Need fresh eyes on my budget!

joedenise

I would second a £1000 Emergency Fund. An easy way of adding to it is to Tilly Tidy the odd amounts in accounts whenever something comes out of it so if it ends with 27p then transfer that. All those tiny amounts eventually add up. I used to do with with our mortgage and over a 5 year period it dropped the mortgage by several thousands so definitely worthwhile.

honeybee1234

@Spendless @joedenise

I do have the remnants of an emergency fund; however it wasn't enough to cover the fridge freezer. A few months ago it was at £1k, but with dipping into it for various things, and when the budget went over of a month, it has dwindled. Such a shame that's the case just when I could have done with it, but hey ho, it's done.

Starting next month's budget is on the list for today, so I'll see where I am with everything. I find it hard to prioritise as there's so much I want to fund via pots and to put back into the emergency fund. I guess it's a case of accepting that firstly, building pots up takes time and patience, and that sometimes things will crop up that I haven't had time yet to account for, and that's okay because progress is being made.

Onwards and upwards!

Blackcats

I agree with an emergency fund and my little tweak to the concept is just my way of rationalising to myself "what are my likely emergencies?"

So for me household appliances breaking are emergencies but they are also foreseeable. If, for example, I had a much loved, regularly used 25 year old iron then when it stops working that will be a problem but I can predict that will happen at some stage. So I have a repair/replace pot which I build up so I am prepared for breakdowns. That way, there is no inner debate about whether it's an actual emergency, I can just turn to the pot and repair or replace the item. Please don't worry that I do actually have a much loved, well used iron - it is in fact the opposite as it's an appliance that gets as little use as is politely possible 🤣

Likewise I have a pet&human health and wellbeing pot - this is designed to cover emergency dentists, vets, broken glasses etc. as well as routine appointments. A new prescription for glasses is likely to happen and needs to be prepared for with regular small savings whereas broken glasses need replacing asap.

And I also have my car fund which covers tax, insurance etc but I also build up a buffer for things like new tyres because replacing tyres is predictable eventually rather than a surprise emergency (if potholes can be avoided 🤦‍♀️)

overall I now have more than £1000 across these categories but in my head it's much clearer what I mean by emergency. If absolutely needed I would borrow money from one pot if I had to.

I enjoy reading how you are navigating your new relationship with money and you should be really pleased with your ongoing progress.

Spendless

When you dipped in and out of the emergency fund were these for emergencies?

honeybee1234

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82074092#Comment_82074092

This is all really interesting! Can relate about the iron 😁 I have gotten to the logic you've explained in my own thinking... The trouble is I'm not far enough in to have prioritised my appliances pot. Maybe I should have? It makes sense. I don't have much in my dentist and opticians pot either, which I would want to. It's genuinely really hard to know whether to put a majority chunk in just two or three pots for a few months until they're built up, or put a bit in everything, but they all build up more slowly. I've opted for the former, thus here I am with nothing in my appliances fund!

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82074213#Comment_82074213

Noooo why are you making me have to look?! 😂 OK. I lent eldest DD £150 as a holding deposit on her new flat. We have an agreement set out for her to pay me back. Then £300 was to cover a Universal Credit shortfall - this was a genuine mistake on my part as I'd worked out some dates and amounts incorrectly. Then the other withdrawals are grocery budget shortfalls at the end of the month, and when I've had shortfalls in other areas, such as when I was paying for DS's Ubers.

The grocery shortfall looks to be alleviated, at least from this month, by increasing my grocery budget. Shortfalls for the kids hasn't been a problem the last month either due to ex getting a car, and building up the kids' sinking fund.

ellenvan

Rome wasn't built in a day , as they say!

You are perfecting things, seeing what works for you. A lot better than when you started!

Well done and keep going, adjusting as and when things change.

Spendless

Its because I was wondering if a run of bad luck had the emergencies all occurring within a short period of time or whether you were under estimating how much you needed in 'everyday' pots. Sounds like its been a combination of both, but its good youve got plans in place to rectify.