Is £2250, month, enough to live in post all livings costs are paid for

[Isitenough2250]

I am very aware that I may get slammed, and I am
prepared. DP has had a terrible time at work the past few years, as we have both seen terrible side affects of what stress can do heart attack/ stroke/
severe mental health issues - we thought it best for him to leave the job. Having worked out our budget, post mortgage/ bills/ insurances etc being paid we have £2250 left a month. That is for two adults and a cat. Out of which is food and then life costs, as in choices - gym/ hair cut/ going to the cinema.

Having never had to budget ever, is this enough? Sufficent savings/ investments for emergencies…..it is 2250 that we have come up with for food and miscellaneous spending.

Am prepared to be roasted, also any budgeting tips appreciated.

We think it will be about a year.

@Isitenough2250 Well I went through from 3-18 yrs plus have family members who also attended public school. We are understanding of others especially with the cost of living which is often in the news. A reality check and Mumsnetters input should assist you with your query.

I didn't say you didn't work hard .

You clearly have an income well above average but it begs the question why your parents helped you out so much, and what form of help that was.

Paid for a house for you?
Paid your rent?
Put a hefty chunk of money into your account each month?

If you work hard and earn decent money why did you need family money? Because it's done you no favours. You've got to your late 20s or early 30s with no concept of budgeting.

Have you had expectations of a certain standard of living and that was the reason your partner was struggling to keep up with it ,becoming stressed, and having to leave work?

You'll be able to do it but how much you need to cut down on depends where you live and your bills. Write everything down. The majors i.e mortgage/rent, gas electric water internet etc etc then in a different row you choices, i.e gym, cinema, lunches, takeaways etc. you'll need to be 100% honest in these and remember you can only cut from the choices. Bills need to be paid no Matter what. Household food can be adjusted if you buy lots of name brand stuff etc.

Planet calling OP.
Are you for real ?

This is my monthly income for 1 adult & 2 children 😂 yes it’s tight but we make it work, we would dream of that amount being left over as disposable a month

Totally agree

Are you bloody mad? That’s more than enough my god.

I usually have around £500 left for food and none essential things for the month and we do just fine (family of 2 adults and 2 children under 5)

Oh ffs. I have £140 a week (retired on the mythical gold plated teacher pension) and I seem to manage.

I despair of some people on here, I really do.

A phone app on an account like Monzo will list exactly what you’ve spent and on what.

It's like the old saying: 'how long's a piece of string'.

You need to budget. You have cleared the mortgage, council tax, house insurance, water bill, energy bill national insurance, some maintenance savings, cost of replacing white goods, then the £2200 should be OK doe holidays and entertainment.

Don't know about luxuries. I am disabled. I have to pay for home helps.

Is this a joke?

I think you will be fine. We have less than this spare after our bills as a family of 4 & we manage to save for hols & emergencies.
i can’t imagine having that much to myself each month. It’s the dream! Hope your DH feels well soon

If, as you say, you were prepared to be 'roasted' on here, you must know that many people have only this to include all the house costs.

If you know many people have less that you, ask them to help you work out a budget. They will know what is the most important spend, and where savings can be made.

We can only guess.

Is this a joke ?

That is my wage that I'm existing on not my disposable income

Well, admittedly, I'm single, but I have in the region of 500 per month after my bills are paid, and I manage. I suspect you'll be OK.

I earn £1100 a month and pay rent, council tax, food, bus travel, phone bills and insurance out of that.

£2200 after that will be fine 🙄

There is a free budgeting tool at moneyhelper here. Going through your bank statements to look at regular payments and subscriptions really helps. Think about whether you need all the subscriptions, do you need Spotify? All the tv channels?

www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/everyday-money/budgeting/budget-planner

That’s more than I earn a month, which has to cover EVERYTHING.

Avid budgeter here because my expenses are currently higher than my income at the minute 🫠

I use Monzo for all the little pots and if there’s money left in we can do treats because we have very little left, but if I can cut the food shopping or petrol down we tend to have a bit left over! All my bills come out another pot

i also have one for house insurance that I’m adding to so I can eventually pay it annually as well as a car pot, house pot and gift pot

With your money left over I would sit down and work out your non negotiables. So how much do you need to save for presents/christmas/car related expenses and put it to one side. I get crippled at the end of the year with two kids birthdays, 3 family birthdays and Christmas all very close together but the rest of the year is fairly quiet. I’d also work out what you spend on food and add a bit extra to it so if you go over or prices go up you don’t feel the pinch (mines currently £125 for food but I tend to spend £100ish so save the extra). Because you’ve got such a big amount to play with to begin with I’d work out what you’d be not willing to give up (gyms, coffees, if you’d do the odd meal out). You might have to rethink your idea of holidays

for example:
food £800 a month
petrol £200 a month
coffees £100 a month
gym £50 a month
subscriptions £30 a month

That would give you just over £1000 a month for car expenses/holdiays/clothes any extras. Obviously estimated figures but you get my drift! I think you’ll be surprised with what you have left!

I have raised two children on that. Rent, bills, food, clothes, petrol, the lot. So yes. You’ll be fine.

I know it's easy to adjust upwards when income increases. Dropping needs a bit of planning. Download a budgeting tool to help.So you have about 250-300 a week each ..1100 pcm. Not a lot if you eat out nightly, drink, go to theatre. Plenty if you cook, watch online, are teetotal . Maybe set up savings pots within your bank account to cover the unexpected to start with. Car and cat cost can be horrendous. Continue to save for a pension , that's VIP.( Even just the 2880 that gets you the annual govt top up of 720.) List your normal activities and what they cost. Put at least 200 per month, each, aside for emergencies, add on the monthly spend, then start trimming . Eating out? Start cooking. Live theatre? Much ends up online. Alcohol: pub Vs home, etc. Putting your mental and physical health first for a while is a good choice

I don't think many people do this.