whats the average spend for students per week?

shoperholicnot

Just wondered what a good amount is per week for food and going out?

I am convinced that my daughter is spending far too much (£550 in 3 weeks :eek: )

linzibean

That is an obscene amount! Does that even include rent???

A week, including rent -

rent £65
food £15
cinema £5

I'm not a typical student as I dont go out drinking and I'm saving up to move in with my OH, but I dont live on the breadline either. If your daughter keeps spending like that she will put herself in serious debt!

shoperholicnot

hi linzibean

thanks that does NOT include rent :rolleyes:
she is in her first year and it is the worst she has done so far. She is spending it on going out to pubs and eating out and I suspect clothes. She has not got a job and has already gone £150 in to her overdraft, she only got her loan payment 3 weeks ago, she is staying at uni for another week or so and then is coming home, and i will have to clear the overdraft for her which will prob be about £300, I am at the end of my tether. and i would not mind but the only things she has in her kitchen cupboard are a tin of soup and beans!!!!

Sillychuckie

Depends on the student so much... Is like asking "how long is a piece of string".
Most of my friends live for the student loan. They use it to pay off their interest free overdraft and then proceed to work their way towards their maximum overdraft amount again. They usually only have about 20p to spare the day the loan comes in, so celebrate their new found wealth accordingly (by spending more).
I on the other hand am a cheap so and so. Apart from £60 a week rent, and maybe £5-10 on food (its possible, with good cooked meals and no 'heat and eats'), I really have no other expenses (minor bills perhaps, but few social expenses).
All my student loan has ever done is gone into a savings account of some sort.

hanspam

I spent loads in my first two years, but have cut down a lot this year.

Without including rent, I have a budget of £30 a week - that goes towards food (although I don't do a big shop every week), launderette money, photocopying costs, etc. Things that I don't count in that budget include tickets to go back home, and my phone bill.

I'm saving as much as I can for my postgraduate course, so don't have much to spare, but I want to take out as small a loan as possible!

Stevenj214

shoperholicnot wrote:

i will have to clear the overdraft for her which will prob be about £300

Why......?

shoperholicnot

Stevenj214 wrote:

Why......?

Hi
I know that I should not clear it for her, but she does not have a job yet and I am worried that the bank will not give her a overdraft when she has to reapply. I am not sure how it works exactly to be honest but I thought that she had to reapply for an overdraft facility every year?? although I am willing to help her I know She is going to HAVE to learn to take responsibilty for her own finances and her own actions but is like banging head of brick wall sometimes

Burned_Alive

At most id expect someone to spend £100 a week, but most of my friends are on about £50 a week. £550 in 3 weeks is ridiculous!

Overdrafts just roll over and generally increase by £250 a year automatically.

Stevenj214

shoperholicnot wrote:

Hi
I know that I should not clear it for her, but she does not have a job yet and I am worried that the bank will not give her a overdraft when she has to reapply. I am not sure how it works exactly to be honest but I thought that she had to reapply for an overdraft facility every year?? although I am willing to help her I know She is going to HAVE to learn to take responsibilty for her own finances and her own actions but is like banging head of brick wall sometimes

My bank (Royal Bank of Scotland) actually increases the overdraft limit each year, from £1250 in 1st year to £1600 in 4th year. No need to reapply. All at 0%. Must be paid back within 1 year of graduating (still at 0%) then if still not paid, they offer a 'competitive rate' loan to pay it off over 1 year I think.


When I got my first interest free overdraft, I just spent it like it was my money, but when I was approaching the limit, I had no other option but to budget.

If you make it clear to her that essentials (rent, food etc) is covered for the year, then the rest should be hers to do as she pleases with.

sophlowe45

thats an obsene amount of money to spend!!

my rent is £56 a week (uni halls)

food £15

then whatever for clothes etc. If i'm buying a lot of stuff as one-off then i'll spend a lot in one week...like when i bought my laptop or digital camera.

you don't reapply for your interest-free overdraft every academic year, it stays the same unless you apply to extend it, as the interest-free amount increases every year, e.g. Barclalys, £1000 year 1, £1250 year 2 and £1500 year 3. HSBC extend your overdraft limit automatically so no need to apply to extend the limit...i have accounts with both and keep my overdrafts in ING to earn a bit of interest...

why can't she work over the summer and pay off the overdraft herself? If you live at home it doesn't take long to save £300 even at a £5 an hour job...

i'm not your average student so i spend quite little and think about my expensive purchases and shop around but to be fair she doesn't seem like the worst either...£300 into your overdraft in an entire academic year is not too bad...a lot of people i've seen max them out and then start on their second student accounts...

edited to add - most people i know have a £50 week budget after bus fares, rent, bills etc.

freebie_junkie

omg! that much in 3 weeks! my eyes are peeling from reading that!

like a prevoius poster im also not like a 'typical' student coz i dont drinka nd i have my own flat, i also have to buy special food so my grocery bills are pushed up by that, my spends in a week are summing like:

£30 food
£15 going out (at very most! but that includes me paying for my oh into cinema, we take turns in paying for each other, its my turn this week!)

i only buy clothes that i need and i use tkmaxx, primark and sports world for cheap, nicely made stuff that will last and that looks good too.

i use boots loopholes to get all my smellies for free/cheap and only treat myself to perfumes etc. when debenhams have special events on

when i go out to the shops i usually only come home with freebie samples etc. i find that more exciting than spending money

at teh supermarket i got to asda and use coupons to get 10% off my shopping and i stock up on bogof's of stuff i use that will keep

i hate eating out coz i can never find anything that i like with my limited diet so i cook from scratch using fresh veg and i save some in teh freezer as 'ready meals' for whan ive not got much time or im feeling lazy!

i enjoy lovely free nights and days out like all of our free museums and art galeries and preview cinema tickets, plus i buy stuff in tescos with extra points coupons and exchange those points into going out tokens for cadbury world, alton towers etc.

perhaps you could pass on these tips to your daughter and of course your own money-saving expertise!