Saving for a house is hard work, no matter how many children you have. The property prices increase in the last decade has priced many out of the buyer’s market and made it almost impossible for many first-time buyers to even consider setting foot on the property ladder.
I bought my first house 6 months before I fell pregnant with my first child, but it was a long hard slog. When I say I used my ‘life savings’ for a deposit, I’m not exaggerating!
For every birthday and Christmas I received a cheque or money in a card as a child, I deposited that money in an ISA account. I did the same with tips I received whilst working a bar job, and when I secured my first graduate role as a head hunter any commission I made went straight into my account too. I became a pro at saving whatever I could and living within my means.
I didn’t have a credit card, and we lived in a tiny, damp flat living off beans on toast until the day came that I finally had enough to buy a house. We’ve recently moved from our first house into a ‘doer upper’ and we are now trying to save up to renovate our forever home (with 3 children).
Here are some simple hints and tips for how to save money when you have a baby that I've learnt, and also how to cut costs too…
Simple ways to save:
- Budget: set yourself a monthly or weekly budget and try not to go over this amount where possible. If anything is left over, put it straight into a savings account
- Target: set a monthly or weekly savings target – having something to work towards makes it more likely to happen. Revisit this if you have any salary increases
- Round up: when you spend money on anything, round up to the next pound and put the extra pennies into savings…this will add up faster than you think!
- Shop around for savings accounts: ISAs aren’t always the best rates, look at saver accounts too and go for the best interest rate.
- Do not dip into your savings unless it is absolutely necessary. Pretend it doesn’t exist.
- Buy your baby clothes second-hand from charity shops or online using apps such as Vinted, where you can get big bundles cheaply!
- Sell your used baby clothes on Vinted too
- Look for second-hand and preloved items such as baby changers, pushchairs, bouncers and cots. Don’t buy your car seat second hand, however – safety first here.
- Meal plan and batch cook – use online supermarket shops to budget and look into buying meat in bulk for less and prepping meals and freezing in advance.
- Before you buy anything for your current home, think ‘do I need it?’ and ‘will I keep it?’ if it isn’t part of your future plan for your forever home, don’t waste money furnishing a house that isn’t yours.
