How much do you live on per month?

Lucy1010

jaffacakegal wrote: »

Lucy - I gave up smoking two years ago. Was on about 10 a day before that - roughly £2 a day wasted. I decided to give up as I could not have afforded to buy a house and pay the mortgage billls etc if I carried on. I just thought right lets see if I can go a day without smoking and if I can I will put £2 in a piggy bank. And, just did that every day for 3 months, never looking more than one day ahead. Every day, no ciggie, £2 to me! I've never smoked since (though by god I've been tempted, especially recently!).

Oh and I've been single for 5 years. Most of the time it doesn't bother me, I love being able to do what I want when I want, in my house on my own!

But I understand where you're coming from, recently I find myself really wishing I had someone to come home to/share things with (including bills lol!).

JCG x

Thanks JCG it is so good to know others in my situation. I am paying the money I am saving on cigs towards my debt, it means I pay them off in 9 months rather than 17 months, let's hope nothing gets in the way of my debt busting. Thanks again hun xx

juliebunny

jaffacakegal wrote: »

Oh and I've been single for 5 years. Most of the time it doesn't bother me, I love being able to do what I want when I want, in my house on my own!

But I understand where you're coming from, recently I find myself really wishing I had someone to come home to/share things with (including bills lol!).

JCG x

Me too to the loving being on my own - and if you are lonely, may I suggest a cat!:jThey are always there to meet you at the front door when you get home and ready for a cuddle - and keep you warm at night - without wanting any favours in return .

I was better off when my ex moved out - since i was already paying ALL the bills, including buying all the food. My panic at how I would cope (financially) was very short lived and I was actually better off!

It seemed like I was the only one who shared - if he had any extra money he never shared it with me - actually, he hid it from me most of the time. I once found out he got £1k from a car crash - from one of his friends! And I paid off a credit card bill for him - stupid, stupid, stupid!! :doh:

I thought I was doing the right thing, supporting him, but actually I was teaching him dependancy and not doing either of us any favours.
But I also wanted all the bills to be paid and didn't trust him to take care of anything...it was a vicious circle really....

Good riddance to bad newswhen he left :T and I even packed his stuff for him when he moved out and wrote him a tenancy reference to make sure he left! :rotfl::rotfl:And I delivered his PC to his new front lawn when I found out what he had been doing on it whilst I was out hard at work supporting him!! :mad:
Some other poor sucker lives with him now, phew!:T

tomtombeanie

hi lucy! been reading through from the start & have just caught up. i have really enjoyed reading everyone's posts so far...

for what it's worth, i also thought you were a bit younger & that ani was a guy!

i budget about £70ish a week for 4 of us + dog (2 adults, 9 year old & 5 year old) to cover food/toiletries/sundries. as you'll see from my sig, our only debt is our mortgage. we have one wage coming in, i have not worked since DS2 was born - by choice - as DH works away a lot, it suits us for me to be at home for now. as soon as "we" get paid, i transfer a chunk of money to our savings account which goes towards things like car tax, house insurance, car insurance, holidays etc - basically all the big expenses that i don't pay out for monthly. if there is not enough money in there for a holiday, we don't have one - simple as!

we don't go out a lot, try to enjoy free things like out on the bikes with kids, walking the dog etc and when we do go out i'm a voucher girl all the way! our budget is pretty tight, but we certainly don't go without things. it's a recurring theme, but i do think it's all about the balance. we like wine, so i buy two bottles a week (well actually, i buy 3 for 10 but the hide the extras!) for me & dh to share.

i don't think it's necessarily easier to be married or in a joint financial situation, it does depend who the other person is. my DH is a lot more careful now than he used to be - he likes not owing & wants to stay that way. although he earns the money at the moment, i am in charge of it and this works well for us

i also had stretches of being single/lonely before i got married and it's true that you need to be happy with yourself. sometimes a hard thing to do. i have found that the less i think/care about what other people think of me, the happier i am.

i don't post very much but i will carry on reading with interest! xxx ttb

Lucy1010

tomtombeanie wrote: »

hi lucy! been reading through from the start & have just caught up. i have really enjoyed reading everyone's posts so far...

for what it's worth, i also thought you were a bit younger & that ani was a guy!

i budget about £70ish a week for 4 of us + dog (2 adults, 9 year old & 5 year old) to cover food/toiletries/sundries. as you'll see from my sig, our only debt is our mortgage. we have one wage coming in, i have not worked since DS2 was born - by choice - as DH works away a lot, it suits us for me to be at home for now. as soon as "we" get paid, i transfer a chunk of money to our savings account which goes towards things like car tax, house insurance, car insurance, holidays etc - basically all the big expenses that i don't pay out for monthly. if there is not enough money in there for a holiday, we don't have one - simple as!

we don't go out a lot, try to enjoy free things like out on the bikes with kids, walking the dog etc and when we do go out i'm a voucher girl all the way! our budget is pretty tight, but we certainly don't go without things. it's a recurring theme, but i do think it's all about the balance. we like wine, so i buy two bottles a week (well actually, i buy 3 for 10 but the hide the extras!) for me & dh to share.

i don't think it's necessarily easier to be married or in a joint financial situation, it does depend who the other person is. my DH is a lot more careful now than he used to be - he likes not owing & wants to stay that way. although he earns the money at the moment, i am in charge of it and this works well for us

i also had stretches of being single/lonely before i got married and it's true that you need to be happy with yourself. sometimes a hard thing to do. i have found that the less i think/care about what other people think of me, the happier i am.

i don't post very much but i will carry on reading with interest! xxx ttb

Hey TTB

Loved reading your reply, thank you for sharing:) I am behind my years both physically and personality wise but I don't mind, I quite like it Its nice to be mistaken for a 25 year old, long may it last I am taking a new approach to the kingdom of singleton thanks to all the OPs xx

mildredalien

Juliebunny - ouch it sounds like you made a good decision!! Things can be difficult enough as it is without living with someone who makes money issues even worse... I was in a very similar situation myself, definitely a case of good riddance!!

Aosop - I have SOME food in the house - a few staples like rice and tinned toms, and a bunch of stuff I bought from costco yesterday. Not sure how long it will all last me though, I seem to go through food at a rate of knots even when I try and manage my spending!! I guess that's what, £30 a week which should be more than enough to top off what I already have.

eco

I'm posting from work so don't have a lot of time, once I've paid bills and petrol I make myself have £30 this is for food and treats, change goes in a jar for nights out and other stuff, will admit I cheat but not in debt really, but I've been living on my own since Jan 2003 and at first i worried about paying everything myself, I must have been mad, cos it took a while to realise I was like Juliebunny my ex was good with money just didn't want to pay his share and thought when we split it was going to be half, he was in for a shock. I'm better off on my own, alright can't afford hols all the time but don't like leaving my dog so it's not something I stress over.

I'm trying to stop buying all the carp I do hence the low weekly spend, cos there are stuff I want to do like moving in 2 years time, and just having more in savings. I'm like Souk I don't want kids and can't say I'm itching to race down the aisle and I'm 38 now, my lifes good the way I live it, and if someone comes along there going to have to fit round me, cos I'm fed up with lazy men who think it ain't there job, like the saying goes it's my way or the highway, fit in or ship out.

jaffacakegal

juliebunny wrote: »

Me too to the loving being on my own - and if you are lonely, may I suggest a cat!:jThey are always there to meet you at the front door when you get home and ready for a cuddle - and keep you warm at night - without wanting any favours in return .

I was better off when my ex moved out - since i was already paying ALL the bills, including buying all the food. My panic at how I would cope (financially) was very short lived and I was actually better off!

It seemed like I was the only one who shared - if he had any extra money he never shared it with me - actually, he hid it from me most of the time. I once found out he got £1k from a car crash - from one of his friends! And I paid off a credit card bill for him - stupid, stupid, stupid!! :doh:

I thought I was doing the right thing, supporting him, but actually I was teaching him dependancy and not doing either of us any favours.
But I also wanted all the bills to be paid and didn't trust him to take care of anything...it was a vicious circle really....

Good riddance to bad newswhen he left :T and I even packed his stuff for him when he moved out and wrote him a tenancy reference to make sure he left! :rotfl::rotfl:And I delivered his PC to his new front lawn when I found out what he had been doing on it whilst I was out hard at work supporting him!! :mad:
Some other poor sucker lives with him now, phew!:T

to the cat idea! I already had the same idea, I'm just making my house cat friendly first, bit of a building site in places! Only thing putting me off is the added expense of keeping a pet, though I suppose it is cheaper than a man :rotfl:

I think that's why I am not actively searching anyone, u can't really trust anyone or rely on anyone but yourself!

God I'm a misery ain't I?!

JGC x

elsien

My main problem of the moment is keeping away from the grabbit forum.
It does help me at times when there are offers on that I actually need, but I'm one of those who can't resist a bargain. If I see a decent grabbit, whether I want or need it completely goes out of the window, cos "it's a bargain!"
Some parts of this forum should be restricted to responsible adults only.:rotfl:

7roland8

Hi Lucy - don't think its easier for a couple - unless you oth have the same utlook on money. I know hubby yrs back would wnat cheques - 'from next weeks pay' - then of course less the following week - so it continued. Also know I never wnated kids to do without so no they're grown I've got cards to pay off - with little money coming in so it'll take ages!
BUT gboard is great - as is everyone here.
I kept last fornightly shop down to £119 - for hubby me and three cats - plus beans, milk, bread and cheese which DS thinks comes as part of the household - though he buys his other food.

iwantahome

Hi
While I don't have bills to pay as such I try to live off about £300 per month. (being single does inflate this some months). Im currently saving for a deposit for a place of my own after having to move in with my parents following splitting up with my ex.

When we were together we used to share the bills and share anything that was left over. This was not easy as we both resented each other for our debts and one having more spare than the other. Sharing things like this was probably one of the things that led to our break up, as we rarely argued, but whenever we did it was about money.

While sharing my life and home with someone else was amazing, it was still very hard. I did not have my LBM until after the split and the sudden realisation that I had no home and had to do something about my debts in order to get myself one. I think we are both financially better off since the split as we have both had to become a bit more responsible for ourselves and take more control rather than relying on the other one.

I was devastated at the split and still am not quite over it yet, but i'm getting there and like some others have said on this thread I am finally learning to love myself and not try to live up to other people's expectations. I have no intention of getting involved with anyone else for a few years yet as I feel it is time I lived my own life and had a period of doing whatever pleases me, it is giving me an opportunity to work on my confidence and become more independent. Don't get me wrong though I will not pass up an opportunity for a bit of fun or maybe more, but i'm not actively looking.

Although I do not have bills as such because of living with my parents I am treating my pay as though I do have those bills that others have. This is very hard to do as i'm not sure how much per month living on my own will cost. Currently I am budgeting approx £1000 a month that is placed directly into deposit savings on payday and not touched at all. This way I will be used to that amount allocated to bills in the future (this is the theory). I do have some other bills such as mobile phone/gym etc, but not a lot.

How much do some of you singles have to allocate to bills per month? I know this can vary depending on location, but I may be able to get an idea of what my future monthly outgoings will be once I finally am able to start my life on my own. I will still put my £1000 per month away for savings regardless of any answers people come up with, but it would be nice to know what my situation will be like when I move.