Can't seem to balance the cost of renting on 22k

macdaddy_uk

Hey all!

This is my first post and from the title yes its a silly one.

I've currently been given a pay increase to 22k and have found a nice one bed to rent for £600 but when I do my costing I am left with very little.

Here is how I have tried to work out what my costs will be based on a monthly income of £1353 after tax.

Main importance

• £600 - rent
• £109 - travel card
• £120 - energy bills
• £70 - council tax
• £175 - car loan
• £25 - mobile
• £20 - broadband

Others

• £60 - fuel
• £50 - car insurance
• £50 -car maintenance

The main killer is my car loan but I am stuck with that. Any suggestions or advice would be grateful.

Thanks in advance!

pinkshoes

Do you need the travel card AND the car???

And don't forget you'll need to pay 1.5x rent as a deposit, plus also fees for credit checks if it's let through an agency.

macdaddy_uk

The travel card is for work and the car is for weekend purposes... I have my deposit and money for checks. But my main focus is working out what my monthly outgoings would be if renting for £600 and how to balance it all.

Snooze

macdaddy_uk wrote: »

Hey all!

This is my first post and from the title yes its a silly one.

I've currently been given a pay increase to 22k and have found a nice one bed to rent for £600 but when I do my costing I am left with very little.

Here is how I have tried to work out what my costs will be based on a monthly income of £1353 after tax.

Main importance

• £600 - rent
• £109 - travel card
• £120 - energy bills
• £70 - council tax
• £175 - car loan
• £25 - mobile
• £20 - broadband

Others

• £60 - fuel
• £50 - car insurance
• £50 -car maintenance

The main killer is my car loan but I am stuck with that. Any suggestions or advice would be grateful.

Thanks in advance!

Can't offer any useful advice myself and I doubt anyone else can either. It's a case of "welcome to being squeezed from all sides" just like we're all going through.

If you can't afford it all then you need to make some tough decisions and cut back on non-essentials, eg. presumably £600 rent in the South-East will get you a 1 bedroom apartment so knock a couple of hundred off that and take shared accommodation instead.

And I bet the car loan of £175 per month isn't for an old, cheap but reliable banger - sounds more like a new car kinda repayment figure to me, so you could ditch the car and buy an old £500 Fiesta or something that would get you from A to B just as well.

As per someone's signature on here - "Shock! Horror! The credit crunch will mean that people will start having to live within their means!!!". Say no more..

Rob

emsywoo123

I agree with Rob, cos car insurance of £50pm means £600 per year..........that is very high, so unless the OP is especially young or for some reason has an increased premium, that must be a nice car!
Sadly, on 22K in the South east, £600pcm+travel card+car=not very much left over whichever way you swing it! Sorry!

bettersoon

you'll need to eat too!

PasturesNew

macdaddy_uk wrote: »

monthly income of £1353 after tax.

Main importance

• £600 - rent
• £109 - travel card
• £120 - energy bills - way too much, should be about £40 for one
• £70 - council tax
• £175 - car loan
• £25 - mobile
• £20 - broadband

Others

• £60 - fuel
• £50 - car insurance
• £50 -car maintenance

You forgot:
£12 - TV License
£15 (or so) - contents insurance
£40 (max) - water bill. If on a meter it's cheaper.

You have 3 main options:
1] Sell the car, even at a loss to stop paying out so much
2] Rent a studio flatlet in the first instance, rather than a 1-bed - should save £100-150 on rent and £50 on bills (heating, insurance, council tax)
3] Go into a house share in the first instance until you find your feet financially

emsywoo123

Cross posting....well done Pastures new!!

Phirefly

PasturesNew wrote: »

• £120 - energy bills way too much, should be about £40 for one

Yeah definitely. In a 2 bed house for 2 of us we only pay about £50 a month...

Hard times OP - London sucks in that respect

Jorgan_2

I'd be tempted to sell the car & hire one for the weekends that I actually needed it.

Phirefly

Know what? Its dawned on me. I'm sick of the penny pinching ethos (yes I know it comes with the territory round here!) Why do we all have to cut back? We're all advising the OP to sell their car, live in a bedsit, steer clear of luxuries... I say forget all that. Earn more money instead. Not easy but possible.