Can I afford to move out?

rising_from_the_ashes

flubberyzing wrote: »

If I were you, I'd have another year at home (assuming your parents are happy to have you), save like the devil, perhaps look into getting a better job (take a college course or something) and then reassess the finances in a year or so..

Grabs39 wrote: »

My hours can't be cut (contracted to 35 hours) and my job is pretty stable (we're actually hiring at the moment!) but in this economy you never know when redundancy might jump out and bite you. I agree it may best to wait a while and save up a bit.

I'd say leave it another year ...... try to get by on what you think you'll have left and save up the difference (ie rent is £250 and will be £250, utilities will be £100 etc)

If you can mange with the £75 / month disposable income ... then you're set - if not, then it won't work

Those car costs are always going to cripple you ... you really need to sit down and work out if it is justifiable - are there any of the city car hire schemes where you life that you could use one when needed but not have the expenses of owning one?

[Deleted User]

So food and all utilities cost you £250 per month ? can I move in when you move out :) Seriously no I don't think you can do it, not run a car as well its just a case of biting the bullet .You might be suprised at how much you would miss home.

When I left home many many years ago and first had a bed sit I can remember wondering why the lights had gone out (slot meter in those days ) and I can remember saving up to buy an iron as there wasn't one where I lived and my clothes looked awful for several weeks.Silly things like a tin opener which you have to buy for yourself, or once I remember living on custard for a week as I was stony broke and the milkman delivered the milk on the doorstep and I had a tin of Birds custard powder in the cupboard (about all there was at the time :)) After a week of custard, it took me a couple of years before I could eat the stuff again :)
Its a cold hard life out there and without a bit of back up you may find it quite lonely as well.Maybe your parents are so used to asking you where you are going to that they do it out of habit, or dare I say love, as you are there most precious possesion :)
Good luck if you take the plunge but do think long and hard about it first

Patchwork_Quilt

Could you move into a larger room at home? If your parents are in a 3 bed semi could you have the other double bedroom?

You could be uber-cheeky and ask them if you could reduce the amount you pay in board so that you could save up for your own place. You never know, they might be agreeable.

sonastin

Its worth trying to live on that budget for a while to a) see if you can afford it and b) build up your savings pot while you are at it. I would add a tiny caveat though - if you honestly believe that you'll be happy staying home in your own home but being home in your parents place makes life unbearable (the reason some people feel the need to move out) allow a small (fixed!) amount from your budget to pay for "respite" - going out in ways that you won't be able to afford later but won't need to once you have your freedom - but be realistic about the effect/difference that it will make losing this freedom.

krlyr

HeadAboveWater wrote: »

Good suggestion

Rented a room for a couple years. I know it's not to everyone's taste and it can be hit and miss, but it is a heck of a lot cheaper than a big house/flat on your own.

Ditto this.

Grabs39 wrote: »

Moving in with a (one) friend is a possibility if I find someone I'd a) want to live with and b) who wants to. I'd rather not live with strangers or with more than one person - I don't like being around a lot of people when I want to get things done or relax. The reason I want to move is so I can have more space rather than that things are unpleasant at the moment. I have no idea why but it irritates me when I'm asked where I'm going etc. Not that they mind, they're doing it out of curiosity not because I can't, it just annoys me for some reason. I also only have a room that's 7 1/2 feet by 8 feet, half of which is bed, and I have a lot of books, clothes, DVDs etc so I'm always tripping over things and have no-where but bed to do work.

Don't rule it out completely! I just couldn't put up with sharing a house with my mum any longer. She's lovely, but we're alike in many ways and clashed. Add to the fact my stepdad worked shifts (so we had to adapt to that in terms of noise we made - even just walking up and down stairs, tidying our rooms, etc. because he was a light sleeping) and the house was a bit in the middle of nowhere, I just wanted out. I went on spareroom.co.uk, found an ad I liked the sound of, went to view it and meet potential housemates and moved out that month!
It worked out pretty well, the housemates were friendly but happy to leave me to myself. We were all working professionals, and all quite tidy, considerate people - it was very rare to find dirty dishes in the sink or other communal areas, we all respected each other's fridge shelves, did a cleaning rota and so on.
In both houses we were in (same group, +/- a couple of people over time) I rented probably the largest room in the house, which was actually the living room converted into a bedroom. This had two benefits - both rooms were large enough to fit a sofa, coffee table and desk on one side, and keep the bedroom stuff (wardrobe, bed, etc.) on the other so I felt like I had two defined living areas solely to myself. I could watch TV, eat dinner, surf the net, etc. all within the privacy of my own room. Also, being downstairs meant I practically had the downstairs bathroom to myself 90% of the time, and often the whole of downstairs - come about 7pm everyone would have disappeared off to their rooms to chill out. Perfect for me, as I quite enjoy my own company! They were friendly people though and made me feel welcome to join in with household BBQs and so on, so I made some good friends in the process.

It was a lot cheaper than renting my own place - £400pcm inclusive of bills, vs. £750 exclusive on my own. The latter would not have been affordable on my wage so wasn't an option.

Plus, I knew my mum would have me back if it really didn't work out. There was a bit of a (serious, and unlikely to crop up to be honest - I was unlucky!) issue with a housemate that led to me moving back for a month or two but then the household moved to a new house, minus problem housemate, so I moved back there and all was well again. So perhaps speak to your parents about things and see how they feel about things, perhaps you just trialling it without moving all your stuff out/clearing your room - then there's not really much to lose by trying it.

Spendless

I lived with parents till age 27/28 for the same reasons. Low paid work and running a car. The car eventually led to me being able to find better paid work further afield, so am glad I never got rid of it. Give it time. Your relationship with your gf may develop into you sharing somewhere.

tori.k

motorbike an option? slash the cost of car but keep you mobile.

thriftwizard

I've just waved goodbye to the lad previously known as The Lodger, to whom we have been in loco parentis for several years. He's in a similar position; he's a seasonal worker, who is well-paid in summer but only for 4 months of the year; he's an OU student the rest of the time, though he's also trained as a chef so can earn outside high season if he has to. Staying with us & just chipping in for food & leccy has allowed him to build up a little savings cushion, and now he's looking at renting a flat or even a house with friends, down near where he works. The reason I'm telling you all this is because he's found it very much cheaper to run a small motorbike than a car; he's been driving since he was 17 and is usually my co-driver when we're abroad, as none of my own offspring have seen fit to learn to drive. But his car was draining the life out of him financially, even when he was trying to live in it! The bike has worked out much cheaper and still gives him the ability to trot off to see his assorted aunts & grandmothers in other towns at the drop of a hat.
Biking isn't safe & never will be as long as there are careless drivers out there, but there's a lot you can do to minimise the risks with good training, awareness, sensible clothing & careful driving. It might be a compromise worth considering?

ETA - started to post at the same time as the above! But got distracted...

LameWolf

OP, if it was me, I'd concentrate on getting the card paid off pronto, and then not use it for credit again - I use cards, but always pay the bill in full, and keep tabs on my spending with a spreadsheet.

I'd then do a "trial run" for a few months, making myself live on the money I forsee having available if I went ahead and moved out.

I'm currently doing something like this, as it happens, making myself only use my little bit of Civil Service pension, and put my disability money away in savings, against the time IDS and his DWP bods decide I can't have DLA anymore (ie once PIP comes in).

Good luck.:o

Butterfly_Brain

I think that you have underestimated electricity and gas bills, they increase year on year at well above the rate of inflation, so if you like many others have had your pay frozen or have a 1% rise, you really will be in trouble, TV licence is £145.50 per annum and you will need atelephone line for broadband, another overpriced utility I hardly use my phone but my bill is £80 per quarter and I only use £10 max for calls. Council tax, water rates, if you are on a meter they work out very expensive especially if you have a leak under the property you are still liable to pay all of the water that has drained away, so that brings us to House and contents insurance and water pipe insurance so add another £29 per month. Unexpected bills on the car plus car tax and MOT every year so allow for at least £100 per month put away to cover the cost in addition to the insurance.
So I do not think that you earn enough to survive outside of your family home.
My DD is in the same dilemma, so we have converted her room into a bed sit and do not go in her room unless she asks us in. She has her meals with us and I do all of the laundry, but she does the ironing. I know she wants independence, but she is on a zero hours contract and never knows how much she will earn at any time, she stands no chance of a decent job or flat of her own under this current government, so we have compromised as much as we can even allowing her BF to stay a couple of nights a week.