In our How I Manage My Money series we aim to find out how people in the UK are spending, saving and investing money to meet their costs and achieve their goals.

This week we speak to Sean Leith, 30, who lives in Edinburgh and is an actuarial consultant. Sean’s ambitious goal is to retire at the age of 45, but realistically, he recognises 50 may be more achievable. He reckons he could retire if he had £1m in his stocks and shares ISA.

Monthly budget

My monthly income: The monthly take-home pay from my job as a trainee actuary is £3,200 a month. I also make between £50 to £100 a month from social media work, but this is variable and there’s tax on it. 

My monthly outgoings: Mortgage: £1,170; council tax and water, £165; groceries, £250; gas and electric, £110; broadband, £35; mobile, £15; car fuel, £40; Cineworld subscription, £17; money into savings and investments, between £200 and £500; money into work pension, £600; eating out and takeaways, £100 to £150; clothes, £25 or less; badminton club, £25; life and income protection insurance, £20. The service charge on the flat is about £250 a quarter. This includes things like home insurance and cleaning. 

I’m an actuarial consultant and my annual pay before deductions is about £60,000 a year. I’m training to be a fully qualified actuary. We advise companies with final salary pension schemes.

I talk about personal finance and investing on my TikTok channel (@seans.money), which I set up last year. I started it because a lot of my friends weren’t too interested in talking about money at the time and I needed an outlet.

A few years ago, I was signed off work with anxiety for a number of months and struggled to afford to live on statutory sick pay and knew I had to take my finances more seriously. I changed to a cheaper supermarket and started getting cashback deals and switched my bank account.

Before I was off work sick, I spent every penny I made each month, but I still ensured I never got into debt. After being signed off, I started saving every penny I could. In the last year or so, I’ve started to become more comfortable with spending money again. I pay all my expenses using a credit card which I pay off in full at the end of each month.

I have a stocks and shares Lifetime ISA which has around £3,000 in it. I’m not adding money to it now as I’ve already purchased a property. I used to use it as a second pension but soon realised my own work pension is better. I also have money in premium bonds and around £2,500 in cash savings. I have £60,000 in my Trading 212 stocks and shares Isa, which I add £200 to £500 a month to.

I have £80,000 in my work pension and contribute £600 a month to it, while my employer adds £250.

My ambitious goal is to retire at the age of 45, but a more realistic goal is 50. My priority is adding money to my stocks and shares ISA. If I can, I’d like to be able to max out my stocks and shares ISA each year. If I had £1m in my stocks and shares ISA I think I would be able to retire early.

If I increase my stocks and shares ISA and pension contribution via pay rises and monetise more of my social media work, I should be able to achieve my aim of retiring by 50 at the latest.

I could definitely not survive solely on the state pension in later life and do not even think I will get one. The model for the state pension is completely unsustainable. Less people are paying for it yet more people are receiving it.

If the state pension was means tested, I think it would harm people on a middle income more than those who are wealthy. Means testing would also encourage less people to save for their retirement.

Anything that makes pensions look even less attractive, including changes to pension salary sacrifice from April 2029, is not a good move. Making people less likely to put money in pensions is a terrible idea.

In Scotland, there are different income tax bands compared to England. People start paying a higher rate of tax earlier in Scotland. I’m comfortable with this. I got a free university education in Scotland and for others there are free prescriptions, baby boxes, period products and free bus travel for many.

I live in a two-bedroom flat, which I purchased in July 2025 for £230,000. I put down a deposit of £23,000. The interest rate on my mortgage is 5.12 per cent and I took out a 30-year mortgage. The mortgage was ported from a different property I had with an ex-girlfriend.

I’m motivated by money in the sense it can get me a happy and free lifestyle. I’d been even happier if I didn’t have to work after the age of 45.

Want to take part in How I Manage My Money? Email money@theipaper.com