Iscambe, solo mom and money control freak, manages to save 40% of her income
How much do you earn per month? How do you spend this money? Who pays what in your relationship? Here are some of the questions we are tackling in our new Settlement section!
Talking about money in France is still taboo. Yet it is a fascinating subject, and in some ways feminist. In our new section Settling of accounts, women come to go through their budgets and talk to us about their relationship to money. Today, it is Iscambe (it is a nickname) who has agreed to open his accounts to us.
Nickname: Iscambe
Age: 30 years old
Job: permanent contract in the social field
Monthly salary: € 1,500 net (over 14 months, so around € 1,800 per month smoothing over the year)
Family: Her six-year-old daughter, her dog, her two cats, and her boyfriend who doesn’t live with them
Living space: A 3-room HLM apartment in Paris
Iscambe’s income
Iscambe has been on a full-time permanent contract for three and a half years in the social field. She earns € 1,500 net monthly paid over 14 months. This allows her to have two extra cash flows each year to put butter in the spinach.
However, the young woman does not consider herself well paid for the job she does.
“I have a heavy core workload and have taken on assignments that are not, to my taste, well recognized or remunerated. But hey the social, at the same time … “
In addition to her salary, Iscambe receives € 200 in monthly child support from the father of her six-year-old daughter, from whom she is separated. She also receives family allowances paid by CAF.
In total, it therefore has a budget of € 1,760 net per month (not counting the 13th and 14th months paid punctually).
Iscambe has recovered as a couple, but her new partner does not live with her and her daughter on a daily basis. Their income and expenses are therefore completely separate, even if he participates from time to time by doing some shopping.
Iscambe’s financial organization
In financial matters, Iscambe is very organized.
She opened various accounts in toll-free online banks, each with a specific function.
His salary and the CAF fall every month on the first account, and the regular invoices (rent, electricity, subscriptions, etc.) are taken directly from it.
She then transfers a monthly amount intended for shopping to the second account.
And she has a third account in which she puts money aside for expenses for the near future (dental expenses, vacations, etc.).
In addition to her three current accounts, she opened accounts for longer-term savings: an A booklet, a Sustainable Development booklet, a PEA (Plan Épargne Actions). She also showed foresight for her daughter:
“I opened him an A booklet in his name which I fill out from time to time. Otherwise, she is the beneficiary of all my other contracts. Her A booklet will come in handy when she comes of age, she can do with it what she wants (although I hope she doesn’t waste it stupidly). Otherwise, on my own, I put aside for her studies if she wants to do any, her expenses if it is in another city, etc. “
Iscambe’s expenses
Iscambe has been fortunate enough to benefit from 3-room low-cost housing in inner Paris for three years. This allows him not to spend too much money on housing, unlike many Ile-de-France residents. Her rent is € 590 per month. The same accommodation in the private sector would probably cost him at least double.
To this rent are added € 45 each month for gas and electricity bills, € 17 for home insurance and € 31 for Internet and telephone subscriptions.
The school canteen and nursery for her six-year-old daughter cost her around € 75 per month.
On the food side, she spends around € 120 per month on food shopping for herself and her daughter, to which must be added € 45 on kibble for her dog and two cats.
Apart from these incompressible expenses, the thirty-something does not really devote a budget to her leisure activities or to shopping.
“I do not have a specific budget for this and I use my holiday vouchers, gifts and culture distributed by my company as a priority. “
She still has a monthly budget of around € 100 which is devoted to non-regular expenses: clothes for her daughter, laundry, board and veterinary expenses, vacations …
And when I ask her if she would like to further reduce certain expenditure items, she answers me without hesitation:
“I find my budget balanced. I have optimized it to the best of my needs, my lifestyle, so no, I’m happy with it! “
Iscambe’s relationship to money
Iscambe has a well-honed financial organization and this is undoubtedly linked to his special relationship with money.
“I have a bit of a complicated relationship with money. I’m afraid to run out when there is no reason for it, because I come from a family in which I have not missed it at all, quite the contrary.
I’m a control freak about money. I need to know how much I have, how much I have to pay per month, how much I have left, how much I can save … “
Why is Iscambe saving so much money?
Each month, Iscambe manages to save between 40% and 60% of his income, or around € 8,000 per year.
“If we smooth over the year, that’s about € 700 per month. I put a safety savings in place, it’s complete. Then I set aside for the non-monthly expenses of the year which will occasionally fall. And finally, with the rest of the money, I invest! “
The goal for Iscambe is to achieve some form of financial independence within a few years. The young woman is indeed a follower of the FIRE movement (Financial independence, retire early) which means: Financial independence, early retirement.
Here’s how she defines it on her personal finance blog:
“The basic principle is to work long enough, to reduce your expenses sufficiently, and to earn enough money to be able to stop working before retirement age, and thus take advantage of your time to do what you really want: a different job with fewer hours, volunteering, crafts, taking care of your family, traveling, etc.
The savings made and the interest / income derived from its investments make it possible to compensate for the absence or reduction of income initially derived from work. “
If Iscambe can’t imagine stopping work altogether, she would love to be able to build a huge safety net that would allow her to move on to part-time or even quit her job to start a business. And above all, to make time for other activities: doing permaculture, spending time with your daughter, doing artistic activities, walking in nature, reading a lot, volunteering …
If you ever wish to comment on this article, remember that a real person is likely to read you, so please be kind and avoid judgment.
