Bills and food costs for 1 person

mab7689

I am currently in the process of producing an application for a flat I am interested in. I start a new job in September and I have used a salary calculator online which tells me my take home pay will be £1070 a month. The flat I am interested in is a 1 bed at £450pcm. I believe this is affordable if I am stringent with my finances. My current calculations for my perceived monthly outgoings from September are:
Rent-£450
Council Tax-£66 (based on what I have worked out by looking at my band rate and the 25% single occupant discount)
Transport-£113. I dont drive so I am commuting by rail (I am interested in the place in question as it is 5 minutes walk away from my train station)
Mobile-£33
Cineworld card-£16-I want to be able to maintain some sort of social life. I wont afford to have a lot but dont want a non-existent one either
Landline and Internet-The cheapest I have found, including line rental, is £25 from Sky so I will set up an account with that
This totals £654, leaving me with £416.
I now need to ask if anyone has an idea what my average monthly spend on utilities and food is likely to be? This will be my first time away moving out from parents so I have never paid a utility bill or bought ALL my own food before.
Based on estimations and research I have found online I think utilities should be £100 and food £150. In terms of utilities this is the one I am at least sure about, can anyone confirm this is what I am roughly looking at or is that too low.
Food should be variable based on what I buy and where from. The place I am looking at is 10 minutes walk away from an Aldi so this should enable to keep my food costs down.
To add to this I know I should get contents insurance but that should be relatively low and I aim to pay off a tv licence is one lump sum from my savings.
Any more advice would be appreciated. Thanks

DeadMoney

The answer is "how long is a piece of string". I can't give you figures, but I can say

Make a spreadsheet in excell. Put your salary at the top, then list all, expenditures and monthly saving plans. Food, clothing, phone, cineworld. Having it on a spreadsheet helps to see where money can be moved around, and where you have some free. It can also help with budgeting and saving for things like christmas. Have a field that warns you if your expenditure exceeds your income. I use my spreadsheet religiously, and it is gold dust for financial planning.

Look into payng your council tax over 12 months instead of 10

How is the flat heated, and are utilities paid by key meter or direct debit? Dd is more expensive in the summer but cheaper in the winter. Key meter lets you "choose" how much you pay each month, but in the winter it can be a huge draw on your finances unless you save for it during the summer.

Consider careful water usage. When my washing machine broke, it was amazing the difference it made to my water bill that term.

GET CONTENT INSURANCE. It is a small price, but it is a life safer.

When budgeting, consider not only food, but clothes, books, "treats", toiletries. You want to live, not just exist. If your shoes break, can you afford a new pair. Maybe have a little emergency "life" fund.

If you feel confident that you won't impulse buy, maybe see about getting an interest free credit card for the first year, to give you a margin for error if there is an unexpected payment. If you are really savvy, you could use it as a debit card, but put the money aside on your spreadsheet so that it is there to pay the card off at the end of the interest free period, meanwhile that money is earning you interest in an ISA :-). NEVER SPEND MORE ON YOUR CARD TNAN YOU CAN PAY BACK FROM SAVINGS. Credit Card interest is not worth it.

Sorry it doesn't answer your question, but hope it helps anyhow. And good luck. This is an adventure. Moving out was the hardest, but most exciting thing I ever did. Enjoy it.

mark?_3

Welcome to the real world and good luck!! Sounds like you've got a good grip on finances so am sure you'll be fine

When i was living on my own in a flat in the midlands - my bills were as follows. Hope this helps

Council tax £88 p/m (and you don't normally pay anything in feb and march which is nice)
telly licence £12 p/m
Water £200 p/y (£100 billed twice a year)
Electric £40 p/m (all electric flat. Got £100 cash back through quidco)
Gas - didn't have any
Internet and Phone £20-25 p/m (again, lots of cashback to be have through quidco)
Food - £50 p/w (aldi's great although i always struggle resisting the urge to buy MIG welders / generators / label makers /what ever mystery items they're flogging that week
Contents Insurance - £150 p/y (don't just go for the cheapest but more cashback to be had here!)
Clothing - £0-50 p/m
Cash (aka pub) - £50-£100 p/m (Always seems to evaporate!)

Then there's putting cash aside for holidays / house deposit / Christmas and birthdays.