How Confident Are You Feeling About Your Post COVID Finances
The past 3-4 months have been unsettling for a lot of people. Some people have been put on furlough and lost some income. And some have been made redundant where businesses are suffering so badly. But despite this when questioned about post COVID finances 65% of people didn’t feel that their long-term financial plans would be affected. I know of quite a few friends who have been made redundant or are furloughed and worrying about redundancy. But this could be due to the sectors they’re in. Some businesses have been much harder hit than others.
People seem to be feeling confident about their post COVID finances
Credit Fix conducted a survey of 2,002 UK adults to find out how they felt about their post COVID finances. Overall it seems most people are feeling pretty good. With 71% saying they’re confident in their job security post lockdown which is great. And the average Brit seems to be saving £495 a month during the lockdown. With most people not commuting to work and not spending money on eating. And a lack of frivolous spending on entertainment there’s less opportunity to spend money.
While I didn’t go on nights out I would spend lots of money out-and-about. We’d usually go out for dinner 1-2 times a week, I’d be booking shows or days out, and going into London I could easily spend £100 on activities and treats. As we’re not able to do any of those things I’m not spending in the same way. And this seems to be the case for a lot of people as 59% of Brits have been able to save money during the lockdown.
Thinking ahead to spending after lockdown
With the saving that people are doing during the lockdown, 62% of people said they’d use it to treat loved ones to gifts. I do think the whole lockdown has reminded everyone how much the people around them mean to them. Over 50% of people understandably are saving for a holiday. With so many people having trips cancelled or rescheduled due to the pandemic we all need a break. But who knows when travelling is going to become the ‘norm’ again.
Of the people surveyed between the ages of 25 and35 43% were saving towards a deposit on a house. As most of us have been spending a lot more time at home its made everyone appreciate and think about where they live. I know when the world moved into the ‘new normal’ I won’t be going out as much as I did before. I’ve realised how much I enjoy relaxing at home time.
Other top things to be saving for include dinner in a restaurant (43%), paying off outstanding debts (39%), and home furnishings (22%).
How I’m feeling about my post COVID finances
For the most part, I’m feeling quite confident about our finances. But that’s only because we had a buffer of money before COVID kicked in. Luke was out of work for about 7 weeks in total which was a blow for us but thanks to our savings, a month off paying our mortgage and generally spending less we survived fine. I’m aware we’re in a pretty lucky position to have had the savings and to be eligible for the self-employment grant from Luke.
In terms of our long-term goals, we did miss about 9 weeks of saving towards our wedding. But this is the only saving which has taken a bit of a hit. And to be honest with plans probably pushing our wedding back a year it isn’t the biggest worry in the world. I have definitely been able to save money myself or spend it on house things which may have had to come out of another budget.
How are you feeling about your post COVID finances?
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23 responses to “How Confident Are You Feeling About Your Post COVID Finances”
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Rhian Westbury
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Lockdown has certainly made it easier to save a few pennies, I’ve not been out shopping and buying unnecessary junk for once! It has certainly given me a wake up call that I don’t need to buy every shiny thing that winks at me! 😉 Sim x
I am totally the same, although as we’re renovating our house I keep making online orders for things for that. It should calm down once we’re done and moved in x
I am fairly confident about our finances, I’ve not saved as much as the survey says some have but we’ve done well as a couple.
In fact we’ve been able to come up with all of the money we need for our December wedding, lockdown certainly helped us there.
Plus we’ve paid a lot for carpets, DIY and blinds for our new bedroom.
I feel very lucky to still have a job x
That’s amazing. I think as long as you’re not in a worse financial position then it’s win-win really x
To be honest I’m not sure how much I’ve saved over this time. I’ve had less money coming in as a result so I’m guessing I’m quite a bit down unfortunately but then most are. No holidays this year at the moment.
I love how organised you are with your savings and even thought with Covid, you have managed to keep things afloat and in perspective still. I agree, we have spent a little bit more on our home during lockdown doing some DIY and garden projects to beautify it as well.
I feel very lucky that even though my fiance is self-employed and didn’t work for quite a while that we’ve been okay during this as I know not everyone is as lucky x
We have been so luck in that I have just switched to working from home and for the four weeks my husband was furloughed his company topped up his pay to 100%. We have been trying to be mindful of what we spend though over the last few months as we know situations can change very fast.
That’s so good that his company did that as I’ve not heard from too many people whose company did that x
Ive spoken to a few and it seems a little mix with their post covid finances, some have continued to shop online and bought random stuff, all most too bored lol, and others have dramatically save with less visits to pubs, restaurants,outings etc…what some have saved is probably going to be spent pretty quickly, we arent either, we just low on money lol.
Totally agree. I sit somewhere in the middle where I’ve been doing a lot of online shopping but that’s because we’re renovating so I don’t feel as guilty about it x
It’s surprised me how well I’m managing my finances during the lockdown but I still feel somewhat cautious about how the next year may pan out.
I am so glad that you have been ok with money, as I know that this has been a challenging time for you with the move…it is so important to keep an eye on spending now that is for sure x
You’re so right, for me it’s so important to keep an eye on my spending x
We have really had to tighten our belts during lockdown, but the good news is that my husband has got a new job starting next week. Although he won’t be earning as much a before, it is a huge relief
That’s such great news! I’m so happy he’s got something x
This is really interesting. Our finances are actually coming out better because I’ve started my own business after being a stay at home Mum for a few years so I’ve started earning again. But I feel for all the people who’ve lost their jobs.
That’s so exciting that you’ve started your own business. It’s a very tough time for some people x
We are doing okay, could be better. We were very lucky that my husband could continue working from home however I was unable to work. We definitely saved money on nipping to the shops and meals out etc. however a lot more takeaways were had and online shopping because I was bored (whoops).
I don’t feel like I haven’t spent much less, as we seem to be spending more than ever before on food! Plus I sent a few gifts to family members to cheer them up in lockdown. My income has been impacted quite significantly too 🙁
I’ve spent a lot less as I haven’t been going out to bars/restaurants/holidays but I have spent more on the house and other bits. Overall I feel lucky to still have a job!
We’re lucky to not have been financially affected by the crisis. My husband and I both work for the NHS, him behind the scenes and me in pharmacy so we’ve both worked throughout and our wages have been unaffected. We do realise how lucky we are even though it’s been hard being a key worker during all this.
Thank you and your husband for all your hard work. Yeah I think most of us in that kind of situation feel very lucky x