Kennie Bukky, co-founder of The Pivot Place
Courtesy of Kenny Buckey
Despite the tough economic conditions facing young people, one millennial managed to save enough money to buy his own home at the age of 25.
Kennie Bukky is a British professional under the age of 30 who is a compliance officer and has worked for companies such as KPMG and Visa.
By the age of 25, she had saved 50,000 pounds (about $63,000) and obtained a mortgage for her first home. Her savings and mortgage were verified by CNBC Make It.
Bukky explains that she does not have financial assistance from her parents and instead has to be very financially savvy as inflation, high living costs and soaring house prices continue to disadvantage those under 30 years old.
In fact, according to CNBC’s April 2024 International Your Money Financial Security Survey, only 36.5% of adults said they were better off financially than their parents, while 42.8% said they were worse off.
With many young people feeling that the cost of living in adulthood is too high, some are increasingly spending money to cope with the stress because they don’t believe they will be able to own a house or start a family.
Bukky said those concerns were at the forefront of her mind after graduating in 2017.
Bucky told CNBC Make It: “I grew up in a context where we had to be careful with money and there wasn’t always enough of it. There was always a scarcity mentality around money and when I was growing up. “
“I never really had any money lessons or anything from my parents… I hated the idea of being restricted because of money, I learned from a young age that if you save money you are free to do Anything you want to do with that money.
Bukky, who has chosen to keep her legal name and age private for privacy reasons, here’s how she saved five figures in her 20s.
“I’m obsessed with saving”
Bukky felt her forensic science degree didn’t have enough earning potential, so she turned to finance, starting out as an entry analyst at Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), earning £28,000 a year. Even then, she was determined to save money.
One way Butch has managed to save money despite the high cost of living is by continuing to live with his parents for as long as possible – something more and more people are choosing to do. This has been a common trend in recent years as rental costs have soared.
That means she spends two hours commuting to the office most days, but she says the money she saves is worth the pain.
“I just want to save at least 50% of my salary,” Bukky said. “So I could have easily moved out, but my priority was to save money so I could invest and move towards financial freedom and financial independence. I stayed at home as long as I could, even though it wasn’t the best settings.
She added that saving money while on a lower salary developed a savings habit that she still retains today. This snowballed her savings as she was able to save more money.
After Bukky saved her first £50,000, she used about half as a deposit for her first house in 2022 and invested the rest in the stock market.
live frugally
Bukky combines saving money with frugal living, including only purchasing clothing during sales.
However, growing up in the age of social media means young people can easily fall into a culture of comparison and feel pressured to live beyond their means.
“I just understood my ultimate goal. I knew what kind of future I wanted. I didn’t want a future where I was struggling for money or limited by money. That’s much more important than any luxury life,” Bucky said .
However, she said she still managed to enjoy herself and budgeted for cheap vacations with friends and going out to eat.
She also admitted that she got carried away when she first started earning around £40,000 and bought a BMW.
“I fell into this trap for a while, and then I looked at it and thought: Actually, it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. I need to focus on my goals. So I owned the BMW for a few months, and then I sold it. It’s because I think, actually, I haven’t tried it yet, let me go back to my Ford or something.
The savvy millennial now earns more than £100,000 a year. She has invested more than £30,000 in the stock market, turning her first home into a buy-to-let property and is looking to buy a second property.
Still, Bucky says minimalism still appeals to her.
“There are things I still wouldn’t do now, for example, I don’t think it’s time for me to buy a luxury car, even though I can definitely afford it,” she said.
“I need assets to pay for it, not take money out of my pocket, because in my opinion, that’s where you get into the rat race, just to get all these luxuries because it’s tied to your income. Right. For me, it’s a tethering, tying myself up to these responsibilities.
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