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Ali Husain and Atifa Yakoob have just celebrated their second wedding anniversary. The couple, who met at an inter-university conference while they were studying, live in Peterborough and split all of their costs 50/50.
Atifa, 24, is a pharmacist, and is currently the main earner, while Ali, 23, has just finished his post-graduate legal practice course. He currently works part-time for his father as a legal assistant, and supplements his income with acting work, and other side-hustles.
The couple say they are usually aligned when it comes to money, but could they discover anything new about each other? Telegraph Money sent Ali and Atifa to Italian restaurant, Sartoria, in Savile Row, London, to find out. Before they sat down, we asked them a few questions.
Atifa
Which of you is richer?
Ali. He has more sources of income – he’s an acting extra, does Amazon deliveries, and other part-time jobs, whereas I just have my job. He also has the support of his family if he needs it.
Who’s most likely to duck out of a round at the pub?
Neither – but me if I had to choose. I’d accept a drink whereas Ali would fight to pay.
Who’s most likely to fall for a scam?
Me. I’ve had scam texts before and Ali is very quick to identify them.
Do you have a running away fund?
No. I’m the sole earner at the moment, but I’d like to have my own savings for my own goals.
If you were given £10,000 what would you do with it?
It would go straight into our savings. Although it wouldn’t go far as we’re trying to move house!
Ali
Which of you is richer?
Atifa – in the short-term. She’s been working for seven months so has had access to more money. In the long-term, I’ll be richer as my field has more opportunities to climb the salary ladder.
Who’s most likely to duck out of a round at the pub?
Atifa – but only because her social battery runs out quicker than mine! Ducking out of rounds isn’t cool and we both share the philosophy to respect people. We’re more likely to split the costs upfront anyway.
Who’s most likely to fall for a scam?
Definitely Atifa. She’s a bit naive and her mind is often elsewhere; she’ll be thinking about work or making food, for example. I’ve had more experience with money and shopping online, and I’ve had a bank card since I was 14.
Do you have a running away fund?
No. I feel like if I had one, it would be undermining the trust you have in your partner.
If you were given £10,000 what would you do with it?
I’d combine it with my savings and put it towards the property we want to buy in the next two years.
After dinner
Ali and Atifa celebrated their second wedding anniversary with fresh spaghetti with prawns, deep fried zucchini and roast potatoes.
The couple say they are open about money and are on the same page for most things. They are both aware of their financial roles in their relationship – and how they might change.
Atifa says: “In Islam, women are queens! We are told ‘a woman’s money is her own money, and her husband’s money is also her money.’ We’re encouraged to run our own businesses and invest in whatever we want. But you should also have the mindset that you will support each other. I’m currently supporting Ali and I know he’ll do the same for me in the future.”
Ali says he recognises his responsibilities. He adds: “It’s a man’s role to support the family and I’d like to contribute more once I start working.”
Ali also helps Atifa appeal a, not insignificant, number of parking fines. Over the past two years, she thinks she’s had about 50, amounting to over £1,000. Ali says he’s managed to get around 40pc reduced or cancelled.
Meanwhile, Ali’s most costly mistake was a one-off about three months ago. After purchasing £750 worth of Moroccan dirhams at Gatwick Airport, he Googled the exchange rate and realised he’d only got about £400 worth of currency. However, after complaining, he got his money back.
Atifa says: “I’ve never seen him so upset. He didn’t stop talking about it for two days.”
They couple both have their own goals – Ali wants to work his way up the legal sector, while Atifa wants to one day run her own business and write a novel. Together, they want to save between £60,000 and £80,000 in the next two years to buy their first home.
Hugh Johnson, financial planner at Old Mill, says: “Ali and Atifa’s target deposit is quite ambitious for a couple so early on in their careers. First-time buyers generally need to save for between five and 10 years before having enough capital for a deposit. However, there are options available to potentially reduce this burden.”
For example, he says many people are turning to the so-called Bank of Mum and Dad to help.
Gifts from parents could serve a dual purpose of helping grown-up children get on the property ladder, while reducing future potential inheritance tax. However, Mr Johnson says professional advice is recommended as gifting rules can be complex.
Alternatively, a mortgage that uses a guarantor’s assets or income to “boost” the amount they can borrow, and lower the required level of deposit, could work. Mr Johnson says: “Such arrangements allow borrowers to benefit from the wealth of family members or a trusted person without the need to sell down investments or break into life savings. If Ali and Atifa both have high future earnings potential, this could be particularly appealing. Both options can be structured in such a way as to comply with Sharia law.”
However, one topic the couple don’t see eye-to-eye on is gift-buying.
Ali says: “Atifa is big on presents – she’ll get them for everyone all the time, like eight times a year. I don’t think children really care about how much you spend on gifts for them so my go-to present is something free.”
Atifa says: “Ali has a rule that you can’t spend more than £2 on a present for under-fives as they won’t remember it. He judges me for spending lots of my money on gifts.”
But there aren’t the same price limits for treating themselves.
Ali’s most expensive purchase was a £650 Playstation 5 bundle, which included the console, controller and headset, when he was at university. He says: “I didn’t regret it, even though, at the time, I was struggling to buy groceries. It was during lockdown and it meant I could socialise with my friends from our own homes.”
Whereas Atifa says she wishes she hadn’t recently spent £400 on tickets to the stage adaptation of Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away. She says if she knew they were going to move house, resulting in the need to buy new appliances, she wouldn’t have bought them.
The couple were also surprised about their differing views on private school, as they’d not discussed it much before.
Atifa, who went to a state school, says she got better grades than Ali, who was privately educated, and doesn’t think spending money on schools necessarily leads to better results. Furthermore she says: “I also feel public schools foster elitism and shelter children from the real world.”
But Ali says Atifa’s missed the mark. He says: “We don’t go to private school for the grades. It’s about the lifestyle. You’re more likely to meet people from more stable backgrounds and have more access to opportunities from that. Private school is good if you can afford it, and if you can’t that’s fine, too. You can also teach children good values from home.”
Mr Johnson says: “It is important for any couple to understand both the short-term expectations, such as monthly budgets and lifestyle costs, as well as the bigger, long-term priorities. For example, how will Atifa fund her business start-up? If they plan to have children, how will early years care be covered, and will they go for private education and/or university? These events may seem a long way off, but they are potentially significant costs, so will take long-term planning.”
