To be struggling on 3k per month?

[Strictlyskint]

I am a single mum and really don’t know where I am going wrong. I am usually fine until there is a week to go until payday. Christmas is coming up and I am really stressing

Okay, so yes, I think you are spending a lot on little things and that’s why it’s adding up. I currently earn about £2000 a month (self employed from a family business).

Dh earns maybe a bit more, so I’d say our monthly income as a household is £4500 (but there’s 4 of us, including 2 adults who eat all their meals at home and use water, electricity, etc all day long).

mortgage £1700
council tax est £210
phone £50
car insurance £37
water (I actually don’t even know)
electric £150
heating oil £50
petrol £180 (per month)
internet £29
dog food £50
food shopping £480
Netflix/prime £15

Our mortgage is much more than yours, but it looks like you’re spending a lot on electricity/gas unless you have a massive house, same with petrol and food shopping unless you have teens who are eating loads.

We have 5 bedrooms in a massive old cold farmhouse to light and heat and we’re spending about what you are - and we’re home all day every day as work from home.

Same with food - £150 a week is a lot for one adult and children. I’d say we probably do spend that with extras, but there’s 2 adults eating 3 meals a day plus snacks, plus the kids. I don’t buy cheap food and I don’t budget food shopping. I buy whatever I see that I like. It could absolutely be cut down. I’d see if you could aim for closer to £100.

Get rid of bloody sky and all the extras like that. Netflix and prime costs us combined £15 a month, which I make back on free shipping on Amazon anyway. Kids watch a lot of iplayer which is free.

Get rid of the coffees out, lunches (packed lunch for days out), nails, hair, whatever it is you’re spending little bits on.

We have probably as much left over as you (after our £1700 a month mortgage) and I feel quite comfortable. I even have a horse who costs me £300+ a month.

Ask for a water meter. I didn’t in a property once as it wouldn’t be possible to have one. But I just went though the motions the assessor came round and said it wouldn’t be possible but they discounted each bill.

yoh should have a tv licence if you’re watching any live tv, whether it’s on the BBC or not. Sky is a real luxury. Our household income is much higher and we wouldn’t dream of it. We do have Disney which has been creeping up so we take in turns to have Netflix or Now tv for a few months.

have a look at your phone. If your device is paid off, go on a sim only contract.

Yes you should be able to manage on 3k given that your mortgage is very small. Your expenses are less than you bring in. What do you spend the rest on? 150 pw is also loads for food and you could surely reduce that to 100 pw?

Is that £50pm on cat food? That’s a lot.

If you were renting, UC would give you an extra £550 PCM.

It does not pay to own a house and be a single parent.

You have around £700 a month unaccounted for. What you need to do is stop thinking of this as spare money. That is your fund for non-monthly expenses:clothes and shoes, Christmas and birthdays, car MOT and services, holidays, house repairs etc. £700 is a good amount for this, but not if it gets spent on takeaway lattes and having your nails done.

You need a budget.

You water bill is very high. For reference, it’s the same as my water invoice for my pub. We are on a commercial rate plus have staff members living on site.

£50 is quite a lot for cat food unless you have multiple cats. I have 1 dog and spend a lot less on dog food.

TV licence cost?

Well apart from the valuable asset you’re paying towards of course. In my area the rent cap is 950 per month for a parent with three kids which isn’t enough for even a two bed so it doesn’t pay to be on benefits either.

I use a spreadsheet for budgeting and would be lost without it. All my direct debits etc and monthly costs are listed, and if I know something is coming up (ie DH birthday) I save each month.

Then once all my known costs have been deducted from my take home pay, I divide the rest into 4, and have an equal amount each week, that tends to keep me on track. Five week months can be a pain though!

£3k a month after tax is not a lot at all!!

If two people were earning £1.5k each, they would be topped up with a shit tonne of money. Way more than £3k a month.

Would they? Do you mean that they’d pay the rent? I’m not sure the OP would get that much overall.

Is this rage bait? Why don’t you know where your money is going?

That can’t be all your outgoings either, they are the headlines but what about:

home insurance
car tax (may not be applicable granted)
tv license
childcare (again may be n/a)
car repairs/maintenance
kids clubs/hobbies
school lunches (if applicable)
kids clothes

You can definitely get your food bill down, £150 a week is a lot, we’re a family of 4 and average £120 a week including a couple of bottles of wine.

I’m not saying it’s not tough but you need to take a bit of responsibility!

Because there’d be an extra person to support.

Sky, cat and phone can be got rid of (or once out of contract). £60 on a phone is madness, we pay £8 a month I have 70gb of data that rolls over and unlimited calls, my bill is never over £8. We buy our phones outright and keep them on average 4/5 years, we wait until the new model comes out and the price drops massively for the "old" model, my friend has always bought decent phones second hand but I'm very aware they'd likely be stolen.

You don't need sky, if it's your broadband too you can get internet way cheaper, unless you need fast internet to wfh? Tv package can go though.

Then there's the cat, as sad as it is you can't afford to keep it, £50 is a lot when you are counting the pennies.

You've just saved £150 making small changes that won't impact your quality of life.

Are you getting the single person council tax discount? That seems a bit high unless you have a large house

Please have a look at YNAB, it has been life changing for us. You plan for everything so nothing takes you by surprise and you account for everything you spend so you know where all your money is going.

www.ynab.com

Really? I've never earned anything like that.

No she doesn’t need to get rid of her cat! She doesn’t need to be “counting the pennies” given that she earns a comfortable amount and has low housing costs. Pets aren’t disposable and cutbacks can be made in others areas, as you’ve outlined.

I have just done a benefits calculator.

2 adults both earning £20,000 a month (£1.5k after tax PCM)
2 Children age 8 and 6 (both girls)
Rent £1000pcm

They would receive their £3k a month in wages, plus £1109.53PCM inc Child Benefit.

£1000 more than this lady who has all of that responsibility alone.

She is taking responsibility!

She's working hard, earning and taking care of her kids on her own.

Cut her some slack.

I think it depends which area you live in l, London for example it is not a lot at all, I am in manchester where it is a lot to earn compared to other people.

Does an adult cost an extra £1k a month?

Your car insurance seems high- look at some price comparison sites and put a date in you diary to switch.
Sky is very expensive could you cancel and move to freesat and netflix?
If your phone is on contract when does that end- or when is the hanset paid off? Can you sell some things to get cash for Christmas?