Pernia Rogers bought her first property at the age of 28 and aims to be mortgage free as soon as possible
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 Pernia Rogers, 30, who lives in Barnet, London, with her husband, Ed, 31, and their nine-month-old son, Theoden. Pernia, a Chartered Accountant who purchased a property solo at the age of 28, thinks the state pension could be means-tested or not exist at all by the time she’s older. She wants to have enough money to be in a position whereby work is optional for her and believes she will need £1.5m in her pension pot for later life.
Monthly budget
My monthly income: Before going on maternity leave, I was taking home £5,000 a month from my job as a group finance controller at a private equity-backed business. While on maternity leave, my income has varied, but is now about £2,000 per month. My husband works as a product manager.
My monthly outgoings: These are shared – Mortgage, £1,800; council tax, service charge and ground rent £225, groceries, £200; gas, electricity and water, £120, broadband £32, insurance policies, – £80, subscriptions like Amazon Prime, £50; transport, including car fuel, £100; baby items, £100; date night and socialising, £200.
We used to split everything 50-50, but now I cover about 20 per cent of our outgoings. My personal expenses include: life insurance, £8; mobile contract, £18; money into a high-yield savings account, £150. I also put £100 to £500 per month into a stocks and shares ISA and £200 into my business. I set aside about £500 each month for emergencies and unexpected costs.
I grew up in Barnet with my parents, and while we were reasonably well-off, our lifestyle wasn’t lavish. For many years, we were reliant on one income. My mum, who took 10 years off to stay at home with me, is a barrister, and my dad is an accountant. Both are still working, though not full-time.
I studied history at the University of Oxford before studying for an Associate Chartered Accountant qualification while working at one of the ‘Big Four’ accountancy firms in the auditing department. My starting salary was about £23,000 a year. By the end, I was earning £33,000.
I got poached by a client of the accountancy firm in the media sector and secured a near 67 per cent pay rise to £55,000 for an in-house role.
In 2022, I got a job at an artificial intelligence start-up, getting a 10 per cent pay rise. I was the company’s finance manager. While it wasn’t all plain sailing, the role was the best learning curve, and I knew it would help me get bigger pay rises in the future.
I’m now a group finance controller at a private-equity-backed group of creative studios. My pay was initially £80,000 per year, but it has increased since I joined the company.
I have secured a number of pay rises over the years and view this as a crucial part of my money management. I think you get better pay rises if you move jobs more frequently.
After meeting my now husband on a dating app, we got married, and I got pregnant in 2024. My employer’s maternity pay policy was 16 weeks at full pay, followed by statutory maternity pay for the remainder.
The benefit of feeling sick and ill during my pregnancy was that it meant I couldn’t go out much – and I saved money! In fact, I saved money quite aggressively during my pregnancy. I also kept contributing to my work pension and overpaid my mortgage a little.
While on maternity leave, I’m bringing in 36 per cent of my normal gross annual pay. This means I’m currently more reliant on my husband’s income than before.
If I’d only had statutory maternity pay, I wouldn’t have been able to pay my mortgage and bills, as it just wouldn’t have been enough. I do admire single mums who have been solely on maternity pay and manage.
While I do not think statutory maternity pay is adequate, the question of whether or how much it should be increased by is more nuanced. The government is trying to balance the books, and many businesses cannot afford to offer better maternity pay. That said, some businesses which could afford to offer higher maternity pay are choosing not to, which I think is wrong.
While on maternity leave, I set up a passion project business called Your Finance Travel Buddy. I’ve since turned this into a newsletter and guide for businesses aimed at helping people with their personal finances. I’m not really making money from this yet, but I hope to in the future. Some of the guides I’ve produced have made me a small sum.
I managed to purchase my own property at the age of 28. I’d been living in a rental with my now husband and the heating never worked. I got chilblains on my toes, but the landlord still did nothing to fix the heating. By this point, Ed and his brother already owned a property together. So, to avoid stamp duty, I purchased a two-bedroom maisonette in Barnet as a sole buyer.
It was listed for £400,000, but I managed to get it for £385,000. I’d saved about £35,000 in a Lifetime ISA and, combined with my other savings, put £68,000 towards the deposit.
We’re living in the same maisonette as a family of three now, and while I know it won’t be our forever home, we’ll be here for a few more years. One of my main goals is to be mortgage-free as soon as possible. I’d like to live in a quieter and safer location in future.
How I approach saving and investing depends on what is going on in my life at any given time. While I was saving for a home deposit, I added as much money to my Lifetime ISA as possible. I’m now adding between £100 to £500 per month to my stocks and shares Isa, which has around £30,000 in it. I also have a cash ISA with £20,000 in it. I try to keep the money in my current account as close to zero as possible, as my money can be put to better use elsewhere.
By the time I reach the state pension age, I think the state pension will either be means-tested or non-existent. It won’t function as it does now. I have no idea how anyone survives solely on the state pension and I’m not factoring it into my planning.
Since being on maternity leave, I’ve continued to contribute money to my work pension based on my pre-maternity leave pay. I have £50,000 in my pension pots at present. I think I’d need at least £1.5m in my pension pots to be comfortable financially in later life.
I also want to be in a position financially, whereby working becomes optional for me by the time I’m 68. I’d get bored if I didn’t work at all, and I can see myself working at least a few days a week even in later life. I view becoming mortgage-free as a fast track to retirement.
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