Hi Everyone - 26M who’s living at home, and just cleared my car loan early. My salary is increasing to €46k in a few months, and I want to make sure my next steps are efficient for taxes as I save for a house deposit.
Currently:
Income: €46,000
• Outgoings: €400/month rent to parents.
• Emergency Fund: Currently €1,800, building it up on a monthly basis to a €3,000 goal.
• Savings: €530/month into the Credit Union (House Deposit Fund).
• Pension: Balance is €8,444. I contribution 2% and 12% from employer.
• Investments: €60/week into Trade Republic (S&P 500, Europe 600, NVIDIA, Emerging Markets, Pacific ex-Japan).
Just looking for advice regarding:
- Pension vs. Tax: My pay rise puts me about €2k into the 40% tax bracket. Is it a no-brainer to bump my contribution to 4% or 5% just to "hide" that money from the higher tax rate? Seems like a waste to let the Revenue take 40% if I can just tuck it into my pension instead.
- The ETF Tax Headache: I’m doing €60 a week into ETFs/Nvidia (see image.png), but is Deemed Disposal going to wreck me? Am I being an idiot by not just putting that €60 into my pension as an AVC where it can grow tax-free?
- Credit Union vs. Chasing Interest: I’m dumping €530/month into the CU for a house. Is the "loyalty" to the CU actually worth anything when it comes to getting a mortgage later? Or should I move it to something like Trade Republic to actually get some decent interest while I wait, and then just move it back when I'm ready to buy?
- Is 3k enough? I’ve got €1,800 in an emergency fund and I’m aiming for €3k. Since I’m living at home and my expenses are low, is that "enough" to stop worrying about it and start throwing every spare cent at the house/pension?
Any help would be much appreciated :)
u/Entire-Wall1757 — 13 days ago