Is £500 enough?

[boredboredandmorebored]

I know this will be different for everyone and everyone will have different incomes but we are starting to work out finances for when we have a baby. We've worked out without my wage and after bills, food and fuel we'll have around £500 a month spare, is this doable? Obviously this will pay for everything else so to go out and do activities, things for baby, savings, xmas etc.

Barbara its a "naice" caravan actually, but I found plenty of cottages for around that price. I'm not going in school holidays and prices are MUCH cheaper even though its still july.

It certainly wouldn't cost you £1200 and if it does you've gone wrong somewhere!

We wont spend a fortune on food either because theres only 2 adults and a toddler and we wont eat out every night.

My car is hybrid so fuel will cost me about £20.

Days out maybe another £150 to be generous so I am still waaaaaaaay under your estimate.

I find it funny how you want to prove me wrong though like I have imagined booking and paying for the whole thing and have no idea what i'll spend when I get there

There's a difference between the accommodation costing £300 and the holiday costing £300.

I'd still love to see links to where I can book accommodation in the Lake District in July for £300 pw?

I didn't say including everything it cost £300 but including everything it still wont cost anywhere near your estimate!

Check Air BnB for a start....

I think you’ll be ok.
Find lots of cheap and free things to do in your area.
Baby/toddler groups can be very cheap or free if they’re run by libraries and in church halls.
Activities like swimming don’t have to cost much and parks are free.

But it could do, that's my point, I was talking about an average holiday, as in some will cost more, some will cost less.

Not out and luxury, but not deliberately doing it the cheapest way possible either, plus getting there, eating out a few times, doing activities, inevitable paying for parking etc.

And I can't see anything on airbnb in the Lake District for a week in July for anywhere near £300 pw. Even campsites and bunkhouses are more than that. The cheapest small cottage in the area is a tatty looking thing in Ravenglass, which isn't even in the Lake District.

Absolutely doable depending on your lifestyle and if you are willing to make changes.
Do you have any debt?

I only have one holiday a year, I don’t want to spend it in a caravan, I’d rather stay in my lovely house. If I am going on a holiday I expect it to be special and to feel at least as comfortable as I feel at home...

Barbara search cumbria rather than the lake district.. That's what I did anyway. Not that I have anything to prove!

Even still, nobody needs to spend that on a holiday especially when they're not going in school hols. I think all you've managed to do here is show your privilege!

Holidays are something to take into consideration but when you're on Mat leave a £1200 holiday is probably not on the top of your to do list!

outofideas good for you? was that an attempt to make me feel small, or?

Holiday it was an attempt to explain that most people can’t have a family holiday on £300 a week...

Yes, exactly that out. And how easy it would be for £500 pm to not feel like enough, if you're used to spending more, and you might not have included everything in the rest of your budget.

Typical Mumsnet holidays are Center Parcs, naice AI hotels, cottages in premium locations. All probably costing far far more than my initial £1200 estimate.

Of course a holiday is not an essential, but it was simply in response to the people who thought that the OP was taking the piss.

I'm with @holidayhelpppp here. Everyone is saying it depends how extravagant your lifestyle is?
No. Learn to live within your means and it'll be fine.

Of course it's possible to have a lovely holiday a week for less than £1200, but I'm sorry it will be a struggle to do it for anywhere near £300, simply because the accommodation will very likely cost more than that alone.

.

Oh dear, I was not thinking about your house at all when I wrote that comment. I was thinking about my own situation and I came to a conclusion that I’d rather stay home and take kids to museums and parks just a short walk from our place in London, instead of driving for hours and staying in a tiny place where I’ll have to cook/tidy etc and entertain my kids. That’s why when I go on holiday it have to be an improvement for ME personally.

Well.of course it's doable especially if you have savings ,people have to manage n a lot less.

Barbara learn to use google!

its not my fault you cant manage to search the internet which is literally all I did.

outofideas well that would be your choice, but to make that point as if to say that its £1200 or nothing ?for everyone is frankly a bit stupid. Some people will never be able to spend that amount on a holiday.

MN is really not representative of the real world when it comes to money.

BarbaraofSeville Wed 18-Sep-19 09:44:27
No mention of holidays either. Typically, a single week away somewhere, whether in the UK or abroad, mid standard, so not camping/bargain basement, but not luxury either, is likely to cost £100 pm on average out of the budget.

you do realise that while holidays are nice , they certainly are not a necessity , in fact they are a luxury and many many families dont have a holiday at all , let alone once a year

OP it is always going to be tight money wise when you have children , you just need to be creative and be care full as the odd £ here and there will soon mount up , but £500 a month gives you a fair amount of wriggle room

how easy it would be for £500 pm to not feel like enough, if you're used to spending more, and you might not have included everything in the rest of your budget

well yes, but I would suggest not having children if you don't want to sacrifice your lifestyle.

Unless you're super rich things will always change at least until they're at school.

You probably can't have a holiday for less than £300 / week in July but as the Op has a baby they could holiday outside of school holidays which is considerably cheaper , we stayed in a haven site la t summer in the lake district I think it was about £800 for the week in July just after the schools broke up .

www.hoseasons.co.uk/holiday-parks/seven-acres-seve?adult=2&child=2&nights=7&range=3&start=4-7-2020&sortorder=4

@BarbaraofSeville
£335 7 night in the lake district July 2020

we booked through hoseasons for w/c 29th june and paid 200 and odd for 4 nights, 7 nights is just over £300 now so apologies but still!

on and topcashback have money back for hoseasons as well which I think I got about 12 or 13 quid back from too!

like I say it doesn't have to be expensive unless you want it to, or are confined to school hols which im not!

well what are you trying to cover - full SAHM or maternity cover temporarily?

Baby can save you money on days out - you don't need to be going to restaurants etc when they're super tiny. Great outdoors is pretty cheap.

You may need to keep check on random spending if you don't normally - coffee shops etc can eat money quicker than you think if you aren't paying attention (I speak from experience!).

Feels very doable assuming you're willing to adjust your expectations during this period