u/Expensive-Lecture165

Hi all,

I'm trying to work out whether I should do anything differently from the usual flowchart approach given I'm likely to move to the US within the next year.

I'm UK resident at the moment, London based, and starting a role at around £150k. I've got around £25k saved and the only debt I have is a Plan 5 student loan, currently around £37k. I know I'm in a very fortunate position, so I am trying to sanity check whether the possible move changes the obvious UK tax decisions.

My current thinking is to keep a larger cash buffer than I otherwise would, use my ISA allowance while I'm still UK resident, contribute enough to pension to reduce the worst of the £100k-£125k tax trap, and not overpay the student loan (treat it as a tax knowing investments could outdo it)

Where I'm getting stuck is the tradeoff between optimising properly for UK tax now vs keeping things flexible because of the move. Pension contributions seem hard to argue against at this income level, especially around the personal allowance taper, but locking away too much feels slightly awkward when I may have relocation costs and US tax/admin complexity coming up. For reference, I am 20 and have not auto-enrolled yet (since that starts at 22)

I'm also not totally clear on how much value there is in using a Stocks & Shares ISA if I may become US tax resident later, given the US doesn't treat ISAs the same way the UK does.

Appreciate any thoughts, especially if there's an obvious tax/residency issue I'm missing.

Hey all,

Long time lurker here, first time I can actually justify posting.

I'm 20, London based, work in tech, and I've just started a new role at ~£150k. Up until recently I didn't feel like I belonged in this sub since I made £92K, but I guess I do now.

I've got ~£30k saved, no real debt aside from a Plan 5 student loan (~£35k), and things are generally under control. I've already worked through the basics (emergency fund, ISA, pension, etc), so I'm not coming at this from zero.

What I'm trying to get a feel for what people in this bracket wish they understood earlier, things that only become clear once you're actually earning at this level.

A few things on my mind:

• How do you avoid quietly inflating your lifestyle just because you can?
• I still want nice things.. is this doable without being foolish?
• What actually matters financially over the next few years vs what feels important but isn't?

I'll likely be relocating to San Francisco within the next year, so I don't want to overcommit to the UK as a whole, so no property shopping.

Not a FIRE guy trying to retire at 30, just don't want to drift into bad habits early while income is ramping

Would appreciate any perspective from people who've been in a similar position, especially if you made mistakes early on.