You could want to earn extra money for various reasons. It could be to make ends meet, increased responsibility, or a short or long term goal you set for yourself. However, is it really easy adding a second job to an existing full-time job?

To be honest, a lot of people will rather request for a promotion at their present place of work than look for a second job anyway.

I love what I do on daily basis in my job. However, having a second job will add more stress to my life. Why will I want to get a second job? I just can’t spare the time. Having a second job will deny me of valuable time I spend with my family.

We live in the best of times and you don’t have to actually look for an extra job to supplement your earnings. There are now various offline and online methods of boosting your income on the side.

Keep reading as I take you through some fantastic opportunities.

1.     Sell items on Amazon, eBay or Craigslist

Why go through the stress of setting up a garage sale when you can automate the process? By listing items on eBay or Amazon, you will be leveraging the purchasing power of their existing audience.

All you have to do is create an account with them and start listing your items. It can range from home furnishings to clothing and accessories and computer equipment.

Three things that are just as important as the product you’re selling is a detailed product description, contact information and high-quality product images. You can chip in with free shipping to attract more customers.

I have gone through this particular journey myself and you can read up on my experience here. An advantage Amazon has over eBay is the Amazon’s fulfilment centre and Amazon FBA for beginners. You can also read up more about it here.

I have other articles that explain how to make money on amazon in detail, how to build a brand and import to sell.

2.     Dropship or start an online store

Dropshipping and eCommerce stores have gained a lot of popularity over the years and I know why. Imagine not having to invest in inventory while still selling your physical and digital products from the comfort of your home?

The major difference between the dropshipping model and the conventional buying and selling is that you don’t buy anything until a purchase has been made.

This means you can start dropshipping with little or no capital at all. All you need to invest in is a little bit of time to research your products and suppliers.

The model is simple, you simply get a reliable supplier who sells inexpensive goods and you market their products. This can be done through a website, email marketing, social media or however you choose.

3.     Sell Crafts

I like the idea of selling crafts a lot. Handcrafted items like beads and crotchet are things a lot of us do as a hobby already, so why not monetize it?

With the right market, it can be an easy way of making money. This is because of an increase in the demand for unique products; mass-produced products can sometimes be too competitive to market. Think about it, you can dedicate your evenings to making crafts.

However, making crafts is one thing and actually selling is another. Your social media page or contact list can only get you so far. You will have to rely on online options to maximize the potential of your business.

The most popular platform for handcrafted items is Etsy. They specialize in crafts and that gives it an edge over other multipurpose platforms like Amazon. They also have various tools that will help you sell your products as well as promote your brand. You can then leverage the power of your social media pages, contact or email lists to gain more visibility.

The downside of using Etsy is that the company maintains control over your store and can close it at any time. Although this doesn’t happen often. If this is a worry for you, you can choose to set up your own website.

You can also rely on offline marketing and referrals to help boost your sale.

4.     Sell food or baked goods

Can you cook or bake? Do you enjoy doing it? The good thing is that you can actually leverage it to make extra income. And all you have to do is find time to bake or cook.

You may already know this but there are a lot of people out there who would rather buy food than cook. You can create different weekly menus and start marketing.

You can also create partnerships with local stores and businesses to help sell your baked treats. If you’re serious enough about it, you can find contracts with businesses interested in serving foods at their events.

However, an important thing you must do is check for any food laws in your country before embarking on this journey.

5.     Launch an online resource

Another way to conveniently make money on the side is by sharing your expertise. Let’s say you’re good at bookkeeping, for example, you can leverage your expertise.

What you’ll want to do is launch an online ebook or course, start a blog or a vlog.

If you choose to go with this route, you must be ready to put in a lot of work initially. But the good part is that once you get it right, you can earn great passive income.

6.     Join the sharing economy

The sharing economy has been a hit in the past decade and you can leverage this to boost your income. You should be able to make from a few hundred to thousands of dollars a month through this approach.

You can choose to rent out your car on Turo and hail a cab or ride a bike to work instead. Rent out a spare bedroom on Airbnb. If you have quality cameras lying around the house, you can rent it out on Cameralends. You can even rent out things like a sailboat on Sailo and snowboard on Spinlister.

Making money through Airbnb is the most popular of this approach so here is a free tip. You can make an immense profit by renting out your whole house rather than a spare room. It’s best to do this during the holiday season so you can go on a vacation or visit family.

7.     Selling Services Offline

You can plug your free hours with rendering offline services. You can study your environment and look for opportunities that you can take advantage of. But things like gardening, cleaning gutters and lawn mowing are opportunities you can always readily see around.

You can also get creative and teach things like music, martial art, how to bake and more. You can also become a home tutor.

Transport is also another aspect you can focus on. Companies like Uber and Lyft are quite popular but they are not available everywhere. You might want to do your research on the ride-hailing services available in your region.

Bonus: Making extra money through online freelancing

Freelancing is an ever-growing field and the possibilities of growth are still immense. The advantage of freelancing is that you can always work at your own convenience and pace. If you choose to try out the freelance route, you can give the list below a try. The important thing is to find out what you’re good at and try to leverage it.

• Carry out Surveys
• Start a hobby blog or guest post
• Become an affiliate marketing
• Use freelance platforms like Upwork and Fiverr

One of the most common questions people have asked me is what are the best Vanguard Funds available in the UK?

It is not a surprise to me that people ask me this question because choosing the right funds when you want to get started with Vanguard can be overwhelming and confusing.

Vanguard is not the best when it comes to the number of funds available to choose from. However, this is an advantage from my own point of view. This is because it is not that complicated to choose a fund on the Vanguard platform in the UK when compared to a lot of other investment platforms in the UK.

I must say at this point that I am not a financial adviser and please do not take this information in this post as financial advice. Please also do your own research after reading this post.

Base on my experience of investing with Vanguard in the UK, below are my top 3 funds. I will also give you the reasons why these are my top 4.

After reading this article, you might find this article useful. 

• How to open a Vanguard Brokerage Account

U.S. Equity Index Fund – Accumulation

This is one of the passive funds Vanguard offers to UK investors. It is very similar to the Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund in the US. The Fund is a passive fund.

Investing in this fund means that I am in full trust of the historical performance of the Standard and Poor’s Total Market Index in the US.

The fund invests in large, mid, small and micro-sized company shares in the US.

Investing in stock and share generally means that you support the advancement and innovations of the US economy. It is a way of owning part of the US economy.

The fee for this fund is really very low and it is one of the reasons why I love this fund.

You can see more information about this fund on the Vanguard UK website.

S&P 500 UCITS ETF (VUSA)

This fund is an Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) and is available for UK investors on the Vanguard UK platform.

It is a fund that tracks the S&P 500 which is a US index. The S&P 500 from its name contain 500 of the biggest companies in the US.

Investing in this simply means that I trust these 500 companies to continue to innovate and provide valuable products and services into the market place.

As well, this also means putting your trust in the US economy which is still the best economy in the world as at the time of writing this post.

You can see more information about this fund on the Vanguard UK website.

LifeStrategy® 80% Equity Fund – Accumulation

This fund is usually regarded as a fund of funds because it holds various funds in it. The Vanguard LifeStrategy is one of my most favourites of Vanguard Funds available in the UK.

The portfolio comprises of approximately 80% shares and 20% bonds and other similar fixed-income investments.

The 80% equity means that shares make up 80% of the fund and the rest 20% bond.

The state of life or age of the investor is usually the determinant factor in which of the LifeStrategy funds to choose. Vanguard has other LifeStrategy funds as follows

• 20% Equity
• 40% Equity
• 60% Equity
• 100% Equity

The percent (%) equity always signifies the percentage of the funds that are shares.

For an investor who is close to retirement or has retired, it might be better off to invest in 20% equity. This will mean that 80% of the fund is bond.

Bonds are more regarded as less risky than shares.

Personally, because of my stage in life, I invested in the LifeStrategy 80% Equity.

You can see more information about this fund on the Vanguard UK website.

FTSE All-World High Dividend Yield UCITS ETF (VHYL)

The main reason why I like this fund is that it is a global fund.

The world generally is moving forward in the right direction of innovation, technology and advancement. Investing in this fund is putting your trust in the future growth of the human race.

According to Vanguard as stated on their website, “this fund invests in large and mid-sized company stocks – real estate trusts not inclusive- in developed and emerging markets that pay dividends generally higher than the average.”

The unique benefit of investing in this stock is the fact that it is a dividend fund. The fund invests in stocks of companies that pay dividends that are usually above the average.

You can see more information about this fund on the Vanguard UK website.

Final Thought

It is very easy to get overwhelmed when choosing funds to invest in on the Vanguard platform when you are a beginner. It is important to keep things simple by choosing passive funds which track the major stock market indices.

My favourite Vanguard Funds mainly track indices that are outside the UK. This does not mean that FTSE funds are not as good as starter funds.

Some of the FTSE funds are also very good funds you can choose from. You can check out FTSE and other funds on the Vanguard website by clicking here.

One of the hardest things to do when your income is low is saving money. Many folks in this bracket don’t even bother with it because it seems nay impossible.

But is saving money on a tight budget really impossible wherever you are in the world, be it the UK, USA, Canada etc?

Savings for me is a choice you can’t compromise on. You have to do it. No matter how small your income is, it is important to be able to squeeze that extra penny to be saved.

There are a lot of advantages to saving money.

The following are tips and strategies that will help you in your money-saving on a low-income journey. It is also a useful guide if your income is high.

Best Tips On How To Save Money on Low Income

1. Write Down Your Budget

The very first step you want to take when embarking on a savings journey is to find out where your money goes monthly. This is particularly important because it allows you to check for the disparity in your expenses.

There is always something that you shouldn’t be wasting too much money on but you find yourself doing it anyway. This is mostly out of habit.

There is no better way to get an overview of your money flows monthly than documenting it. You can choose to document manually with a piece of paper or virtually through apps like Evernote.

You can also make use of this household budget calculator.

You must resist the urge to do mental math for this.

The Money Advice Service and MoneySavingExpert have excellent guides on how best to set up a budget.

2. Set Up a Plan of Action

If you’re setting up a plan of action for budgeting on a low income then I want to believe you know where your money is going.

By this I mean you have documented your expenses for a month and scrutinised where your money is leaking.

Only when you know the unnecessary things you’re spending money on can you know how much you can possibly save.

Once you identify the leak, you can then proceed to have an action plan for saving. You need to create a savings goal for yourself.

And get rid of the notion that you are making too low an income to save.

The truth is that even if you are a high-income earner if you don’t have a healthy saving habit, you’ll still find yourself unable to save. Saving money is a habit that you must nurture.

So even if it’s £10 a week that you can save, start with that. The key to the goal is that you must start from somewhere.

3. Reduce Your Accommodation Costs

Accommodation costs are low-key some of the highest expenses that we spend money on.

What most people find out after finding a way to reduce their accommodation costs is that they have more money saved.

How then can you reduce your accommodation costs?

The easiest way to reduce this is to downsize. You might want to look for a less expensive property to rent. Or consider moving to a less expensive area or town.

Although, you must factor in the nearness to your place of work and commuting costs when making the above move.

What you wouldn’t want to do is spend less on accommodation then spending much more on transport.

One of the ways people save money on accommodation is to rent out a spare room to a lodger. This can save you money because then you’ll be earning on your property.

I was once a beneficiary of this type of arrangement when I got my first job at Worcester City Council. A co-worker rented his spare room to me.

And if you live in an area close to tourist attractions, why not consider renting your spare room as AirBNB?

4. Become A Parkinson’s Law Devotee

If you are a fan of productivity then chances are you’ve heard of Parkinson’s Law before this. Parkinson ’s Law states that the more time given to complete a work, the more time it’ll take to complete it. Work expands with the time given.

This can also be applied to finances. The definition in finances would then be: expenses expand to fill the unnecessary wants that occur as a result of increased income.

You might be wondering how increased income relates to your low income. The truth is that you started earning your low income one day. You were probably jobless or on a lower income before now.

What you should have noticed is how your expenses increased with your income. But should it always be so? No matter the income bracket you belong to, you must always be minding of your spending.

You can read this post about how to save money faster with Parkinson’s Law.

5. Cut your expenses

One of the ways to budget on a low income is by learning how to make do with less. This is quite similar to the Parkinson’s point above.

Speaking from experience I can tell you that increasing your income can be hard but reducing your expenses is easier.

Some of the things you can save money on include utility providers, groceries, mortgage and so on.

An often overlooked expense that people often overlook is eating out. Why not cultivate the habit of preparing your own meals? Even if you’re bad at it, you’ll eventually get better.

Debt can easily pile up when these expenses regularly go unchecked. In fact, you will sometimes incur more debt to cover such debts.

Research from Santander suggested that UK households spend an average of £3,329 per year, on water, council tax, broadband bills, energy and electricity.

While these are essential expenses you can still save money by switching to cheaper alternatives where possible.

You can also find a way to reduce your shopping if you are a shopaholic. You can easily ditch that designer clothing for thrift wears. It’s not a shameful thing to do. You can neglect or postpone that luxurious holiday you’ve been looking forward to.

You can check out this article on how to effectively plan a household budget.

6. Set Financial Goals

Another habit you want to develop in your savings journey is setting realistic financial goals. Only you know how much your income is so you are the one responsible for cutting your coat according to your size.

It isn’t an easy thing to live within one’s means but it is a better option than struggling. The truth is that we can make do with several expenses we see as essential. Cutting these extra costs is a step in the right direction.

You have to be realistic with yourself and be able to challenge yourself. No matter how much you earn, there must still be a little you can save.

If not earning enough is your excuse for having unhealthy spending and savings habit. You can always pick up a side hustle to boost your income.

You can read our comprehensive post about side hustle ideas here and here.

But I must warn you if you can’t learn to save when you have little you still won’t save when you have more. Saving money is a habit and it must be nurtured and developed.

7. Sell Some Household Items

One of the easiest habit to cultivate as an adult is the hoarding habit. We sometimes develop personal attachments to some of our belongings and loathe the idea of losing them. This is even after it is no longer useful to us.

Over the years, what you’ll find out is how much junk you are keeping in your house. Sometimes we keep them based on the sentiment that they’ll be needed one day.

But this is the fifth year and you still haven’t needed them. I say it’s time for a big spring clean. Comb through your house or garage brutally for items of no real use with financial value.

You’ll be surprised by what people are looking for. There is always one person or the other looking for thrift buys.

I should know this; I started my eBay journey by selling a few items of no use in the house. I later went on to cutting deals with manufacturers in my chosen niche.

I have a very comprehensive article on how you can get started selling on Amazon and eBay here and here.

8. Buy Second Hand

The truth is that there are so many other people on this same journey as you. What this means is that you can also buy what others are selling.

For the time being, you can say NO to new items and a big YES to used items. You can decide to go for second-hand items like home appliances, clothes, furniture and even mobile devices.

You discover amazing bargains on websites like eBay, Gumtree and even Facebook marketplace.

Buying second-hand items is a sure way of getting the things you need at a lesser price and without really compromising on quality.

9. Figure Out Your Entitlements

One of the things people often overlook is what they are entitled to. We become so engrossed with making ends meet that we forget that we are legally entitled to some benefits.

A way of discovering the benefits that I’m owed is using the entitled to benefits calculator. You can easily find out if there are working, tax credits benefits and so on available to you.

You will be obliged to provide some personal details and information about the people you live with if any. But it is a sure way of discovering an additional form of income.

You can also find out if your children are entitled to free school meals.

I like to call these benefits financial support.

There are several ways to save more money on a low income and the majority of them fall under ‘cutting expenses’. Because let’s be honest you can’t save when you’re always spending without control.

Anyone who wants to get started with the household budget will likely ask the question, what should be considered when planning a household budget?

Budgeting is not something most people find easy to do. It is one of those things that is very simple but not easy.

There are a lot of things that need to be put into consideration when planning a household budget.

Budgeting is a very important part of money management for a healthy financial life.

Just the way a country or an organisation plan their expenditure and income, it is also important at household or individual level to plan your finances.

I must admit that I do not budget our household money to the pence’s. The two most important elements in budgeting are expenses and income. Both of these are very important.

Income

Most people don’t think about income when they are considering budgeting.

The idea behind budgeting is to know where your money goes. As important as it is to know what you will spend your money on, it is also very pertinent to know where the money you will spend will come from.

Regardless of the number of income stream you have, part of your budgeting should include your source of income.

Perhaps the amount of money you earn is not enough to fund your lifestyle.

Budgeting will help you to be able to see the clear picture and that will encourage you to think about increasing your income.

I have created a tool on this website that you can use to calculate your outgoings and income; you will then be able to see how much you have left.

Click here to take advantage of our Household Budget Calculator

The major thing here to consider is how much do you earn and what is the frequency in terms of weekly, bi-weekly, monthly etc

Depending on if you are an individual or couple. If you are a couple do you combine your income or do you separately contribute to a pot to meet your household expenses?

Are there other sources of income like side hustle or overtime.

It’s important to be careful with overtime pay in budgeting. This is because it’s not a fixed income and can vary.

There is other income like Child Benefit in the UK. If you are reading from the outside the UK, consider if there is anything like that in your country.

Expenses

How much you spend on various essentials and non-essentials is what form your expenses. The essential needs of every human are food and shelter.

No one wants to go about naked so clothing is also essential.

As we now live in the modern world, everyone will agree that if you live in a city or town, you possibly need transportation to move from point A to point B.

There are a whole lot of other things that we need because of modernisation. One of those needs is the telecommunication which can include a mobile phone with internet.

The list of our expenses can grow very quickly if we are not careful.

I think the most important thing here is to separate your need from wants.

Most people in the developed world have enough to meet their needs but want is the major problem many people battle with.

Below are the important expenses you need to consider in your budget planning.

Mortgage or Rent

Everyone needs a roof over their head.

This is one of the absolute essentials that anyone will pay for and a large percentage of the majority of the population income goes towards paying for accommodation.

There is always a debate about should you buy a house or rent one.

That is not the topic I am dealing with here.

As regards budgeting, you will need to consider how much you need to set aside to pay for your accommodation cost.

Food/ Groceries and Eating Out

One of the essentials we cannot all do without as human is food.

When budgeting you have to consider how much you want to dedicate for your groceries shopping. The average household in the UK spends around £60.60 per week on food.

Food is one of the items on our budget we spend the most money on. Apart from accommodation, food is perhaps taking the second largest percentage of our income. 

I am a fan of cooking at home. However, sometimes it’s nice to eat out because you can leverage someone else time to do the work of cooking for you.

I know eating out is expensive but it will not cause any harm to anyone’s budget if it is done in moderation. 

Emergency Fund and Unforeseen Expenses

Life can happen to anyone at any time.

This is the reason why it is important to budget for unforeseen expenses. This is what is generally regarded as an emergency fund.

I remember one time when there was a strong wind which blew away the ridge tiles on the roof of our house. While we had insurance, we end up paying for the repair ourself.

The insurance came to assess the damage. The cost of the repair was around £304 when the insurance company assess the damage. Our excess was £300.

This simply means we were only going to get £4 from the insurance company. It just didn’t worth it for us to claim so we decided not to claim and we paid for the repair from our pocket.

This is an example of things that could happen without you planning for them. This is why you need to consider emergency fund in your budget.

Car Expenses

The cost of running a car can really add up.

According to figures from a research done by Motoring Research, the average UK motorist spends at least £162 on car costs every month.

This figure does not include the cost of financing for people who bought their car through car loan or financing payment.

The cost of maintaining a car is something you do not want to miss out in your budget.

Obvious you have to put fuel in the car for it to run except if your car is electric. Even for electric cars, charging it will still cost some money but might not be as expensive as petrol or diesel engine car.

Some people pay to park in their workplace. And most of us do have those times when we find ourself in a place where there is no free parking.

You need to budget for parking cost as part of the cost for running your car.

Entertainment and Subscriptions

We human being can survive without entertainment.

However, we are no longer living in the cave, we have evolved as a species and we are now in the 21st century.

Majority of us need to entertain ourselves.

Whether going to the cinema, festivals, live sport etc. All these will cost money and it is important to consider these costs in your budget.

I have had a wonderful time with my family visiting a lot of nice places in the UK including watching some of my favourite football teams life.

If you like outdoor or going to see things and places you need to consider what this will cost you in your household budget.

Perhaps you like to spend money intentionally and be wise with money.

This does not mean that you cannot have times when you can put your fit-up and enjoy a nice documentary or movie on Netflix.

We have Netflix subscription in my house, the kids love it because they do watch a lot of educational programmes on it. I am not a fan of movies but I enjoy good documentaries on NetFlix.

There are other ones like Now TV and Amazon Prime Subscription for their TV and Video.

Some people do have gym membership or magazines they subscribed to. Remember to include the cost of these subscriptions in your household budget.

Birthdays

We all have a lot of loved ones in our life. Most of these people play important roles in our life.

It could be your wife, husband, partner, brother, sister, friend. The list is endless.

Throughout the year, you will give gifts without taking notice because these birthdays come at various times of the year.

Majority of us don’t include these costs in our budget.

It is important you consider this in your budget because these small costs can quickly add up.

If you have children, the cost can be higher because your children will have their friends from school invite them to a birthday party.

Our boys do attend a minimum of 10 birthday parties in a year when they go for these birthdays they have to go with a gift.

Obviously, you won’t attend all birthdays or give gifts to everyone celebrating a birthday. However, you will not ignore all of them so consider birthday gifts in your household budget.

Holiday Gifts

The busiest time of the year is the holiday period which is mainly known for Christmas.

I love Christmas time because of its significance in terms of celebrating the birth of Jesus. However, Christmas has been commercialised over the years which makes it very expensive for many households.

The holiday period is the period where you have to watch your spending.

The best way to not overspend during the holiday period is to have a strict budget beforehand for the maximum you will no go over.

By considering holiday gifts in your household budget, you will be avoiding digging a hole in your finance which you will be running around to fill after the holiday and Christmas is gone.

Charitable Contributions

A big part of my philosophy of life is generosity.

There are people in life which through no fault of their own can not provide for their daily essential needs.

Such people need help and I believe anyone who has a job or any form of income is among the most privileged people on earth.

I count myself privileged to have income.

Giving to other people in need from my income is something I have done for a number of years. I regularly have generosity and charity as part of my budget.

I am a Christian and Christianity suggest 10% of one’s income.

I would recommend 10% which is what I also follow but people who are struggling should not think it’s compulsory to give 10% to church or charity.

The most important thing here is that if you have regular income there is a power in the universe that give back to you when you give to people who are less privilege than you.

I do consider 10% of my income in our household budget as a contribution to the church.

Our church does use this money wisely to run the church and also give to the charities our church support.

Other costs

Memberships

Are you a member of any organisation which you pay monthly or annual fees.

It might be an old student association or a professional association.

Some employment pay for their employee’s professional association membership fee.

For most people, they will need to take care of the payment themselves. Don’t forget to consider any membership cost in your budget.

Prescriptions

Health cost is generally free in the UK.

However, prescriptions are not free for everyone.

Children under a certain age and older people in a certain age category have prescription free. I think pregnant women also have prescription free.

People who are on some particular type of benefits might also be getting prescription free.

For the majority of people, unfortunately, have to pay for the prescription.

If you are on a particular medication, the cost of your regular prescription you get from the pharmacy needs to be considered in your budget.

Work Wardrobe and Upkeep

Most people don’t take notice of how much they spend on clothing.

According to the Family Spending report from the Office of National Statistics, the average person spends £43.88 on clothes each month. The average person in the UK spends at least £526.50 on clothes annually.

This is the reason why the fashion industry is a multimillion-pound industry.

When you are planning your budget it is important you consider how much you will spend on clothes, shoes and other accessories.

I am not against buying designer cloth or shoes as long as it’s not too expensive.

I am not particularly loyal to any brand. I just go for quality because there is no point buying something cheap and quickly need to replace it after one wash.

I generally buy from outlet stores where some of the big brands have shop and sell their items at a reduced price.

Guests

The expenses that come from entertaining guests in your house can add up without you noticing it.

As an immigrant, I was raised in a household where there were a lot of people and also we welcome guest throughout the year. All our guests need to be entertained and looked after.

As I am far away from home, we still have people who visit us from Nigeria and other family members who live in other parts of the world. At least ones in a year we do have a family member visit us.

Taking our guests out to see tourist attractions and important places in our area can cost money. Their time with us for times ranging from 1 week to 4weeks can have an impact on our finances.

We do it in joy and happiness because we love welcoming people to our house. You might have people who regularly visit you, so you need to consider these expenses in your budget.

Travel and Holiday Expenses

As a first-generation immigrant in the UK, travelling abroad on holiday wasn’t something I used to do while growing up in Nigeria.

I am fascinated by how people take holiday and travelling seriously in the west.

I now understand the importance of travelling on holiday.

Travelling and holiday are not only good for recreation and relaxation. Travelling is very good for experiencing other culture of the world.

The world is so big and as much as possible it is good to experience a different part of the world. Travelling I have found out help to unlock the creativity inside us.

If all you see is your little place where you live you might not be open to a lot of other ideas that can be inspired by seeing another environment, people and culture. 

Holiday doesn’t have to be abroad. Each country of the world has a lot of nice places that can be explored by the citizen of that country.

We do enjoy exploring beautiful spots close to where we live. We particularly love the Cotswold. See my article about Why is Bibury famous?

In my household, we always have travelling and holiday in our budget. It is an important element of our budget.

Pet Care

Pets are lovely to have in the house if you can afford the cost and the work involve to look after them.

We have two goldfishes in my household.

The cost of taking care of them is not that much compared to say a dog or cat. Since we had them we haven’t spent any serious money other than the time to constantly clean the tank.

If you have a dog or cat, you might need to take them to a vet and the cost can add up. If you have a pet, consider the cost of their care in your budget.

Dentist

The cost of visiting the dentist is one of those costs that most people don’t remember when they are considering items to have in their budget.

I remember visiting the dentist to take out one of my wisdom teeth.

If I remember very well, the cost was over £50. You might need hygienist to look after your teeth at the dentist. basically, every of your visit to the dentist we possibly cost some money.

The cost of a hospital visit in the UK is mainly free but dental care is not free in the UK. Children under a certain age can go to the dentist free.

What are the high paying jobs without a degree out there? There is a common consensus that you need a university degree to secure good-paying jobs and live a healthy financial life.

But is that the case? Are there no good-paying jobs that don’t require a university degree?

The answer is no. There are some jobs for non-degree holders out there that pay better than some degree holder jobs.

All you need to do is equip yourself with the right training and certification and you’re ready to enter the labour market.

In fact, a research carried out by Indeed, a job site found 10 roles for non-degree holders that pay better than the average UK annual salary of £29,500.

According to the research, some of these jobs can earn you up to £71,700 without a degree.

To make it clear, I am not against going to school and getting a university degree.

The gospel I am preaching here is that you can still have a healthy financial life if for some reason you are unable to acquire a university degree.

I should mention here that jobs without a university degree do not mean you can just walk into a job that pays above the national average.

In most cases, you will require some training, certification and years of experience in some cases 

The jobs are ordered from lowest to highest of their average salary

Software Tester – Average Salary: £25,277

You may not know this but Software Testers play an important role in application development.

Some of their duties include thoroughly testing applications for bugs, interface and performance issues.

Software Testers are the quality assurance experts of the software development process. The cool part is that you do not need a degree to become one.

Job Description

• Revising software requirements
• Preparing test setups
• Testing software usability
• Analyze results for bugs, errors, database impact, and usability
• Preparing test report and reporting to design team
• Participating in design reviews

Certification

ISTQB Foundation Level software testing certification CTFL

Project Support/manager – Average Salary: £40,000

There is a probability that you’ve come across a couple of Project Managers yourself.

What a Project Manager does is ensure that an on-going project is carried out correctly and successfully.

Project Managers are usually required to have a sound command of communication, decision making and leadership skills.

Job Description (found on Glassdoor)

• Determine and define project scope and objectives
• Predict resources needed to reach objectives and manage resources in an effective and efficient manner
• Prepare a budget based on the scope of work and resource requirements
• Track project costs to meet budget
• Develop and manage a detailed project schedule and work plan
• Provide project updates consistently to various stakeholders about strategy, adjustments, and progress
• Manage contracts with vendors and suppliers by assigning tasks and communicating expected deliverables
• Utilize industry best practices, techniques, and standards throughout entire project execution
• Monitor progress and make adjustments as needed
• Measure project performance to identify areas for improvement

Certification

PRINCE2 (PRojects IN Controlled Environments)

Construction Manager – Average Salary: £50,000

You may be wondering how a construction manager is different from a project manager.

A Construction Manager is in charge of the actual construction phase of a project, like personnel, materials, and construction budget. A construction manager oversees just the construction phase of a project.

A Project Manager is however involved in a project from start to finish. They are in charge of all phases of the project from marketing to administrative needs.

Construction managers are usually required to have a sound command of communication and leadership skills.

Job Description (found on Workable)

• Oversee and direct construction projects from conception to completion
• Review the project in-depth to schedule deliverables and estimate costs
• Oversee all onsite and offsite constructions to monitor compliance with building and safety regulations
• Coordinate and direct construction workers and subcontractors
• Select tools, materials and equipment and track inventory
• Meet contractual conditions of performance
• Review the work progress daily
• Prepare internal and external reports pertaining to job status
• Plan ahead to prevent problems and resolve any emerging ones
• Negotiate terms of agreements, draft contracts and obtain permits and licences
• Analyse, manage and mitigate risks
• Ensure quality construction standards and the use of proper construction techniques

Certification

Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB)

Planning Officer – Average Salary: £39,705

If you love urban design, management, development, or environmental issues then this could be the career path for you.

Planning Officers work for local planning authorities and are involved in developmental processes management.

Some of the responsibilities include planning projects, managing policies, negotiating misunderstandings, collecting evidence and more.

Job Description (found on PlanIt)

• managing or helping to manage a department efficiently
• managing the budget for a department
• recruiting, supervising and monitoring staff
• managing and evaluating projects
• doing research and preparing reports for councillors and senior managers
• preparing agendas for council meetings and taking minutes
• presenting information at meetings
• helping councillors develop and implement council policies
• working with other agencies.

Certification

Royal Town Planning Institute

GIS Analyst Analyst – Average Salary: £28,000

A GIS Analyst works with large databases of images gotten from aerial photographs and satellite images.

They use this spatial information to create maps, analyse data for commercial, scientific or planning purposes, or develop specialized software.

Job Description (found on Betterteam)

• Analyzing spatial data through the use of mapping software.
• Discovering patterns and trends through spatial mapping of data.
• Designing digital maps with geographic data and other data sources.
• Creating “shapefiles” to merge topographical data with external data by layering external data over a topographical map.
• Producing maps showing the spatial distribution of various kinds of data, including crime statistics and hospital locations.
• Developing mapping applications and tools.
• Converting physical maps into a digital form for computer usage.
• Performing data munging and cleaning to convert data into its desired form.
• Produce reports on geographic data utilizing data visualizations.
• Managing a digital library of geographic maps in various file types.

Certification:

The Association for Geographical Information

Database Administrator – Average Salary: £36,000

As a database administrator (DBA), you are responsible for the performance, integrity and security of a database.

One of the main duties of a database administrator is to ensure that all the information stored in a database is secure.

Other primary duties include managing, back up and ensuring the availability of the data consumed.

Job Description (found on cwjobs)

• Assisting in database design
• Updating and amending existing databases
• Setting up and testing new database and data handling systems
• Monitoring database efficiency
• Sustaining the security and integrity of data
• Creating complex query definitions that allow data to be extracted
• Training colleagues in how to input and extract data

Certification

IBM Certified Database Administrator, Microsoft SQL Server database certifications, Oracle Certified Professional.

Nuclear Power Worker – Average Salary: £45,000

You are probably surprised by this inclusion as this is a highly skilled profession and thus should require a degree.

You are right with your assumption but there are some areas where you do not need academic qualifications.

Job Description (found on Prospects)

• understand the science behind how nuclear facilities work
• analyse energy transmission, conversion and storage systems
• solve design or operational problems with reactor cores and shielding, hydraulic and electrical systems, and complex instrumentation such as monitoring equipment
• manage staff and budgets for complex design, construction, maintenance, expansion, safety and decommissioning projects
• always keep the safety of people and the environment in mind, cooperate with local emergency services, and work with national, European Union (EU) and international industry regulatory bodies
• be aware of and address security concerns regarding the use, transport, storage and disposal of radioactive materials
• interpret data and respond to emerging issues to ensure equipment is always working properly
• write reports, project plans and other documents that provide information about new facilities, existing processes, problems and solutions, and safety exercises for regulators, energy firms and co-workers in facility construction and management
• including temporary and long-term disposal of high-hazard radioactive material

Certification

the National Nuclear Laboratory apprenticeship, HSE, Applied Science (Nuclear) Extended Diploma Level 3, Nuclear Sector Apprenticeship Level 2.

The Oil Industry (Offshore) – Average Salary:  £49,278

This is another industry where you should ordinarily need a university degree but that isn’t always the case.

The job can be considered a dangerous one but the pay from it is very good.

If you choose this industry, you will have to work on rigs for months. Some of the jobs you can get here without a degree are rigging operations, drilling, and maintenance.

Job Description (found Prospects)

• prepare well data sheets
• design and select well-head equipment
• draw up drilling programmes, taking account of desired production flow rates
• obtain relevant data, carrying out engineering analysis on-site, recommending necessary actions and writing up reports
• monitor the daily progress of well operations
• keep track of current daily costs, comparing actual costs with expenditure proposals and recommending cost-effective changes
• liaise with specialist contractors and suppliers, such as cement companies or suppliers of drilling fluids
• monitor safety and ensure the good maintenance of the well
• adhere to environmental protection standards, in some cases through direct discussion with local governments to ensure compliance with legislative requirements
• establish and administer drilling and service contracts
• coordinate and supervise the work of the drilling team
• undertake engineering design and the planning of wells (including development work)
• design directional well paths (horizontally or multi-laterally, as appropriate)
• manage operations on behalf of small clients

Certification

HSE, Foundation Drill Rig (HDR), Anchor/Micropile Drill Rig (AMP)

Air Cabin Crew – Average Salary: £20,000 – £25,000

If you enjoy travelling and are a people person then this is for you.

Some of the responsibility of a Cabin crew is being responsible for the welfare and safety of passengers in the aircraft.

To start working as a cabin crew member, you must first complete a specific course with your airline and it takes about four weeks. Some airlines will provide you with accommodation and salary separately.

Job Description (through Prospects)

• be professional, punctual and courteous at all times
• attend a pre-flight briefing, during which you’ll be assigned your working positions for the upcoming flight. The crew are informed of flight details, the schedule, the number of infants on board and if there are passengers with any special requirements, such as diabetic passengers or passengers in wheelchairs
• carry out pre-flight duties, including checking the safety equipment and doing security checks.
• welcome passengers on board and direct them to their seats
• inform passengers of the aircraft about safety procedures and ensure that all hand luggage is securely stored away
• check all seat belts and galleys are secure before take-off
• make announcements on behalf of the pilot and answer questions during the flight
• serve meals and refreshments
• sell duty-free goods and advise passengers of any allowance restrictions in force at their destination
• reassure passengers and ensure they follow safety procedures correctly in emergencies
• deal with any difficult or inebriated passengers (who may be acting in a rude or anti-social way) politely but firmly, to ensure the safety and comfort of everyone on the flight
• give first aid where necessary

Certification

Depends on your chosen airline, HSE

Ethical Hacker  – Average Salary: £68,793

The IT industry is one of the best developing industries right now.

In fact, if you are a frequent internet user you must have come across advertisements for one IT training or the other.

But I bet you’ve never considered Ethical Hacking. An ethical hacker is responsible for testing the safety of businesses IT systems. They hack into computer networks to test and assess its security.

Job Description (found on Prospects)

• understand complex computer systems and technical cybersecurity terms
• carry out remote testing of a client’s network or onsite testing of their infrastructure to expose weaknesses in security
• work with clients to determine their requirements from the test.
• plan and create penetration methods, scripts and tests
• advise on methods to fix or lower security risks to systems
• consider the impact your ‘attack’ will have on the business and its users
• create reports and recommendations from your findings
• present your findings, risks and conclusions to both technical and non-technical audiences
• understand how the flaws that you identify could affect a business, or business function if they’re not fixed.

Certification

Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH), Pick up hacking skills from online courses

Firefighter – Average Salary: £32,500

Firefighters are no doubt our unsung heroes but did you know that it pays well too?

Firefighters like any job pay according to your rank. Starters can earn an upwards of £20,000.

Managers earn around £30,000 while station managers can earn around £40,000. Application as a firefighter is subject to written exams, aptitude tests, and physical exams.

Job Description (through Prospects)

• responding immediately and safely to emergency calls and requests for assistance
• attending emergency incidents including fires, road accidents, floods, terrorist incidents, spillages of dangerous substances, and rail and air crashes
• rescuing trapped people and animals
• minimising distress and suffering, including giving first aid before ambulance crews arrive
• safeguarding your own and other people’s personal safety at all times
• cleaning up and checking the site after dealing with an incident
• taking time to become familiar with local streets, roads and buildings so you can respond to emergency calls with speed and efficiency
• inspecting and maintaining the appliance (fire engine) and its equipment, assisting in testing fire hydrants and checking emergency water supplies

Certification

9-4 GCSE, Mechanical reasoning test, HSE

Air traffic Controllers – Average Salary: £41,011

This sounds like a cool job if you’ve always been fascinated by planes and travel in general.

You don’t need a university degree to become an air traffic controller but you will need a certificate. It takes three years to get your air traffic control license from the National Air Traffic Services (NATS), and you must have five GCSEs (grades A-C).

Air traffic controllers earn an average salary between £17,000 and £21,000 for starters. Experienced Controllers earn as much as £50,000.

Job Description (through Prospects)

• keep radio and radar contact with aircraft
• direct the movement of aircraft en route or at an airport
• instruct aircraft to climb or descend and allocate final cruising level
• provide information to aircraft about weather conditions
• make sure that minimum distances are maintained between planes
• handle unexpected events, emergencies and unscheduled traffic.

Certification

National Air Traffic Services Courses

Accountant – Average Salary: £56,000

The major job accountant does is prepare and examine financial records.

Accountancy is no doubt a boring job but it pays well and you don’t need a university degree to become a qualified accountant.

It is important to know that you will have to study for an AAT qualification. Accountants earn as much as £35,000 as beginners and a whooping £100,000 if you become a Finance Director.

Job Description (through Targetjobs)

• preparing accounts and tax returns
• administering payrolls and controlling income and expenditure
• auditing financial information
• compiling and presenting reports, budgets, business plans, commentaries and financial statements
• analysing accounts and business plans
• providing tax planning services with reference to current legislation
• financial forecasting and risk analysis
• dealing with insolvency cases
• negotiating the terms of business deals and moves with clients and associated organisations

Certification

The Association of Accounting Technicians (AAC), The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), the Institute of Public and Finance Accountancy (CIPFA)

Equities Trader – Average Salary: £59,475

The most important attribute required for being an equities trader is to be a good salesman.

You don’t need a university degree to become an Equities Trader.

But this doesn’t mean you can just walk into any company and submit your CV.

To become an Equities Trader you need approval from the FCA and CISI to start work. You also need to study for and pass a CISI Capital Markets certification. Once that is done, you’re good to go.

Job Description (through Prospects)

• speaking with colleagues, making phone calls and making instant decisions
• making prices in their relevant products
• executing trades electronically or by phone
• liaising with sales traders or clients on market movements
• predicting how markets will move and buying and selling accordingly (especially derivatives traders, who try to predict the state of a market at a future date)
• informing all relevant parties of the most relevant trades for the day
• gathering information – critically about mispriced assets, detailed data analysis and valuation.

Certification

Certification in Equity Trading and Investment

Agile Coach – Average Salary: £69,900

An Agile Coach is one of the most slept on jobs out there and you don’t need a degree to become one either.

The goal of an Agile Coach according to Sessionlab is to make a team more efficient, transparent and cohesive.

The role is about empowering workers to rise to business challenges faster, smarter and with minimal risk.

Job Description (through Jobhero)

• Educate Colleagues
• Mentor Team
• Develop Agile Adoption Strategy
• Implement Agile Methodology

Certification

ICAgile Certified Professional (ICP), ICAg ICAgile Certified Professional IN Agile Team Facilitation (ICP-ATF), ICAgile Certified Professional in Agile Coaching (ACC).

HR Manager – Average Salary: £38,677

It is perhaps surprising that you do not require a degree to become an HR Manager.

Although, you will need to acquire a certificate from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

With good communication, organization, and leadership skills, you are on the path to becoming an HR Manager.

You might want to start your journey as an admin assistant then you move up from there. Finance even suggested that HR Managers can earn up to £100,000 yearly.

Job Description (through Jobisjob)

• Recruiting staff
• Negotiating contracts
• Developing training programmes
• Mediating conflicts
• Attending meetings
• Delegating tasks
• Overseeing employee welfare
• Coordinating with department managers
• Reporting to the HR Director

Certification

Vocational training like Higher National Diploma or apprenticeship in HR, Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development courses.

Marketing – Average Salary: £32,698

If you are a naturally creative and full of ideas then this is for you.

In fact, not all marketing jobs need a degree. You can get paid as much as £18,000 annually for entry-level.

Also, you can start your marketing career as an intern, digital assistant, or junior researcher.

You will get a salary bump of around £50,000 in a senior role like Marketing Manager, Head of Marketing, or Marketing Executive.

Job Description (through Prospects)

• create awareness of and develop the brand you’re marketing
• communicate with target audiences and build and develop customer relationships
• help with marketing plans, advertising, direct marketing and campaigns
• source advertising opportunities and place adverts in the press or on the radio
• work closely with in-house or external creative agencies to design marketing materials such as brochures and adverts
• write and proofread marketing copy for both online and print campaigns
• produce creative content, including videos and blog posts
• run social media channels (e.g. Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn) to enhance audience engagement

Certification

CIM courses like Foundation Certificate in Professional Digital Marketing, Certificate in Professional Digital Marketing, Certificate in Professional Digital Marketing

Opening a Vanguard brokerage account is a relatively straightforward process. Within a few minutes, you can start investing in stocks and shares.

However, investing in the stock market anywhere in the world can be extremely overwhelming for beginners. It is not different in the UK.

A lot of beginners in stock market investing struggle to understand how to start and where to start.

In this article, I will take you through how to open an investment account on Vanguard UK.

Before I take you through how to open the investment ISA account on the Vanguard website, I think it is very important to first explain,

• The mindset and psychology of stock market investing
• Stock and Shares ISA (also called Investment ISA)
• Why vanguard is the best place to start your stock market investing
• Investment Type
• Fees

Mind-set and psychology of stock market investing

When you are a beginner in investing, it is important to start with the right strategy and mindset.

Think long term

Approaching investing with a long term mindset is one of the ways to succeed in stock and shares investing. There is no doubt that the market is always on the way up.

There will be a time when the market will be down or take a pause. In some cases, the economy will go into a recession which will decrease the value of your investment.

If you are investing for the long term there is no need to panic during a recession or when the market is taking a pause.

There is a difference between trading and investing. It’s important to have the right mindset and strategy. If you are doing it for the long haul then you are investing. For people that are trying to beat the market, they are trading.

Stock and Share ISA (also known as Investment ISA)

For someone who is considering starting to invest in the stock market in the UK. The best type of account to open is the stock and shares ISA account. Here is the reason why.

Stock and share ISA is a tax-efficient account that will help you to save money on tax. You will not pay tax on any income your investment generates in Stocks and Shares ISA.

It is worth mentioning that there is a personal savings allowance in the UK which means that you won’t start paying tax on income from savings and investment until you have a profit that is more than £1000.

Even if you choose to invest in a General Account that is not ISA you will only pay tax on profit or income over £1000.

For me, investing in Stocks and Shares ISA is a no-brainer.

Why vanguard is the best place to start your stock market investing

The reason why Vanguard is the best place to start is that they have a very good reputation and they are well respected in the stock market arena.

They have their limitations; the funds available are not as many as you will see on some other platforms. Honestly, this is an advantage rather than a disadvantage because of the simplicity of not getting confused with making a choice.

Vanguard mainly has its funds on their platform and their fees are very low when you compare it to their peers.

Majority of their funds are low-cost. Vanguard I believe is the favorite for passive investors.

As well, the Vanguard platform is user-friendly which makes it easy to navigate through their platform.

Fees

One of the things you need to be aware of in stock market investing is fees.

When you are just starting you are likely not to pay any attention to fees. As your investment grow you will be losing money if you get this aspect of investing wrong.

• Platform fees

Most brokers will charge you for managing your investment for you. It is important to not use a broker who charges high fees.

All brokers charge for this which I don’t think there is a problem with. The problem lies in paying more than you need to.

• Dealing fee

Some of the funds or shares you buy will require you to pay a fee when you buy a share or fund. For people who buy individual shares, it makes sense to make a bulk purchase of shares because if you are buying bit by bit you might be paying too much on dealing fees.

Let’s say, for example, a broker charges £8 per trade fee for trading individual shares. This means the £8 will be paid regardless of how many shares you are buying.

If you buy 10 shares in a single dealing you will pay £8. Instead, if you buy your 10 shares in two different trades i.e two trades at different times you will pay more for the dealing fees. So you will end up paying £16 as opposed to £8 if you buy in one trading.

This is the reason why it makes sense to invest in a fund that you can just put in regular payment to your investment account.

See examples of fees can be seen on the Vanguard website here.

Investment Type

Index fund and ETF

I seriously think you should not be buying individual stock when you are just starting out in  Stock Market investing.

An index fund or ETF is the best place to start as a beginner. Please don’t be confused or overwhelmed at this point if you don’t know what Index Fund or ETF are.

Index fund and ETF have something in common. Without getting you more confused. Index fund in a simple term is a collection of stocks of different companies put together in one pot called a fund.

In a simple term, instead of buying a share of Amazon, BT, Mcdonald or any other company shares, you can just buy an index fund or ETF that have various company shares in them.

Why buy an Index Fund or ETF instead of individual shares?

Another simple explanation of this is below,

Let’s say you buy an Apple stock and something happens to Apple as a company and they go out of business. This means that you will lose some or all of your investment.

Instead, if you have Apple stock and other companies stock in a fund, if Apple goes out of business, this will only be part of your investment. You will not have to worry, it will be the responsibility of people who are managing the fund to take the apple stock out and find another company to include as part of the fund.

Investing in a fund means that the risk of losing all your investment is low compared to an individual stock.

When buying a refund you need to note the following:

Management Type

This is very important because it has to do with if you are buying a fund that is ACTIVELY managed or PASSIVELY managed by fund managers. Usually, the fees on the active fund will be higher than that of the passive fund.

The reason for the high fee in the active fund is because the fund manager will be trying to outperform the market. My preference is usually to go for the passive fund because it’s better for a long-term investor.

Asset Class

There are 3 major asset classes. EQUITY which is mostly stocks, FIXED INCOME usually Bond and MULTI-ASSET which can be a mixture of stocks and bonds.

Share Class

Something else you will need to decide on is whether you want the gain on your investment to be reinvested automatically or not. This is where you will need to decide if you are buying ACCUMULATION or DISTRIBUTING/INCOME fund.

 

Index Fund and ETF Example

Below are examples of Index Fund and ETF.

Index Fund

An example of an index fund is below. You can easily see that it has index fund as part of the text and this help you to know what you are buying. The ‘accumulation at the end means that you want the gain from your investment to be automatically reinvested.

FTSE Global All Cap Index Fund Accumulation

ETF (Exchange-Traded Fund)

In the example below, you can see ETF at the end of the fund name. You will know straight away that this is an ETF.

When you are buying ETF, make sure it has the UCITS as seen below. This is important because the Undertakings for the Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) is a regulatory framework of the European Commission that creates a harmonized regime throughout Europe for the management and sale of mutual funds. UCITS is like a sign of authenticity.

FTSE 100 UCITS ETF

 

Is Vanguard good for beginner stock market investors in the UK

How to Open Vanguard Stock and Shares Account

The simplicity of the Vanguard website is one of the reasons why I like Vanguard. To open Stocks and Shares ISA on the Vanguard website, follow the following steps.

Step 1– On the homepage as seen in the image below, at the top right, click on ‘OPEN AN ACCOUNT’

Step 2 – Click on ‘START MY APPLICATION’ as shown in the image below.  As you navigate through the application process, it is important that you read all the information on each page so you can have the right information and not just following the steps blindly.

The information on the page relates to the requirement which is mainly about UK residents. To apply you need to be a UK resident and having a National Insurance number will confirm that. As well you need to have a bank account. These are just to confirm your identity and for the regular payment to your account later on, after opening the account.

Step 3 – It is possible to transfer an existing ISA account from a different provider to Vanguard. But, for a new account, you just need to click on ‘OPEN AN ACCOUNT’ as shown in the image below.

Step 4 – Before you click on ‘I have read the above documents and would like to proceed with my investment.’ and ‘PROCEED’. You need to read the ‘Important Information’ on this page. There are documents you can actually open on the page and read. Below is the image of what is on the page.

Step 5 – This is the most interesting part. This is where you need to choose the funds you want to invest your money on. As I have already explained above ‘Why buy an index fund or ETF instead of individual shares?’ You need to choose funds based on the asset class, share class and fees. At this point, you will be the one to decide.

Step 6 – After choosing the fund you want to invest in, you will need to follow other instructions to complete the application.

 

It is worth mentioning these.

Minimum amount to open Vanguard Account

You can open your Vanguard investment account with a minimum lump sum investment of £500 or a minimum regular monthly investment of £100 or a combination of the two.

You can invest up to £20,000 in your Stocks and Shares ISA account in any financial year (April 1 and runs until March 31). However, the £20,000 is for all your ISA accounts combined if you have any other ISA accounts.

 

In Conclusion

Opening a vanguard brokerage account is quite easy. The biggest challenge that you can come across is choosing vanguard as your broker. But with some of the arguments, I have made above, choosing Vanguard as an investment beginner should be considered. Your shares and stock investments are in safe hands.

What do I think about GoHenry cards: Is GoHenry a good idea?

One of the biggest headaches of parents is how to teach their children financial literacy or responsibility. It was during my quest to find an answer that I came across GoHenry.

I am a big believer of parents teaching their children financial values. I believe when children understand the value of money, they are better prepared for the financial world in future.

I wrote an article about how to teach your children about money. After I published the article I decided to open a GoHenry account for our first son who is age 10.

GoHenry is a good card that can help kids build money skills. I love the fact that GoHenry card offers parental control.

The way the world is going, we are going towards a cashless society. An account like GoHenry provides a great opportunity to start teaching our kids about money management and how to use ATM card in a sensible way.

These days, a lot of shopping is done using cards both online and in brick and mortar shops.

Our children have various material needs like art and craft, sporting activities and school education materials. We closely supervise our son in the shop to use his GoHenry card to buy specific things needed in the shop.

I personally keep the card and only hand it to him when we are in the shop together and I collect the card back as soon as we finished with payment.

What is GoHenry?

GoHenry is an online app and a pre-paid Visa debit card created specifically for children (6-18 years). The goal of the app is to teach children how to manage their allowances through budgeting and responsible spending.

The United Kingdom-based company was launched in 2012 and gives parents the ability to monitor the debit card transactions carried out by each of their kids. It is also available in the U.S.

How much does GoHenry cost?

Someone might ask the question, is Go Henry card free?

GoHenry is free for the first month, after which you are charged a monthly fee of £2.50 per child.

I feel it is important to explain how GoHenry card differs from a kid’s bank account.

The main difference is that you pay for the GoHenry card, it isn’t free. Depending on the method of transfer, you also pay a small token to transfer money onto the card. Also, there is a £2.50 membership fee per month.

How Is GoHenry Helpful?

I have to say that the GoHenry app is the major selling point of the company. There is a parent’s and kid’s version of the app.

With the parent’s version, parents can track their account balance and transfer money into their children’s cards. You can either choose to set up a fixed transfer of allowance for example weekly, or impromptu payments for specific tasks completed.

Another crucial feature of the app is the parental control parameters. You can set up strict rules on where or how the card should be used, choose between the card being used online or via ATMs, locking and unlocking of the card at will, as well as setting limits on individual and weekly spending.

With the children’s version, they can log-in to check their balance, spending history, and available tasks. They also can send their funds to either their ‘savings’ or ‘regular balance’.

How do I set up a Gohenry account?

Signing up to GoHenry is easy. All you need to do is to go to GoHenry website and click on the sign-up button.

It will take just you just few minutes and no credit card is required to sign up. After I sign up to get the GoHenry card for our son, the Go Henry card arrived in the mail after 4 days of signing up.

It shouldn’t go beyond 7days before the card will arrive. GoHenry mentioned on their website that card will arrive in about 7days.

GoHenry pre-paid Visa debit card and app has been helping our son build money skills.

We use the unique parental controls which means it’s totally safe for our son to use. If you sign up today you’ll get £10 added to your account (and so will I!) when you activate your card.

If you have interest in signing up, please click here to sign up.

How to put money on my GoHenry card

You can send money in your parent GoHenry account in two major ways;

1. Through bank transfer
2. Through your debit card

Transferring money through bank transfer can be broken down into 4 steps.

Log into your account and tap “topping up” from the left-hand side menu of your screen. Then tap the “see how” option next to ‘bank transfer’. This displays the GoHenry account details for your parent account. Once this is gotten, you can then contact your bank to set up the payment.

Note: It is advisable to set the standing order as monthly. It can also take up to 24 hours for you to be debited.

Transferring money to your parent account through your debit card can be broken down into 4 steps.

Log into your account on the website or mobile app then click ‘Top-up’ on the homepage. The next step is to confirm the amount you want to send then click make payment to complete the transfer.

Where can Gohenry cards be used?

One of the advantages of the GoHenry card is that it can be used anywhere globally so far as they accept VISA cards as a mode of payment.

This means your kids can pay for goods and services anywhere in the world. They can use it on school trips, holidays, over the internet and even make cash withdrawals on ATMs.

Transfer money out of parent GoHenry accounts

The fastest way to retrieve funds from your parent account without technical assistance from the GoHenry team is to make a ‘quick transfer’ to the child account and withdraw it through an ATM. It is important to know that your daily ATM withdrawal limit is £120 provided you set the child account rules to withdraw that much.

However, in cases whereby you wish to withdraw more than £120, GoHenry can transfer the funds back to your parent account.

You will have to send an email to help@gohenry.co.uk to help you with this. You must accompany your email with the transfer amount and your bank details.

Can you use GoHenry cards in shops and online platforms

Yes, you can use GoHenry cards in shops and online platforms if they accept payment through VISA cards.

How does my child use the card at an ATM?

Using the GoHenry card at an ATM is just like using any other payment card. Your child simply has to insert their card into the ATM and enter their card PIN. After which they can then withdraw cash.

However, your child can only successfully withdraw cash using an ATM if you’ve enabled it to be used at ATMs in the ‘Rules’ page.

It is important to note that they are not permitted to check their account balance on ATMs. Your child can only withdraw cash up to the limit you’ve set.

As earlier mentioned above, the daily ATM withdrawal limit is £120.

Click here to see all GoHenry limits.

Can GoHenry cards be used abroad

GoHenry cards can be used to pay for goods and services globally. If they support VISA card payments then the card will work.

Is Go Henry Safe?

Yes, GoHenry is safe.

The main aim of GoHenry is to teach children how money works so they can spend money in a safe way. It is a prepaid card which means you can only spend the money you put in it.

It helps teach kids how to be good with money.

My Reservations about GoHenry

• You have to pay £5 for customisable cards.
• They charge a monthly fee of £2.50 per card. This means the more children you have, the more monthly fees you have to pay.

My initial mindset when I first heard about GoHenry wasn’t really great. But, I leapt and opened it for one of my kids.

All I can say at the moment is that it is a great financial education tool.

The fact that you can set limits on withdrawals means your children will develop the habit of spending money wisely over time.

If you are interested in getting a GoHenry card for your child, please click here to sign up.