A millennial woman with a £69,500 salary has been mocked and targeted by trolls after revealing the money-saving lifestyle changes she’s made to be able to afford a flat.
Kate Smith*, a 29-year-old living in London appeared in the i newspaper’s “Our Money” series, where she explained how she budgets and spends her money.
In the piece, titled “How I Live On a £69,500 salary while saving to buy a two-bedroom flat," the project manager told journalist Rebecca Jones she’d deduced that she would need to save £1,500 a month to buy a flat at “the beginning of next year.”
To reach her goal, Smith made certain lifestyle changes - including cancelling her £150 per month gym membership in favour of running, and reducing her expenditure on taxis.
If Smith sticks to the "strict" budget she’s made for herself, which includes putting away a monthly £375 for holiday, she’ll still have £121 per week to spend how she pleases - to the dismay of some readers.
On Twitter, people are criticising Smith and questioning why she is having trouble affording a flat on a £69,500 salary.
“So relatable,” one person sarcastically tweeted.
Another asked: “How on earth does anybody get by on £69,500 a year? Won’t someone help that poor woman?”
Others took offence to how Smith spent money before she started “budgeting,” - mainly her £150 gym membership and her travelling.
“Wow don’t know how she copes with all those cutbacks,” responded one reader.
Since the backlash over the article, the newspaper has responded that the series features “people on a range of salaries" and removed her real name in favour of Smith.
“We’ve also featured a pensioner on less than £9,000 a year, and a family household salary of £30,000.”
Jones has also defended the subject of the article, stating: "We think it's important to include people on different salaries to build an accurate picture of life in the UK."
