Saving for a wedding

krustylouise

LittleMissGiggles123 wrote: »

Hi

Congratulations!

Gas & electric seem high.

Entertainment could be cut, if you halve it that's £420 a year saved

Council tax over 12 months instead of 10.

I think clothing could be cut too, even temporarily. I know kids are expensive but do you have any family or friends that could give you hand me downs or could get your daughter clothes for her birthday?

And final one that stands out for me is presents. Can you tell friends/family that as you are saving for a wedding you will not be buying gifts this year & tell them you don't expect a gift in return either.

Your main problem is you are already overspending and on your own admission still need to sort out insurances, so these are going to add to your outgoings.

Just a few points I could think of. I'm sure more people will have more suggestions soon.

x

Hi,

Thanks for your reply, yes council tax is over 12, I forgot to mention I have arrears, that are nearly paid {thankfully!}

Gas and electric are high and no matter how much I keep my heating off and ring them asking them to renegotiate they refuse to reduce it! Stupid fuel companies.

Clothing is high, and to be honest was an estimate, but this does include embroidered school uniform.

Entertainment is high, and again an estimate, but I am going to try and cut this down.

Thanks again xx

poppasmurf_bewdley

krustylouise wrote: »

Hi,

The wedding budget is around £8k {bear in mind I am not saving for this alone}.

Thanks again

That's more than a year of your salary on just one day.

You need to be thinking more of a simple ceremony with a budget of about £1k maximum. Even that amount is high for someone in your situation.

thecassman86

Clearly 19lottie82's suggestion of living together is the most ideal but it's obviously not as simple as that with work etc. In the meantime though, is there any way your OH can do the wedding saving? You mentioned he had no outgoings so that'll be easy for him.

As others have suggested, your Council Tax is high for a single person, that's worth checking straight away.

Also, i understand you have a child to consider, but you might find it cheaper to have a "staycation" in October and save some money there. My wife and I didn't holiday for over 2 years leading up to our wedding - but as we had everything we needed for our home anyway, we actually asked for money towards our honeymoon as wedding gifts. That will be a nice post-wedding holiday for the 3 of you which will be much cheaper and will make up for the lack of holidays in the meantime . It's not as "cheeky" to ask as it initially sounds and there's some really nice poems etc you can put in the invites to ask for money instead of gifts.

krustylouise

poppasmurf_bewdley wrote: »

That's more than a year of your salary on just one day.

You need to be thinking more of a simple ceremony with a budget of about £1k maximum. Even that amount is high for someone in your situation.

In MY situation yes, but you haven't an idea of my partners situation. Thank you for your input.

krustylouise

thecassman86 wrote: »

Clearly 19lottie82's suggestion of living together is the most ideal but it's obviously not as simple as that with work etc. In the meantime though, is there any way your OH can do the wedding saving? You mentioned he had no outgoings so that'll be easy for him.

As others have suggested, your Council Tax is high for a single person, that's worth checking straight away.

Also, i understand you have a child to consider, but you might find it cheaper to have a "staycation" in October and save some money there. My wife and I didn't holiday for over 2 years leading up to our wedding - but as we had everything we needed for our home anyway, we actually asked for money towards our honeymoon as wedding gifts. That will be a nice post-wedding holiday for the 3 of you which will be much cheaper and will make up for the lack of holidays in the meantime . It's not as "cheeky" to ask as it initially sounds and there's some really nice poems etc you can put in the invites to ask for money instead of gifts.

Hi :j

Yes OH is saving for the wedding, and is more than happy for this arrangement, my reason for wanting to cut back as much as I can is so I feel i'm contributing in some way. I HATE not pulling my own weight and am extremely proud.

This may sound stupid, but what is a staycation?! lol

Yes, given that I have lived on my own for 11 years+ I don't have any needs for an extra toaster, kettle, bedding etc, so I think we will be asking for contributions t the honeymoon, but again, I am so incredibly proud and I do feel embarrassed and cheeky suggesting that.

Thanks for your reply x

thecassman86

Hey!

"Staycation" was a media-invented word early in the recession suggesting that we should all stay at home for a week and do activities that are close to home, rather than take a vacation... It sounds boring at first, but, consider various days out available near home, any nice walks or bike ride places etc and it's not too difficult to fill a week for cheaper than a holiday (admittedly, to replace an abroad holiday, not Butlins which is nice and affordable anyway!).

Well my Wife and I lived together before we married so, similarly, we had toasters and kettles and bedding etc already too! We felt cheeky as well but we were both surprised how happy people were to do it - in fact, we've been to a wedding since ours where they asked for honeymoon funds and we were really pleased about it because otherwise we'd have had no clue what to get them!! Sometimes, it actually helps people get you a gift. It's less effort to take money out of their purse and put in your wedding card than it is to go and buy something for you - but, it's also far more useful to you .

As i said, there are loads of lovely poems online that really make it sound less embarrassing. Most of them are light-hearted too and mention the fact that it feels cheeky and that makes it feel even better

Tixy

Hi krusty

So where are you up to now, £64 less on haircuts, £50 less on water soon, £X? less on council tax soon.

That will turn your figures from a negative each month to a small surplus of over £100?

What else could you shave off presents/entertainment and holiday do you think? maybe £80? Perhaps a little off groceries (£20?)

That would then give you £200 after paying the minimum on your card each month. Mostly its advisable to pay off debt first but as your is interest free then maybe you want to start saving straight away.

How soon is the wedding? (I may have missed that if you have already said).

Mimi_Arc_en_ciel

krustylouise wrote: »

Hi all,

We are saving for a wedding, we currently don't live together, as he works 40 miles away, but we hope to in the future. I have attached my SOA in the hope someone can advise where I could cut back to save money for the wedding. I appreciate that I should have contents insurance, and also life insurance, and I am already getting quotes for these, so just advice on cut backs would be great. Just before you start reading I will say, I have slight arrears on my water, my mobile is locked in a contract until June, and Sky package is in contract for another 6 months I think and includes TV, line rental and internet. My groceries include everything, for myself my daughter 2 cats and meals for OH when he's here.

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 1
Number of children in household......... 1
Number of cars owned.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 891
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 849
Other income............................ 173
Total monthly income.................... 1913

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 550
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 110 Could you pay over 12 months instead of 10?
Electricity............................. 50 Look on the MSE Enegery comparison - are you paying the right amount? I use £10 per week atm with 3 of us
Gas..................................... 60 High - See above
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 83.07 Ouch! How much debt do you owe on this?
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 50 Speak to them - They might drop it if you explain the situation / go in to a longer contract.
TV Licence.............................. 13
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 60 Drop when you can. We have everything, barr moviesd / sports for £20 a month. Freeview even better!
Internet Services....................... 0
Groceries etc. ......................... 200 This could be dropped - Meal plan a head. Use mysupermarket for comparisson - Shop locally
Clothing................................ 30 Sell old clothes on eBay
Petrol/diesel........................... 90
Road tax................................ 12
Car Insurance........................... 34.44
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 35
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 173 Do you get WTC/CTC for this? Are you better off with work vouchers?
Other child related expenses............ 10 Whats this?
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 20
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 70 a MONTH?! :eek: Cut down
Haircuts................................ 6
Entertainment........................... 70 This can be cut down
Holiday................................. 115 Not essential - Although if you can afford it why not.
Emergency fund.......................... 40
Total monthly expenses.................. 1881.51


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 800
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 800

No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Vanquis........................1272......60........0
Total unsecured debts..........1272......60........- You havent included the water bill here


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,913
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,881.51
Available for debt repayments........... 31.49
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 60
Amount short for making debt repayments. -28.51

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 800
Total HP & Secured debt................. -0
Total Unsecured debt.................... -1,272
Net Assets.............................. -472

Created using the SOA calculator at www.stoozing.com.
Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission, using Firefox browser.

Hi,

My comments are in red Apologies as i know some have already been mentioned ^^

Quick Q - Does your OH pay anything towards the bills / food when he is at yours? If not, why not?

HTH and congratulations x

flamingo747

Would it make sense for you to use some money from the wedding fund or from oh to clear your card, and then you pay the money back? Better for your credit rating and more flexible to repay. You're be a married couple soon woth joint finances, so you needn't be too worried about being proud.

(this is meant in a nice way, hoping it might be some help)

krustylouise

Tixy wrote: »

Hi krusty

So where are you up to now, £64 less on haircuts, £50 less on water soon, £X? less on council tax soon.

That will turn your figures from a negative each month to a small surplus of over £100?

What else could you shave off presents/entertainment and holiday do you think? maybe £80? Perhaps a little off groceries (£20?)

That would then give you £200 after paying the minimum on your card each month. Mostly its advisable to pay off debt first but as your is interest free then maybe you want to start saving straight away.

How soon is the wedding? (I may have missed that if you have already said).

Hi Tixy,

I have to wait until March for council tax to decrease, I have taken £20 pm off Presents and £20 pm off entertainment and will see how we go, if it's doable then I'll decrease it even more. Yes my card is 0% so I'm happy to just let it slowly decrease, however it if was high apr I'd be hammering it down!

We are planning on getting married October 2015 so we have 21 months to plan and save! x