Advice

[shadowcomplex]

Hi All

My name is Mark and I am from Ireland. I know this is primarily an American site but the advice is the same.

Basically I am 36 single, no mortgage and I am on a very good wage 60k euro which is about75k us dollars but I am very bad with money, I live hand to pocket and have no savings or investments, sometimes I even need to ask my dad for a loan.

My fixed costs are also quite low

Rent including gas, electricity , internet and tv channels(House share) 300 euro per month(375 dollars)
Phone-25 euro(30 dollars)

I have about 1500 euro left to pay back on an 18k loan but once that's paid Im debt free, would really appreciate some advice

[Like2Plan]

You have listed some of your expenses, but there is quote a bit that is unaccounted. So, first you need to identify where all the money is going. Start off by writing down every purchase no matter how small.
Then, you need to make a budget. You can also investigate where you could stand to trim some of your expenses.. The budget should address savings categories such as long term savings for retirement and short term for emergencies and non periodic expenditures.
Then, you need to follow through with your plan. There are many ways to accomplish this. A lot of folks pay themselves first by automatically depositing the savings into the appropriate account at payday--this takes allocated money out of play. Another technique is to use cash for everything -- putting spending categories in separate envelopes. The main thing is to find a technique that works for you.

[snafu]

hi Mark, welcome to SA. Most participants are Am and it's a holiday long weekend so pretty quiet. I'm from Canada and there are a few participants in UK and OZ. Good on you for not having a lot of consumer debt via credit cards, auto loan or student loans. What interest rate on 1,500. loan? What I get is that you're burning through a lot of money without having a lot to show for it! How secure is your job? Is your medical plan similar to GB? What out-of-pocket costs? What retirement benefits does your employer offer? Do you participate in their plan? What are the national benefits for seniors in Ireland? The #1 issue is that we will need to fund ourselves as seniors for 35 + years. Where will the money come from?

Where do you see yourself in 5 years? married, condo/house, car, travel, savings??? Will you need to provide funds for parents in their future? What do you see as 'ideal'? Where do you think a 36 y/o should be financially? Just now N Americans are fearful of the European economy generally and the media has clobbered Ireland as part of the Portugal, Italy, Spain contagion.

[scottish girl]

Hi Mark,

I live in Scotland and I have been a member of this site for years. I'm no expert but I've found tracking spending really helped me. Also, starting to build my EF has helped, especially since I've had to use the money twice this year. If I didn't have that it would have gone on to a credit card.