Is £1k a month enough to live on?

[EL8888]

I was debating with my mother whether it was possible for a person to live on £1,000 per month. Bearing in mind there is no rent / mortgage to pay (house is paid for), no debts and they own a newish car plus they have a Freedom card to use. They live alone with no dependents or pets. I said it was enough and she said it really wasn’t

I live off £1100 so not exactly a fortune more

£250 mortgage
£100ish council tax
£50 straight into savings

Then the other bills which are smaller and a bit random

No car

I manage - some months are tight. If something goes wrong I have to delve into my savings pot. Likewise at Christmas. If the mortgage wasn’t there I would never have an issue

Doable but not much money for fun. When you've worked hard all your life you are entitled to think you deserve some fun money in retirement.

£1000 is definitely enough to live on if you have no mortgage/rent to pay.

@ UndertheCedartree sorry that wasn’t clear - I was saying after rent / bills I live off that much ! I pay 650 on rent and bills come to less than 100! Then I have 900£ left - I save 500 and then live off the 400 (trying to get a house deposit together)

400£ is for all food and any “fun” activities I want to do! It’s not a lot but It’s totally doable

Trying to think now - bills under £300 for one- I suppose necessary bills (excluding mortgage)

I have - (roughly)
Council tax - £100
Gas/electric - £60
Sky/internet/ phone line - £75
Mobile - £12
Netflix - £10
Amazon prime - £10?
Home/building/contents insurance - £30
British Gas home care - £25
Every 3 months - TV Liscence - £30 odd
Every 6 months - Water £120 ish

Obviously some of these are “luxury” bills - sky/Netflix and amazon prime would be cut immediately should problems arise but right now I can afford and like having them. I’ve got to shop around for cheaper insurance! Gas and electric I’ve found myself getting credit back every six months since I’ve moved in so this bill is actually dropping a tad which is nice.

Easily. We live on only a little more for 2 people and dog. This is assuming no rent.

£1000 is definitely enough to live on if you have no mortgage/rent to pay.

This. Although you do need to have some savings for emergencies because sh*t happens

Absolutely. I have less than that per month after my mortgage payment is accounted for. Have 1 child and 3 cats, 1 car. Some debt (less than 1k on credit card) I don't manage to save any and don't have holidays other than camping, but I do still have luxuries. Occasional bottle of wine and take-away. Can buy new clothes occasionally etc. I live in the South West.

I'm in a similar position and can exist on £500 month. Very little socialisation on that but a few bottles of wine and friends round for supper a couple of times a month. I run an oldish but so far reliable car and have no mortgage or debts.

On top of that I have a couple of hundred over that per month that I save to cover car insurance, holidays and incidentals.

The suggested £2000 in retirement is amusing as that would be around £7000 pa more than I have ever had. Also South West. My council tax is £141 per month!

Of course it's enough! I've brought up DS on £850 a month (when I haven't been working) after all housing costs and managed savings, credit card repayments and at least one holiday a year.

Christ, wish I had that and no rent to pay. Was forced to give up full time career cos wasn't earning enough. Struggling to pay rent now and as for bills, transport, and food, it's interesting, but not fun.

I have just over £1000 per month left after paying my mortgage. From this I pay all my other bills, shopping, fuel etc, and still put £400 into savings accounts.

It is definitely doable.

Might be possible, definitely wouldn't want to!

I lived on 500 a month with my child for a while (after rent). You adapt. If that’s what you’ve got then that’s what you’ve got and you live accordingly. No nights out, no treat purchases, walk to lots of places or buses for further afield and I did lots of free activities. I live in a deprived area so there are lots of family activities and things on in libraries and community centres for free. I bought clothes when they needed to be replaced and tried to buy second hand but planned ahead, so would buy winter boots on eBay in summer when nobody is interested. I didn’t run a car and bought bundles of second hand children’s clothes, but they’re not so easy to come by in older sizes so wouldn’t have worked forever. I had a few friends who regularly passed on clothes too. I still don’t tend to buy lots of things now and would rather not spend unnecessarily. But having a bit of extra money at the end of the month did make life much easier. I could take my child on a day out without worrying or buy a new appliance when I needed to. Buying a second set of bedsheets felt great.

For further clarity it's a 2 bedroom property. Council tax is about average in their area

They don't NEED a car but say they want one (drive a bit locally but don't like going further afield). It's owned outright with no finances

Me, DH, 4 DC, 1 dog, 2 cats and 2 rabbits.
We live off £1k per month after bills savings etc and it’s plenty. Take into account we pay £400 of that in fuel for work etc

@BMW6 glad it’s not just me then!

@Thinkingabout1t l already have, difference was my income was the same but had to pay rent, as well as bills, food etc. That’s partly why lm amused that people regard it as an impossibility! Yeah there weren’t many luxuries and lots of walking everywhere but l did it

@Alsohuman I pay £13 a month for water for 2 of us, not on a meter. £50 is crazy to me.

I have just over £1000 per month left after paying my mortgage. From this I pay all my other bills, shopping, fuel etc, and still put £400 into savings accounts¿

I just can't see how it can be done.

I budget £200-250 a week...that does not include bills but does include food.

It's a struggle. I don't drink, smoke or go out. Rarely buy clothes for myself..if I do, it's primark. I live frugally.

I was living on about £500 a month (after rent) for me and 2 kids for over 5 years, it just covers bills and food, with a very small amount for clothes etc, £1000 for one person is loads.

Lots of people live and run households with 1 or 2 kids on 12k.

Op Your mum is being ridiculous.

But this thread is interesting as it shows that so many people do live on 1k or less. Not sure why people think that's low, as the disabled get £250 per month on uc. Same rate as the unemployed.

The people who say it can't be done or is tight, whatever? You can live on 1k with no rent etc and you can definitely afford to save on that amount for holiday, repairs and appliance breakdown. Just shows that some people live in a bubble.

@flirtygirl it’s not my mum, it’s a relation of ours moaning about the £1k for themselves

Further to the water question. If you can't have a meter, for whatever reason united utilities ( and maybe others I don't know) have a single person household tariff. Currently £275 a year (( if you don't have a swimming pool larger than 10000 litres!!)).

There are other tariffs for other sized houses. Might be worth looking into if you can't have a meter.
I'm a single person household with a water meter and I pay £12 a month.

What hits my budget is clothes, shoes and uniform for my dc.

This fortnight I've had to buy new school shoes for my dd and a new coat for my ds....£50 in total.

My ds school rucksack has broken...It's a regulation one...£15.

They seem to constantly outgrow stuff or wreck it.