnight oats again. I’m not on for a particular client today so am working on the list of items to sort before I’m away.
10 a.m. — I’ve been speaking to a recruiter who may have an opportunity for me. I always take these messages with a pinch of salt. She wants to call me ASAP so I schedule this for an hour’s time so I can finish some work.
10:40 a.m. — I’m one of the bridesmaids organising the hen do I’m going on after my holiday. I’ve been tasked with finding a Saturday night dinner spot and I get an email from one place I had booked saying they can no longer accommodate us. I’d already been turned down by two other places so message the bridesmaids WhatsApp group to update. Immediately get a call from another bridesmaid. We discuss our options and reach out to a few other places. We decide to have a call with everyone on Sunday night to finalise details before I go on holiday.
11:40 a.m. — Call with the recruiter. It’s a very exciting opportunity that would be a step up from the work I do currently but it’s the kind of challenge I’m desperate for at the moment. Pop into B’s office to get his thoughts. We talk it through and I cheekily ask him to update two things on my portfolio before I send it over (perks of dating a graphic designer).
12:30 p.m. — Lunch of leftover tamarind tofu and then walk A in the rain. B heads back with wet dog as I pop into Lidl for some butter and sour cream for a cake I want to make for the weekend. I also get ready-wok noodles, sleepy tea and two cinnamon buns as a treat. Pay for it on the joint card, £3.65 for my half.
12:30 p.m. — While I wait for an email I decide to do some cleaning. We’ve got our friends coming this weekend and B’s mum is visiting while I’m away. Start with my least favourite job: scraping dog fur from the carpet. A watches on, mockingly.
5 p.m. — Email never surfaces so I log off and start getting ready to go and meet friends for drinks and dinner. I met them through Bumble BFF last year and feel like it’s blossoming into a really lovely friendship. Walk in the rain to a Mexican restaurant where my friend T is waiting to take advantage of happy hour in the empty bar.
8 p.m. — The restaurant is trying to turf us out even though it’s very empty so we split the bill, £26.40 each including tip. We head to a pub garden for a round. I owe my friend Z a drink so I buy her a cider with my wine, £11.10.
9:15 p.m. — The sun is setting so we all depart and I walk back, feeling pleased that I’ve been able to make such good friends here. We moved without knowing anyone and putting myself out there to meet people was difficult but it has definitely been worth it.
9:40 p.m. — Home to B serenading A on the piano. Make a sleepy tea and eat some chocolate while we chat.
11 p.m. — Skincare and bed.
Total: £41.15
8 a.m. — Dog on bed, coffee consumed. Get a text from my friend C (the same friend I saw on Monday), asking if I have time to look for travel options to the airport.
9 a.m. — Voice note from my friend E who has heard about Tuesday’s work news. This makes me panic all over again. We message back and forth for a bit to talk it through while I work on some website updates.
11 a.m. — Send C a few routes to get us to Gatwick in the early hours of the morning. Decide to get our train tickets to the airport when we see each other.
11:30 a.m. — Have some time to kill before a meeting so I start on my cake for tomorrow to pass the time. I make one of my favourites: Nigella Lawson’s Guinness cake.
12:30 p.m. — Lunch of leftover tempeh noodles B made for dinner yesterday while catching up on the bridesmaid group. Realise I also need to divvy up the rooms in our accommodation so open laptop to decide who gets bunk beds vs double beds.
1:40 p.m. — A rare break in the rain so we drive to a local woodland to walk A. We love living so close to wide, open green spaces and try to take advantage of it when we can.
2:30 p.m. — Back, coffee and a slice of freshly made cake while I wrap up final bits with my clients.
5 p.m. — Sign off, out of office on and do a Pilates exercise video followed by a weights workout on YouTube.
7 p.m. — B and I are DJing at our friend’s wedding next month — our debut performance! We’ve set aside tonight to sort the track list and drink wine. I make homemade pizza while B messes around with the tech equipment.
10 p.m. — I’ve gotten very into working out our song transitions but B has lost energy so leaves me with the decks and goes to bed.
11 p.m. — After drinking a sleepy tea to calm down after my mini rave, I do skincare and sleep.
Total: £0
8:20 a.m. — Standard morning routine of coffee and dog cuddles.
9:30 a.m. — Our friends who are visiting today just had a baby so I prep the house for their arrival. Finish cleaning the bathroom while B makes eggs on toast.
10:35 a.m. — B realises he missed off aubergines, a key ingredient for lunch, from the shopping this week. He’s got to finish off some work this morning so it’s back to Lidl I go. Also pick up some rogue bits we need and some snacks for me while I navigate planes, trains and automobiles next week: mint imperials, cashew bars, dried mango, almonds, crisps, aubergines and pastries, £7.40 for my share.
11 a.m. — Start packing for the holiday and hen do while looking at weather apps. Trying to have faith that the outfits I’ve planned for sunny Spain will still be appropriate for the UK.
12:30 p.m. — B has been busy this morning so has run out of time to cook. He offers to take A out if I can do lunch. I prepare roasted aubergines, halloumi and tomatoes to serve with bread and coleslaw.
1:20 p.m. — Our friends arrive with their gorgeous baby boy! Feel very emotional meeting him. Quite a few of my friends have babies now and it’s important to me to make sure I can support them however they need. In this case, it’s feeding the new parents a big meal they didn’t have to cook and dancing with the baby while they demolish some slices of cake.
2:40 p.m. — It’s turned sunny so we gather up the baby and the dog to head to our local pub. Pay for two rounds of shandies as we chat in the sunshine, £14.80 for my share.
5 p.m. — We head back to ours, then sneakily return to the pub without A to enjoy the warm weather. This is also the last time B and I will see each other for over a week so we decide to treat it as a date. This means another shandy and some chips. £7.37 my share.
7 p.m. — We head back home. B defrosts some Linda McCartney burgers and brioche buns for dinner. I also show him the music transitions I worked on yesterday for his approval.
8:30 p.m. —We had plans to head back out to a local DJ night but day drinking has caught up with us. Put on MasterChef instead and snuggle up on the sofa with A.
10:20 p.m. — Bed.
Total: £29.57
7 a.m. — Travel anxiety wakes me early. I get up and put coffee on, taking the opportunity to play with A and give him lots of attention.
8:30 a.m. — B and I have the Lidl pastries I bought yesterday for breakfast. I then finish packing.
10 a.m. — Wash my hair again as it’s the last time I’ll have access to all my products for a while. If anyone knows how to make curls last past day two, please let me know.
11:30 a.m. — B goes on a run, I take A out on a walk in the shade as it’s still quite warm. As we amble through the trees my direct debit to pay off my credit card comes out, £24.99.
12:15 p.m. — Eat leftover noodles and slice of cake. B comes back and makes me an iced coffee. Text C about my arrival time and we make a plan for the evening. A has spotted my suitcase and is following my every move.
2 p.m. — B drives me to the station to catch my train to London (ending the week as it began). The train is the long route and very busy at weekends. I manage to put my suitcase on the rack and settle in with podcasts.
5:20 p.m. — Arrive in London…late! Tube and then bus to C’s house, £3.10.
6:30 p.m. — C cooks me dinner and we eat it in the last of the sun in her garden. Buy train tickets for tomorrow morning’s airport travel, £7.09.
8:10 p.m. — Jump on a video call with the other bridesmaids to finalise our plans. Was it wise going straight from a holiday to a hen do? Only time will tell. I’m getting a lift to the hen with my friend the morning after I get back from holiday so message her to check that’s still okay.
10:30 p.m. —– We watch Selling The OC on C’s laptop before going to bed ahead of a 3 a.m. wake-up call.
Total: £35.18
Food & Drink: £231.51
Clothes & Beauty: £0
Home & Health: £0
Entertainment: £0
Travel: £62.98
Other: £87.49
Total: £381.98
Conclusion
“I really enjoy reading Money Diaries and I wanted to do my own to see what I actually spend my money on nowadays, especially as I feel I do a lot less but somehow spend more. That’s clear from the fact I spent a lot on ‘other’ — most of these were planned costs that just happened to fall in this week but it’s an example of how my life is getting more expensive generally, which I should try and plan for. Case in point: Since this Money Diary, we’ve found out that the roof issue we thought was fixed is actually not and will cost us over two grand to fix. Food and drink are the main way I socialise (although the payment to B for Tesco isn’t every week) and travel is the price I pay for not knowing how to drive — although I don’t usually go to London twice in a week! I also rely on B for lifts a lot. I do pay half of the car insurance and the petrol so I think it’s fair. I am planning to learn to drive but again, it’s expensive. Following this week I’ve been able to find some work to take over when my contract with the client I mentioned in this diary ends, so my freelance wobble is over for now!”
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