Disposable income question

GirlupNorth

Hi,

I'm so annoyed at having taken out a loan...but it was necessary and I'm dealing with it. I still have (at the moment before I change jobs) £700 disposable income (after mortgage, bills etc) this is for food, travel (very cheap where I live!) and general day to day activities. Is this a normal amount for most people? I live alone, but thinking of getting a lodger next year.

Just curious as to other's situations and how much they put aside for weekly spends,

Thanks!

louby40

I have about £500 after EVERYTHING has gone out. That's to pay for food, fuel, clothes, going out etc. It's not a lot especially when I budget £250 for food. I have to be very strict with myself at the moment. I have 2 teenagers too who eat a lot.

Next July I should be £500 a month better off so should have £900/£1k disposable income but need to save for house refurbishments then.

I had 2 lodgers in my previous house to pay for half of my exes mortgage and it worked out really well.

GirlupNorth

Hi - I'm taking a bit of a salary drop (not much hopefully) when I go back to my old job in February. It's much busier so I'm hoping I'll spend less time popping out for snacks, which is where most of my excess money goes! I finish a course in March so may rent out my spare room then, I've been living alone for ages and really enjoy it, but the extra money would be nice to clear the loan debt quickly. Even if it's for 6 months.

I'm going to try and aim for £200 on food so I can at least save £100 perhaps...:(

Also, I don't drive and buses are really cheap here. If I did drive, no doubt I'd be even more screwed!

pink68

I have £650.00 per month disposable income to feed four adults, 2 cats and 2 fish. £150 of that goes straight onto petrol so I can get to work. So no...£700 for one person is not a normal amount!

GirlupNorth

Hi pink68 - I have a very cheap mortgage as it's to do with early inheritance/parents (bit complicated to explain) and I don't drive. Travel here is £7.50 a week and I am trying to limit taxi's... My bills are quite high with my loan payment as well, but I've tried to reduce everything as much as possible (ie single person rates etc).

I just find it really interesting to hear about other people's situations as I have no idea really. I can't seem to afford many holidays, when my friends with bigger mortgages etc seem to manage (maybe their OH help them and I'm single...)

My family don't know about this most recent loan, so I don't want to appear that I can't save much (we have a few big family holidays/events next year which I'm trying not to use my cleared CC for) when really I want to save to pay it off faster. Just a bit embarrassing and I know they would kick off as they have helped me out before! I definitely waste a lot on food, eating out mostly so going to cut down on that.

Even my sibling who lives and works in London, goes on extravagant holidays...despite the London living expenses, her massive mortgage, car etc.They have also managed to recently afford renovations. I think she's just better at saving and there are two of them, but I just feel confused. I think I'm more of a live for the day kind of person...?!

pink68

I guess that your answer then lies in 'What is it you are spending on in your 'live for the day' lifestyle?'

Don't feel you need to compete with others. You haven't told them about your loan, so they most likely haven't told you about their debts. I frequently feel people have way more money than I do. For example last week I went shopping with a friend. She bought five pairs of jeans in one day, and christmas presents, and other clothes too. I bought ONE jumper with some money I'd been given for my birthday. Is she any happier than me? I know she's not. Will the jeans look anything special on her? No they won't. Can she wear more than one pair at a time? nope!
Work out what spending is important to you and what isnt. I think a lot of money is literally flushed down the toilet. People spend hundreds of pounds on fruit juices and coffees and fancy food. Does it make them healthier? No it literally ends up down the toilet.

In my opinion £700 is a lot of money to have spare each month, you should put some of it away before you get the chance to spend it during the month and then stick to a budget. It will be invaluable when you have others that need you to provide for them to.

GirlupNorth

Hi,

Thanks again that's really useful and I need to stop worrying. My friend in London earns ALOT and yet still can't afford to buy another house with her husband etc (he owns where they live, but it's quite small). But she manages to go on lots of holidays, shops at expensive shops, eat out/goes to spa's. She then complains she's skint when I know she's not. So I agree, you never know what other people's real situations are...

I've just met another friend who has just booked a trip to Dubai. She earns about the same as me, has a house and travels from Liverpool - Manchester every day. I think I'm just useless at saving so am going to try and do better next year. I've hardly bought any clothes for ages either, so it must just be going on food and random stuff at the supermarket!

Aside from the two pre-planned needed family holidays next year, I may try and go away next December. It might be good to set a target holiday which I'll need to save for, for practice as I've never done that before. I've always relied on family helping out or credit cards.

I'm also anxious about flying, so perhaps that's why I've spent money on other things rather than saving for holidays. Hopefully I'll get over that when I fly next year and will be able to go away a bit more.

Definitely food for thought! it's also a big culture where I work to meet a lot of friends/colleagues for coffee and lunch. Need to stop doing that so often. It's also not very healthy!

I'll definitely be trying to put away as much as I can. I don't think I should try and pay off the loan faster instead? I think it's more important to have savings for the future/long term?

Sorry for the rambling, I'm just worried that I can't manage to save when I have this much spare cash...(not gloating in any way, I've always had a debt of some kind for as long as I can remember!)

louby40

Many people on here suggest having an EF - emergency fund of say £1k then you should plow the rest into debts. That's what I'm doing, although my EF is only £450 as I had to use it for a real life emergency in the summer when my boiler broke and a pipe burst.

Also budgeting tools-apps can help. Many people use YNAB (myself included) and it's helped me loads. You can try out a 34 day free trial to see if you like it.

Also check out Poor Single Ladies diary, she lives in London and is in a similar position to you with social stuff linked to work, lunches etc

GirlupNorth

Hi louby40,

Thanks for this - I do have a sort of emergency fund. Basically part of the loan as I had taken out more than I needed to start off some savings. I intend to add to this when I can so I don't go back to using credit cards.

I've signed up for YNAB, but haven't managed to work it out yet - I'll have a look over the Christmas break. I do use Excel to track all my bills etc, just not daily spending which I will start doing...

And I'll check out the blog as well. It's very quiet at work as you can tell, need something new to read!

Thanks

GirlupNorth

Hi, Also I can't find that blog, do you have a link at all?

louby40

She's on here, just search for her name. She has her own diary