Living on 1k a month advice please

[Debtgalore]

Hi MNers, long term poster but name changed as embarrassed.

Due to corona we've had a massive drop in income. We're still very lucky that we have £1,000 a month to live on (but that's significantly less than we're used to). Can we have any advice on how to make it stretch? There's two of us, two 10 year olds and a dog. It'll need to cover all food, petrol for 2 cars (we commute in opposite directions) and everything else.

Using the MSE boards we've made a budget for all our bills, switched energy suppliers, cancelled Sky, etc etc. The thousand is what's left over.

We sometimes shop at Aldi but will do this as our main shop now.

All help appreciated, I'm worried it won't go as far as we need.

Thank you,

@blue25

That doesn’t seem much to me, so not sure why people are being so rude. A life of free days out, no takeaways, no meals out, no alcohol or treats doesn’t sound much fun, so I get where you’re coming from.

Sorry, why would op need to live like that on this budget?

Is this drop in income temporary or permanent?

Are you also in debt? (Your username implies that)

Why are you both still commuting if your income has dropped so dramatically - need to know more about that.

These are important things to take into account that will directly influence the advice we could give you.

😂 I won't suggest that you take in ironing. I will rack my brains as I'd like to help work out how you might survive.

Try the Credit Crunch section on here, in Money. Absolutely loads of hints and tips there.

Hello poster,

Call it £200 a week after petrol (the weeks that may have 5 weeks

£80-100 for shopping
£20-30 per week for Xmas and birthdays

£10-20 hair cuts
£50 - family costs / days out / clothing

I hope this helps x

Tbh It’s £800 after bills for a family of 4- take away £250-300 for food - thats c£500 left- yes that’s tight
Maybe for you.

I tend to shop in lidl, stock up on mince, chicken etc and spend monday making pasta dishes, stews, soup to freeze and cover 4/5 days and fresh made meals the other 2 days. Its more than do-able just takes a while to get the routine of watching money but you will be surprised how much money you have been squandering without realising...

As well as looking on Facebook for stuff to buy have you got anything you could sell. Clothes that are not worn any more, toys the kids have outgrown or don't play with any more. Put them on Facebook or ebay.

Haven’t read the full thread, but would say that if you need clothes from this then prioritise good winter coats especially for the kids. Gap has good ones for kids and you can always get a discount code. Also prioritise shoes for the kids going into back to school time, and by shoes I mean school shoes, trainers, wellies, and smart shoes if possible. And basics for winter - I have girls so am sure to get them leggings (Boden with a discount code) that are thick and will keep them warm. These are things that will be needed anyway, but that if you can start planning for and looking out for discounts on now, it will pay dividends.

Look out for meat 3 for £10, and make a big chilli / bolognese, which will last two nights. Roast chicken and then leftovers into a chicken curry the next day.

Bin restaurant meals. I know it’s tough, but they will eat into your budget to a disproportionate amount. Instead maybe treat yourselves to a good takeaway each couple of weeks.

Just some ideas, sorry if they don’t hit the spot. I’m sorry your circumstances have changed, and hope it’s not long term.

I lived on £1k when I was on benefits and I had to pay rent and bills out of that. Myself and one DS. It's easy. Meal planning is key, only buy what food you need.

No offence OP but seeing as your here - why have you had such a drop in your income?

Of course you don’t have to say but as you’ve made a post I want to be nosy (and see if it’s something I should look out for in the future)

I came on this thread as I thought it may help as our household income is about to drop to just over a £1000 a month. So obviously not.

Today 18:59 Gurufloof

Tbh It’s £800 after bills for a family of 4- take away £250-300 for food - thats c£500 left- yes that’s tight
Maybe for you.
Bookmark*

For a lot of people- come September two kids may need uniform, new pe kits etc.
Went to a farm today- entrance alone was £60. Like I also pointed out OPs kids aren’t 3, they won’t be happy with a home made den and a trip to the playground. It’s not impossible, and yes of course there’re people is horrible situations atm, but OP won’t be living it up.

So after petrol is 800pm. If this is going to be long term then potentially look to switch your cars to something more economical (this will depend on if your cars on finance/value/condition etc)

Pet food look independent pet stores, when we had a dog we got large bags of food from the local pet shop or online and would save ourselves about £20-£30 on average a month compared to places like pets at home etc.

Food - meal plan. Write down each week what you all fancy and plan round that. If your doing a dish that maybe uses cream fraiche and you only need half the tub, find another dish to eat that week that uses the rest. Places like aldi and Lidl will do cheap ‘super 6’ fruit and veg check what that weeks veg/fruit will be and again plan your meals around this. Shopping on an evening can save money for things like meat. You can buy stuff on ‘woopsie’ stickers for 1/3 cost and put it in the freezer, and it means you can still have ‘nice’ cuts of meat. Make pack lunches for you/partner and Dc much cheaper than everyone buying dinner on the go. Same goes for coffees etc. I find online shopping stops me from impulse buys, might be worth a go and it saves fuel. I pay £8 pm for delivery with tesco (I’d spend more on fuel) bulk buy when possible and don’t be scared to switch to cheaper brands. Some might be the same, some you will probably dislike. For 3 people you can easily spend £60 - £70 on food per week and still eat normally. (So that’s 240 a month on food)

Xmas and birthdays - again depends on how long term this is, but maybe suggest to family doing a round robin sort of gifts, or set a budget for those (£20 per adult, £10 for kids) outside of your Household. So maybe put away £200 per month which would now leave you with £360 Left over per month.if you don’t want your child to be affected by the new budget you can always agree with your partner to do token gifts and the spare money goes on food etc for the day. Or set your child’s expectations that things may be different (this obviously depends on what your current lifestyle is!)

Cloths/haircuts; if your having expensive cut and colour either try and do it yourself (the colour) or accept that it’s not within budget. (100 max? For haircuts for the 3 of you) so you have £260 left a month.

Pocket money for a 10 year old? Dunno how much but what 10 a week? So your £220 a month now. Pocket money isn’t a necessity.

Days out put a limit on things so x1 ‘expensive trip which may be £100 a month max (theme parks etc) or get Yearly memberships for places. I have a few for me and ds and we save a fortune. Then other trips out are free days. You haven’t mentioned what your interests are but bike rides/hiking/going to woods etc all free and take a picnic with you. Or get ds to invite friends over for console days etc. So your down to maybe £100 ish for the month. (My ds is significantly younger so free days are easier, but look at local Facebook pages you often get discounts on entry for local places)

Think that about covers everything. If this is long term as contracts start ending switch to cheaper deals; sim only, better prices for internet, car insurance etc. If you can switch loans/credit cards over to lower interest deals. Places like top cash back etc are a good start, and their is normally threads on money matters on here for ‘ earn £10 a day’ some good short term ideas on their. Especially in the run up to Christmas. Sign up to company newsletters and wait for the discount codes round Black Friday. Shop around as much as possible. Look for cash back apps. I get maybe £100-150 per year which goes into my Christmas kitty from loading receipts to apps... very little work needed.

Hope this helps op.

@OnlyFoolsnMothers

* Today 18:59 Gurufloof

Tbh It’s £800 after bills for a family of 4- take away £250-300 for food - thats c£500 left- yes that’s tight
Maybe for you.
Bookmark*

For a lot of people- come September two kids may need uniform, new pe kits etc.
Went to a farm today- entrance alone was £60. Like I also pointed out OPs kids aren’t 3, they won’t be happy with a home made den and a trip to the playground. It’s not impossible, and yes of course there’re people is horrible situations atm, but OP won’t be living it up.

Omg you clearly lack imagination. Stop assuming everyone lives a totally shit life on this income and has bored teenagers and can't afford school uniform. It's bordering on offensive.

Ignore all the "oh that's so much money" brigade, some of us do have high incomes.

If you haven't already then look at shopping at Aldi, it's so much cheaper than any of the big supermarkets and you can cleverly meals,an and stillest well.

Scout around and look for the cheapest petrol prices, even if it means driving to a local town. Here the prices between two towns are dramatically different.

If you use a tumble dryer then look at hanging it on airers instead, it's warm enough to dry overnight at the moment.

If you have a cleaner then look at TOMM, we both work full time and haven't got our cleaner back so we're trying to manage the housework using this method, it saves £100 a month. Ditto gardener.

You don't really have £1000 discretionary spending. You need to rethink the budget. As others have said, you have to put petrol in the car to drive to work, so it's a fixed cost . Assuming you don't have any savings, you also need to put a fixed sum aside at the beginning of each month for emergencies, and Christmas/ birthdays/ treats. Err on the side of caution - put away more than you think you need, otherwise you will quickly get into trouble when the washing machine breaks down, both children need new shoes, and it's your Mum's birthday.

Then set yourself a daily budget. This is the amount you know you can spend every day without getting into debt at the end of each month. Personally, for me this is £30. I prefer to have it in cash, in my purse. I try very hard not to spend it all, as inevitably there are unforeseen expenses eg child losing school equipment.

Keep a record of every single penny you spend. It will help you work out where you can save further.

Oh, and be strategic with haircuts. If you have girls then haircut for going back to school to happen. last week of August, and another in the Easter hols, and that’s it.

Good luck to you OP. I hope it all comes right in the end.

Oh hang on their is 2 kids but the same kind of principle still exists. £60-70 is doable for a family of 4 for food, days out stick to no more than £100 and if that means that x1 parent takes them I don’t think that’s the end of the world. So you go on a day out with them month one, dp the next. Saves on entry fee and they get to spend time with a parent. If they want to do lots of clubs or activities after school they choose either family days out or they can pick 2 activities they want each week etc.

Ok
£1000

£200 petrol
£400 for Inc dog
Then set aside
£100 emergency
£100 fun
£100 clothes and beauty/hair
£100 presents - Christmas and birthdays

Batch cooking and cooking fresh will help. We often have "fridge gravel soup" which is all the veg looking a bit sad left over, with some stock and bread. Filling and lasts a few lunches. Meal planing too. I'd ask people what they would like for Xmas too. So when you need to spend money at least it is on things you know they want/need. A lot will probably not even want anything and you could make home made fudge etc.

If you have little ones who need toys you can find some great stuff in charity shops. Have a good look around and go to some in the "posher" towns. Hope your luck changes x

Hey OP, our income has dropped also- we are left with around 950 a month, this included child benefit, have you included that in yours?

Meal planning is our saviour and always has been. We have never gone crazy and eaten out lots of anything so there is no change in that sense but we do watch what we spend.

Aldi is great for most things, but some things you will probably need to shop elsewhere for. Pick a shop close to Aldi if this is the case.

We I would say are still comfortable, our bills get paid and we have. Cheeky takeaway here and there.
We enjoy family days out made up of picnics and trips out to free places. We explore more locally too, searching for painted rocks, scarecrows etc.

It’s just about getting used to spending within your budget.

Good luck 🌸

Also look at bulk buying, I buy meat for instance from a farm shop in bulk, a few kgs of chicken and mince. I portion it up into the freezer and then that goes towards my meal plan. It’s better quality than Aldi and goes further.

@SleepingStandingUp

Ok £1000

£200 petrol
£400 for Inc dog
Then set aside
£100 emergency
£100 fun
£100 clothes and beauty/hair
£100 presents - Christmas and birthdays

Also see if you can sell stuff you'd otherwise donate so clothes etc and put the money back into that area so seeking the kids old clothes goes into the clothes pot, selling their toys? into the fun section

I've been where you are after I lost my job. Family of four, kids were 4 at the time.

We cut our cloth accordingly. We had one car anyway, an oldercar.
Holidayed in UK (Sun deals).
No Sky TV, cheap mobile deals
As I wasn't working I could shop about for food deals
Clothing - kept my wardrobe, visited charity.
We had a mortgage, not rent. A small, easy to heat house.

It was do-able. We even had savings.
My earnings had only brought £700 in extra and we had no debt fortunately.

My grear aunt (who had survived the war years on a budget) told me to cut my cloth and that advice has stuck.