What My Salary Gets Me: A 25-year-old social worker who's saved $14,000 in the last 16 months.

Mamamia’s What My Salary Gets Me asks Australians to record a week in their financial lives. Kind of like a sex diary but with money. So not like a sex diary at all. In this series, we discover what women are really spending their hard-earned cash on, and nothing is too outrageous or too sacred. This week, a 25-year-old social worker shares her weekly money diary.

Age: 25.

Job: Social worker for a not-for-profit, non-government organisation in Brisbane. 

Salary: $70,000 when working four days a week (my usual schedule), and $86,000 when working five days a week to help increase referral numbers, like this week.

Housing: I live alone in a townhouse on the Sunshine Coast. My two younger sisters often come and stay in the spare rooms, and I charge them $25 each a fortnight - this goes directly towards my electricity bill.

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Monthly expenses: 

Rent: $1,400.

Phone: $25 for 60GB unlimited talk and text (I rarely use all the GB).

Gym: $35.80.

Savings: I save between $1,280 and $1,400 and put it towards my house deposit - I’ve saved $14,300 in the last 16 months.

Netflix and Stan: $0 - yay for password sharing!

Afterpay: Around $100 on a good month.

Monday.

Today is my last day before payday, so true to style, I’m running low on funds in my everyday spending account. This doesn’t stop me from making a quick pit-stop at one of my favourite cafes for a large takeaway cappuccino ($5.50) while I rush to work. 

I work from the office with the occasional exception and drive there. It takes an hour round trip on a good day.

At work, my co-workers and I decide to walk to the local shopping mall and get sushi for lunch. I have to transfer $8.40 from my house deposit savings account to be able to afford this - a cheeky little habit that happens too often! 

For dinner, I feel like a smoothie and need some frozen berries and cucumber (staples in my daily smoothie), so I walk to Aldi and buy them ($7). I then make and drink my smoothie for dinner (this would usually be my breakfast, but because funds are tight, dinner it is!).

Daily total: $20.90. 

Tuesday.

Today I make a coffee at home and have my smoothie as I drive to work. I’m facilitating a group today and morning tea and lunch is provided, so this is a handy way to save money.

I'm exhausted after running my first ever group so I decide I want something fuss-free for dinner. I walk to Aldi (it’s on my street - so convenient) and spend $18.74 on a microwave dinner, spinach, almond milk and cucumbers so I have everything for my smoothies for the rest of the week. 

Today was payday, so I immediately pay the rest of an electricity bill ($89) plus a $50 deposit towards my next bill. I also set aside $50 for rego and $790 for my house deposit savings account. 

Daily total: $207.74

Wednesday.

I stop for fuel on my way to work ($50) - fuel prices still haven’t gone down here and I know I’ve got a big weekend coming up so I hold off on filling up completely. 

I have breakfast and coffee at home but I didn’t bring lunch today, so I buy an Asian style salad ($4.99) and a sushi roll ($3.50) at Woolworths.

For dinner, I cook a green chicken curry with brown rice and a heap of veg ($19.97) - perfect for the colder weather!

Daily total: $78.46.

Thursday.

Another morning of coffee and breakfast at home - I used to buy one or two coffees during the day at work, so by having one at home I'm cutting costs.

At work, I have leftover chicken curry for lunch, and as a snack, I run out and grab a salad from Aldi and some milk for the office ($5.90). 

At lunchtime, my work friend and I walk across to the shops and I end up buying a few pairs of underwear ($33.15). An Afterpay payment ($5.17) is taken out of my account as well. 

Dinner tonight is a chicken burger from the best fish 'n' chip shop near my old house ($28). I spend the night at my boyfriend's and while he plays PS4, I read a Liane Moriarty book - I’m a little obsessed at the moment.

Daily total: $72.22.

Friday.

This morning I grab a coffee at a cafe close to my boyfriend's house on my way to work ($5.50). When I get to the Health Hub where I work, I head to the dentist for a follow-up appointment to refit my retainer - I use Afterpay for the appointment ($62.50).

I have leftover chicken curry for lunch (again) before buying a packet of lentil probiotic chips from the vending machine ($2.30) - so good!

I’m taking my niece to the local show this weekend so I buy online tickets with Afterpay (I’m on FIRE with buy now pay later today - $16).

Daily total: $86.30.

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Saturday.

My younger sister and niece drive down as we’re all going to the local show tonight. My boyfriend comes down mid-morning, too. 

To fill in the day, we do some arts and crafts at mine, and wander up to the discount store and buy marbles, kinetic sand, and chalk ($6). 

We play a few games of marbles (except I’d forgotten the rules, so we made it up as we went) and Monopoly - or Ponopoly as my niece calls it. She loves playing with all the paper cash and, of course, seems to have beginner's luck.

We make homemade curried egg sandwiches for lunch, and for an early dinner before we head to the show, I buy some ravioli and sauce ($13.50). 

The show was so much busier than we expected - I’m still shocked at how little I spent ($75) considering I jumped on almost every ride I could. 

My sister and boyfriend were generous - we all shared costs for our niece and shouted each other on rides. 

Daily total: $94.50.

Sunday.

Today my boyfriend and I have to drive my niece back home in time for school tomorrow (it’s a five-hour round trip). We have some coffee and a hot chocolate at home and some toast before we leave. 

I have to stop for fuel and I grab some chips for the road ($66.70). 

On our way back home, we make a surprise stop in to my parent's house for a beer, but we know we still have a fair drive ahead of us so we don’t stay too long. On the way home, we stop into a local pub for food and a beer ($47).

By the time we get home, we’re knackered. Early to bed!

Daily total: $113.70.

Reflection:

This was a big week of spending for me - with the show and seeing my niece. I love treating my niece so the extra money spent on the weekends I have her always feels like money well-spent. 

Having Afterpay available for my dentist trip helped ease my spending too.

I’m generally pretty happy with my spending habits - I know that I prioritise bills and saving a fair chunk of each pay to make sure that I’m working towards my goal of buying my first home, while also being able to participate in things I enjoy, whether that’s shopping, events or travel. 

I’m fortunate enough that my job allows for this, and it’s something I’m grateful for. 

Want to contribute your own anonymous money diary for What My Salary Gets Me? Email submissions@mamamia.com.au to get involved.

You can catch up on our previous What My Salary Gets Me articles here:

• What My Salary Gets Me: A 26-year-old social worker living in regional Victoria on $75,000 a year.
  
• What My Salary Gets Me: A 21-year-old student working part-time on $50,000 a year.
  
• What My Salary Gets Me: A 35-year-old in PR earning over $100,000 a year.
  

Feature Image: Canva/Mamamia.

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