If you are financially comfortable, have you started cutting back on non-essentials?

[LabraDabraDoo]

I realise that we are very fortunate to have the financial headroom to choose to cut back and at the moment we spend quite a bit on non-essentials. We did a budget last night to look at likely price increases (especially fuel) and it looks like, while our jobs are secure ( although our investments are in the doldrums) we will be cutting back on quite a few non-essentials. Anyone else also making this choice yet?

Our list includes:
Back to buying decent quality supermarket meat and reining in trips to the farm shop.
I’m not buying clothes this Spring, I have enough to clothe a hundred middle aged women. We aren’t heating unused rooms in the house. Horse riding lessons are being suspended ( kids didn’t seem too bothered so that’s an easy £200 saved). We’ve cancelled our plan to refloor downstairs (wooden floors, so that’s a big saving). I planned to raise the children to a cottage in Norfolk for a couple of weeks in summer and we’ve arranged a house swap with a friend instead. We are not going out to eat for the foreseeable, and outings will be free swimming at the gym, dog walks etc. All other home improvement plans and big spends ( I considered renewing my car) are on hold. There are some things I hope we don’t have to cut, like cancelling holidays, music lessons and our lovely cleaner. We are still saving money into pensions and investments.

Anyone else making cutbacks? Do you think it’s going to start having an impact on people who provide non-essential services or are they still enjoying a post-Covid boom?

We haven’t cut back but probably will.
We are frivolous in some ways but money is not endless and we may need to prioritise.
Gym membership will be my first suggestion, I love it mainly for the spa but we have a hot tub in the garden and I can run for free and do weights at home. It’s £300 a month for dh ds and I and we rarely go so if we needed to that could go.
I’m not (yet!) prepared to be cold at home and I won’t be giving up my £17 chickens or good quality meat in general. I still use my tumble dryer every day and we all have regular haircuts. We have a very big sky package and pay for multiple streaming subscriptions on top of this.
Lots of ways to reduce bills but at the minute we don’t want to! Denial

I’m manically going around the house and turning the lights off. Used to hate my dad doing this when I was a kid but now I’m doing it!

We are just going to be a bit more careful than we already are. We meal plan anyway but I’m planning on using the oven for 2 dishes rather than one from now on. There will be more shopping at Aldi with fewer trips in the car unless necessary.

Avoid buying new clothes unless for DD who is shooting up and trying to make the most of free or cheap things to do.

We aren’t on the breadline by any means but I’m reckoning this might be a bumpy ride soon.

I’m manically going around the house and turning the lights off.

Same. I'm turning into my dear departed maw, closing internal doors and dutifully switching all plugs off at the wall when not in use. She'd be so proud if she could see me now.

I'm very comfortable but I have also been thinking about not wasting so much money anymore because we don't know where this is going to end .
I think the OP is right to start her thread and it shouldn't only be people on the breadline who can discuss money and budgets .
The point about looking after ' local 'small businesses is very valid imo especially when local trades rely on customers and they are the easiest to bin off in hard time's .
I have a dog walker twice a week and I spend £80 a week on this and another £50 a week for help in the garden . These could be the first to go except my dogs love their walks and my gardener is a single parent totally reliant on her customers . Both are hard to give up so for me the biggest thing I can change is my seeming addiction to QVC.

@DottyHarmer

Although most of us would scoff at a £17 chicken, I doubt the farm shop selling it would, and will probably have to close if there are no “poncey” customers. Likewise it’s all very well to sneer at people who have cleaners, or go to the hairdresser’s frequently, or who eat out several times a week or attend the theatre - but thousands of people’s jobs - livelihoods - rely on this.

We will be in a real hole if everyone pares their lives down to the bare necessities. Think before jeering.

This is my worry. If all those of you who are ‘comfortably off’ are making all these cut backs it’s going to leave a lot of us who are on the breadline without jobs! The cleaners, the takeaway staff, the taxi drivers, the hairdressers etc. The country will end up in a proper recession. If those of you who don’t really have to cut back would go on spending this could be averted and would definitely be better for the country as a whole.

@implantreplace

No need to copy and paste - but thanks Just “quote” it

Somebody needs to work on their bedside manner...

Our energy DD is set to double from April so am now more conscious of turning down heating and it’s off in rooms we don’t use. Very rarely use car anyhow as DH trains to work and I work from home. Since lockdown have gone out less due to our industries being hit and have sort of stuck with that. DS just moved out so want something spare to help him if he needs. Only luxury we are having is a holiday this year as haven’t had one for 4 years.

We turned the heating off in bedrooms for a couple of years and have discovered loads of problems with damp, mould, rotting window frames, so be careful! I reckon our heating will be off completely soon though until the autum, and when back on I will make sure bedroom's at least have a low/gentle heat to stop it getting worse. I've found the chemical dehumidifiers to be helpful. When you generate steam showering/cooking, the vapour will condense in the coldest part of your home.

I was going to ditch the heated clothes drier as have a tumble drier (and they are supposed to be better for avoiding damp in the home/mould spores - same with radiator drying). However, find it hard to justify price of tumble drier vs heated clothes horse.

As soon as it's worth it will be drying outside.

I agree with all of this, i am always looking for ways to cutback. If i need something expensive i always cutback to afford it. I bought a car last year, didnt eat for 3-4 months and didn't buy anything its amazing how much you can stop spending when you want to. I then did the same for back Windows. Next is major stopping everything for expensive curved front Windows, may take longer with how much everything is going up. Everytime I go to the supermarket a lot of things have gone up by 10% from 1 week to the next 😕 By I am always saving for the next thing ....

Cutting my holidays down this year

I was just thinking about this today - we are linking trips to different places in one trip & are going to Aldi which is hugely cheaper than other supermarkets - we're also using the woodburner instead of the heating most of the time - we don't really do takeaways or going out that much so not much has changed there! But I've cancelled sky too there's so much TV to choose from.
I think we're all going to have to use candles to light the house.
I guess the good news is that we're almost into Spring so we can a switch the heating off then.

I have to say though - I know it's not the purpose of this thread but looking at the horror that is going on in Ukraine I mean at least we have the choice to turn the heating off.

Me! We have a reasonable amount available to save and spend each month, I spend around £1000 on non essentials and save around the same. I would like to keep that amount the same so I’m making some changes.

Changing my virgin package - I only watch Netflix and EastEnders so it’s not needed.

Reroofing my house and re insulating to lower heating costs over all.

Moving to sim only contract.

Meant more mindful with the heating. Ie not set to 30, wearing shorts with the windows open 😂😂😂

@mylifestory

I agree with all of this, i am always looking for ways to cutback. If i need something expensive i always cutback to afford it. I bought a car last year, didnt eat for 3-4 months and didn't buy anything its amazing how much you can stop spending when you want to. I then did the same for back Windows. Next is major stopping everything for expensive curved front Windows, may take longer with how much everything is going up. Everytime I go to the supermarket a lot of things have gone up by 10% from 1 week to the next 😕 By I am always saving for the next thing ....

"Didn't eat for 3-4 months"? What?! I wouldn't be advocating that. You mean you didn't eat out I'm assuming? I think some families who are already on the breadline will really suffer, they probably don't have anything to cut back on,

Heating barely on, shopping just before shops close to get the reduced items, barely going out and not having friends over to eat. We’re also putting DIY plans (flooring, carpets) on hold indefinitely.

Going to change to home workouts instead of the fitness classes, more walking the doggo. Used to have a hairdresser dye my hair, Asda boxes now.

The concern is, the knock on effect these economies will have on those working in those trades.- I’m sure we’re obviously not the only ones, but that directly hits those who will then struggle even more.

And yet MPs get their 20% rise and energy companies still making record profits. The solutions seem so obvious, yet it’s even more obvious this government won’t focus their attentions at top level.

Yes I’m definitely getting a little worried. I think we would be just about ok if we did nothing, but it’s all making me uneasy.

We have done a direct debit cull (there was all sorts of stuff- a contraception app even though I deliberately got pregnant a year ago), I’ve switched to a cheaper supermarket and to going in person.

I’m going to go back to work roughly 8 weeks early hopefully on a higher band if I get it, and a few more hours (I had been on 12 to just maintain my professional registration).

No big holiday this year.

Thermostat down one (we have been a pampered 21 family). Getting a new boiler (essential) with a smart thermostat so hopefully that will yield savings that go towards paying for the boiler itself… I also need to chill on the tumble drier use.

No new bathroom that I had been hoping for in the autumn.

I just feel like we are bracing ourselves!?

We’re in an extremely fortunate position in that we’re financially comfortable. I haven’t felt the need to cut back as yet but then I’m fairly frugal anyway (don’t tend to eat out, have a budget gym membership and rarely buy clothes etc). We also opted for a house well below our maximum borrowing. I have reduced the mortgage overpayment and rerouted the money to premium bonds, though, so that it’s easily accessible should we need it. If not, I’ll put a lump sum towards the mortgage at the next renewal. Who knows, might get lucky and win big in the meantime!

We're quite comfortable but are now having to think about being careful as I'm on an extended maternity leave with our last baby (baby no. 3). Taking 18 months off to enjoy baby and our kids properly without worrying about my stressful job. Going back PT when I do (2 days a week so that will be a huge decrease to our income too).

Before mat leave, sold our second car (the cheaper runner) as DH is WFH so I can use the main car. The plan was to buy a nicer 2nd car before I go back to work but now thinking it would be wiser for me to take the train (1 hour journey with two change overs) and he keeps the car to do the school runs (two different schools) and take baby to child minders.

DH also has a really bad Costa habit and orders a Costa coffee delivery most mornings. Have told him he needs to put an end to it and use the coffee machine instead. We also do way too many takeaways which will need reducing to once per week.

We're also trying to put the heating on less and shower more instead of baths. Following this closely for more ideas.

I'm switching to any supermarket brands for beauty buys. I had decided at Xmas this would be a permanent move. Been really impressed with Lidl and Aldi. Also Aldi has been good for perfumes and candles. M&S has some lovely perfumes too which are reasonably priced.

When I want to relax in the bath I use a cheap, moisturing bath foam (could get Simple for £1 on offer in 2020 and stocked up!). I light a candle beforehand to get the scent.

We decided to only drink on Friday and Saturday so I often get a month's worth or more of booze delivered in a go.

I won't be buying many clothes now. Only the very occassionl treat or necessity. Cancelled Nespresso subscription and make coffee from ground beans instead.

I cancelled Ocado monthly charge and now get their offers emailed like £5 for pizza and prosecco.... amazon prime going too.

Interesting. We still haven’t become free due to COVID. We haven’t had a holiday in almost 3 years. Cinema, theatre, coffee out are not happening because of COVID. We don’t go anywhere if there are folk there not distancing. No need for new clothes as we have plenty. No supermarket shopping. We are def saving money now. We do spend money on good quality face masks and our heating is on.

COVID numbers are rising, just in case folk didn’t know.

God we need to. DH needs to stop a) ordering so many sodding takeaways for lunch I could brain the pleb b) stop breaking things c) stop acting like jack with the magic beans and d) stop putting the heating on so much and leaving lights on (seriously it’s like Blackpool illuminations here)

We’ve started showering the kids rather than bathing. I’m getting all of ds baby clothes from Vinted (although the poor lad does look tatty at times). Will be selling all of their good old clothes.
Thinking of tutoring on the weekend for some more pocket money.

Thank god spring is coming so days out can be free

I’m thinking of renewing my Costco membership to get fuel and bulk buy meat and fish- should save a decent amount.

Dd will be dropping a day at nursery whilst I’m on mat leave and when I return dh and I will condense hours so shouldn’t need to scale nursery back up.

We’ve gone down to sim only deals.

Not cancelling our protection policies but will review them. Loathed to cancel the health insurance with the current state of the nhs.

I’m not scaling down my pension, I only pay in 3% but I’m very lucky to get a base level of 10% paid in by my employer and then that 3% matched.

We already get cheaper cuts of meat to slow cook.

Not sure what else we can do

We don't feel that comfortable but probably are really. Heating off and no takeaways etc. Prioritising everything for DS - swimming, football, etc. Although he wears second hand clothes etc

@Dnaltocs

Interesting. We still haven’t become free due to COVID. We haven’t had a holiday in almost 3 years. Cinema, theatre, coffee out are not happening because of COVID. We don’t go anywhere if there are folk there not distancing. No need for new clothes as we have plenty. No supermarket shopping. We are def saving money now. We do spend money on good quality face masks and our heating is on. COVID numbers are rising, just in case folk didn’t know.

I know covid numbers are rising, but that does not affect my social activities or what I spend my money on.

@Dnaltocs

Interesting. We still haven’t become free due to COVID. We haven’t had a holiday in almost 3 years. Cinema, theatre, coffee out are not happening because of COVID. We don’t go anywhere if there are folk there not distancing. No need for new clothes as we have plenty. No supermarket shopping. We are def saving money now. We do spend money on good quality face masks and our heating is on. COVID numbers are rising, just in case folk didn’t know.

You’ll be fine if you catch Covid - live your life and stop shutting yourself away. Life is too short.

@Dnaltocs

Interesting. We still haven’t become free due to COVID. We haven’t had a holiday in almost 3 years. Cinema, theatre, coffee out are not happening because of COVID. We don’t go anywhere if there are folk there not distancing. No need for new clothes as we have plenty. No supermarket shopping. We are def saving money now. We do spend money on good quality face masks and our heating is on. COVID numbers are rising, just in case folk didn’t know.

Can I ask why you don’t go out anywhere if people aren’t distancing? It seems such a shame to live your life with such fear

I’ve been reading all these posts with interest. I’m lucky that I’m able to afford my bills but really don’t live an extravagant life. I did wonder what I would cut back on if I had to and I really can’t think of anything. Only the real splurge/luxuries - dyptique soap, Molton Brown room spray but they really are luxuries I could easily live without. I feel so incredibly sorry for any family that has to choose food over heat or worry about money constantly. Our world feels really broken to me right now :(