In our How I Manage My Money series we aim to find out how people in the UK are spending, saving and investing money to meet their costs and achieve their goals.
This week we speak to Jia Blackburn, 39, who lives in east London with her husband Tom, 35, and their three children aged between five and nine. Jia, who works as a data manager in the public sector, has two rental properties but sees most of the rent money she makes swallowed up by mortgages and taxes. She wished she had started investing in stocks and shares earlier than the age of 35 and wants to retire in her mid-fifties.
My monthly income: I work as a data manager in the UK public sector. I take home £3,600 a month from my job. My husband works in a strategy role in the public sector.
We have £3,000 a month coming in from two rental properties before deductions. After deductions, including the mortgages and tax, we are left with about £200 a month from the properties. I do social media work and some months make zero, but this month I made £550 from it. I also do a lot of paid market surveys and research, which I can make about £200 a month from. We are higher-rate taxpayers and do not receive child benefit.
My monthly outgoings: Mortgage, £3,580; council tax, £276; groceries, £550; gas and electric, £150; water, £45; TV licence, £15; mobiles, £15; public transport and car fuel, £450; broadband, £25; socialising and fun, £500; gym, £150; clubs and activities for the children, £250; subscriptions like Apple, £25; donation to charity, £100. I add £400 a month to my cash savings and £480 a month to my investments. I contribute £385 to my work pension a month and £80 to a private pension per month. We also add £150 to junior ISAs for the children each month. We pay mortgages and taxes on our rental properties too.
