What's a reasonable amount....

Thriftking

So my wife is not working and I have taken on full responsibility for bills, mortgage the running of two cars and the costs associated with our pet.

We had a discussion about how much she felt she needed for the month to cover food for the two of us and her mobile phone bill and a few other bits. I suggested £500. Her response was that it was loads and "she'd easy be able to save on that amount"

Two weeks later she's run out and I've been stung for the shopping for the last three weeks, a tank of fuel and a couple of other bits.

She was self employed but has stopped working as we are having a baby. She is not eligible for maternity pay schemes. I don't want to be unrealistic in the amount we budget but being as my wage is paying for everything I need to be reasonably thrifty and budget well.

Thoughts please

cattie

How much does her phone bill come to each month? I'd have thought with careful shopping, avoiding the pricier supermarkets, 2 people could be fed very well, for around £100 each week. Perhaps even including the pet if it's no larger than a cat. Checking out the reduced food item section is a great idea too. Food always tastes better when it's been reduced! 

As she is no longer working, maybe your wife could check out your nearest Lidl or Aldi if you are not using them for groceries currently. Practically all of my food, including that for the cat, comes from Lidl these days. It's very rare that I need to use Sainsbury's & I'm always shocked at the difference in prices when I do.

Avoid waste & use your eyes & nose to check if food is still good to eat rather than relying on best before dates. So much good food gets thrown away by being a slave to those dates.

eskbanker

Seems to me like the two of you need to sit down together and work out a family budget that reflects your income and lifestyle - IMHO this is better done bottom-up by analysing in detail exactly what you actually do spend money on, over a 6-12 month period, rather than trying to do it top-down with what you think the money is going on.

There's unlikely to be any value in seeking numbers applicable to others, but you can work through ideas and tools at the likes of https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/budget-planning/

cx6

For me, and I emphasise it is only my opinion, you would be better off budgeting together and not 'I pay this - she pays that'

The phrase you used ' I've been stung for the shopping for the last three weeks' surprised me in a married couple expecting a baby.

  

penners324

Put everything through a joint account or she gets a credit card linked to your credit card....

IntoTheForest

Work out how much these things have cost in past months and if that amount is too high then work on what you can cut out.

The only way I got a grip on my grocery budget was to meal plan. I look on the weekly Lidl leaflet (because we shop there, I'm sure others have similar) and find anything that is good value. I plan meals around this.

For example this week they have 2kg of chicken chicken drumsticks for £2.59. I know I can get 4 meals for 3 people out of this. I will freeze half and decide on the 4 meals for this week and next. Leeks are also on offer so we will have leek and potato soup and leftovers for lunches. 

You both need to be onboard and with a new baby I would advise batch cooking at the weekends and filling up the freezer. 

Ebe_Scrooge

cattie said:

I'd have thought with careful shopping, avoiding the pricier supermarkets, 2 people could be fed very well, for around £100 each week

We have shopped at Aldi/Lidl for donkey's years now.  When it was me & the better half plus 3 kids at home, our shopping would usually come to round about £130 - £150 a week - and that's not being particularly frugal, includes choccy, sweeties, beer, wine, a whole load of non-essential stuff.  Now the two eldest have flown the nest and we only have 1 teenager to feed, it's usually around £80 or £90 a week - and that still includes plenty of treats and non-essentials.

So yes, 2 adults can eat very comfortably for less than £100 a week, much less if you're having to watch the pennies and you cut out the treats and non-essentials.  But even with treats included, £100 will buy you a very full trolley-full at the discounters.

ZeroSum

cattie said:

How much does her phone bill come to each month? I'd have thought with careful shopping, avoiding the pricier supermarkets, 2 people could be fed very well, for around £100 each week. Perhaps even including the pet if it's no larger than a cat. Checking out the reduced food item section is a great idea too. Food always tastes better when it's been reduced! 

As she is no longer working, maybe your wife could check out your nearest Lidl or Aldi if you are not using them for groceries currently. Practically all of my food, including that for the cat, comes from Lidl these days. It's very rare that I need to use Sainsbury's & I'm always shocked at the difference in prices when I do.

Avoid waste & use your eyes & nose to check if food is still good to eat rather than relying on best before dates. So much good food gets thrown away by being a slave to those dates.

The 2 of us only spend about half that on food, and it includes plenty of treats.
I'm not even trying that hard to be overly frugal either.

If I put I actually put some effort in, I could easily feed both of us (and be healthier) on about £30 a week.

Thriftking

cx6 said:

For me, and I emphasise it is only my opinion, you would be better off budgeting together and not 'I pay this - she pays that'

The phrase you used ' I've been stung for the shopping for the last three weeks' surprised me in a married couple expecting a baby.

  

I don't understand the alternative. 

My wife has no income so indirectly I'm paying for everything. We are just trying to establish reasonable budgets for things. We sat and agreed £500 would be sufficient and for a month's worth of groceries 

I allocated my finances accordingly and yes I'm sorry the phrase surprised you but I have had to find another £300 in a budget that's already very stretched from the purchase of baby things and decorating a nursery.

enthusiasticsaver

I agree that you need to sit down together and work out a budget as obviously losing one income has impacted on you both. I think £500 is a lot to spend on food and a mobile and other bills so I would be asking her where that went. Does she have debt repayments or is she buying baby stuff? Did you give the money to her in cash or bank transfer. If you did a bank transfer it is easy to see where the money has gone just by checking her bank account. You need to find out what bills she is paying. Lidl and Aldi are cheap or you can do Asda online but food for 2 people for a month shouldn’t really come to more than £250 and that is a generous amount if you meal plan and don’t buy alcohol. 

PRAISETHESUN

I would agree that you both need to sit down and go through your collective expenses, seeing where all the money has gone and decide what spending is actually necessary, rather than just arbitrarily deciding £500 is a "good amount" to spend. It could either flag unnecessary spending, or it could highlight that all your spending is genuine and your budget isn't high enough - either way it is good to know.