Martin Lewis explains why over 30 million Brits are actually 'better off' not saving money
While we've all been taught to save our money for a rainy day, it seems as if Martin Lewis thinks that's no longer the best guidance.
The money saving expert is seemingly the go-to when it comes to financial advice here in the UK, and he's probably saved us all a few pounds over the years.
With experts predicting financial crashes across the globe as geopolitical tensions threaten to boil over, there's perhaps a temptation to splash your cash a bit more freely just in case the whole world goes to war.
If you're the more frugal type, who wants to keep some stored away, then it might be best to clear your debts before you think about building up any sort of cash pot, according to Lewis.
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In the latest edition of his newsletter, the 54-year-old explained: "Only invest money you won’t need for at least five years, after clearing expensive debts first and building an emergency fund, and put it in a broad spread of investments.
"If you don’t have money that fits this, I’d say you’re not ready yet. It must be money you don’t need day-to-day."
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the MBE instead recommends that we invest our money rather than save it, as that way we can (almost) ensure that we have a passive income.
He added: "As a nation, we underinvest. Even if you put money in the top-paying savings accounts over the last decade, it would have lost value compared to inflation. That means in real terms, even in savings, your purchasing power would’ve shrunk.
"The gains can be worth £1,000s, sometimes £10,000s – not to mention the extra years of being mortgage-free. But working out whether to overpay your mortgage requires some consideration."
While he does stress that it's important to have an emergency fund, as we never know when the boiler might decide to break, a savings account 'isn't always the winner' when it comes to storing money that you're unlikely to need in the next five years.
Of course, it must be noted that investing does come with a risk, and there's no guarantee that you'll be able to make a profit on the money you invest.
Even when it comes to mortgage overpayments, Martin recommends that paying a little extra might benefit you more in the long-term if you have some spare cash to hand.
That being said, holidays might not even exist in a few years if the world leaders carry on the way they have been doing in recent months, so maybe it is time to go travelling and use your money to treat yourself.
Big man Martin also had some pretty sound advice when it comes to preventing your exes inheriting some of your hard-earned cash, if you want to avoid that situation.
He really is the people's prince.
James Moorhouse