2008 - Live on £4000 for a full year.

fallen_angel_shelley

count me in please, its going to hard but i know i can and will do it. giving up smoking will make things a lot better as well. good luck to everyone and all the best for 2008, shelley XXX

sweetpea03

the_cat wrote: »

Have to admit, I'm a bit confused as to what to count as looking through the posts, people have included different things. Anyone got a diffinative list or are we tailoring it to our own circumstances if you see what I mean?

Cat

hello the_cat & all the new challengers :j
just going to bump the list that nyk posted way back earlier in the thread as a guide to what should be included

Items that should be counted

Groceries/toiletries/cleaning products
Heating
Lighting
Telephone
Internet
TV Licence
Home insurance
Gifts for others
House Pets (if you have any)
Basic travel
Essential home maintenance
Essential household goods/furnishings
Essential clothing/footwear
Cigarettes (if you smoke)
Alcohol (if you drink)

Items that should not be counted:

Rent or mortgage
Council Tax
Water Rates
Work related travel expenses/cars
Holidays
Outstanding debts
Luxury items
Entertainment/Socialising
Home Decorating/Interior Design
Hobbies/Sports/Club Memberships

good luck to you all & great to have you all in the challenge

Burlesque_Babe

I've just been to Asda. I only spent £28 and I hardly filled the cupboards to bursting point but I've bought a few bits that will be handy. I ended up getting a free bag of potatoes - they were reduced to 20p which was good to start with but they wouldn't scan so I think she just 'pretended' to after a few tries as they haven't come up on the receipt.

Prudent

I am a bit confused about why socialising and holidays are not included in the challenge total. .I have included it in my challenge total because for me this is about lifestyle decisions. I want to simplify my life and move away from the expensive lifestyle that is pressurised on us. I have upped my food budget to allow me to entertain at home more. I tend to win tickets for quite a lot of concerts/ events. I am hoping to win a holiday, otherwise I will be hunting for ways of doing it cheaply. For some people these are big outgoing which may need to be cut back to become debt free and /or save.

the_cat

Thanks for the info sweatpea!

Have totted up my spending for those items and will set my budget at £5800. This is just over the 4K plus family allowance limit, but realistic for me - if I can do better I will certainly try!

Protogenia

I'm following the basics of the challenge and have thrown a few of my own personal choices in...like you Prudent I have included holidays and luxury items. For me, these are two of the areas I have been most extravagant with and need to reign in.
My list of items included in the challenge:
Gas, electric, phone bill, groceries, pet food, hardwear, electronics, repairs, dentists, toiletries. pocket money, gifts, mags & newspapers, clothes, nights out & entertainment, petrol, bus fayres & travel, holidays, luxury items, household items and all seasonal celebrations.

Genia X

affordmylife

I was wondering that too prudent.

Ive been and done all my shopping today. Everything i think we will need for the whole of 2008. no not really only joking. I have just stocked up and got some basics in to see us through hopefully most of january. I will just need fresh fruit and veg, mild bread etc.

I have returned all christmas presents not required and got refunds - not bought other stuff we dont need. No more shops for me from now on.

I will shop locally when required but hopefully this will be rarely now rather than weekly or just for something to do.

Im really looking forward to starting tomorrow. I think i will update my signature weekly at first to keep me motivated in the initial stages.

Good luck everyone with our challenge. See you all tomorrow.

georgiasmum

Ohhhhh I'm so excited about starting tomorrow!!!! It's like a diet but tastes better!

hypno06

For me this challenge is just about making healthy and sensible choices - because it is linked to budget quite severely, I am hoping it will encourage me not to use the car for un-necessary shorter journies that I could easily walk or bike instead, and making meals out of what I have in the cupboard rather than being convinced by others in the house that we *need* to get something from the supermarket.

I am also hoping to grow a bit more of my own stuff this year, to eke out the budget. I have been fairly successful with courgettes, so want to try butternut squash and peppers as well this year. 2007 was also the first year I made my own jam from berries and plums picked in the hedgerows so I will def be doing that again in 2008!

Finally, I am going to investigate Aldi - we don't have one near to us, but when I start my new job, there is one on the way to/from work, so no excuses!!

Anything that can focus my mind and make best use of the resources available to me must be a good thing! There really is no reason why we can't manage on this amount - the whole family are involved whether they like it or not!

Good luck everyone, and happy new year xx

carolinabirichina

Please may I join in too? I need to keep my spending under control and need this sort of motivation to keep me going. I think I would prefer the £5k limit if that's OK.I hope to update each week with how much/little I've spent.I have a debt of £9k to clear, so anything saved each month will go towards that.Thanks and looking forward to tomorrow!