Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Cost of living

Stretching your budget? Share tips and advice to discuss budgeting and energy saving here. For the latest deals and discounts, sign up for Mumsnet Moneysaver emails.

Original poster

How much money do you have leftover per month after paying all outgoings?

32 replies

williaminajetfighter · 30/04/2013 07:10

After you pay mortgage, bills, credit cards etc how much do you have left to last you for the month?

This month I've got £600 which has to cover food and travel too.

Am honestly just curious to see what people cope with.

OP posts:
signet · 30/04/2013 07:13

About £1,000 which never seems enough. Mostly because I spend way too much at the supermarket.

TwllBach · 30/04/2013 07:14

For six glorious months, after rent and bills but before food and petrol, I should have had £713. Now I'm unemployed, so this month I have £300 and then after that, my "savings" are gone...

Original poster
williaminajetfighter · 30/04/2013 07:20

Oh TwllBach very sorry to hear that. Hope you find a great new job soon.

OP posts:
yellowhousewithareddoor · 30/04/2013 07:22

Not as much as you.

piratecat · 30/04/2013 07:37

after all direct debts food shop and petrol about 120

AKissIsNotAContract · 30/04/2013 07:39

£1000. No idea where it all goes.

chattychattyboomba · 30/04/2013 07:43

I'm jealous of all the people who can budget! DH is a business owner so bills clients as and when they pay their fees... Making it impossible to know exactly how much we will have each month. In comings usually go straight to VAT, employees, contractors, advertising or paying off the business (12k instalments every 3 months)...We have zero savings and around 20k worth of debt (business related). We rent also and can't see that changing until DH can finally close a big deal. But i can't complain too much. We have a 'comfortable' life.

ginmakesitallok · 30/04/2013 07:47

I don't know, but enough

GibberTheMonkey · 30/04/2013 07:51

Erm about £500 for family of six. We're always robbing Peter to pay Paul

Worse this month as dh was made redundant and we have two weeks between last job finishing and new one starting and job centre were complete dicks when we asked if we could claim jsa. They said no as he has a new job. So we'll live on air instead.

Netguru · 30/04/2013 07:55

A lot more than most. Not sure of the point of the thread though unless it is a 'hole in t'road' piece in which case I'm out.

ellajayne · 30/04/2013 07:56

About £200. I spend £20-30 on food for four per week then dog food on top. We don't go out, eat out or have very much of a social life right now. Hopefully it will turn around soon!

SummerRainIsADistantMemory · 30/04/2013 07:57

None.

Less than that actually, bills go unpaid so I can buy food most weeks.

Umlauf · 30/04/2013 08:00

We would have ?2000 but as we are desperately trying to pay off all our debts before our baby's born its actually about ?500 pm. It does feel good to see the accounts crawling back up to 0 though! In July my mat leave starts (unpaid in my country) and it'll drop to about ?6/700, not too bad but we desperately want to save for a deposit to buy a house.

Nerfmother · 30/04/2013 08:39

Same as umlauf. Would be 1300 after food actually 200. Massive debts - four years to go. Sigh.

AnyFucker · 30/04/2013 08:44

What is a "hole in the road" piece Confused

Millie2013 · 30/04/2013 08:49

Quite a bit at the moment, as OH is doing contract work, that pays v well. But current contract ends soon and he doesn't have another lined up yet, so we will be living on what he's stashed, for a while.
I am about to go into SMP too, which is quite a big drop in earnings

stressedHEmum · 30/04/2013 10:19

Almost nothing - have to feed 7 folk on about £40 a week, have to juggle all bills and pay month about. The whole thing is a nightmare and that's with Dh working 6 days a week. I can't work because I have ME.

Everything is going up and up and DH's wages are frozen until 2019 and have been for the last 3 years.

ruthyroo · 30/04/2013 17:25

We have about 700 euros after all bills and food shop. That has to cover all travel, car and petrol costs, saving for rainy day, coffee or lunch out, trips for children, haircuts, house furniture etc, shoes etc. It soon disappears.

Signet2012 · 30/04/2013 19:14

Minus 63.67 pence exactly.
Sad

AdoraBell · 30/04/2013 23:57

We're currently experiencing negativity in the "left over money" department. House is on the market and savings are taking a bashing.

Monty27 · 01/05/2013 00:12

Signet :(

Thing is I'm watching this thread for comfort, some aren't saying how many in the family who they have to feed and other outgoings apart from debt and direct debits.

I think I have about 600 gbp a month (don't have a pound sign on here), my dd is at uni, my ds is 17 and currently dropped out of 6th form. There's always something on top of bills, ie we need new passports, I know I know, I'm too scared to look at the tax disc on the car, and then something else will crop up. I smoke too Shock and the house is starting to look shabby.

But I know there's always a lot worse off.

Monty27 · 01/05/2013 00:16

And I count my blessings, although I wish I could give dd at uni more. I don't give ds very much at all cos he's gotta be 'hungry' to sort himself out iyswim. And I'm determined he does.

My friends pay their kids' accommodation and all sorts, I can't.

jynier · 01/05/2013 03:01

stressedHEmum - Your situation seems impossible financially; so sorry. Best of luck!

Netguru · 01/05/2013 09:03

"A hole in t'road' piece comes from a relatively well known comedy sketch where people compared hard luck stories constantly besting the one before (by saying they had it tough).

My point is on a thread like this it is likely that only those who consider themselves poorly off will post. Those who are very comfortable would, given the nature of MN, be accused of bragging. So the thread is automatically self selecting and biased towards reporting lower incomes.

pizzaqueen · 01/05/2013 09:13

After all outgoings I have about £60-£70 a month left to spend on whatever I like: haircuts, clothes, family gifts, socialising. My DH has roughly the same.

This probably seemed like pittance to some people and a luxury budget to others, it's all relative to circumstances isn't it?

And in outgoing I include mortgage, food shop, utility bills, Internet, love film subscriptions, two cars on the road, petrol, a gym membership, phone contracts, nappies, commute train fair, childcare, love film subscription, buildings, contents and life insurances. It doesn't include holidays or birthday/Christmas, clothes or days out. We need to make savings elsewhere for these but somehow we manage it. My partner works 32 hours a week and I work 21.