Age: 32
Spouse’s/Partner's age: 35
Annual gross income from employment or profession:
70,000
Annual gross income of spouse:
28,000
Monthly Take home pay:
Me: €3,965 (after pension contribution)
Spouse: €1,650 (after pension contribution)
Type of employment: e.g. Civil Servant, self-employed
Me: New to Public Sector
Spouse: Private sector
In general are you:
(a) spending more than you earn, or
(b) saving?
I save about €1,250 per month (direct debit to a credit union account where I can’t easily access it) and my wife saves about €750 per month
Mortgage n/a - We are renting apartment for €1000 p/m
Other borrowings – car loans/personal loans etc
None
Credit Cards
Do you pay off your full credit card balance each month? Yes
If not, what is the balance on your credit card?
Savings and investments: We have about €45,000 in savings split between a credit union account (€28,000) and a BOI current account (€17,000).
Do you have a pension scheme?
Yes I have recently started a new job and have joined the company DB pension scheme. Previous to this I had a personal pension plan (estimated value €12,000).
My wife has just started one where her company match her contribution up to 5% so she is putting in 5%
Do you own any investment or other property?
No
Ages of children: No children
Life insurance: None
What specific question do you have or what issues are of concern to you?
Background: During the majority of the past 5 years we have been living on a single salary due to recession/going back to College to change careers, etc. This is the first time since we married that we are both in regular employment and we want to try and put some structure around our finances and hopefully start making sensible plans. My wife and I are not very good at financial planning and feel that we are missing out on something so we are looking for any advice on what we should be doing?
1. Pension Query: should I be looking at continuing to contribute to my personal pension plan – would there be extra tax savings from this and would they be worthwhile?
2. Savings Query: I am fairly sure that we could be getting more from our savings rather than leaving it in CU and BOI accounts. Can anyone give advice on what they would do in our situation?
3. Buying a House: We both live and work in Dublin and are currently renting. Due to expensive nature of property we have not decided whether to try and eventually purchase a house or not. I know we are ‘wasting’ money on rent but not sure yet about going into lots of debt for next 30 years to purchase a place. Leaving personal choices out of this, can anyone give advice on what the best move would be from a financial perspective? Mortgage vs Renting?
4. Investments in general: Should we be looking at starting to invest now or keep saving as we have been doing? I keep reading on articles that the best way to accumulate wealth in by investing long term in the stock market. If so, what is the best way to get started?
5. Any advice on best way to handle decision making process regarding finances with your partner? I have read a lot that this can be very difficult and would appreciate any thoughts that people may have on this.
6. Does anyone have any suggestions on anything else that we should be doing/not doing now? We both are trying hard to get somewhere but have no idea where!
Sorry for long winded post and all the questions. All comments would be greatly appreciated.
Spouse’s/Partner's age: 35
Annual gross income from employment or profession:
70,000
Annual gross income of spouse:
28,000
Monthly Take home pay:
Me: €3,965 (after pension contribution)
Spouse: €1,650 (after pension contribution)
Type of employment: e.g. Civil Servant, self-employed
Me: New to Public Sector
Spouse: Private sector
In general are you:
(a) spending more than you earn, or
(b) saving?
I save about €1,250 per month (direct debit to a credit union account where I can’t easily access it) and my wife saves about €750 per month
Mortgage n/a - We are renting apartment for €1000 p/m
Other borrowings – car loans/personal loans etc
None
Credit Cards
Do you pay off your full credit card balance each month? Yes
If not, what is the balance on your credit card?
Savings and investments: We have about €45,000 in savings split between a credit union account (€28,000) and a BOI current account (€17,000).
Do you have a pension scheme?
Yes I have recently started a new job and have joined the company DB pension scheme. Previous to this I had a personal pension plan (estimated value €12,000).
My wife has just started one where her company match her contribution up to 5% so she is putting in 5%
Do you own any investment or other property?
No
Ages of children: No children
Life insurance: None
What specific question do you have or what issues are of concern to you?
Background: During the majority of the past 5 years we have been living on a single salary due to recession/going back to College to change careers, etc. This is the first time since we married that we are both in regular employment and we want to try and put some structure around our finances and hopefully start making sensible plans. My wife and I are not very good at financial planning and feel that we are missing out on something so we are looking for any advice on what we should be doing?
1. Pension Query: should I be looking at continuing to contribute to my personal pension plan – would there be extra tax savings from this and would they be worthwhile?
2. Savings Query: I am fairly sure that we could be getting more from our savings rather than leaving it in CU and BOI accounts. Can anyone give advice on what they would do in our situation?
3. Buying a House: We both live and work in Dublin and are currently renting. Due to expensive nature of property we have not decided whether to try and eventually purchase a house or not. I know we are ‘wasting’ money on rent but not sure yet about going into lots of debt for next 30 years to purchase a place. Leaving personal choices out of this, can anyone give advice on what the best move would be from a financial perspective? Mortgage vs Renting?
4. Investments in general: Should we be looking at starting to invest now or keep saving as we have been doing? I keep reading on articles that the best way to accumulate wealth in by investing long term in the stock market. If so, what is the best way to get started?
5. Any advice on best way to handle decision making process regarding finances with your partner? I have read a lot that this can be very difficult and would appreciate any thoughts that people may have on this.
6. Does anyone have any suggestions on anything else that we should be doing/not doing now? We both are trying hard to get somewhere but have no idea where!
Sorry for long winded post and all the questions. All comments would be greatly appreciated.