Can you see where we can reduce our outgoings?

[RedSquash]

Our outgoings are £1480pm incl bills, shopping, fuel etc. Our income is £1676pm which doesn't give us much wriggle room. I'll breakdown our outgoings below.

If anyone can see where we can shave costs or remove them completely please say and offer help. We're finding it really hard to live.

Car expenses (tax, ins): 80
Tv/broadband/phone: 45
TV licence: 13
Gas/elec: 100
Council tax: 111
Mortgage: 437 (soon to be 480)
Water (metered): 70
CSA (variable): 171
Breakdown: 8Mobile: 22
House insurance: 18
Shopping (incl topups): 300
Petrol: 75
DH work subs: 30

I think that should add up, I do try to be as frugal as possible but it doesn't seem to come down any.

Any advice will be really welcomed

Swap the tv package for freeview and get cheaper broadband, ours is £19 per month with EE.

Other than that I can't see much you can scale back on (yoyr budget is almost identical to ours! ).

Thanks! We can't get free view as we don't have an aerial and can't afford to get one up at the moment. I do really resent paying out so much on it.

Nice to know someone with similar outgoings, even if they do seem horrific

How many ppl in your house?

Are you with sky? you could get a freesat box? mine was fab, just couldnt record but £30 for basicly same tv package.

4, DH and I and the DC

Sorry obvs ment £30 for the box as a one off cost!

Xpost we're with Virgin media and don't even have a TIVO box [bitter]

Freesat sounds interesting- what can you get on it?

I agree, get freesat - it takes the signal from your satellite dish so no aeriel needed. We got a box that records and pauses and I really don't miss sky.
Also is that 1 mobile costing £22/month? If so you could save there.
The rest of it looks pretty cheap already :-/.

All of the freeview channels but I dont think you would save so much if you get the dish put up especially, its more if you have the dish but want to stop paying sky you can plug your freesat box into your existing dish like a freeview box but with the signal still through the sky dish.
Whats that breakdown mobile thing?

Quite a lot - Google it and you'll get a channel list.

Water bill seems high, we pay £63 a month and there are 6 of us in a 6 bed house. We all have baths/showers every day, washing machine & dishwasher go on every day.

Where do you do your food shopping? We shop at Aldi, and are amazed by what we save! I think our food bill monthly would work out at £160, though we currently only have a 2yo DD. We also meal plan, which means we don't impulse buy, and only buy what we need for that specific week. Nothing is wasted! Would that be an option? xxx

Also, are there any journeys you could walk or cycle, to reduce petrol costs?

Have you check if you are entitled to any tax creds?

TV - license and sky expensive. Get rid and watch a few things on I player/ 4od if want tv. That's £50 saving easy

Gas/ electric- seems high. We paid £12 gas over 3 months. £70 electric. So £82 a quarter. £20.50 a month v your £100

Mobile - seems high if for one. I pay £12 on O2 for unlimited mins on iPhone. That's after contract finished so phone now owned

Your very lucky with your mortgage though!! Our rent is more than your total spend and only have 1 bedroom

Sometimes you can get breakdown cover included with your car insurance, or we do RAC with Tesco clubcard vouchers.

You still need a tv licence to watch iplayer I think?

i threatened to leave virgin for sky and got tivo upgrade, cheaper monthly rate and free installation. try it!

Your water bill seems very high, 3 of us in our house cost £27 metered.

Breakdown - you could change this to auto aid which I think is about £38 per year - it's a pay and claim (basically insurance) which is why it is cheaper, see money saving expert.

Gas/elec/water seem v high. We pay £22 per month for water (2adults 1child) and combined gas/elec in region of £60-70. Can you do a price check on what you are paying? Are you using a lot of water somehow?

Food - you don't say where you shop but maybe using lidl or similar would help cut costs (even if just for staples like washing powder which is so good value there, pasta 29p for 500g, cereals are great value, cheese etc)

That mobile is just DHs, He's tied in until August unfortunately. Mine is on a separate budget with the CTC (£10pw), I get the CHB paid to me too, that pays for my bus fares and for the DC.

I meal plan a lot and shop at Tesco and Lidl depending on what I need we don't have Aldi here yet so I'm limited to what I can buy. I do meal plan and stick to it, we plan on a Thursday what to buy for the coming week and I do stick to it pretty rigidly. Fruit and veg costs us a small fortune as the DC love it.

I walk where I can as I don't drive and loathe buses. DH has had to use his car for work and taking me to and from hospital for a while.

Our water is SWW and it's extortionate, I do washing daily and all bar DS2 shower with a timer.

Excuse the mammoth post as I'm trying to answer as much as I can!

£22 on ph

Sorry

Ph

Sorry again!

Phone insurance sounds a lot.

I don't pay for it.

Just take my chances.

We don't have contents insurance either.

We don't have water meters here. That sounds a lot.

Have you tried a market or wholesaler for your fruit and veg? My friend does this and her veg is soo cheap compared to tesco prices. We also have a local greengrocer/deli who deliver a massive fruit and veg box for £10. I always thought that would be more expensive that way but it works out really good value.