I'm a 30‑year‑old married guy with a 1.5‑year‑old son – my smallest but most demanding investor.
Background: no family wealth, only family debt, so I basically started from zero or a little negative.
Family duties:
- 3 siblings
- Elder sister – married
- Younger sister – married (I paid most of it)
- Youngest sibling – now working (I also helped fund their education)
For a while I've been the unofficial finance head for my family.
My current picture:
- Bought a house in 2023 for about ₹45 L
- Bought a plot for about ₹20 L
- Current debt around ₹10 L
- Working in the UK, earning roughly ₹4.5 L per month (INR equivalent)
- Saving about ₹2 L per month
- Expect to have saved roughly ₹20 L by mid‑2027
- No EMIs currently (yes, I still don't know how I pulled that off)
Future plan:
- Build another house for my parents, which will probably become my main home when I move back to India
Also:
- Haven't touched my PF/retirement funds yet – trying to be that "disciplined guy" for once
Some days I feel I've done okay given where I started; other days it feels like I unlocked "hard mode" and kept going without a manual.
So, Reddit, what do you think – am I in a strong financial position or just temporarily stable before life throws another boss level at me?
Do you live in the UK?
How's life over there?
You're a hero, I'm saving this post. Posts like yours make scrolling here worth it.
Brother, if anyone ever told you, remember you're killing it!
I'm glad I read your post – you're doing really well considering the current UK scenario.
My story (36M) is pretty similar. I also started with only family debt because my father, the eldest of six siblings, spent all his money helping them. In short, I lived in rented houses for 25 years with my parents and sister.
I did engineering from a Tier‑2 college and got a modest job in an oil‑refinery project in India. It was a hectic schedule – 12 hours a day, Monday to Saturday. After three years I landed a job in an MNC in Bangalore with a good package. I built a house for my parents in my hometown using a home loan, got married, and supported my sister's education and wedding. During the 2020 COVID layoffs, my job stayed safe, but I still had a ₹45 L loan left. I started looking for jobs abroad to clear the loan faster. My wife got a job in the UK in 2021, and I moved with her. I secured an engineering role there and cleared my home loan by 2023 – finally debt‑free :)
Now we have a two‑year‑old baby. I've had to tweak my career to manage childcare and other responsibilities. UK salaries are lower than in the US, and the cost of living is high, but I'm managing to save about ₹1.75 L per month. My plan is to return to India after five years and settle in Bangalore. Thanks for reading, and good luck to you!
You're still young and doing great – God willing, it's only upwards from here.
Focus on your next goal. If you plan to settle in the UK, start saving for a down‑payment and aim to buy a house. If you intend to stay in India, target a ₹1 cr investment; once you have that, the power of compounding will show real impact.
Assuming you're the sole earner, when your kid reaches reception age consider having your wife work part‑time – even 20‑25 hours a week can give a nice boost to savings, depending on your family dynamics.
And don't forget to pat yourself on the back for achieving all this by 30. Onwards and upwards!