Please can you help me with a financial makeover (warning- we are rich)

[ohIdoliketobebesidethe]

After all the threads on money recently I have finally pulled my head out the sand and gone through our finances. I have looked at everything we have spent in the last 12 months. The money has all gone. All £106,000.

When I return to work in Feb, our childcare costs will be increasing and also in Feb our mortgage discount period will be ending and we will have to pay an extra £4000 a year in interest.

I know this is a undignified thing to do in our culture- but as you don't know me-I'm going to tell you where all the money went.

Any advice about cutting down any of it will be gratefully received. (eg. our landline/broadband costs seem high seeing as we barely use the phone, has anyone got a cheaper deal?)

3000 living where we live
400 having a car
2750 childcare
520 supermarkets
66 house/baby stuff
250 holidays
310 work related expenses
175 cleaner
180 charity
120 computer stuff
50 books
160 council tax
40 water
75 electricity
35 phone/ broadband
162 life insurance
140 healthcare/dentist/opticians
45 mobiles
120 presents
100 eating out
100 clothes
120 travel
15 newpapers
20 kids outings.

Please don't be too offended at what we spend. And I genuinely would like advice about cutting down.

Our AA cover has paid for itself many times over. We broke down 4 times since June! Comes from buying 8 yr old cars off ebay!

have you tried www.moneysavingexpert.com has some great ideas on how to reduce your outgoings and some ten step plans too which will help you start your reductions.

Eating out - is only a once a month thing but our friends tend to go to expensive places. I would feel sad to miss out on such a limited social life - but I take your point.

BTW do you all think £35 on phone and broadband is fair?

You could try www.moneysavingexpert.com and do one of their 'money makeovers'.
We saved on our utilities and car insurance this way, and you could find a bank account with a better rate of interest (which we haven't got around to doing).
It'd be interesting to see how you're doing in a few months' time.

Sorry crossed post.

what is really important to you? i don't care about cars and holidays but would die if i couldn't eat nice food. that means i spend a lot of time making it but i do enjoy that.

we've not got as much income or expense as you, only one child. but mortgage/bills and childcare are the killers here too, not much to do about them is there. our outgoings are around £3k a month before newspapers and socks.

i have completely stopped buying books, i put all the ones i want into amazon basket and then use it to order them from library. very exciting going to collect them.

"BTW do you all think £35 on phone and broadband is fair?"

NO! youi can get phone, boardband and tv for £30 or under.
and let's face it, if you really want to cut down you could reduce it more by NOT having broadband at all.

it seems to me like you have an answer for everything anyone says. you say you need to cut back but each time something is suggested you have a reason why you can;t/

there are a lot of things on your list that just are NOT necessary and you don';t need to spend. but maybe you just don't want to see that?

would a daily nanny be better value?
I have four DCs and found paying for one carer rather than four places at nursery far easier.
My AA membership is free with my Lloyds bank account - well it's in the £7 they charge each month along with travel insurance and some other stuff.
How many times have you used the AA in the last 5 years?
Me - 4 times. Didn't get £1000 worth of work from them by any means.

Sorry to go on about childcare and cleaning but thats going on a £36k salary for someone a year. Could 1 person be more flexible for you cost less money and help you sort out and streamline some of your other expenses?

Now I'm wondering if you're really serious. If you're eating out in expensive places, £100 isn't very much at all!

Cleaner gets £40 a week - she is great and does all ironing too.

We do get clothes second hand already for kids. Dh buys expensive work clothes. I spent on clothes this year because I was preg - needed maternity stuff (had bought cheap stuff before than wore out) and then fat postnatally. But I am going to have to spend a bit more on clothes soon as I want to look smart at work to try for the promotion (have always been a slob before)

I have renewed car insurance just now for £320. Cheapest I could find.

I can't fathom why you're paying £35 on phone and broadband plus £45 on mobiles. That seems a lot. Hunt around.

We have unlimited phone calls and high speed broadband for £20 from VirginMedia. They have a dept called recruitment and retention and often to stop you moving to another company they'll slash your bill. If you can stand the interminable phone call it's worth doing.

Meal plan for the week. Stop the impulse buys.

thisisyesterday - you are right - I am being a bit defensive! Partly because of trying to reply in rush but also feeling I have to explain why we did spend that much. I need to look at whether we should spend it next year though.

I would come and look after your kids and clean in a scrummy flat in London for probably less than £36k.
Dream job...

see what I mean?

A small thing, but I don't think kids' outings need to be expensive. We used to feel that we had to lay on one thrilling experience for the kids each weekend. But for various reasons, we've started to spend more time just hanging out and doing chores - the kids "help" aged 3 and 1 - and being normal. As a by-product, we're saving a bit of money.

tbh I think you're focusing in on one of the least expensive areas £35 for internet - yes it's not the cheapest, but look at the rest of the costs!!
like everyone else says - moneysaving expert will sort you out

autoaid is fab.

life insurance - try the links on moneysaving expert - you are paying loads. mine is a tenner a month for 200000 of cover - how much are you insured for??

charity - I wouldn't cut back on that unless you have to. what % of your income does it work out to?

I do meal plan. I do however feed the kids separately to us and buy convenience food (oven ready meals) as after a day at work and getting kids to bed last thing I want to do is start slaving over a stove.

Thanks for virgin media tip - I will look into that.

you don't need to explain WHY you spent it
you did, and that's not going to change, I think everyone realises that.
we;'ve had a couple of bad months here too, spending what we thought we ought to have rather than what we actually had.

seriously though, there are loads of good suggestions on here, and you could easily cut backa lot.

Life insurance will cover the £400k mortgage plus provide and income of £3000 until the kids are off our hands. We also have £265k each of sickness cover.

You need a nanny. Surely got to be cheaper.

is your childcare nurseries or nanny/s?

OhIdoliketobebesidetheseaside - you are justifying your spening, which to be honest seems quite resonable. While we has the money comming in, I could easitly justify everything you are paying for. (although we've nver spent that much on holidays or had a mortgage that high)

Now we simply don't have the money coming in, I no longer have my cleaning and ironing done - holidays are minimum - untill you simply do not have the money - you will be able to justify spening it.