Would u describe me as poor?

[dingdongmer]

As the title suggests and here's some info. I don't work as looking after toddler and pregnant also. Hubby works. Household income is approx £1600 after tax. £1,340 is rent and bills and we try to save £100 then the rest is weekly money so approx £50 a week Altho I do get weekly child benefit of £20

Would u class this as poor and could u live like that with a family of 3 soon to be 4

We are careful with money and buy own brand stuff like toilet rolls and food etc and toiletries I always get on offer.

I think it comes down to were you live. My DH earns the same as that and when I dont return to work after the baby then that will do us nicely. Our mortgage and Bill's is £800 for the month for a 3 bed house. 1050 if you include the car finance. With child benefit that leaves us £650 a month spare...
But, no I couldn't live on that very easily if my rent and Bill's were as high as yours! X

Apparently I cant do maths.. car finance is 150, so would leave us with 750ish a month!!

I would say low income, not poor.

Like others have said you need to apply for universal credit, which has replaced tax credits,. Your £50 a week is a tiny amount to feed, clothe and pay for any extras for a family of 3 or 4.

According to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, you will be in the first income decile when baby arrives so yes, you are relatively poor compared to the others in the higher nine deciles.

Claim everything you can and take advantage of any family help.

well done for putting the savings by.

why do you want to know if you are poor?

Yes I'd say so, do you have any spare money or savings ? What do you do when something breaks ? Do you feel stressed by your situation?

You should get universal credit if you only have one household income under 50,000 I think. Make an appointment at Job centre. X

Can you apply for any help at all? Your outgoings seem to be quite high and you dont have any money left for emergencies.Also £70 P/W on food for a family is quite low .Surely you must be entitled to council tax rebate ,UC etc ?

Lisa pretty sure you dont get universal credit up to 50k or our whole area would be on it. It used to be 30k for 2 kids I dont believe its gone up! (Or ha e they included child benefit in UC?)

I think you should start another thread about managing on this kind of Income in London of all places !Would love to hear budgeting tips !

Your rent is far too high for that income.

@Blankscreen it’s rather dramatic to say OP’s husband’s salary is appalling, we don’t know anything about him. He might be 22 or he might be 30. If OP can get back to work soon it will help her build up her pension provision and increase the family’s financial security.

Low income.
You can't claim tax credits but if you put in a joint claim, you'll get some UC.

You should get universal credit if you only have one household income under 50,000 I think wishful thinking, you are confusing child benefit I think

I was on the phone just now to my mum and she was appalled by some of the replies saying how can I live on £70 a week which is effectively £10 a day

U can make a casserole for next to nothing and make it last a few days by freezing it. Same with various other meals. Aldi and Lidl are great for cheaper food.

I never cut my hair and if I do I go to the barbers which do do women's hair (some of them) for a fraction of the price

My shampoo is £1 and lasts 2 weeks

My shower body wash is also £1

I ask for things I need for birthdays and Xmas rather than what I want

My son is only 2 so he doesn't need to go places every day so staying in with his toys is free. He gets lots of toys of family for Xmas and birthdays but charity shops are good too

£10 a day is easily manageable as the one main expense is food which as I say u can batch cook etc

It's really not hard to live on the amount I do and we manage well but I was just wondering what everyone else thought

Yes you can live on that amount but it doesn't seem much fun. Sounds like you are doing well though and things change as the children grow up.

I suppose you can live on that amount but if given then chance to improve it surely you would? For your dc at least. They will notice as time goes on the disparity between them and the other dc getting more.

I could not live on that amount. I was also raised in relative poverty and told that it was fine I had a riff over my head but it was so rubbish it compelled me to save and earn all the time. Now I live very comfortably but I have had to work very hard for it and I am still very frugal.

Tbh being frugal is fine but for me it's a choice not compulsory and that's a much more happy place to be in imo.

Roof not riff?!

Yes as I've said previously I will go back to work after the baby I'm carrying so that will increase income obviously

I think if you are managing and as long as you are happy you are doing fine

Just remember when the new baby comes along might have to spend a little bit extra depending on if your breast or bottle feeding and just the extra nappies but aldi nappies are fab and a lot cheaper than other brands.

Ignore anyone being horrible but I think with your income you would be able to apply for uc. But you just keep doing what your doing as long as you are happy all that matters x

OP if I had to I could survive on that amount for short period, you do amazing to be so well with your budget. The issues for me is when unexpected things come up in a month. This month I had to have my shower fixed = £90....I could lose my travel card one month, next month my car insurance goes up. These things may not apply to you given your situation, but to me they are necessities I need to fork out for. Kids also get more expensive as they get older so as long as you and your partner have a plan to increase your in comings then all should work out fine.

Its pretty poor tbh and i say that as someone who is also poor and just manages to scrape by. Ive used all my savings this month and am close to overdraft again. January is shit. My worry for your income is as other said unexpected bills. Like if your washing machine breaks down. Ive had 3 big unexpected bills this month that rinsed me dry. Being frugal is fab though so well done there and remember this situation is not forever. What did you do for work before the children?

Why haven’t you applied for benefits? Is this actually one of those ‘why can’t everyone manage on no money and make a chicken last a week?’ posts? Your income for your location and family is so low that even the current government think it should be significantly supplemented. Get universal credit and you can have a hair cut occasionally.

Although it's a low income, it sounds like you manage it really well - it doesn't sound like you have to worry about money to the point of panic (by that I mean no sleepless nights worrying about how to feed your kids the next day). Alot of people on much higher income have no savings and struggle month to month so I think you're doing great (I know everyone has different circumstances which mean saving can be harder but still).