Help please 1 April 2019 at 1:12AM edited 30 November -1 at 1:00AM in Debt-Free Wannabe 39 replies 7.5K views

ellyroo

hello! i dont know if this is the right place to post aboot this but here goes

so im 23, recently left/ran away from home and currently residing withmy sister until i find me a new place of my own (FIRST HOME! :DDD ) and i've been doing budgeting and stuff, and im just a totally new starter so idk i need some advice

so income from my disability would be about 830 total now im trying to get a place on DSS / housing benefit which hopefully should enable me to find somewhere suitable for me to stay at college and hopefully just be a good home

so here's what i kind of had for my budgeting

830

- 100 Rent (IF DSS gets approved)
- 250 food and toilet stuff (im going to be living near a aldi and will do a bi weekly 100 pound shopping there or a 50 pound weekly shop, but my sister says i should increae this to 250 but ive seen people in aldi pay for shopping with a trolley that looks easily containing 2 weeks worth of food for 60 quid)
- 40 Phone and Internet (Virgin media are basically ..monopoly in this area, so it'll be through them)
- 30 Council Tax
- 50 Some Personal stuff
- 150 gas and electricity (one bedroom flat in winter) will go down in summer

right now im on DLA + EESA (EESA rather than ESA) but i currently am not on housing benefit, my sister says i should apply for PIP but i worry it might get me sanctioned

any help?

_shel

Why would you be sanctioned for applying for PIP? PIP is to meet your disability needs and you can claim it regardless ofif you are working or on benefits, sanctions don't apply.

You can't claim housing benefit any more. You would need to claim universal credit which means stopping your ESA claim. CouncilTax support is still claimed from the council but you will still need to pay something towards your council tax.

colsten

For your entitlement to benefits, you need to consult other places. For example, https://www.entitledto.co.uk/ or https://www.turn2us.org.uk/Get-Support.

There are also other, more relevant, boards on this site, such as the Benefits or the Debt-Free Wannabe one

You've got the right idea about writing down your costs but you need to go into more detail and make it more complete. Fill in a more detailed SOA and post it on the Debt-Free Wannabe board.

Good luck with your plans.

venison

OP if you are still on DLA then don't apply for PIP, you will at some point in the near future be asked if you want to apply for PIP when your DLA ends.

sourcrates

Moved to more relevant forum.

Terry_Towelling

First saw this post in the budgeting and bank accounts board which seemed a reasonable place as OP doesn't have any debt to be free of (yet).

Anyway, a few points I'd like to make about budgets and benefits.

Benefits are generally there to help you towards a reasonable standard of living and to keep you out of poverty. Don't make the mistake that many do that they are there to pay for luxuries - they can be subject to review and removed/reduced, so try to save if you can.

Budgets are not targets to aim at but limits that you should keep within where possible.

£250 per month for food and household stuff is way too much for one person (as you have already observed) - unless you are a faddy eater and/or brand obsessed. You should be able to manage on anywhere between £100 and £150. You could certainly try to anyway.

I don't understand why Virgin media has a monopoly in your area.

£150 for gas and electric is way too much. You should be able to halve that - even in winter (depending how good the flat is). Take short showers (if electric). Only boil as much water in the kettle as you need at that time. Wear an extra jumper in the cold. etc etc.

You might want a small budget for clothing and perhaps something to cover transport costs to work if you get a job - take care that jobs will affect benefit payments.

Certain councils will make people with certain disabilities completely exempt form council tax.

Please do try to save some money. I know that some people will say, if you are on benefits and are also able to save then you are in receipt of too much but don't let that deter you.

And finally, if you have left/run away from home to escape the evil oppression of ' turn off that light! don't use all the hot water! keep the door shut to keep the cold out! don't put the empty milk bottle back in the fridge! change the loo roll when it is used up!' and all those other things that young people hate to hear, remember that you will now have to 'oppress' yourself to avoid waste.

EssexHebridean

Comments in red as usual!

ellyroo wrote: »

hello! i dont know if this is the right place to post aboot this but here goes

so im 23, recently left/ran away from home and currently residing withmy sister until i find me a new place of my own (FIRST HOME! :DDD ) and i've been doing budgeting and stuff, and im just a totally new starter so idk i need some advice

so income from my disability would be about 830 total now im trying to get a place on DSS / housing benefit which hopefully should enable me to find somewhere suitable for me to stay at college and hopefully just be a good home

so here's what i kind of had for my budgeting

830

- 100 Rent (IF DSS gets approved)
- 250 food and toilet stuff (im going to be living near a aldi and will do a bi weekly 100 pound shopping there or a 50 pound weekly shop, but my sister says i should increae this to 250 but ive seen people in aldi pay for shopping with a trolley that looks easily containing 2 weeks worth of food for 60 quid) You can knock this down loads! As a guideline, there's two of us and we budget £175 a month and usually have some left over from this - and that's not eating to a rock bottom budget either!
- 40 Phone and Internet (Virgin media are basically ..monopoly in this area, so it'll be through them) A very good reason to look elsewhere, I'd suggest. If they have a monopoly they probably don;t price as keenly for your area as they might. Take a look at the guide on the main MSE site about cheap phone & BB deals!
- 30 Council Tax
- 50 Some Personal stuff
- 150 gas and electricity (one bedroom flat in winter) will go down in summer for a one bedroom flat you won't even be close to that unless you have it heated to tropical levels and leave all the windows open! You should be well inside £100 - probably a lot less.

right now im on DLA + EESA (EESA rather than ESA) but i currently am not on housing benefit, my sister says i should apply for PIP but i worry it might get me sanctioned

any help?

Well done for asking for input before making the leap - always pays to get your budget sorted so you know what you're playing with!

Does your "personal" spend budget there include for any travel you may need to do (unless you have some sort of freedom pass that covers you? And also for things like clothing, haircuts etc?
How about budgeting for Christmas and birthday presents for anyone close to you?
Socialising also - when living on your own this may become more important to you to avoid being isolated - it's good to have a budgeted figure in prlce as then you can meet friends/go for coffee/take a trip out at the weekend without feeling guilty about the spend.

System

£250 a month for food is in line with what the ONS says the average family spends on food shopping a month. You can feed yourself well for half of that, if you're prepared to put in effort preparing and cooking your own meals from scratch and doing things like cooking one sufficent for four people, freezing three portions to eat later then you can feed yourself well for £15 to £20 a week. Beware though your first ever shop in your first ever place will be quite expensive as you have to buy stuff that you probably may only buy once a fortnight or once a month but after that the next few shops will give you an idea of where it will be.

In regards to the gas and electric it is more likely to be £60/£70 a month. Go on a tariff that you pay monthly so you spread the cost over the year. Not only will it be a couple of hundred quid a year cheaper than standard quarterly billing tariffs it'll save you the shock of a £500 post winter quarter bill. Join the MSE Cheap Energy Club and do a comparison on there.

ellyroo

hey hey! thank you for helping oot, it helps a ton c:

personal budget was more for things im subscribed to, as i would think the money i have saved over (i'm hoping to be able to hold onto 200-300 a month) would be for stuff like trains and clothes and such ,

i had to leave the home due to worsening relationship with my parent , as i was kind of getting guilt tripped badly and i was becoming very unhappy (i remember coming home from college, and getting a bit of heart sink being back)

i have a disabled bus pass, which where im living will be SUPER handy , though i have a choice or two colleges to go to, one does involve going by train which is extra cost ._. but its the one i really would like to go to

and i'll check out that tariff thing since id like to save as much on the power as possible, does power bills go up if you say live in a city over a village?

ellyroo

Hello, i'm really sorry if this is against the rules, i didnt wanna really open up a 2nd thread i just freshed up my budget thing with a little more detail

So my income goes like this

250 (First week)
320 (2nd Week)
250 (Third Week)
0 (Fourth Week)

place i might be living in: Edinburgh, Scotland, Or Larbert, Scotland, with edinburgh a hard 1st choice as it's closer to family, and facilities/sports things i wanna be attending
Edinburgh wise: Gorgie, Broughton, Dalry or Dalkeith

Place: 1 Bedroom Flat , Near an Aldi hopefully

Food Intake (I'm a vegetarian ) : Curries, Fruits, Vegetables, Once a week take out, Loves to Gorge herself kind of (my stomach is a bit of a black hole .-.; But i like gorging myself on fruits and veggies, like olives! and stawberries)

Status: Kind of a student, Attends a Art centre, maybe soon contributing to its gallery ^u^

Conditions: Autistic Spectrum (free Bus pass yay!, Communicating with people Nay)

250
First Week: (If i can get it focused like this)
Internet and Phone, Which i want to have at: 40
Food Shopping and Toiletaries: (1st fortnight) 85
Rent (IF LHA): 125

320
2nd Week
Food Shopping And Toiletaries (saved for 2nd fortnight): 85
Gas And Electricity: 100
Council Tax: 40
Personal Stuff And Travel: 85

250
3rd Week:
Personal Stuff And Art Travel (125)

125 Free

Personal Stuff: is also kind of Money spare and kind of not?

Travel: I'll be travelling to Art place, which is a 50 min train ride away, i seen i'll probably get back and forward for about 15 each turn with 10 going towards the class so once a week 25x4 for the month though i would love to go twice a week


Seem sound i will probably refine based i think on what you guys have shared

TLDR: or whichever term! , 820 a month, Ideally getting my spending on bills n stuff down to 500-550 So i can keep 200-300 to myself for personal things and free money for a rainy day or just to be there and/or spending on my education, Travels

Im happy about what you guys said about gas and electricity and food shopping so its a relief

heartbreak_star

Sounds like you're planning well - keeping track once you get somewhere will be key as well. Good Luck!

HBS x