Do you earn enough for a minimum acceptable standard of living?

PasturesNew

marklv wrote: »

By that argument you could live in a cardboard box! Where do you draw the line?

Just a simple "On Rightmove, 3 bed house, within 10 miles, that's not a mobile home/at auction/cash buyers only/holiday let/other oddity".

marklv

Herbie_Hancock_I_wish wrote: »

Scarily we are somewhat under what we need due to no mortgage, but with business as it is we are lower earners at present. When I netted £30k a year, one income, I was able to save a minimum of 10k a year not allowing for big " one offs " I guess housing costs make up for around 30% of many couples incomes.

Mortgage, home insurance and council tax is c.17% of our net income but we deliberately bought a cheaper house than we could afford. We live well, but if I lost my job then the proverbial would hit the fan.

PasturesNew

marklv wrote: »

Sarnies from PretAManger at lunchtime weekdays (£6 including drink), and just standard stuff in the evening: fish, burgers or steak, sausages, etc with chips or mash, and veg. An occasional dessert and fruit. It all mounts up.

£6 for some poncey sandwiches? Mad.

marklv

PasturesNew wrote: »

No. Proper food. Fresh stuff, that you have to cut yourself.

List what you ate yesterday then..... I won't as I was eating up some leftovers in the fridge to get them used up, so that doesn't count as normal.

But, take Sunday, roast chicken (£2 for the whole thing), roast spuds (25p worth), roast parsnips (20p worth), peas/carrots (30p), gravy (2p) - to serve 4. And there's still cooked chicken in the fridge today!

£2 for a roast chicken?!! Where from?

I only buy corn fed free range ones and even at Tesco they seem to be £7-8 (large ones).

marklv

PasturesNew wrote: »

£6 for some poncey sandwiches? Mad.

Poncey but nice. My employer does not provide a staff canteen.

I sometimes get a pie and mash from 'EAT' and even that is over £6 with a bottle of water.

Herbie_Hancock_I_wish

marklv wrote: »

Mortgage, home insurance and council tax is c.17% of our net income but we deliberately bought a cheaper house than we could afford. We live well, but if I lost my job then the proverbial would hit the fan.

Good place to be, 17%.

Guitar

You have enough for a minimum standard of living.

Your income exceeds your outgoings.

You have an extra: £20.88 per week

Whoo! It's actually better than that as food cost is almost 2/3 of what they suggest. Wish I could afford £42.16 for 'Social and cultural activites'.

flea72

marklv wrote: »

Poncey but nice. My employer does not provide a staff canteen.

I sometimes get a pie and mash from 'EAT' and even that is over £6 with a bottle of water.

you can get a sarny, drink and crisps/choc in Boots for £3 (£2 if you go to Poundland, but the sarnies are a bit limited there)

on the days you have pie and mash, would you then also have a cooked evening meal?

F

marklv

Guitar wrote: »

Wish I could afford £42.16 for 'Social and cultural activites'.

I think this is jargon for getting hammered at the local with your mates.

marklv

flea72 wrote: »

you can get a sarny, drink and crisps/choc in Boots for £3 (£2 if you go to Poundland, but the sarnies are a bit limited there)

on the days you have pie and mash, would you then also have a cooked evening meal?

F

Unfortunately I have no Boots within a reasonable walk of my workplace. I do have two main meals a day, yes, and whether one is cooked or not isn't relevant to me.