To wonder how poor I am??

[Imustbemad00]

I know there will be varied responses from really well off, or ridiculously poor. I sort of class myself as low paid but not in poverty but would like opinions.

I have around 1000pcm after paying rent. 2 children. Out of this 1000 by the time I pay bills (council tax, car insurance, broadband, tv, car tax, parking permit, gas and electric) I probably have around 600 left.

That 600 is then for food, after school clubs, day to day stuff, clothes, shoes, and anything else that might come up such as school trips. Also obviously the odd luxury, cinema trips, days out, treats for the kids, birthdays, Xmas, maybe a holiday.

Do I sound really poor? I get by, pay the bills ect. But I really struggle with clothes and stuff, obviously prioritise kids, struggle to get all their bits and then end up never getting anything for myself. Going for a meal or a day out always has to be planned and saved for and obviously I have no savings.

I guess a lot of people are in the same boat.

I don’t think you’re ‘poor’ but everything is so expensive nowadays it’s easy to blow through the cash if you weren’t careful.

I think your idea of tracking your spending is a good one, think I should probably do it too!

(should add '3K a month after tax')

The swimming lessons are because my child nearly drowned.

Compared to the world you are very rich, probably in the top 10%.
Compared to the UK you are a bit below average.

@Mummysharkdoodoodoo saying you feel poor on a £3kpm income is ridiculous and pretty insulting to people who are actually poor.

OP I rotate Matalan jeans too..haha. Two pairs of jeans, 3 jumpers and underwear. Can't afford to go out and even if I could, I literally own no clothes to go out in anyway.

Life does feel tough and it would be great to just have that extra disposable.

Do you have savings? I would get a savings account and put £100 in each month on pay day rather than feeling well off and frittering it on coffees and magazines.
Maybe review how many activities the dc do, and consider cutting down. You are definitely not poor but if you spend all your money every month you could be if something changes.

This has been interesting at least. I realise we have a lot more than many people. We are warm and fed and clothed.
Maybe I’m jist feeling a bit sorry for myself. It’s that time of year, worrying about Christmas presents, the house hasn’t been decorated in over ten years and probably never will be, I need warm boots so I’m not freezing at work, and I’ve borrowed £700 in the last 6 months trying to bridge the gaps between payday. But clearly I’m not alone.

You're just above being poor op. Hard though, isn't it? I was in same position some years ago, hardly anything left over at the end of the month. We get by though and it all improves as we get older (would have liked a bit more affluence when I was younger frankly but there's no going back ;) ).

I'd like to be poor like that .

I try to put £100 in savings every month but always have to take it back out again in drips and drabs. If an appliance or car broke I’d have to get into debt. I dread the MOT. Been lucky so far.

No you aren't poor. You have money to pay the rent and buy food. Food poverty is a measure but there are people who don't even have a roof over their heads, I've been hungry and literally had nothing but rice and a handful of peas to feed my 3 kids (I had nothing). I've always had a home and bed to sleep in at night so I've never considered myself poor - lucky maybe.

I have done the income thing for you (taking into account ROUGHLY where you'd be) and you are in the bottom 10% of the income bracket. ie; approx 90% of the country is better off than you, when you factor in kids, bill, rent, travel, council tax, etc etc...

Anyone saying you must have loads of surplus money is having a laff!

And....... here comes the race to the bottom.......

No you are not poor. Cut out your children’s extras/luxuries, default on your bills, struggle for heating, no food for adults - then we can discuss. £600 for extras per month is not poor.

I’m definitely going to write everything down and see where I can save and cut back.

£600 for extras per month is not poor

That £600 is meant to cover food.

I wouldn't call food an "extra".

Well I actually think that’s a pretty tight budget. If you have two children, then I think you probably need at least £100 per week for food, toiletries, cleaning products, etc.

I feel poor on joint income of £100,000 but know we're not. It's relative

I'm in a similar position financially.

Things can be tight if something unexpected comes up, but we have our fair share of day-to-day luxuries (i.e. Spotify & Netflix) and I would be considerably better off if I wasn't paying off various debts (combination of setting up home from scratch post-divorce and a bit of self-indulgence when things have been particularly crap over the last couple of years).

I certainly wouldn't consider myself poor financially, although it would be nice to have a bit more wiggle room.

I try and do a £40 food shop in Aldi but of course that’s just the basics and doesn’t last a week and needs topping up. Also doesn’t include toiletries.

You're getting a hard time, as with most Mumsnet posts, people feel the need to belittle

I'm in a simile position to you and it can be tough, especially when things pop up unexpectedly.

Similar! 🙄

You're lower income.

It's all relative OP. If you're planning to dine on Waitrose food and buy expensive clothes, holidays, and days out, yes you'll struggle.

Food doesn't need to cost more than £80 a week for the three of you - we only spend around £40 for two of us and we treat ourselves to whatever we like.

You can buy cheap jeans for around £15, even from decent shops such as M&S.

Why do you want to decorate the house if you're renting?

Keep Christmas sensible - growing up my parents spent around £30-40 on our presents and we didn't complain.

And if you can afford holidays, you're not poor. Holidays is the ultimate luxury purchase IMO.