Is 2,500 family budget (no mortgage/childcare) per month enough in London????

[zurich09]

Hi,

We are moving from abroad and am trying to figure out our finaces. By the looks of it we will have 2,500 pounds per month once mortgage/childcare has been taken out. Is that enough to live on for a family of three in London? I have no real experience of life in London anymore. Used to live there, but left decades ago and am a bit nervous about coming back. Everyone tells us it's a really really expensive place to live - but now idea whether this is even doable. Any thoughts????

Yes of course it is.

Housing is expensive.
Childcare is expensive.

Nothing else really is in London!

Allow £500 for CT, water, gas, electricity and internet a month.
Work out what the travel costs will be.
You'll have loads left!

Where you choose to live in London is also a factor. I'm reading a poster saying that a coffee in London is around £2.30. Not near me it isn't!! (I live in central London). There's nothing under £3, average price is closer to £4 (but can go to £6 in some places)

Pret. take tour own cup and get a filter :-) 48p

It's rent and childcare that's crazy amounts so yes. Council tax is lower in London than elsewhere and most things don't vary that much around the country. Our total bills excluding mortgage are £800 a month as an example

Allow £500 for CT, water, gas, electricity and internet a month.

And the rest! I pay about £800 a month for those (inside M25).

How much deposit do you have and what are you looking for in a property? A £500k deposit and £1k a month mortgage will buy a decent enough 3 bed semi. Less than that and you're compromising on area, size etc. A £100k deposit and you're looking at a flat in a poor area, or moving to the outskirts to a mediocre area, which also impact travel costs significantly.

Just eaten in a student canteen and paid £3.50, hope that helps. The U.K. is cheap for food and average for utilities (cheaper than Switzerland) car insurance is high in London and public transport is cheaper in London than elsewhere in the U.K. but expensive compared to say Germany. Compared to the USA where we lived the cost of living was around 1/3 less in the U.K. excluding housing and childcare (both are insanely expensive in both countries)

A £500k deposit and £1k a month mortgage will buy a decent enough 3 bed semi. Less than that and you're compromising on area, size etc. rubbish! people just need to step out of zone 1 and Clapham.....south east london, perfectly nice, 20min train to central london, 3 bed semi's from 450k up

Oh and yes theres McDonald's and Greggs in central London and lots of independent places not charging a fortune too! If anything it's cheaper in London than elsewhere if you don't consider housing. Find the house you want if buying, things being a little tight until your dc goes to school is better than making a mistake with the house.

And the rest! I pay about £800 a month for those (inside M25).
how do you get to £800....? genuinely interested

£280 gas/electric
£400 council tax (band G admittedly)
£20 water
£60 broadband

WOW your council tax is a killer.
gas and electric a month a little high
Broadband- Im assuming thats fibre (I cope fine with £18.99 a month sky basic but appreciate many people need something more substantial)

Tell me about it! CT went up £50 a month this year. Yes we have fibre - quite fast spec as well - four adults simultaneously gaming/ downloading/ streaming tv - sometimes not all the time - were not that antisocial!

£280 pm is well over twice the national average for gas and electric so not typical.

You must have a big house or it is very inefficient.

Gosh that CT is horrifying. I'm in the north of England, but ours is:

Council tax £90
Water £55
Gas and electric about £100 combined I think, hard to monitor though as the estimates always seem to be off then we have to repay
Mobiles for 2 adults £25 total
Broadband, cable £70

That's around £350. Council tax and mobiles are on the cheap side but the other stuff is fairly middle of the road. I would've agreed that £500 is ample for an average lifestyle.

Band G house will be large, and I'm going to guess, Victorian with the gas and electricity bill they have 😁

We pay £140pcm in CT, £99 for gas/electric (v old back boiler though!), £40 for water, £25 for unlimited fibre internet. 3 bed terrace. We're moving soon and our CT will be going up by £100/month - same borough, bigger house.

Thank you all for your input and taking the time to list your outgoings etc - i really appreciate it and it has been super useful to get the feel for what is what!!!! i never usually use forums, but honestly you've all be great!!!!!!!!!!!

am getting the impression that 2,000 is maybe doable but tight and 2,500 should be ok. no intention of shopping at harrods (does anyone actually shop there for real bar russian oligarchs etc and oil magnates). But i guess that i do get coffees from naice (where did that word come from?) places and DS will probably end up doing one activity that costs etc. Since having a kid I've realised that museums are not so much repositories for cultural artifacts or national monument as much as free spaces that you can take your kid for the afternoon when its raining and you cant afford the cinema.

Oh yes. Also, pet shops = free zoo.