You might not have heard of Gemma Bird, but the savvy mum has a tremendous 300,000+ followers on Instagram and TikTok. Why? Well Gemma, better known as Money Mum, knows a thing or two about cash. More importantly, making money work for her.
She has worked multiple jobs, never earning more than £25,000 a year, and by the age of 40 had managed to pay off her mortgage. She puts her achievement down to 'mindset' according to Birmingham Live. Saying that it's not down to how much you earn but what you do with that cash.
The mum-of-two told the publication: "My parents instilled in me that if you want something you’ve got to work and save up for it. I was never bright at school. I always thought I’m not going to ever be a doctor or a lawyer so I knew I was going to have to make whatever money I made go a long way."
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Sharing her story and what she has learned along the way, Gemma said: "I worked at a pub, I was training to be a driving instructor, I worked at a bank, I've done lots of different jobs. If I wasn't earning enough money, I would go do another job and try to get more money."
She also said that reducing the term of your mortgage can be tackled in little ways. She added: "I don't think everyone can pay off their mortgage but I think people can chip away at their mortgage if they’ve got no debt. It's about what choices you want to make - do you want to have a takeaway once a week or do you think that could be £40 a week, or £200 a month, off my mortgage?
"You might be able to reduce it from 25 years to 18 years if you put your mind to it. If you use a mortgage calculator, you might be surprised how paying an extra hundred pounds a month off clears your mortgage because it eats into the interest."
Education and knowledge is the way forward when it comes to handling your money, according to the Birmingham mum, and Gemma is calling for cash management classes to be included on the national curriculum in schools. She believes introducing an understanding of good financial choices early is key.
"Money is not taught in schools properly," she said. "Why are we not teaching mortgages, what to do if you get into debt, how much something costs, how to save? Why don't we teach what to do when you get your first wage? If you’re living at home at the time and pay mum and dad a hundred pounds a month, this is probably the richest you’re ever going to be and you don’t realise how rich you are. Why aren't we teaching our kids to put this money away when they can?
"I said this to my sister and, from 18 to 21, she saved a huge amount of money for her house deposit. And her wages weren't good. See, it can be done but I don't think it's spoken about."
With this in mind, Gemma is sharing her knowledge. She has a podcast called Brummie Mummies, a published book - ‘Money Mum Official - Save Yourself Happy’ - as well as giving tips and advice to her substantial social media following. Below are some of her top money tips.
Money Mum's top tips for making and saving money
- Write absolutely everything down that you spend, how much is coming in and see what you’ve got left over.
- I rented out my spare room to students, which was a great source of income. They basically paid all our bills and all we had to find was our mortgage. Now we rent out our drive through a parking app.
- If you’re new to saving, start small, even just a pound a week or month. Set yourself a goal that is realistic to you that you’re going to stick to. Then if that money goes because your car’s broken down, don’t think 'oh, no savings again'. No, you’ve done amazing and you’ve put that money into your savings account so that you have it ready to use and replace.
- Install Honey on your computer browser as it automatically searches the entire internet for discounts.
- Get everyone in the family a hooded, fleecy blanket to keep them warm. Jokes aside, it keeps the heating bills down.
- Turn the radiators off or down in rooms you’re not using all the time.
- Use an air-fryer or microwave rather than heating your oven. And, when you do use the oven, make a double or triple batch and then freeze the leftovers for another day.
- Fill a flask with hot water to save boiling the kettle multiple times.
- Add loads of veg to your meals to make your meat go further.
- Turn off every single switch left on standby and every light off when you leave the room.
- Always clear your debt first, never save while you’ve got debt.
- Write a list before grocery shopping. If you’re going with kids, say they can have something at the end if they don’t ask for things as they go round. Use a supermarket scanner to automatically add up your spending as you go round.
- Use up what you have in the house before you go and buy more. Swap to non-branded products.
- Put £3 to 4 in an envelope every month so you have money to pay for school trips when they come up.
Gemma Bird’s book ‘Money Mum Official - Save Yourself Happy’ is available here and is full of tips, like a diary you can dip into, including how to save, what to do if you're in debt, how to earn extra money plus information on mental health. teaching kids the value of money, energy saving and grocery shopping hacks. You can listen for more advice on the podcast here.
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