"16 Kids and Counting" - how do they afford it?

gunsandbanjos

MerlinMags wrote: »

Oh dear, we've gone completely off the topic I was hoping to learn about - extreme money saving! Maybe the 16-kids-and-counting family are not the gurus I thought they were, due to government help, but I don't think we can learn anything by proposing benefit .

The title of your thread is how do they afford it? The answer is with very generous hand outs from the government.
The answers are not off topic given the title of your thread.

MerlinMags

Oh I wasn't saying people couldn't go off topic. This is an internet forum after all! I was just desperate for more tips.

So many money-saving articles I read (from all sorts of websites) list things, and I tick off each one with "yup, already do that" until I wonder what it is I am missing. I can't be the perfect money-saver already, as my bank balance shows...

zagfles

NAR wrote: »

Look forward to hearing the squeals when benefits are restricted to £26k a year.

It won't apply to them, because (by the looks of it) they're meeting the hours requirement for WTC. So they are exempt from the cap.

gunsandbanjos

MerlinMags wrote: »

Oh I wasn't saying people couldn't go off topic. This is an internet forum after all! I was just desperate for more tips.

So many money-saving articles I read (from all sorts of websites) list things, and I tick off each one with "yup, already do that" until I wonder what it is I am missing. I can't be the perfect money-saver already, as my bank balance shows...

Have you ventured onto the old style board? That's where the real money saving tips are to be found:D

mishmash

Have been watching this programme and feel similar to the OP!

We have 6 children altogether ( a re-constituted family!) and 5 of them are teens (3 above the age of 18) but at college and uni so not earning.

I work full time as does my OH and he also has another part time job, we earn good money and do enjoy some luxury but it is tough to balance the books.
I shop in lidl and aldi, and bulk buy at Costco, cook from scratch meal plan and even grow some of our own. We are careful with switching lights off turning heating down, pegging washing out rather than using the tumble dryer. I spend hours tidying and cleaning and cooking, as do OH and the kids and yet if a film crew were to come into my home they would not find the same picture as on this programme.
The food shopping (all branded goods from the big supermarkets),the holidays, the cars, the houses- last night seemed to be all newly decorated, the money for nights out.
I can not see how they do it with only one parent working and with all those children!

sassyblue

mishmash wrote: »

The food shopping (all branded goods from the big supermarkets),the holidays, the cars, the houses- last night seemed to be all newly decorated, the money for nights out.
I can not see how they do it with only one parent working and with all those children!

I managed to catch it last night and wondered the same! The larger lady who had the grown up girls and the son who left home was driving a lovely land rover. I may have missed alot though as l was watching it with the sound down as my 6yo got into bed with me and there were no subtitles.

The pram her daughter and her went shopping for was awful, l know someone's going to come along in a minute and tell me how fabulous it looked.

bagpuss38

No i thought it was hideous too, especially when the mum commented it would match their lipstick:o

sassyblue

bagpuss38 wrote: »

No i thought it was hideous too, especially when the mum commented it would match their lipstick:o

Yes that made me :rotfl:

What l missed out of my post was what did the dad do? He'd have to be a city banker surely?

mishmash

What l missed out of my post was what did the dad do? He'd have to be a city banker surely? [/QUOTE]

I suppose that is my point, the other Dad was a carpenter, not sure what the dad with all those girls and 1 boy did though,

I just don't know how they do it,

fireyfirenze

I thought that about the family with the grown up children, she worked part time at tesco and he was an mechanic but the mum and son both had range rovers and a gorgeous house! he must be very well paid