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,

With the best will in the world, £1k pcm AFTER tax, pension and bills is easy as pie.

Just reduce petrol, food and leisure costs as much as you can and then whatever is left over split between funds for clothes, birthday, Christmas and contingencies. No matter how small those funds are, you work out incentive ways to clothe yourself or do Christmas on whatever the budget is. If you don’t have enough left over for modest Christmas, clothes, birthday and contingency funds, then you’re still spending too much on food, petrol and leisure.

First thing to do is go own-brand on everything you buy branded. Then work out how to make big batches of curry, stew and bolognese for the freezer cheaply but with decent ingredients.

I'm a bargain hunter. I've nearly finished Christmas shopping as I'd rather buy as I see things on offer than save up throughout the year. We are asking family members for days out vouchers for birthdays and have a local theme park season pass which saves £££.

I buy clothes, pyjamas and trainers in the next size up when I see them in sales so there isn't a desperate rush when the DCs grow. Some things come from charity shops or Facebook marketplace (in immaculate condition).

Cutting out alcohol and making decent coffee at home saves a lot. We buy really nice ingredients eg fresh baguette, deli meats, salad, exotic fruit etc to make a premium picnic from. Much nicer than a cafe at an attraction and still cheaper.

Look through your wardrobe if tempted to shop for clothes. You probably have enough already. Wait for 25% off at TU Sainsburys for essentials (11th August apparently).

Use up any toiletries or makeup you already have before buying any more. Only buy what you really need and will use.

Down shift your food shop. Basics brand weetabix, spaghetti hoops, cookies and yoghurts are a fraction of the price and taste just fine.

I find budgeting for every expense really helps. So I work out how much I expect to spend on Christmas, car repairs, uniform, kids clothes, presents, hair cuts, dentist, house repairs etc over the course of a year and ensure there is a detailed budget for each category so it’s realistic. I then put money to one side for each category each month. Then you have an idea of what’s left for anything non essential. I’ve found budgeting like this has helped loads. As others have said shopping in Aldi with a clear budget and meal planning too. There are lots of fun free activities.

I don't think £1k/MTH after bills is any concern, but I have myself had a period of being very skint and I would just like to say to those even hinting it is less enjoyable - I think that it is down to attitude and the amountbyou care about the price of things.

It is hard being really skint, and it takes effort, and the longer it lasts the harder it gets.

But the op is not skint, they are just not as wealthy anymore. So it will be a change but hopefully not a deprivation.

Some of the traditions that evolved when we were skint have remained forever in our family because they really were better than anything I could ever buy. Sorry to be cheesy.

for everyone facing real hardship, and I'm glad you'll still have above average disposable income op, so hopefully all will be well.

Definitely plan, on and plan again. Daft as it sounds, pretend you’re back on lockdown and can only shop once a fortnight. Do an inventory of your food cupboards and freezer and see what you can meal plan with what you’ve got already. Then add what you’d need to your list.

Scour your house for anything you can sell. Old phones, cameras, iPods, any electronics you’ve bought that the kids no longer use, plus games. Get it down to CEX for cash or vouchers.

Anything else useful that might sell, get it on Facebook.

Check all current direct debits. Can you swap mortgage providers, energy suppliers, insurance policies? Scale back your sky subscription if you have one?

Get on to the frugal board in Money Matters on here, they’re lovely, friendly and helpful. And also check out Moneysavingexpert.

Honestly, you can do this.

@OnlyFoolsnMothers

Also to all the snippy comments, 10yr olds aren’t toddlers, free attractions/ days aren’t that appealing. Planning is the key OP- plan for the month and try and under the amounts you set aside

Free attractions are appealing to my teenagers - we have only spent petrol money on days out this summer and have been swimming, watched vintage planes and gliders taking off, been on long country walks, all kinds of things - we had an art day where we went out and challenged ourselves to make a free piece of art. You don't have to spend money to enjoy yourself, try different things and see how it goes.

Take a look at what you tend to say you 'need' and reevaluate according to your budget.

If you have clothes that are suitable for all seasons, you don't need to buy new clothes. Even if you want them.

If you enjoy cravendale, you can get by with regular milk. Same with posh branded cheese, water, anything. Sparkling water doesn't need to be san pellegrino.

Explain to DC that this Christmas will not be like other Christmases. Tell them that their desired gifts will need to fall under a budgeted amount. They may surprise you with how understanding and resourceful they can be, but either way, it's an important life lesson for them as your income won't guarantee them an easy life as adults.

If you enjoy having a big Christmas spread, start planning for it now. Things like stuffing and cranberry sauce can be bought months in advance, turkey can be preordered, crackers don't need to be luxury to be fun.

The reason you're getting such a harsh response is because some people have this amount to live on, full stop. Some people are in that situation because of the pandemic, too. There were different ways you could have phrased your OP to make it clear that you don't think you're struggling. Because you're not.

I suppose make a budget sheet if you haven't already, how much do you need to spend on petrol and food etc?

I suppose you will be spending less on leisure activities than pre lockdown, as there's not so much you can do? Cancel any gym memberships etc that you can't afford.

Expect that you will be fine. I'm not well off but am not offended that you have asked the question, it's hard to figure out new situations sometimes

Also, is your username anything to do with your current financial situation? If you have debts, it may be a good idea to budget a bit more of that £1000 towards paying them off ASAP

What kind of cars do you have? You may be better off getting smaller and more economic cars

OK, so considering petrol spend you really have £800.

First stop is meal planning. Drop down a brand for everything. Cut out meat-quorn is a great substitute. Bulk out with lots of veg.
Get shopping delivered (a saver plan of £7 a month for deliveries) as it stops impulse buys.

Have an honest budget for your week and then put £10 aside for necessary top ups of bread, milk etc.

Including toiletries and pet stuff, you can get away with £80-£90 a week. No booze though.

Try your best to limit contactless spends as they are often done on impulse. When we're having a really tight month, I work only in cash. When it's gone, it's gone.

You have to start budgeting for big things like Christmas and things breaking now. I use a money app which links to my bank and automatically withdraws to save based on what it thinks I won't miss week to week.

I have a lot less to play with each month. After bills etc, I reckon we have about £600.

£250-£300 on food
£100 to Xmas fund
£50 to emergency fund
£50 to household fund (clothes/days out)
Then I reckon £100 or so gets eaten up by the savings app, snacks, thoughtless spends.

You will make it work. It'll just take some getting used to. I don't see it as being particularly frugal now but I know in comparisons to some friends, I have to be much more careful

Seriously? After most bills you have £1000 left, so £250 a week?
That's more than my family have to live on before all bills ect, I'm sure you can manage.

Hey Debtgalore,

I think it’s all relative. A £1000 for me after bills would make me feel rich but really the amount is irrelevant, it’s learning to cope with a drastically reduced income that is tough.

Definitely have a budget and stick to it, with Monzo bank you can have separate ‘pots’ and track how much you have left. If you have the odd slip up that’s ok, you’re learning!

It may seem a strange suggestion but if you have kids and dogs, have you thought about a membership to National Trust, English Heritage or RSPB? I pay £10 a month (which I include in my budget) and it means we have a ‘free’ day out whenever we want, they often have activities or changing exhibits so even going to the same site is kept interesting and the membership also includes regular magazines so you and the kids get a treat as well. We take a picnic but if I’m feeling frivolous we have a hot drink or ice cream depending on the weather, which is again cheaper than a whole lunch out!

One thing my parents did when we were on holidays was to let us plan the days out but we were given a budget and it had to cover everything, the petrol, parking, tickets, food etc. It helped teach us how to budget and meant it was our choice if we blew it all on a day to the water park and the rest of the week at the beach or if we did a few smaller excursions. Probably kept us occupied researching too!

My kids have grown up thinking charity shops are toyshops! And love looking for new toys there, particularly if we are in a different town, there’s always a few new ones to explore so it keeps them occupied for a while having a good look, it’s amazing what you can get.

I also get toys from Whirli, it is great for Christmas and birthdays, if you keep the toys for 9 months they become yours and if you are bored beforehand you swap them for something new: whirli.com and there’s 15% off code: E96D2NPB

Meal planning can be great but when I was on a very tight food budget (£10 a week for 3 was do-able!) I found it easier to do a monthly food shop for absolute basic store cupboard essentials and toiletries. Then when you go shopping buy the things on offer and/or yellow label. Either be good at mental arithmetic or take a calculator so you can stick to your daily budget. I felt I had more choice that way, rather having to have what was planned the week before and it worked out cheaper.

Alternatively use the butchers so you can get smaller amounts and stay in budget, for example I would buy a small amount of diced beef and bulk a casserole up with lots of veg or a curry with chickpeas. Bacon was always good too, a couple of rashers into pasta with tomato sauce would add a little bit of flavour and stop my family complaining it was rabbit food! Jack Monroe has some excellent recipes on cookingonabootstrap.com/

For clothes you could sign up to Oxfam' secondhand September challenge? and unsubscribe from any marketing emails from your favourite online stores to help stop temptation!

Good luck. Hopefully it won’t be too long before you are in a different situation, and you may even get extra enjoyment from all the ‘little extras’ in future.

There has been some BRILLIANT advice given in this thread and I'm very grateful; I've been through it all and written down the tips I intend to use/work on.

I do have empathy for people who are struggling through the pandemic, and understand people live on a lot less.

That doesn't mean my circumstances changing won't have a massive effect on me. I am sorry that it offends so many people. I did say I know I'm very lucky in my OP.

For those asking- I am a nurse - DH has lost his business hence the debt/income drop, thanks to covid. It's unrecoverable. He's found work in his field, but for a significant salary drop, and with the enormous debt we're left with it will take us a LONG time to get back on our feet.

Thank you to everyone who got where I was coming from and offered valued opinions, support and advice. It's greatly appreciated.

Good luck. Get meal planning, take it a week at a time, you’ll be okay. More than okay - doesn’t mean it’s not crap for you, though.

Ignore the haters.

Skip meat?
On £1K left over a month you could afford to eat steak every night.
Is this thread a joke?

You'll be fine op once you're used to it. You live to your means!

I prefer to do an on-line shop so that I don’t pick up treats and things I don’t need.

Someone earlier on the thread said that with £1k a month you should be able to save £12,000 per year! Maths clearly not their strong point.

We've lived on £1k per month and it's tough.

The spiteful comments on MN threads when someone has a household income higher than £12k and dares to suggest they might struggle is ridiculous

This. Unless you are earning minimum wage and shopping entirely from the reduced section, you aren't allowed to worry when your income seriously reduces.

£1000 after bills. Oh behave.

There's people on here that have deficits after bills and are running on credit at them moment.

If you earn enough to have that much left over, I'm sure you're smart enough to work out a bugdet. Stop spending on shit you don't need and goading people on MN.

Have you got a Blue Light card ?
£4.99 for 2 years.

Maybe it depends on the costs in the area you live in because I really don't think it's a huge amount , £1000 after £200 a month petrol and say £100 a week on food and pet food is £400.

It's around what we have but I have an 11 year old and a one year old , one year old not quite as expensive to feed, entertain etc . This month we are having to buy new school uniform which will be at least a couple of hundred pounds , so if your not budgeting carefully it can be easily spent , plus you will want to have some savings for unexpected costs , cars , boiler, whatever it may be.

OP I think just being aware and trying to have no spend days help , I always shop on a set day and meal plan for the week, like you I know we are not in any way destitute but it doesn't hurt to make your money stretch as far as you can . Try to be as strict as you can following a budget to start with so you can try to build up a bit of a buffer in your bank account.