Is it possible to live on under £250 a month

poohwithmoney

Hi,

I wrote on here a week weeks ago and mentioned how my boyfriend and i split up and he wanted me to move out our house. Luckily i have a flat i am going to move back into. On the house front he is going to keep it take on any joint debt, my credit cards and then when the house is sold give me a share of the profit made ( i am getting a solicitor to draw up an agreement).

The thing is when i move back to the flat i have to pay for everything on it by myself not to mention the huge monthly repayments i have to pay to Picture finance

I take home £1621 a month and here is what i'll have to pay out

Mortgage Interest only £606
Picture £397
Water £17
Insurance £17
Travel to work £214 (bloody london UG)
Mobile Phone £35
Electric £25 ( i do not have gas)
TV £11
Council Tax £70 (with 25% discount)

Total £1392
Leaves £229

I really do not want to get into a penny more of debt but is it really possible to live on so little. I also have to pay £217 per quater service charges. THe flat is only a one bed otherwise i'd be getting someone in. Oh how i need to find a rich husband!

Thanks

xxx

deliciosa

Hi there,

Yes, it is!! Well done for coming here for advice I am sure the experts will be around soon. Just a few initial thoughts:

Also, check if buildings insurance is incl. in the service charge. it usually is, with flats.

Good luck!! :T

poohwithmoney wrote: »

Hi,

I take home £1621 a month and here is what i'll have to pay out

Mortgage Interest only £606
Picture £397 - can this be reduced?
Water £17
Insurance £17 - what is this for? contents and building?
Travel to work £214 (bloody london UG) - what? surely this could be cheaper... is this a travelcard? couldn't you do buses for the time being, thats only £56 a month...
Mobile Phone £35 - too high. can you switch to pay as you go and spend about £15 a month
Electric £25 ( i do not have gas)
TV £11
Council Tax £70 (with 25% discount)

Total £1392
Leaves £229



xxx

Taadaa

Hey there, food for just one of you will not be that much. You really need to include that monely service charge as a monthly figure though i.e. work out how much you need to out aside. Can you reduce your travel costs in any way? Find out if you can do a liftshare maybe? (www.liftshare.org.uk) I live 60 miles from my place of work, and you are paying nearly the same amount as me...!

It will be tough, but you can do it, so long as you keep smiling!

redballoon_2

I'm sure it is! How much do you usually spend on food?

laineyc_2

Can you get a travel loan for your Oyster card for travel. I have a yearly loan from my company and it costs me £80 a month.

lauradora

easy peasy once you've been on here for a bit you'll get the hang of it xxxx

duchy

Apart from food what other living expenses do you need to cover out of the £229. TV licence (or is that the £11?) and broadband spring to mind.
Lots of surveys, pigsback, free bingo if you've not already done it, ebay, amazon.
If you work Monday to Friday-how about a second job either weekends or evenings ?
A bar job might stop you feeling to deprived socially, also if you've just split up with your BF a good way of meeting new people.

chimp_choker

poohwithmoney wrote: »

Hi,

I wrote on here a week weeks ago and mentioned how my boyfriend and i split up and he wanted me to move out our house. Luckily i have a flat i am going to move back into. On the house front he is going to keep it take on any joint debt, my credit cards and then when the house is sold give me a share of the profit made ( i am getting a solicitor to draw up an agreement).

The thing is when i move back to the flat i have to pay for everything on it by myself not to mention the huge monthly repayments i have to pay to Picture finance

I take home £1621 a month and here is what i'll have to pay out

Mortgage Interest only £606
Picture £397
Water £17
Insurance £17
Travel to work £214 (bloody london UG)
I've only been on the UG once and hated every minute of it. People don't talk to each other... so sad.. Anyway, how far do you work away from the flat? is it possible to walk/ ride a bike or maybe car share to work? Is there any London based cheap travel schemes available. Can you work from home?
Mobile Phone £35
Do you need to spend £35.00 a month on the phone? is it a contract or PAYG? O2 do a sim card only deal that only need crediting with £10 a month for 300 texts or minutes talking etc. My mobile is not used much but I take advantage of the sim card only deals.
Electric £25 ( i do not have gas) I wish my electric was £25 a month lol. Who are you with for your leccy what type meter do you have?
TV £11
Council Tax £70 (with 25% discount) Are you in the right council tax band

Total £1392
Leaves £229

I really do not want to get into a penny more of debt but is it really possible to live on so little. I also have to pay £217 per quater service charges. THe flat is only a one bed otherwise i'd be getting someone in. Oh how i need to find a rich husband!
I'm not rich, still married but I can cook and I'm mean with a DMP, lol.married
Thanks

xxx

chimp choker

poorandindenial

poohwithmoney - what zone are you in, I pay £90 per month for zone 3, that is on an annual season ticket admittedly but the full month pass for zones 1-6 is only £171.30.

Link to TFL website

duchy

Maybe it's a rail plus travelcard ?
I live out in Kent and ours is about that but a lot of people use the commmuter coaches instead for about half the price

redsquirrel80

Yes it's perfectly possible - do it quite often - but it does take a bit of getting used to if you'd normally spend more. Check out the Old Style forum for tips on cheaper food shopping (I spend about £50-60 a month for food, cleaning and toiletries). That would leave you with £180 a month for other things, or about £45 a week. If it's only going to be temporary until you get the profits from the house, then it shouldn't be too hard to cut back for a while - don't buy any clothes unless you really need them, try beauty colleges or training nights for haircuts, and find your local pound shop!

Good luck - with a bit of planning you'll be fine