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How much do you spend each Month?

  • 29-05-2009 02:47PM
    #1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8 jor3000


    Folks,

    I’ve got a big question regarding monthly spending – I think that my household spending is enormous, but don’t have any reference point. I’ve outlined my basic numbers below – anyone care to share their numbers / thoughts?

    My goal is to really understand what the monthly cost of living is for a “normal” family, and understand where I can cut back to stretch a decreasing income further.


    The Demographics, etc –

    - Single Income Family – self-employed
    - 4 kids, all in teenage years with the eldest First Year in College – living at home.
    - Mortgage – call it 1200 per month right now
    - 2 cars


    Total Monthly Spend averaged over the past 12 months = €11000

    Main Monthly Costs that I’m coming up with right now

    - Mortgage – 1200
    - Food – 1400
    - Petrol – 500
    - Health Insurance – 150
    - Life Assurances – 300
    - Critical Illness Cover – 350
    - College Fees – 833 (10k per year)
    - Phones – 200
    - Sky – 75
    - Weekly Take Away - 50


    I calculated the overall monthly spend as follows:
    Note exactly how much net Income comes into the bank accounts each month.
    Note the closing balance of every bank and credit card account on the last day of each month – this then becomes the opening balance for the 1st of the next month.
    By simply calculating how each account changed over the month and adding in the net income you can get an exact number on your monthly spend each month – and you only need to input 4 or 5 numbers to get to it.

    JOR



«13

Comments

  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,192 ✭✭✭TarfHead


    2 cars

    € 500 pm in petrol

    Are you sure, or are you doing significant driving ?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,609 ✭✭✭Flamed Diving


    Wrong forum.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 8 jor3000


    TarfHead wrote: »
    Are you sure, or are you doing significant driving ?

    Self-Employed - Significant Driving!


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 8 jor3000


    Wrong forum.

    Apologies if that is the case - can you advise where should I post this?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,609 ✭✭✭Flamed Diving


    One of those forums under 'Biz' to the top-left, I think.


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,452 ✭✭✭Time Magazine


    Moved from Economics to what I think is the most-suited forum.
    Wrong forum.

    Use the Report Post function please, we might miss it otherwise.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 637 ✭✭✭Lizzykins


    We're in much the same position-4 kids,one in college. One and a half incomes as I only work part-time.

    Mortgage -350
    Life Ins- 50
    Health Ins 100-kids are not covered.
    Phone-mobile and lineline-80
    Petrol for 2 cars-100
    Food-1400
    NTL-30

    That's only off the top of my head. Food costs are horrendous. Thank God our mortgage is small and we only have a couple of small credit union loans. We manage to save a small bit in the credit union too.

    Increased college reg fee will kill us. Plus decrease in income from levies. We will manage ok if we both keep our jobs and they look safe in the medium term.
    Hard to know where you could cut back OP though I do see you have large insurance bills. Prob if you are self employed it's a must.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 4,754 ✭✭✭oldyouth


    Jaysus, how can you spend that a month and more importantly, how do you earn that a month. I'm going to leave out the mortgage, 'cos after 25 years the bugger is nearly gone

    Family Health Insurance €150
    Food €750 (usual supermarket per week, all meat from a quality butcher and then the bread, milk etc from the petrol station)
    Petrol €100 (2 cars)
    Mobiles €50 (2 phones)
    Rent €410 (son in college in Dublin who worked all summer and pays his expenses)
    Sky €60
    Wife's Gym €30
    My Gym €40
    Car/House Insurance €80 (in the business, so I get deals)
    Heating Oil €100
    Electricity €100
    Phone/Internet €30
    Car Tax average €75 (bloody '99 Audi)
    Pub Drink €100

    I live well, buy what I need and some of what I want.

    €4,200 per year for critical illness cover, are you mad? And how can you spend nearly €50 a day on food, regardless of the size of your family


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,352 ✭✭✭rameire


    2 adults, 1 dog. no kids.

    Health Insurance €77
    Food €400 includes alcohol for home drinking
    Petrol €180 (1 motorbike, car is company car)
    Mobiles €40 (2 phones)
    Sky €22.50
    bike and house insurance €70
    Gas €60
    Electricity €60
    Phone/Internet €55
    Bike Tax €20
    Pub Drink €10
    Mortgage €800
    Life Insurance €80 (includes critical illness)
    Health Insurance €78

    🌞 3.8kwp, 🌞 Clonee, Dub.🌞



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,427 ✭✭✭Trampas


    2 of us

    Health Insurance €100
    Food €200 (Aldi or Lidl)
    Petrol €70 (2 cars)
    Mobiles €40 (2 phones)
    Sky €60
    2 Cars/House Insurance €70 (in the business, so I get deals)
    Gas €50 on avg goes up and down with weather
    Electricity €100
    Phone/Internet €50
    Car Tax average €30 (bloody '99 Audi)
    Mortgage €1000 pm


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,699 ✭✭✭samhail


    If you are self-employed i assume you are putting a bit of that through your company (or have you registered)
    probably could be making a bit of saving


  • Administrators, Business & Finance Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 16,992 Admin ✭✭✭✭✭Toots


    Interesting thread. Unfortunately seeing as this forum is more for discussions and advice on Banking products, I don't think it belongs here, so I'm moving it to After Hours.

    AH mods, apologies if that's the wrong forum. :)


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 25,385 ✭✭✭✭My name is URL


    Depends on the quality of prostitute available

    srsly though - about 900 euro total outgoing per month for just me and my cat & dog

    edit: OP you're spending alot on personal insurance, can those premiums not be consolidated?


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,620 ✭✭✭Graham_B18C


    jor3000 wrote: »
    College Fees – 833 (10k per year)
    What college is that?! Christ, that's a lorra money. I paid 800 quid a year when I was in college, not that long ago


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 19,473 ✭✭✭✭Super-Rush


    Insurance 52

    Broadband 60

    Loans 92

    Petrol 200-300

    Food 500

    Sky 60

    Phone 100

    Other 600-700


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 23,811 ✭✭✭✭mickdw


    Lizzykins wrote: »
    Petrol for 2 cars-100

    Petrol for 2 cars for a month. Do you drive at all? I spend 80/week on one car.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 9,533 ✭✭✭SV


    My monthly outgoings..

    rent/housekeeping - 250
    food - 200
    petrol - 200(1 car)

    and I'm done.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 1,956 ✭✭✭consultech


    Grahamo999 wrote: »
    What college is that?! Christ, that's a lorra money. I paid 800 quid a year when I was in college, not that long ago

    I think the fees in the University of Insufficient Leaving Cert points are about €10k per year.

    Wish my mommy and doddy paid my fees when I was in college; I'm an independent adult as a result though so all's well ...


  • Posts: 6,645 ✭✭✭ Marco Scarce Turquoise


    consultech wrote: »
    I think the fees in the University of Insufficient Leaving Cert points are about €10k per year.

    Wish my mommy and doddy paid my fees when I was in college; I'm an independent adult as a result though so all's well ...

    Yep......I can't imagine how a student living at home needs nearly a grand a month of parents' money. That's insane. The food bill is insane as well, HOW on earth can anyone spend that much? My parents only used to spend about 600-700 a month when all of us lived at home and they don't even shop in Aldi or Lidl. Some serious savings can surely be made there.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,620 ✭✭✭Graham_B18C


    consultech wrote: »
    I think the fees in the University of Insufficient Leaving Cert points are about €10k per year.

    Wish my mommy and doddy paid my fees when I was in college; I'm an independent adult as a result though so all's well ...
    Enen the private colleges aint that much, like Griffith, DBS or ACD are about 4000 or 5000 a year, ten grand a year for college is insane money.


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 766 ✭✭✭6ix


    Hmmm, this has me thinking so I'll chip in from a slightly different perspective. Details:

    Single guy, mid 20's, renting (sharing) in Dublin 6, no kids etc. The bills quoted refer to my portion only, I'm sharing with 2 others, and we split them.

    Food €200
    Rent €460
    Electricity €30
    Gas €40
    TV €20
    Broadband €50 (I'm the sole user - have to sort this!)
    Car insurance €70
    Car Tax €30
    Petrol €200
    Mobile €35
    Road Tolls €20

    Then there's all the other stuff like going out, restaurants, going to gigs/shows, buying clothes which vary from month to month, but certainly add up to quite a bit. I do manage to save a small bit but with wages decreasing due to the levies etc, that's becoming harder.

    The numbers for 3/4 kid households are frightening!


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 310 ✭✭TaxiManMartin


    jor3000 wrote: »
    Apologies if that is the case - can you advise where should I post this?


    Try here.

    http://www.askaboutmoney.com/forumdisplay.php?f=62


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 1,043 ✭✭✭Leprachaun


    About 15 thousand a month I'd say.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 1,821 ✭✭✭useful_contacts


    Rent 540
    Food 100 (we dont eat much it seems:)
    partners gym 60
    tv and internet 45

    all i can think of atm


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,427 ✭✭✭Trampas


    mickdw wrote: »
    Petrol for 2 cars for a month. Do you drive at all? I spend 80/week on one car.

    You must drive from one end of the country to the other every week.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,658 ✭✭✭old boy


    the old girl has moved from lidil/aldi to dunnes, she claims she is saving a tenner a week. so now my weekly bottle of scotch from lidil is only costing roughly euro 6.40,


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 183 ✭✭Lilyblue


    Per month for 2 Adults, 2 kids, 2 cars, 2 incomes /*touches wood

    Mortgage 2200
    Loans 530
    Petrol 300
    Life Assurance 90
    Health Insurance 145
    Car Insurance 80
    Sky 50
    Food & sundries 400
    Mobile phones 40
    School expenses ie bus etc.. 100
    Then ESB, Bord Gais & Internet bills


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,650 ✭✭✭cooperguy


    OP how do you spend €200 on phone bills!


  • Posts: 31,828 ✭✭✭✭ [Deleted User]


    Wrong forum.

    Wrong message board tbh, askaboutmoney may be more appropiate.


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 1,376 ✭✭✭gaeilgegrinds


    Own house, have lodger, also bf but I'll write just my own portion of bills.

    Mortgage-800-120 tax relief- 280 rent= 400 per month.
    Car-50 petrol, also put 60 aside for insurance and tax.
    Vivas health-50 per month.
    Phone-talk a lot-100.
    House insurance-20.
    Broadband-30.
    Clothes-100.
    Pill, cosmetics etc-30.
    One beauty treat, hair or something-60.
    Waxing- 30- 15 times 2.
    Food-150.
    Nights out- thanks to training v.little drink-120.
    E.S.B.-20.
    Bins-20.

    So...1240...hmm...


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