Living Lean...

Another way to save at the grocery store is to live by a strict List Law. Write up your list before you leave home, and you are ONLY allowed to buy what's on the list. No exceptions.

This worked really well for us in our shared house at uni where we were all like little magpies, especially in the world foods section!

I live by a strict list law, but I think that is harder to do in the UK than in the US because of the way things are arranged in supermarkets in the UK.

I find that things are arranged more by whether they are on sale or not, than by what type of item they are.

For example, a while back DH and I were at the supermarket and we were looking for fruit juice, and he found some next to the cooked meat/cold cuts.  I asked him why the juice was near the cooked meat and he said "because they're the specials", like it was the most obvious thing in the world and I was stupid for not realising it.

I've since noticed that there are many spots around the supermarket where items that are on sale are bunched together, regardless of what they are, so tuna fish three cans for the price of two is next to cereal an extra 25% free which is also on the same shelf as pasta sauce 10% off.

It seems like they expect people to just go around to all the "bargain" sections and pick out what they think they need.

I find it really hard to find things if I have a list and am looking for specific items whether they are on sale or not. For example, if I want to buy rolls sometimes they could be in the aisle that says "bread and rolls", other times they could be God knows where. I just want to walk into the shop, get what is on my list, pay for it and leave. I don't want to wander around aimlessly picking up "bargains".

It is the same in my local store.  Also, fewer coupons makes me sad.

We have a menu every week, and we stick to it (mostly.)  I also tend to only buy what I need for the menu that week, which drives my husband nuts because our cupboards look so bare!

We alternate meat and veg meals, eat alot of veggie and bean filled soups, and my husband is learning to love peanut butter sandwhiches for lunches. Before I was pregnant we were spending about £20 per week on food, it's up to about £30/35 now because we now go through a ton of milk which adds up. 

I tend to make things that will last 2 or more meals.  I do a thing of spag bol, get 2 nights worth of lasagne and 1 of spag bol.  If it only does one meal, I rarely cook it.

Also as people have said, buy the store brand or basics brand when possible.  I honestly can't tell the difference between basics tinned tomatoes and the pricey ones. Baked beans get doctored either way, so it's the basics version of those as well.  There are just some things I won't buy cheap (tuna for example) but most of the stuff you can get used to.

You've got your ILR now, so talk to the council about housing benefit and council tax benefit.  If you are both, or possibly only one, unemployeed you may fall below their thresholds.  I think now in a lot of councils you are paid the money and expected to pay the landlord.  It has to do with trying to reduce the stigma of housing benefit (again, I think this is the case.) 

If worse should come to worst and you need to take on some part-time employment, then I can send you an invite to join Alpha Tutors.  No guarantees, but they can help you find tutoring work in your area, or even online. 

Also, what about dog walking?  You could see if anyone would like you to take their dog out at the same time you take your own. 

We have a menu every week, and we stick to it (mostly.)

I tried to talk DH into that, but he wasn't having it - lol!  If I were doing all the cooking, it's what I would do - but as we share those duties, and on balance, he ends up doing most of the cooking, I defer to what he wants to do.  He likes having the flexibility!

I'm embarassed to say how much we average on our grocery spends, compared to how little some of you spend.  When we were setting up (or trying to) a strict budget awhile back, I tried to get DH to agree to a £50 average weekly spend, but he didn't think that would be enough.  I felt confident that we could do it, but of course, it would mean our going without some of the nice things we like & are used to (booze - lol! among other things, steak sometimes, imported bits & bobs from the deli).

I asked him - haven't you ever, ever been poor & had to watch every penny?  (I've lived on pasta & beans before & not knowing when I'd have money in the bank again.)  The answer - no, not even when he was a student, I guess.  I think we'd really struggle if he ever lost his job - well I know how to live poor, but he doesn't. 

I tried to talk DH into that, but he wasn't having it - lol!  If I were doing all the cooking, it's what I would do - but as we share those duties, and on balance, he ends up doing most of the cooking, I defer to what he wants to do.  He likes having the flexibility!

I'm embarassed to say how much we average on our grocery spends, compared to how little some of you spend.  When we were setting up (or trying to) a strict budget awhile back, I tried to get DH to agree to a £50 average weekly spend, but he didn't think that would be enough.  I felt confident that we could do it, but of course, it would mean our going without some of the nice things we like & are used to (booze - lol! among other things, steak sometimes, imported bits & bobs from the deli).

I asked him - haven't you ever, ever been poor & had to watch every penny?  (I've lived on pasta & beans before & not knowing when I'd have money in the bank again.)  The answer - no, not even when he was a student, I guess.  I think we'd really struggle if he ever lost his job - well I know how to live poor, but he doesn't. 

LOL! Well, we usually spend about £90/week just on groceries, alcohol and household stuff for the two of us and a part-time kiddo.  So, yeah... we aren't too good at this budgeting thing either. I like to cook and tend to buy some expensive stuff, plus alcohol. But I'm trying to change my ways....

My suggestion is inline with some of the first posters...sit down and right out a detailed budget, including EVERYTHING you spend money on.  Evaluate what you really don't need and where your money is actually going.

DH and I went from living paycheck-to-paycheck (as in having less than £1 in the bank a few days before payday sometimes) to being able to save over £300/month on a slightly lower income (DH had to take a £40/month paycut after union negotiations in order to prevent anyone getting laid off).  This was after doing a budget of our current spend and realizing how much money we wasted on stupid things (like going to the shop for bread and milk and coming back with £30 worth of junk we didn't need).  We now have a VERY strict budget...and we stick to it...to the letter!  We NEVER allow ourselves to go over on anything.  We budget out everything...including money for work (so DH can have tea and snacks), pocket money, groceries, money for miscellaneous groceries (the bread and milk and things you need in between your main grocery shopping), money for daily newspaper, etc. 

I don't really have any practical tips on how to cut down on the amount you spend since I don't know all the details of what you spend money on.  For us, meal planning and cutting back on some of the more luxurious food items (prawns, scallops, etc.) helped us save loads of money.  Also, stopping DH from buying so many "surprises" for my daughter (he used to spend £10 every time he went to the shop (which was pretty much every day).

I don't really have any practical tips on how to cut down on the amount you spend since I don't know all the details of what you spend money on.  For us, meal planning and cutting back on some of the more luxurious food items (prawns, scallops, etc.) helped us save loads of money.  Also, stopping DH from buying so many "surprises" for my daughter (he used to spend £10 every time he went to the shop (which was pretty much every day).

Oh yeah, I know what we could cut.  Wanting to is the problem - lol!  As it stands, I didn't end up quitting my job (surprise - they actually started listening to me and the other employees!) & we're able to save my whole salary most months, without making drastic (painful) cutbacks, so we're happy with that at the moment. 

Making a few less painful changes (utilities & such, packing lunch, not going to the pub/out to eat as often), plus being a bit more conscious of our grocery spending has helped though!

I asked him - haven't you ever, ever been poor & had to watch every penny?  (I've lived on pasta & beans before & not knowing when I'd have money in the bank again.)  The answer - no, not even when he was a student, I guess.   

When my DH was a student, he got housing benefit, either got a council tax reduction or was exempt from council tax (don't remember exactly) and lots of discounts on things just for being a student. Some of the shops in town have signs that say you get a discount if you have a student card. Plus, I believe that lots of students live off their overdrafts/credit cards.

In my personal experience, there is more of an entitlement culture here where people think that if they are used to living a certain lifestyle, they are entitled to keep living that lifestyle even if there circumstances change.

I know someone who is on disability for mental illness and uses his free transport pass to travel from York to Leeds to get his hair cut because he prefers that hairdresser.  I get my hair done at the salon up the road.

Another person I know who is on disability benefits for mental illness goes on holidays with his girlfriend several times a year.

People don't seem to make a connection between the amount of income they have coming in and the lifestyle are supposed to live.

A while back, a friend of DH's lost his job, so DH started giving him money every week so he could go to the pub.  I could see if DH was helping him out with his mortgage, or with buying food or clothes for his kids, but the pub!  The way I see it, if you don't have a lot of money to spare, you don't go to the pub.

Maybe it has something to do with the British class system?

Maybe it has something to do with the British class system?

You know, not everything comes down to British vs American, things-are-so-different-over-here, nothing-like-this-ever-happens-in-the-USA.  I don't know a single person in the UK who lives as you describe.  Everyone I've met in this country lives within his or her means, doesn't do or buy anything he or she can't afford, and in the case of my in-laws and many of my co-workers, is actually more frugal than is strictly necessary.  I can't believe you think there is more of a culture of entitlement here than in the US.  My brother, for example, thinks that he should just be able to sit on his rear and wait for life to shower him with riches.  So do all his friends.  So does my mom, actually, less so than my brother but still that's where he gets it from.  And the New York college kids from wealthy families whom I used to teach?  Don't even get me started.  One of them told me once that I had to give her a good grade because "my dad pays your salary."  Of course some people in the UK are lazy and feel entitled to whatever they want, but some people in the US are as well.  Why does everything always have to be black and white, US vs UK, all the time? 

And the British class system?  Really? 

I said that it was my experience.

However, there are cultural differences. They are general and there are exceptions  but they exist. If there were no cultural differences between the US and the UK, then half of the posts on this board wouldn't need to be here.

American class system

wealth/income = social status

British class system

Social status is more independent of wealth/income.

The whole concept of nobility is based on the idea that you are born into your social status - it isn't based on how much money you have (although there is usually a relationship because people with high social status tend to have more things given to them).

Of course there are lazy bums in both countries and people who are industrious in both countries.

And people who cheat the system in both countries.

However, the benefit system in the UK is very different than the benefit system in the US.  Speaking as someone whose mother worked for the welfare system in New York State for over 20 years and who has known people in both countries who have used benefits.

For example, in the US, unemployment benefits are of limited duration. And being a student doesn't get you a discount on your rent.  

Universal healthcare is also an important issue.  If losing your job means that you will lose your healthcare, you are more likely to suck it up and stay at a job that makes you unhappy.

Maybe it has something to do with the British class system? 

In my husband's case?  No.  His family is working class all the way back.  His father just happened to do well for himself as a saleman & then as a shopkeeper.

Full time students in rental accommodation aren't liable for paying council tax, that's true.  I don't think he ever received Housing Benefit.  He might have received Jobseekers Allowance for awhile because he was unemployed in between his Bachelor's and his Master's Degree - he moved back home with the folks then.

AFAIK, they supported his university studies, and then after his Master's Degree - he's been on a pretty good income ever since.  We are living well within our means & very fortunate in that.  I struggled with debt previously, but DH has never had any debt except our mortgage (not a single credit card, nothing!). 

As far as social/public welfare systems, I am pleased that the UK has a wider safety net for people than the US does.

I think the US unemployment benefits being of limited duration is a very big problem there right now - so many have been out of work for so long, and there simply aren't the jobs there for them to go into.  Scary!  I don't think allowing citizens to become destitute because they can't find work (on a living wage) is very good social policy.

As far as social/public welfare systems, I am pleased that the UK has a wider safety net for people than the US does.

I think the US unemployment benefits being of limited duration is a very big problem there right now - so many have been out of work for so long, and there simply aren't the jobs there for them to go into.  Scary!  I don't think allowing citizens to become destitute because they can't find work (on a living wage) is very good social policy.

Agreed.

When my DH was a student, he got housing benefit, either got a council tax reduction or was exempt from council tax (don't remember exactly) and lots of discounts on things just for being a student. Some of the shops in town have signs that say you get a discount if you have a student card. Plus, I believe that lots of students live off their overdrafts/credit cards.

In my personal experience, there is more of an entitlement culture here where people think that if they are used to living a certain lifestyle, they are entitled to keep living that lifestyle even if there circumstances change.

I know someone who is on disability for mental illness and uses his free transport pass to travel from York to Leeds to get his hair cut because he prefers that hairdresser.  I get my hair done at the salon up the road.

Another person I know who is on disability benefits for mental illness goes on holidays with his girlfriend several times a year.

People don't seem to make a connection between the amount of income they have coming in and the lifestyle are supposed to live.

A while back, a friend of DH's lost his job, so DH started giving him money every week so he could go to the pub.  I could see if DH was helping him out with his mortgage, or with buying food or clothes for his kids, but the pub!  The way I see it, if you don't have a lot of money to spare, you don't go to the pub.

Maybe it has something to do with the British class system?

1. You're not eligible for Housing Benefit when you're a student, if he was claiming it, he was claiming it illegally unless he is severely disabled.

Certain people can get extended student loans, for instance I was disowned by my parents and had been in Foster Care, therefore I got additional student loans to cover my rent over summer as I literally didn't have anywhere else to go. This money has to be paid back (hello £310 a month in student loan payments).

2. Students are exempt from Council tax, all full time students, it's to enable Students to live in areas near their university they would otherwise struggle to afford. Seems like a good plan to me.

3. You are given a certain amount of benefits to live on, how you choose to spend them is up to you. So this person who is disabled,may put some of their benefit away each week and uses it to go on Holiday, I fail to see what the problem is? How do you know it isn't the girlfriend paying for the holidays? Maybe his parents give him money for his birthday, maybe he's just a really good budgeter. Maybe being on disability for mental illness means you need to take a break sometime.

4. I also fail to see the issue with taking a long bus ride to get your hair cut? If he has mental illness issues, he may feel not confident to go to a new place, he may have routines, maybe it cheers him up to look nice. I don't see how using a free bus pass to get to a preferred stylist equals an air of superiority.
I go get my hair cut in Brighton. It's an hour train ride from London at a cost of £20 but I love the stylist so much.

5. Sounds like your DH is a nice man, and recognises that you can get very down and depressed when you're out of work, and going out for a pint to help you feel normal and boost your morale is something worthwhile to do. Maybe this guy could afford his bills but had to cut back on extras, so your DH stepped in to be a friend and cheer him up. I fail to see the entitlement here, doesn't even sounds like he was asking for it, but offering it. I have a friend who was out of work last year, I used to take her to lunch once a week, whereas before we'd split it, when she was out of work I paid for it. Not because she felt that even though she was out of work she was entitled to lunch, but because she was my friend and I didn't want her to miss out because she was out of work.

6. Following on from Mrs.Robinson's point - Have a read of this - http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/03/us/03unemployed.html?_r=1

Absolutely terrifying imo.

I asked him - haven't you ever, ever been poor & had to watch every penny?  (I've lived on pasta & beans before & not knowing when I'd have money in the bank again.)  The answer - no, not even when he was a student, I guess.  I think we'd really struggle if he ever lost his job - well I know how to live poor, but he doesn't. 

My BFF is married to a MIT geek who had it made for quite a while out in silicon valley. But things went sour and all he's managing now is consulting. They have a huge expensive house with huge mortgage but can't sell it. The cars had to go and so on. She grew up poor so knows how to economize but he's gotten used to living high on the hog and is in denial so she's scared they're going to get into even worse debt. Sad.

My economy tip for the day: save all the coins you have in your purse or pockets and when you have a coffee can full lug them to the bank or supermarket machine. I put mine straight into the savings acct. And I'm not too proud to pick up pennies off the pavement! My aunt's suggestion was to save all the dollar bills that have your initial on them (I think it's a code for where it was printed) but of course that won't work in the UK!