How little do you think it's possible to survive on per week, in Ireland?

Ms. Pingui · 17-07-2012 3:21pm #1

How much money do you think a person/ couple/ family needs to survive from week to week in this country?

Just for an example, a couple with one child, including rent, food, the usual bills etc.

What things do you consider to be luxuries? What do you think people with little money should have to do without?

FatherLen · 17-07-2012 3:22pm

bout 3 fiddy

17-07-2012 3:25pm

Ms. Pingui wrote: »

How much money do you think a person/ couple/ family needs to survive from week to week in this country?

Just for an example, a couple with one child, including rent, food, the usual bills etc.

What things do you consider to be luxuries? What do you think people with little money should have to do without?

they shouldn't have to do without anything in particular - it's their money, their budget

17-07-2012 3:26pm

bills and rent would be difficult to calculate in but during college i survived for about 3 weeks on cereal, milk and vitamin tablets. Cost me about €30.
Desperate times! i struggle to eat weetabix to this day.

El Weirdo · 17-07-2012 3:27pm

I wonder which direction this thread is going...

Valetta · 17-07-2012 3:30pm

Another public service bashing thread.

Gets boring.

AnonoBoy · 17-07-2012 3:31pm

According to the my sources* you can afford a car, a mansion and gold teeth on just 188 euro a week.

*AH trolls

PucaMama · 17-07-2012 3:32pm

Deleted User wrote: »

bills and rent would be difficult to calculate in but during college i survived for about 3 weeks on cereal, milk and vitamin tablets. Cost me about €30.
Desperate times! i struggle to eat weetabix to this day.

a person would have to eat the right food to help absorb those vitamins.

Hardonraging · 17-07-2012 3:32pm

Hunger strike

/thread

WumBuster · 17-07-2012 3:32pm

I reckon about 200 euro a week minimum for the average single person without dependents. But of course that can vary. My rent is 70 spend about 50 on food between bills, running the car and other bits n bobs make up the rest.

if you are surviving on any less you living bellow the poverty line

djk1000 · 17-07-2012 3:33pm

FatherLen wrote: »

bout 3 fiddy

Consider this an anti thank. 3 fiddy is up there with your ma and piss blasting at this stage.

Ms. Pingui · 17-07-2012 3:33pm

No, I'm just genuinely interested. I'm going through a major change in circumstances at the moment so it's quite relevant to me.

biko · 17-07-2012 3:33pm

Ms. Pingui wrote: »

How much money do you think a person/ couple/ family needs to survive from week to week in this country?

Where in this great nation of ours are you referring to?
It will be significantly less in Tubber than Dublin town.

danniemcq · 17-07-2012 3:33pm

In galway i was living when i first moved down with 4 other people.

No job, Dole was a nightmare to get sorted

the bills being split wasm't to bad. No sky either but no internet either.

Rent was 50 a week and i lived on tesco value noodles for about 5 weeks. 13c a packet (although reduced to 12c a few weeks later) so that worked out at 39c a day. throw in a carton of milk (or rob one from outside a restaurant) for another 60c plus bills (20 a month) and it was around 60 quid a week.

granted the house i was in was decent enough so i could have got cheaper (and would have had to had i not got a job!

so long story short i'd say if you have no kids and are house sharing then 50 quid a week should sort ya out

FatherLen · 17-07-2012 3:34pm

djk1000 wrote: »

Consider this an anti thank. 3 fiddy is up there with your ma and piss blasting at this stage.

oh no! not an anti thank! whatever will i do?!?!

crazy cabbage · 17-07-2012 3:37pm

how little?

nothing. You will last as long as it takes from them to kick you out of the appartment

seamus · 17-07-2012 3:39pm

Simple calculations:

Rent: 2-bed apartment in Inchicore; €700/month, €162/week.

Leccy, Heat & Light: Roughly €2,400/year, €50/week.

Food: €50 per person, per week.

Transport: Unlimited travel on Dublin Bus: €20/week per adult. €8.60 for the child.

Clothing: €25 per person per week.

Mobile Phone: €10 credit per week x 2

TV & Broadband & TV licence: €19/week

Total Cost: €524.60 per week

And that's living a pretty good life; unlimited travel, nice apartment, plenty of entertainment, mobile phones, new clothes.

danniemcq · 17-07-2012 3:46pm

seamus wrote: »

Simple calculations:

Rent: 2-bed apartment in Inchicore; €700/month, €162/week.

Leccy, Heat & Light: Roughly €2,400/year, €50/week.

Food: €50 per person, per week.

Transport: Unlimited travel on Dublin Bus: €20/week per adult. €8.60 for the child.

Clothing: €25 per person per week.

could probably cut down on that

Mobile Phone: €10 credit per week x 2

go with the 20 quid a month for free texts/calls/data (3 is the best value IMHO then meteor and o2)

TV & Broadband & TV licence: €19/week

no need for tv licence if worried just upgrade your broadband and use proxies etc to get iplayer, rte player, 4od and other non legal sources

Total Cost: €524.60 per week

And that's living a pretty good life; unlimited travel, nice apartment, plenty of entertainment, mobile phones, new clothes.

saved a fair bit of that, not much but some! sown to about 470 or 480 especially more if you can cut the clothing.

Chuck Stone · 17-07-2012 3:53pm

djk1000 wrote: »

Consider this an anti thank. 3 fiddy is up there with your ma and piss blasting at this stage.

Tell Joe how that makes you feel...

davet82 · 17-07-2012 3:56pm

very little imo...

get creative OP...

e.g instead of money for rent, try giving your landlord 3 handjobs aweek... it works for me :cool:

Stiffler2 · 17-07-2012 4:07pm

Exactly €190 OP

I_smell_fear · 17-07-2012 4:40pm

Single male in Galway here on the Le Dole. E50 rent weekly and split bills between 4 of us, except I happen get free UPC tv and internet because one of them pays it on his own for some reason. I can easily feed myself for E20-35 weekly (depending on which week I buy most food stuffs) and thats eating good food, fruit daily etc. Plus, I'm getting free use of a gym via less than admirable ways! Galway is pretty handy in that you can get anywhere in the city on a bike.

My situation is pretty handy...no job though

Brokentime · 17-07-2012 4:53pm

I_smell_fear wrote: »

Single male in Galway here on the Le Dole. E50 rent weekly and split bills between 4 of us, except I happen get free UPC tv and internet because one of them pays it on his own for some reason. I can easily feed myself for E20-35 weekly (depending on which week I buy most food stuffs) and thats eating good food, fruit daily etc. Plus, I'm getting free use of a gym via less than admirable ways! Galway is pretty handy in that you can get anywhere in the city on a bike.

My situation is pretty handy...no job though

My ex-GF is Chinese and she lived in Dublin for a year on a feckin' shoestring. She was holed up in a small apartment with about 4 other girls on .... Capel Street, I think it was (near that place, the Panty Bar). Used to work in a Chinese restaurant on the quays and the wages weren't great, but she got by. Even managed to send some money home. This was back in 2009, so not too long ago, and I think the rent was higher back then than it is now (haven't seen the latest Daft report). She must have done it for about E160-180 per week. Mind you, she did get to eat at the restaurant where she worked, so that's a decent perk. And she walked to work, too, so no transport costs.

I love this thread; great to read.

Pushtrak · 17-07-2012 4:55pm

AnonoBoy wrote: »

According to the my sources* you can afford a car, a mansion and gold teeth on just 188 euro a week.

*AH trolls

No, no. You mean three cars and two mansions. And a holiday every couple of months.

SusieBlue · 17-07-2012 6:25pm

Weekly, my OH and I spend €147 on rent for a 2 bed house in Cork. About €40-€50 for food, €20 for electricity. €30 on petrol, and €20 each a month on credit. We spend about €50 a month socialising, or on other bits and bobs. We buy clothes etc when needed, not by the month.

Weekly, we spend about €250 a week. Monthly, that's €1,070 ish. We were spending a lot more when I was working.

TPD · 17-07-2012 7:52pm

seamus wrote: »

Clothing: €25 per person per week.

1300 per person per year on clothing, jaysus I'd be hard pressed to spend 25 every two months on clothes.

Jester252 · 17-07-2012 7:54pm

I say that a person could live on €100 a week

christmas2012 · 17-07-2012 7:55pm

food: 50 - 65 per person

rent: 100 euro

phone credit/bus: 30.

so you really need that dole money as it goes quick..they shouldnt cut it any further really shouldnt..

Biggins · 17-07-2012 7:56pm

FatherLen wrote: »

oh no! not an anti thank! whatever will i do?!?!

Wear a condom for protection!

CamperMan · 17-07-2012 7:58pm

it was costing myself and my wife over €450 a week to live a basic lifestyle in Ireland, that included rent, bills, food, car, phone, etc.. no luxuries.. :mad:

In Germany, it's costing us less than €140 a week

token101 · 17-07-2012 7:59pm

I speak from own experience on the dole, but if you're on your own €188 is plenty.

Captain Chaos · 17-07-2012 7:59pm

Jester252 wrote: »

I say that a person could live on €100 a week

I spend that on food for myself for a week. My rent alone is €200 per week.

I need about €450 per week to survive, there's no social life included in that, just existing to work. Can't afford a social life tbh.

token101 · 17-07-2012 8:03pm

Captain Chaos wrote: »

I spend that on food for myself for a week. My rent alone is €200 per week.

I need about €450 per week to survive, there's no social life included in that, just existing to work. Can't afford a social life tbh.

You can, you just spend too much on food and rent.

Captain Chaos · 17-07-2012 8:07pm

token101 wrote: »

You can, you just spend too much on food and rent.

On rent, no. Rent in my area has gone up €100 per month in the last few weeks and is climbing. It's currently standing at €900pm for a single bed apt.

I do all my food shopping in Lidl and Aldi, and €100 per week does not get you much decent food at all. I spent €10 the other day on food stuffs that just got me a salad for one out of it.

token101 · 17-07-2012 8:11pm

Captain Chaos wrote: »

On rent, no. Rent in my area has gone up €100 per month in the last few weeks and is climbing. It's currently standing at €900pm for a single bed apt.

I do all my food shopping in Lidl and Aldi, and €100 per week does not get you much decent food at all. I spend €10 the other day on food stuffs that just got me a salad for one out of it.

Rent has gone up €100 a week? Move! If you're on your own nothing stopping you living with someone else. I spent €70 last Wednesday in Tesco and local butchers and don't plan on shopping until Saturday. I'd eat 4 meals a day usually, so I'm not starving!! €10 on one salad is absolute insanity.

Where To · 17-07-2012 8:15pm

€840 per week on necessities.

Hang on, are lapdancers considered a necessity or a luxury?

Captain Chaos · 17-07-2012 8:16pm

token101 wrote: »

Rent has gone up €100 a week? Move! If you're on your own nothing stopping you living with someone else. I spent €70 last Wednesday in Tesco and local butchers and don't plan on shopping until Saturday. I'd eat 4 meals a day usually, so I'm not starving!! €10 on one salad is absolute insanity.

Yep, the new asking prices are going through the roof, I'm still on my old rate and I'm not paying a cent more. I wish I could move but I can't as I cannot afford a car so I need to be near public transport for work.

Rent in Dublin in general is on the up because they are holding back finished property to inflate prices. There is a load of fully fitted out apts, sitting idle being held back from the market all around me and are not out for lease. Crazy carry on.

17-07-2012 8:19pm

Captain Chaos wrote: »

On rent, no. Rent in my area has gone up €100 per month in the last few weeks and is climbing. It's currently standing at €900pm for a single bed apt.

I do all my food shopping in Lidl and Aldi, and €100 per week does not get you much decent food at all. I spent €10 the other day on food stuffs that just got me a salad for one out of it.

Wow. You're getting majorly ripped off. I'm paying 900 pm for my apartment in London. An equivalent place in Dublin should be nowhere near that much. Why would you pay that kind of money? And what are you buying for 100 quid a week, caviar? Myself and the boyfriend do our weekly shop for about 40 quid a week between us. That's a week's worth of fresh fruit, fresh veg, snacks, treats, everything. We could probably do it for 25 if we were careful and cut out all the non-essentials. 10 euro for salad stuff?

I don't get how people manage to spend that much.

gdavis · 17-07-2012 8:21pm

all depends on how much u paid for ur overpriced dwellings !like,if u forked out 400k for a house when things were good then u still have to cover that regardless of paycuts etc so all is relative i suppose

christmas2012 · 17-07-2012 9:12pm

Ive a feeling this could be turned into a dole bashing thread,lets hope not..188 is not enough to live on as it is,and with the price of everything still high as it was in the celtic tiger era,its not a good situation to be in at all..

Mr_Spaceman · 17-07-2012 9:48pm

Personally speaking, as a member of the Protestant landed gentry, money is no object!

Seriously though, Captain Chaos: writing lists and menu planning will save you much cash and not at the expense of eating well either.

Kinda like what Royal Gentle Armchair is saying. You'll be amazed at what you save once it becomes a habit.

Mickeroo · 17-07-2012 10:34pm

Living in rented accomodation in the west(castlebar) on the dole last summer I was able to save over 100 euros every week, while still paying bills, running a car and eating proper meals. Dole is more than enough to live on in certain parts of the country. Obviously if I had been living in one of the cities I would have been screwed.

tdv123 · 17-07-2012 10:34pm

Macdonals €10 a week

Bag of Gear €780 a week.

Cardboard box - priceless

axel rose · 17-07-2012 10:36pm

WumBuster wrote: »

I reckon about 200 euro a week minimum for the average single person without dependents. But of course that can vary. My rent is 70 spend about 50 on food between bills, running the car and other bits n bobs make up the rest.

if you are surviving on any less you living bellow the poverty line

As long as it's just the basics :rolleyes:. There is something wrong when not having a car implies that a person is living below the poverty line.

Varied · 17-07-2012 10:44pm

Had a load of bills this month so I'm on **** all, should be back to normal next month. Luckily I have been to house parties and my mate sorted me out for booze.

B.A._Baracus · 17-07-2012 11:01pm

Ms. Pingui wrote: »

How much money do you think a person/ couple/ family needs to survive from week to week in this country?

Just for an example, a couple with one chiLd, including rent, food, the usual Bills etc.

What things do you consider to be Luxuries? What do you think people with little money should have to do without?

I see what you did there :pac:

How little do you think it's possible to survive on per week, in Ireland?

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