Talking about money is still taboo in France. Still, it’s a fascinating topic… and feminist, in some respects! In Settle accounts, people of all kinds examine their budget, tell us about their financial organization as a couple or alone and their relationship with money. Today Diane agreed to check her accounts.
- Name: Diana
- Age: 23 years old
- Occupation: study-work trainee
- Net salary: €1,329 (no withholding tax)
- Location of sight: a student room in Paris
- Lives alone
Diana’s income
Diane is a third-year professional licentiate and work-study student. You work in construction management in a company specializing in the restoration of historical monuments. In this position, she wins €1,329 per month.
“I am paid more than the statutory rate for a work-study student of my age and education level. Compared to students, I therefore consider myself well above average, however my salary is very low for an employee living in Paris. »
For housing, you are entitled to a housing allowance of up to €320 per month. In all, it therefore manages a budget of €1,649.
Diane’s relationship with money
The student explains that he sees money as “guarantor of his freedom”. Very thrifty, she has established a fairly strict monthly budget in order to save as much as possible.
“By self-financing my studies and having emergency savings, I feel free to reorient myself, to change jobs… I thought about my budget to be able to save as much as possible without feeling like I was depriving myself. »
If he tends to spend as little as possible, it is also for political reasons. His budget management is in fact linked to his environmental beliefs:
“I would like to tend to decrease. If I can, in a few years, I would like to go back to the countryside and aspire to almost self-sufficiency in food. For me it also means frugality and the fact of being able to get out of an ultra-consumerist lifestyle. »
Diane’s expenses
Diane lives in a small room of 11 m2 in the heart of Paris, in the Marais district. She has been a tenant for 5 years and pays the rent of €450 per month.
“My accommodation is very small but I feel comfortable there because I was able to refurbish it as I pleased. The small surface area is compensated by a very well thought out layout, I have the bathroom and the toilets inside (which is not the case for all Parisian student accommodation).
It is very well located, in a quiet street, but in a very lively area, and I can do almost everything on foot being in the center of Paris. »
Community expenses, water and home insurance are included in the rent. She pays too €35 banknote electricity, e €55 per month subscription which include his Internet access, his phone plan and a subscription to the newspaper The world.
Your fixed costs also matter €3 bank charges, and about twenty euros for your season ticket for public transport. Once these fixed costs have been deducted, he is left with a budget of around €1,080 for his shopping, travel, leisure and savings.
“I have no cracks, my budget is calculated”
As for shopping, estimate spending on the go €100 per month in a small supermarket near his house: “It’s not the cheapest sign, but it’s the most practical”. She explains that she pays close attention to the price of the products she buys and that her vegetarian diet is cheap.
His leisure budget is split in two. First, dedicate €170 for your regular activities: a riding session a month, a movie subscription and weekly restaurant outings with friends.
“This budget is very important to me. Most of my other hobbies are free: I borrow books from the library, visit museums. »
It also has a separate budget for the train, which amounts to €150 a month, to go to the countryside on alternate weekends. She didn’t include clothing expenses in her budget.
Diana’s savings
Once these expenses are subtracted from his budget, he is left with 650 euros per month. He has €50 in his account “in the event of a medical visit or unexpected expense” and savings €600 on a booklet A.
This sum will combine what she calls an “emergency” savings that she has accumulated on her own through her student jobs and her work-study program. She today she has approx €20,000 which will be used, among other things, to meet part of its needs in the years to come.
“I will not be able to continue the study-work path for the master’s degree. I’ll be working weekends, but my salary will drop dramatically, so some of these savings will be used to supplement my income. »
He explains that he has planned everything so that his emergency savings don’t fall below the threshold €20,000. A strict financial organization, which sometimes earned him comments from his mother:
“My parents are middle class and have a very healthy relationship with money. However, my mom finds that she saves too much: she sometimes tells me about her fear of her that I don’t get enough for my money, that she doesn’t enjoy myself enough…she finds me quite stressed about it. I understand what that impression might give you, but I disagree with you – that said, it’s never a subject of conflict, only discussion.
He also often insists on contributing to my daily expenses as a student, but I refuse, because I will lose my freedom to be able to change course or interrupt my studies if I feel like it. I’d hate it if they spent money on a degree I wouldn’t get! »
In the future he would like to be able to travel (but he won’t fly for journeys of less than a month, for ecological reasons), and obtain his diploma.
Thanks to Diane for setting up her accounts for us!
To participate in the Settlement of Accounts, send us an email to [email protected] adding a short introduction to yourself. We will get back to you with the procedure to follow!
To testify about Madmoizelle, write to us at:
[email protected]
We can’t wait to read from you!
Source: Madmoizelle
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
