How to go from a single person household to a 2 person household on less money?

craigywv

do what I did, quite drastic but nessecary , oh seemed to think I LIKED going to the super market and working out meals affordability etc as I wheeled the trolley............yeah! I could think of a million things I would rather have done , 1 being pulling my teeth out with a pair of pliers! now granted this was before our son came along and we were financially better off. I gave him the grocery money and told him to go buy the shopping for the week.he was all for it, until the first nights tea was egg and toast, someone forgot potatoes! next morning cereal ...........no milk! yes he had bought a part of the meals but not all.this continued for a week until he gave up and handed all money matters to me. now he gets pocketmoney that's what he can spend on himself its not a small amount and im not expecting him to work all week and be handed a tenner or anything ,but he gets himself a few beers, magazines, pays to football matches etc. he buys me and son treats , gets his own razors etc I wont pay ten quid for razors! it works for us and yes we did have a few sulks and huffs along the way but as I told him im not your mother and if that's what you want you know where the door is. harsh it may seem but 17 years later he still here and we have a really great marriage but it has to be be give and take on both sides , hope this helps xxx

mummyroysof3

So from what I'm reading he will be working part time 5 days a week but far away so high travel costs? Has lots of debt and doesn't seen to be doing anything to sort that out? Not sure what to suggest but I do wish you luck x

AnnieO1234

Hi Faith,

What is your current food budget without him being there? Let's try and work from that to at least give you some ideas and perspective.

I sense there is some panic on your part, and a lazy attitude on his.

In respect of utility bills, get online and check that you are the best tariff, it may pay you to switch. I know a pp suggested looking at a water meter. Be very careful with these, we moved into a new build where it's now a requirement, my DH works away in the week, we shore rather than bathe I do have a little one, but our dishwasher and washer are a rated when our old ones weren't. Our water bill is astronomic compared to rates.

The big question, taking into account everything you pay and are liable for (I.e. The debts in your name that are his), how much does this leave you per month not including groceries.

If I am honest it seems a little stupid to work part time with a long commute, I'm not really sure how he is going to make this work.

Hugz

Xx

Faith177

AnnieO1234 wrote: »

Hi Faith,

What is your current food budget without him being there? Let's try and work from that to at least give you some ideas and perspective.

I sense there is some panic on your part, and a lazy attitude on his.

In respect of utility bills, get online and check that you are the best tariff, it may pay you to switch. I know a pp suggested looking at a water meter. Be very careful with these, we moved into a new build where it's now a requirement, my DH works away in the week, we shore rather than bathe I do have a little one, but our dishwasher and washer are a rated when our old ones weren't. Our water bill is astronomic compared to rates.

The big question, taking into account everything you pay and are liable for (I.e. The debts in your name that are his), how much does this leave you per month not including groceries.

If I am honest it seems a little stupid to work part time with a long commute, I'm not really sure how he is going to make this work.

Hugz

Xx

Hi my food bill currently is about £20-£30 a month as I only eat as and when i want and that's all 3 meals. I'm only at home 4-5 nights a week to eat dinner

I'm on the lowest for gas and electric as I checked this recently currently I spend £20 on gas a month and £40ish on electric once a month to 6 weeks I buy a gas canister for my fire that's about £35

I have about £60 left out of my main job wage once everything is paid as it stands ATM but end of March my Sky discount ends so that will go up by £50ish that includes broadband and phone line too. This is paying just over minimum on my cards

My pub wages vary depending on shifts but is about £117 a week roughly. I use this to top up my credit card payments and to pay my part of one loan which is £67 a month and I put the other half in to my savings for birthdays, stuff round the house ect

Not keen on getting a water meter as I do use a lot of water. I have a bath every night and sometimes twice a day if I have time on I know work will be stessful that day. Also with two dogs I'm constantly wishing their blankets and the rugs also the throws on the sofa.

short_bird

Hi, I'm posting this in a rush so it may seem a bit brutal, that's not my intention.

Do you actually need a land line phone?
Have a look at Ovivo for your mobile. (free...)
Dump Sky since you're hardly home - your gas and electricity is £60 per month and Sky's going up £50 a month. :eek:
Look at it as less hours at work
Or driving lessons to improve your prospects...

Faith177

short_bird wrote: »

Hi, I'm posting this in a rush so it may seem a bit brutal, that's not my intention.

Do you actually need a land line phone?
Have a look at Ovivo for your mobile. (free...)
Dump Sky since you're hardly home - your gas and electricity is £60 per month and Sky's going up £50 a month. :eek:
Look at it as less hours at work
Or driving lessons to improve your prospects...

I'm going to see if I can get another round of discounts before I cancel.

I have a landline so I can still speak to my family as they are in Nottingham, lincs and Scotland so landline means free calls to them and for them to call me. Also I he a deal with sky I pay £5 a month and I get 3000 minutes to Canada including mobiles which I use to speak to my best friend.

Spendless

Faith177 wrote: »

Spendless wrote: »

Is there something I'm not grasping? Surely if you've been maintaining 2 households, even if the rent was very low with meals included, there's still been 2 lots of bills, utilities, household insurances, tv licences and so on? Now you are going to have 2 incomes supporting 1 lot of bills.[/

Because he was living above the pub he was running all his utilities were paid for him via the company the £20 a month he paid was just for his bit of the council tax.

Everything I mean everything was included

Hi, thanks for the explanation but I'm with other posters. If he's been living somewhere where he has had minimal outlay, either he's been wasting his money or he's been throwing it all at the debt, if the second, either his debt is now reduced or he's gone himself into deeper problems (eg payday loans?).

Regardless you are going to have to know which, otherwise you aren't going to be able to tackle this. Reducing bills such as grocery ones are just scraping the sides if the debt is continuing to rise.

I know you are against having your utilitiy bills due to a previous DD issue, my understanding is that you will pay your fuel bills to a higher rate on a meter.