how much you can save?

Although he's now earning three times the salary he earned more than two years ago, Mahesh Devji Sampat still walks an average of more than 200 kilometres per month — to save money on transport.

The Indian expatriate doesn't have a car. He is the lone breadwinner in the family of five. Now, at 50, Sampat says he is still working hard to secure a better future for his children.

Sampat has been in the UAE for about 20 years, hopping from one low-paying job to another. He has worked as a hotel receptionist, office assistant, accountant, freight-forwarding clerk and later worked his way up to become the manager in a freight-forwarding company.

Until July 2007, he was earning Dh5,500 a month, out of which he managed to pay the rent, school fees of his three children, ages 17, 15 and 10, and groceries. To date, he has never taken a loan and has always remained debt-free.

How did he support a big family with a Dh5,500 monthly income? Making both ends meet means keeping tabs of even the smallest expense, coupled with a lot of self-control and bargain-hunting.

Winning attitude

"I kept an eye on almost every expense. I spent only on things which were necessary. I always bargained and searched for better deals. For example, all the groceries I purchased were from the nearest big supermarket and I carried them by hand to the house," he told Gulf News.

His biggest monthly expense was the two bedroom flat had rented in Sharjah for Dh2,000. School fees for his three kids totalled about Dh1,800, while food, toiletries and other grocery items cost around Dh1,200 per month.

His expenses on out-of-home entertainment were very negligible as most of the family's free time was spent watching television and visiting the nearest parks. However, given his meagre salary, setting money aside for the family's savings pot was next to impossible.

"I was only making both ends [meet], hence [I had] no savings at all. However, I started working part time from 2006 and later, till I resigned, saved some money. With that tiny savings [investments like buying a house or some stocks] do not look possible," he adds.

Nevertheless, Sampat doesn't harbour any misgivings about his small income. "When you have to live, [it's] better to live happily. Making complaints will not help change one's income, so I thanked God for whatever he gave," he says.

New enterprise

Sampat has already left his low-paying job and now runs a small-scale freight forwarding enterprise. On average, he now makes three times the money he earned in 2007.

However, since he's still establishing his business and the monthly inflows are not fixed, saving money remains an onerous task.

When all goes well, Sampat hopes to stash Dh50,000 a year, but until then, he can only keep his fingers crossed about what the future holds.

"I'm spending twice what I spent in 2007 and at the age of 50 still working hard to secure my children's future. For me, every single fils counts, so whenever I see that my hard-earned money is misused, my heart pains," he says.

That explains why until now the hardworking expat still logs over a hundred miles on the road, travelling short distances on foot, whenever possible.

The small savings from transport are obviously better spent on other essentials, such as the food he puts on the table, or perhaps they're better kept in the family's nest egg.