Suzanne Holohan was “on the cusp” of buying her first home when a life-changing decision threw a spanner in the works.
At the time, Ms Holohan was earning a six-figure salary in a corporate job in the banking industry, but while she enjoyed her role, it “just didn’t feel right”.
Fast-forward six years, and the 48-year-old from Sydney, Australia, now has a fulfilling role at a not-for-profit organisation — but with it came a big pay cut, which meant her dreams of home ownership were put on hold.
“I was on the cusp of buying six years ago with a banking wage and lifestyle, but I knew if I had bought then, I would have potentially been trapped in that sector and role when I was ready to move on,” she said.
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“Buying a home got postponed while I had that massive career change, and in some ways it was quite stressful because I’m on the other end (of the first homebuyer spectrum) at 48.
“About three or four years ago I went through a stage where I started to burn through my savings, but then I decided to recommit.”
For three years, Ms Holohan started saving “seriously” for a deposit and found a few key strategies made the process easy — and even “fun”.
One of the biggest game changers was going back to “old school cash” instead of handing over a credit card “like a zombie”.
Ms Holohan said keeping her card at home — and only spending the cash she had in her wallet on nights out — had helped break the “habit of impulsive buying”.
She also helped control her love of shopping by embracing popular minimalist fashion challenge Project 333, which involves building a “capsule wardrobe” by dressing with just 33 wardrobe pieces for three months at a time.
“It was almost like a fun game to play, but it also made me realise how much wastage goes on,” she said.
She also set up a direct debit system that automatically put aside money into her savings account every fortnight and any windfalls — like tax refunds — into her deposit.
Finally, she changed her mindset and stopped thinking of food as entertainment, ditching nights out at trendy, pricey restaurants for gigs at her local pub and entertaining friends at home.
She managed to save a 17 per cent deposit — and when the right home hit the market recently, she was able to snap it up.
She’s now the proud owner of a one-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment in Sydney’s inner west, which she bought for just over A$600,000.
She said the challenge of adjusting to her new income and saving hadn’t been as tough as she expected.
“It became kind of fun — I got a momentum going after I met my first target, but I wasn’t saintly — every time I hit $5000 I went and bought something frivolous,” she said.
“Initially, I never told people I was saving — that was what I struggled with, other people’s opinions — but I got clever with declining invitations.”
- news.com.au
