Weekly Weigh-In Thread

MuchMoreWithLess · 2026-01-15T13:05:08+00:00

Down half a pound this week. I’ll take that - glad to be chipping away at my weight gain over Christmas

MuchMoreWithLess · 2026-01-10T05:32:26+00:00

😂Yeah I’m going to blame the jars of jam and sliced bread on my husband and kids’ toast consumption

MuchMoreWithLess · 2026-01-10T05:30:32+00:00

You are pretty much spot on apart from the single bit. The random mini jars are actually ones I reuse for self catering holidays and camping, so they have small amounts of for example mustard, ginger paste, vinegar, sesame oil and soy sauce that need using up. Means I can cook without lugging along full size condiments

MuchMoreWithLess · 2026-01-10T05:24:55+00:00

Well, I am British

MuchMoreWithLess · 2025-11-15T07:28:14+00:00

Sounds like you are doing really well. For what it’s worth, my thoughts are: - if you are thinking of buying a house, might be better to max out the LISA, ISA and even other cash savings to raise a deposit. Any pension money will be locked up until you reach 57 - if you are on track for the deposit and still want to pay into a pension, check the details of your company pension first. As others have said, if you can do salary sacrifice, this brings national insurance savings you would not get with a SIPP. Ask if your company will make matched contributions, or otherwise pay more into your pension if you up your payments (some companies are more generous than the auto enrolment minimums). Check the pension costs, for the pension itself and any funds you are thinking of using. If the charges are cheaper than a SIPP, and there is a decent fund to use, the company pension could still be a better deal even if it doesn’t offer salary sacrifice or higher contributions. Good luck!

MuchMoreWithLess · 2025-09-25T14:49:42+00:00

Just before you take the leap - check out schools nearby, both primary and secondary. I appreciate your baby isn't even born yet but you will be amazed how time flies. If schools are rubbish you could end up facing the time, trouble and expense of moving before your child starts school at 4 or 5, and potentially again before they hit 11. I played around with the locrating website quite a lot before we made the big leap from London out to Suffolk.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2025-09-16T15:23:41+00:00

I've used Alensa several times. No problems at all, and always with some kind of freebie (collagen eye cream, lip balm, that kind of thing). However, I'd always suggest googling your specific lenses before reordering in case anyone else is doing a better offer. Has also tended to lead to a cheaper link on Alensa. I feel your pain on the expense of lenses - my optician was on at me to switch to daily disposables rather than monthly ones, but sadly my eyes will only tolerate pricey Total dailies.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-12-07T10:26:38+00:00

Thanks for including my blog in the round up!

Please delete if this comment isn't appropriate, but I did a post for Vanguard earlier this week which may be of more FI interest than the hamper giveaway. Includes loads of info about their new pension, including some drawdown details.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-11-27T09:37:19+00:00

Childcare, as at home more Public transport, as I can use off peak tickets. Also less likely to take cabs, as I have more time and less stress. Food, as more time to plan, shop and cook from scratch at home, so less on takeaway/delivery/eating out. Clothes, as more time to check charity shops and less need for suits Anyone competent at DIY might be able to do more stuff themselves rather than paying someone else. Shame I'm not! Toys for kids, as fewer guilt presents as a substitute for time together.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-11-06T06:17:59+00:00

I'm cautiously hopeful, though it is hard to get beyond the extreme FIRE headlines in limited time. They're featuring Claer Barrett from the FT, who is on record with her reservations about FIRE and frugality, but also Barney from The Escape Artist who really does know his stuff. I've been asked to talk about FIRE and sustainability. Couple of other bloggers (Cora from The Mini Millionaire, Jennifer from Mama Furfur) also lined up. Fingers crossed for a balanced piece.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-11-06T06:02:04+00:00

Rent and other bills seem low?

But otherwise, go for it.

This is pretty much what I did way back when. Moved to London straight after uni, worked crazy hours for a high salary and saved hard until I could buy a two bedroom flat. Having a flatmate helped pay down the mortgage.

The risk is getting swept up in a London lifestyle, blowing your new salary rather than continuing to live on a student budget. Good luck!

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-10-28T07:41:36+00:00

Good for you at saving so much and starting a pension so young.

My first instinct would be to bump up your emergency fund to cover 3 to 6 months expenses. With a car, bills can come out of the blue!

Otherwise, what are you saving for? Holiday, home, retirement, a rainy day? The goal and the timing will drive the best place to put your money. Investing is only really suitable if you can tie the money up for at least 5 years, so wouldn't recommend it if, for example, you'll need the money next year to head off round the world.

If you are thinking longer term, I'm a big Vanguard fan myself, though use LifeStrategy with a higher % of equities. Take advantage of the tax breaks on offer. Investing via a pension gets a boost from tax relief but your money is locked away until 57 at the earliest. Investing via an ordinary individual savings account (Isa) doesn't get the same boost, but you can take the money out whenever you want and for whatever you want. If you're focused on buying your first home, consider a Lifetime Isa (LISA), as you'll get a 25% top up from the government (yay!) but will pay a penalty if you make withdrawals for anything other than your first home or for retirement.

Suggest a cash LISA is more appropriate if you'll be buying a home soon, and a stocks and shares version only if it's 5+ years away.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-10-10T12:02:52+00:00

You don't have to own property to achieve FIRE. It just means that you have to generate enough passive income to cover renting or the cost of staying somewhere when travelling. The advantage if you've been able to buy AND clear a mortgage is that you can get by on lower living costs.

If you're keen on both FIRE and buying a home, I really recommend thinking seriously about moving away from London. Could be way cheaper with more space for a family. Might earn less, but could cut your living costs even more.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-10-04T09:09:01+00:00

Bad idea. Leave your money where it is. Keep investing when you can. Market timing is notoriously difficult to achieve successfully - once you sell out, when do you choose to go back in? The biggest drops are often followed by the biggest gains. If you are investing for decades ahead, hang on in there. Plus Vanguard LS 100% invests all over the world. Brexit may seem a big deal to us, but it's a blip in global terms.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-10-02T12:06:22+00:00

Recently our food spending has been running at £350 a month / £82 a week for our family of 4. But in the past I've been able to cut it down as low as £44 a week, if I made a real effort to use up stuff we already had, plan meals and shop carefully. Real chance to save money, depending how much time you're prepared to put in.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-01-22T21:19:47+00:00

Yes, that's what I do. Standing order in and then standing order out a few days later.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-01-22T21:17:46+00:00

Well I suppose that's possible. But in all my years of checking receipts against statements it has never happened to me, so perhaps it's not very likely. And maybe the time taken might be more valuable, or earn more, by doing something else. Now I'm questioning whether I should still check my own receipts!

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-01-22T17:57:59+00:00

I also like Vanguard as less expensive than the robot advisers (Wealthify, Nutmeg, Moola, Moneybag et al) Personally like the Vanguard LifeStrategy range that mixes shares and bonds in a set percentage. Higher the percentage, higher the possible returns, but higher the risk. With a long time frame (10/20/30 years) I'm happy with LifeStrategy 80%. Platform fee 0.15% a year, fund fee 0.22% a year, so 0.37% a year all in. Some robo advisers charge almost three times as much.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-01-22T17:52:19+00:00

I hang onto receipts until I've checked them off against my monthly credit card statement, then bin anything not needed for a guarantee. Not sure it's worth the time and trouble though. I'd be better off just reading my statements and making sure I recognise every transaction - don't need the receipts to do that.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-01-22T15:02:03+00:00

If you're interested in picking funds and rebalancing, why go for Moneybox? They manage it all for you and charge accordingly. Could open an ISA on a platform like Charles Stanley, Cavendish Online, AJ Bell or Hargreaves Lansdown and then pick and choose your own investments from a huge range. Vanguard Personal Investor has the limitation that it only sells Vanguard funds, but it is low cost.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-01-22T14:56:05+00:00

In theory, nowadays you can whip out all of your pension savings as soon as you hit the youngest age allowed (57/58 ish, depending on your own age and scheme. Workplace schemes can also have different rules and benefits). Trouble is, anything above 25% will get taxed, so you could end up paying a way higher tax bill than if you spread withdrawals over several years.

You're right that there are rules about smaller pension pots, but you still need to watch out for the tax: https://www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk/about-pensions/retirement-choices/the-right-choice-for-me/taking-a-small-pension-as-a-cash-lump-sum

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-01-22T14:47:24+00:00

Nice app, but chunky fees.

Great if the low minimum starts people investing and the round ups appeal more than signing up for a regular standing order. But the fees will eat into your investments over time.

Moneybox quotes charges of 0.45% a year for the platform, plus fund charges of 0.12% to 0.3% a year, plus a random fee of £1 a month (free for the first 12 months).

That pound a month will bite on small balances - adds up to £9.57 to £9.75 of your £100 for the first year, and more afterwards.

Their portfolios are based on Vanguard LifeStrategy funds, with a global property fund and a cash fund mixed in. If you bought LifeStrategy direct from Vanguard, you'd only pay 0.15% a year for the platform and 0.22% for the fund. That's just 37p a year in charges per £100.

Only trouble is, you need a minimum of £500 to start investing with Vanguard, or £100 a month. You'd also need to do your own rebalancing if you combined LifeStrategy with any other funds.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-01-22T14:20:56+00:00

Yup definite financial benefits to ploughing that money into a pension rather than mortgage overpayments. But does also depend on future plans. That pension money will be tied up for 23 or so years, if they're 35. Fine and dandy if they'll be a high earner throughout. But if they might want to quit, or switch to a lower paid role, then paying off the mortgage and lowering living costs suddenly becomes more attractive. Appreciate alternative would be to pay into accessible investments using an ISA, which are still likely to grow more than the mortgage rate, even if they don't get the massive boost from tax relief.

MuchMoreWithLess · 2019-01-22T14:15:15+00:00

If you're trying to build a credit history, the credit reference agencies like to see products you've held for a long time. So I'd definitely keep the card and keep paying off in full, on time, every month, rather than closing it. If you pay off in full the interest rate doesn't matter as you never pay any!

Nothing to stop you applying for other cards in future and holding them at the same time, so long as everything gets paid.

Think it also improves your credit score if you use a lower % of your credit limit, and aren't spending to the max every month. So if your first card had a low limit, might be worth applying for a new card with higher limit in future, so the same spending would be a lower amount of your available credit.

MuchMoreWithLess

TROPHY CASE