How much do you need to live on?

[Yourcatisnotsorry]

Ignoring housing costs (mortgage/rent) and childcare costs, can I ask how much you need to live on?

Thinking of being an SAHP/early retirement and how much savings I’d need before private pension kicks in.

Family of 4 in the north, I think with £3000 net a month we’d be comfortable.

Comments like this are exactly why I rarely post on on here.

Of course, everyone’s opinion and comments are valid. But everything you added after “probably about £100k” is just not necessary and makes you sound extremely smug.

If I just take mortgage and childcare out of our current monthly spending, we need around £2,500 a month as a family of 3 (parents and toddler).

I think we could shave another £5-800 off that if we tracked our budget closely. More if we really went bare bones and cancelled kid activities. At the moment, we don't make silly or very large purchases but we don't track random costs like replacing clothes or picking up extra food during the week and we sometimes spontaneously do day trips or meals out with our son.

I am disabled and my shop is full of easy stuff, I am home all the time and run the washing machine daily. I have an expensive skin condition and need to buy things to manage my pain. I also need things to do but I am fine with crafts at home. I am saving to get my garden done. I don’t have a car but I wish I did. I don’t have as much as I would want to pay for all of this though so I would say ballpark 2k a month which is more than I get on universal credit

To maintain the life I have now (not including mortgage) probably about £1700.

What is the bare minimum ? Probably closer to £600 with no extras beyond food and again without mortgage.

£2750 minimum. 2 adults and a baby.

Obviously this is based on the presumption of being normal retirement age, though, so would only include costs for the person/ couple not feeding and clothing a child, the higher associated utility costs, birthdays, Christmas, family holidays, trips, extracurricular activities/ hobbies/ swimming lessons, toys/ electronics, saving for university or further training, potentially needing a larger car, etc etc. I presume therefore that if you still have children at home these amounts would need increasing quite significantly at each level.

At last, someone on a normal amount!

I can't reply to everyone who has offered helpful suggestions, but I am SO grateful and will check every single one out.

Sadly, I'm jolly good at providing Octopus with the monthly readings (and getting a free spin of the wheel) so I know my fuel usage is spot on, rather than them hanging onto money.

Sorry to hijack a thread, but this has been so helpful for me, and people have been very kind.

@Bignanna I don't think it's "normal" for people to live on £600 after tax and mortgage/ rent. My combined bills for water, gas/ electricity and Council tax (with a single person discount) are more than that before you factor in other essential costs like food, clothes, internet/ phone, insurance, house maintenance, let alone any discretional spending (OP wouldn't have commuting cost if retired but still presumably would require some transport sometimes, at leasf occasionally seeing friends and family or her/ her children being able to participate in leisure activities, spend some money on Christmas/ birthday, clothe the child, enable the child to have IT equipment for school work etc.

We all know that some people live in poverty but that isn't "normal" and since OP appears to have a choice in this situation voluntarily creating poverty for her household isn't something for which it is sensible to advocate. If it would mean living like that then the logical decision is for her not to give up work until she can finance at least the basics of life comfortably.

Bet a lot have less than £600 to live on after the essentials have been taken out

£600 for one person for a month :
Council tax £222
Gas electric bills £90
Water bills £33
Tv licence £14
Mobile phone £7
Broadband £25
Food £200
Transport £9
Contents and building insurances no money left so no insurance

No new clothes, gifts, entertainment, meals out, takeaways, holidays.

Posted too soon.
These are my numbers, I'd need another £200 to feed my OH, £7 for his mobile and more for full council tax

That is very very tight indeed, and would be almost impossible for any length of time

Bet a lot have less than £600 to live on after the essentials have been taken out

But that wasn't the question. It was excluding mortgage/ rent and childcare. The figures people are quoting would therefore still have to cover many other essentials as I stated: Council tax, water, energy, insurance, food, transport, house maintenance, clothing, periodic replacements for broken appliances etc.

The £600 would need to cover all of those essential things, it isn't £600 left over after essential things are paid. That would be very comfortable obviously.

Insurance is a legal requirement if you have a mortgage, not optional.

House maintenance and replacing broken appliances etc periodically are also essential costs, not optional.

£9 for transport seems extremely unrealistic. That's a return local fare in many places, so you'd only leave the house once per month unless to somewhere in walking distance?

The £90 on energy and £222 Council tax is also highly unrealistic for many people - very much depends on the area and the build of the house.

Plus, if talking about retirement so living in this in perpetuity, there is nothing factored in here to pay for care, or even additional help with jobs that may become impossible to do as someone ages such as garden maintenance, DIY/ repairs, potentially also all the cleaning.

As I said, on a short term basis someone could perhaps cover their very most basic living costs with this amount (after housing) but not if they also had dependent children like the OP does, and it would be a miserable and precarious situation and not cover many essential periodic but necessary costs to maintain a home properly, so isn't a situation that it seems a good idea to place oneself in out of choice particularly if simultaneously raising children.

As you say, this only considers one single person no clothing or food for children factored in, no trips, no clubs, no activities or birthday parties or Christmas/ birthday presents and never eating out, no holiday ever. And all balancing on a knife edge where there is no reserve at all. Not ideal or something to actively choose, surely, if it could be avoided so things were more comfortable by OP working?

Isn't the easiest thing to work out how much you spend now and what might change and add it up ?

Everyone has different circumstances and expectations- if you need £100 haircut each month/ you live rurally and all use cars / you expect to eat out every week .. so many variables

Same here.

Simple answer I'm frugal by nature live on lifelong( contributions based) disability benefits and it just about covers my basic bills
I own my property so no mortgage but I pay £300 pcm service charge
It's taken the shine away

It's a slippery slope, though. Yes, a Jo Malone candle will never be a need. But what about an annual holiday? Or good quality clothing that will last? Or a nice lunch out (not Nando's) with a friend once a week? Or a comfortable home (eg, high quality furniture that will last versus buying the cheapest stuff)?

I often find pension discussions are based on someone having the most barebones, miserable existence ever where you never buy anything and don't leave your home due to the cost. It's a bit disconnected from reality

I'm writing this as someone living a comfortable, middle class existence due to my job. Obviously a lot of people work and can't afford the basics or essentials of life.

Yes that sounds like a lovely middle class existence!

We couldn't afford nandos every week (and indeed the kids still see it as a treat for birthdays etc). I would aspire to replacing some of our IKEA furniture from basic IKEA to "nice" IKEA.

I think this level of living where a posh lunch out every week is the Norm unfortunately isn't ever something I'll experience, never mind in retirement!!