A 33-year-old woman earning £156,000 a year has described herself as a 'HENRY' – high earner, not rich yet – and has stopped shopping at M&S and having Botox to save for a house. Amelia Brown, a head of growth in tech from Stoke Newington, London, says she takes home £6,924 a month after tax and pension and aims to save £200,000 in two years for a three-bed freehold home with a garden.
Ms Brown, who moved from Australia to the UK in 2024, increased her salary from £45,000 to £156,000 over a decade. She considers herself fortunate but not wealthy because she has not accumulated assets or wealth. She said: 'I think if I was on my salary in other parts of the country it would be crazy but… I didn’t think it would be a relatively normal lifestyle.'
To accelerate her savings, Ms Brown has banned herself from buying new clothes, stopped Botox, reduced travel, deferred buying a car, and cut out M&S entirely. She also monetises online content, boosting her income by 20 per cent last month. She uses the 'pay yourself first' method, saving or investing everything after covering monthly costs.
Ms Brown said she is striving to avoid the common wisdom of buying a starter home, instead aiming for her 'forever home' directly to avoid additional costs like stamp duty. With £35,000 already saved, she plans to max out her ISA and be tax-efficient with her pension and savings.
