Ah, the great British summer, dithering like a bumblebee between bouts of heatwaves and non-stop rain – I wouldn’t have it any other way! 😉
So how did I get on with my savings in June?
I saved just 13.5% of my net salary. I realised that it was probably a better idea to put funds to one side ready to cover future house purchasing costs like conveyancing, solicitor etc, rather than add much more to my Future Fund (for the moment). It does mess up my goals somewhat but that’s the way of things.
Hurray for unexpected income – the above includes top ups from another £25 premium bond win (yay!), £20.19 from doing surveys with Prolific, £100 from winning the football predictions at work, £11.64 from WeBuybooks (started decluttering!) and £55.05 from affiliate income from OddsMonkey* (thank you to all who signed up via my links!).
Shares and Investment Trusts
No new investments, I just topped up existing holdings.
Current share/IT portfolio can be found here.
(Entire portfolio here)
Future FundÂ
Markets appeared to go mostly up for me this month.
At the end of June, my Future Fund was at £241,446, so a nice increase despite barely adding any capital this month.
Grinding ever closer to my next milestone!
Dividends and Other Income
Another decent month for dividends:
I received £445.46, of which £236.12 was from my ISAs, the rest from my SIPPs. All dividends received were reinvested.
Here’s the graph of all dividend income received so far:
Total dividends received at the half-yearly stage amount to £2,327.44, with £1,467.42 from my ISAs, so I think I’m still on track to hit my goal of £2500 income from my ISA investments.
Matched Betting (MB)
With my mind on other things, this was another month where I found it hard to concentrate and lacked the motivation to do anything, despite Euro 2020 being on. In the end, I made a big fat zero from MB – I just wasn’t in the mood for it.
As mentioned previously, the MB guide I subscribe to is OddsMonkey*, which is great for beginners and experienced matched bettors alike. There are step by step guides and also a friendly forum for you to ask questions and get help on any of the offers.
Goals Update
Half the year has gone and here’s how things look:
Some goals now definitely unachievable but let’s see how things go.
I managed to work my way through my second non-fiction book of the year, ‘The Perils of Perception: Why We’re Wrong About Nearly Everything‘ by Bobby Duffy.
A fascinating read, making me aware of my inherent (and often unknown) biases, and yes, I am quite (sometimes very) wrong about a lot of stuff! Off the top of my head, topics touched upon included Brexit, obesity, teenage pregnancies and vaccinations too, though this was released pre-COVID.
The book I want to read on ‘being wrong about stuff’ is really Hans Rosling’s ‘Factfulness – 10 Reasons We’re Wrong About the World” but it’s never available at the library – there’s a long waiting list.
Sad
There were some highlights this month but everything was put into perspective and overshadowed by the sad passing of my beloved grandmother at the grand old age of 95.
The great matriarch has left us – still sharp of mind (and tongue, though never to her grandchildren or great-grandchildren) til the end – her body no longer had the strength to go on.
I’m immensely saddened that it’s been 2 years since I last hugged her due to the travel restrictions, but at least technology allowed us to see each other one last time via video call the day before she went peacefully in her sleep.
For a barely literate girl from a little fishing village, she did quite well for herself and the family and had a long, rich and fruitful life which I was blessed to be a part of.
RIP Gran xx
[*referral/affiliate link]
Commiserations on your Grandmother.
Lee.
So sorry to hear about your grandmother – my condolences.
Hi Weenie,
Very sorry to hear about the loss of your Grand mother.
I’ve got a copy of Factfullness I could send you if you want, let me know? It’s one of the best books I’ve read recently.
Sorry to hear about your grandmother Weenie x
Sorry to hear about your grandmother. Hope you are ok
Sorry for your loss, she sounds like a grand lady to have known. As to your savings, when nearly 14% savings rate feels like a bad month to you, that is concrete evidence that you are on a solid path to financial independence. Which is good because if your bloodline runs to age 95 and beyond you will need to be prepared for a gloriously long retirement!
I am very sorry for your loss, Weenie. As you say, it’s particularly difficult when you’re prevented from being able to be physically present with a dying loved one.
But what extraordinary changes she must have seen during her lifetime! Part of a remarkable generation, for sure.
Jane in London
@all
Thanks very much for the kind words and thoughts, much appreciated.
Sorry to hear about your grandmother, she sounded like a great character.
She would be proud of what you are doing.
Although overshadowed by the sad news – Happy Birthday Weenie.
Very sorry to hear about the passing of your grandmother weenie. What a wonderful long lived life but never stops the sadness of course. Wish you all the best getting through that.
TFJ