Simon and I moved in together back in April 2018 and began renting our own house. Renting a house for the first time, can be a bit of a shock to the old bank balance as you have a lot of bills etc to pay. Renting a house is not cheap and comes with a lot of different expenses. Simon and I rented a house for just over two years, but sadly, we've had to move back in with my Dad for the time being.
I thought I'd do a post about what expenses we had every month when we rented our house. This also includes our personal expenses too.
Rent
The most obvious expense; rent. Rent is not cheap and varies depending on the size of house and the area. Our rent was £575 a month which we split between the two of us. At first, I was only on a 12 hour contract at work so was worried that I wouldn't be able to afford to pay my share every month on top of everything else. I was getting more hours most of the time but this wasn't always the case. I changed jobs in October 2018 to a 30 hour contract which helped a lot. It was hard having to tighten my belt when it came to spending money foolishly. I couldn't waltz into Primark anymore and spend £50 or splurge online every payday.
The most obvious expense; rent. Rent is not cheap and varies depending on the size of house and the area. Our rent was £575 a month which we split between the two of us. At first, I was only on a 12 hour contract at work so was worried that I wouldn't be able to afford to pay my share every month on top of everything else. I was getting more hours most of the time but this wasn't always the case. I changed jobs in October 2018 to a 30 hour contract which helped a lot. It was hard having to tighten my belt when it came to spending money foolishly. I couldn't waltz into Primark anymore and spend £50 or splurge online every payday.
Food
Every month we would spend about £200 on food which seems like a lot. Our average weekly shop would be about £50 so it all adds up. Even living with my Dad, we still do a weekly food shop. We always buy fresh vegetables and meat on top of other bits and pieces. This doesn't include our visits to the local shops to get things like bread, milk and snacks. We'd use our food money when treating ourselves to take aways or meals out.
Every month we would spend about £200 on food which seems like a lot. Our average weekly shop would be about £50 so it all adds up. Even living with my Dad, we still do a weekly food shop. We always buy fresh vegetables and meat on top of other bits and pieces. This doesn't include our visits to the local shops to get things like bread, milk and snacks. We'd use our food money when treating ourselves to take aways or meals out.
TV
If you own a television, you have to pay a TV license regardless. We don't actually watch normal television very often but we still have to pay the license. I'm not too sure how much we pay monthly for it as Simon deals with this all but we put money into our joint account and all our bills come out of there.
If you own a television, you have to pay a TV license regardless. We don't actually watch normal television very often but we still have to pay the license. I'm not too sure how much we pay monthly for it as Simon deals with this all but we put money into our joint account and all our bills come out of there.
Streaming Services
We have Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+ and Spotify. Over lockdown, we used these streaming services ALOT. Disney+ came out a the most perfect time, the day after lockdown was announced and I watched it pretty much every single day. We use Netflix and Amazon more than normal television as we get some good television shows and movies on there. I think we'd be lost without these at times. I did pay for Disney+ outright for £49.99 rather than pay it monthly. I'll probably do that again to renew my subscription next year.
We have Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+ and Spotify. Over lockdown, we used these streaming services ALOT. Disney+ came out a the most perfect time, the day after lockdown was announced and I watched it pretty much every single day. We use Netflix and Amazon more than normal television as we get some good television shows and movies on there. I think we'd be lost without these at times. I did pay for Disney+ outright for £49.99 rather than pay it monthly. I'll probably do that again to renew my subscription next year.
Internet
We would be absolutely lost without the internet. Simon has been working from home since the start of lockdown so depends on the internet to do his work. He has a lot of Zoom meetings too. We obviously need the internet to use the likes of Amazon and Netflix. Simon uses the internet to pay games on his playstation and I use social media a lot too. We currently have a Sky broadband package and Sky television which my Dad uses. Honestly, when our contract is up, I won't be renewing with Sky as our connection isn't great at my Dad's house. I think we pay around £40 for our package.
We would be absolutely lost without the internet. Simon has been working from home since the start of lockdown so depends on the internet to do his work. He has a lot of Zoom meetings too. We obviously need the internet to use the likes of Amazon and Netflix. Simon uses the internet to pay games on his playstation and I use social media a lot too. We currently have a Sky broadband package and Sky television which my Dad uses. Honestly, when our contract is up, I won't be renewing with Sky as our connection isn't great at my Dad's house. I think we pay around £40 for our package.
Electric
In our old house, we paid our electric bill monthly. Our bill changed every month, depending on our usage. It increased during lockdown as we were using everything a lot more. Simon was on his computer, the television was going and the kettle was always boiling. Now we're at my Dad's, his electric is pay as you go and we pay for it, since we probably use more. I think our average spend a month is about £30.
In our old house, we paid our electric bill monthly. Our bill changed every month, depending on our usage. It increased during lockdown as we were using everything a lot more. Simon was on his computer, the television was going and the kettle was always boiling. Now we're at my Dad's, his electric is pay as you go and we pay for it, since we probably use more. I think our average spend a month is about £30.
Personal Expenses
Car Insurance
Both Simon and I own our own cars so both of us have to pay car insurance. Mine is about £30 per month, although I've just renewed it and paid the full amount which was £318. I'm not sure how much Simon's insurance is.
Both Simon and I own our own cars so both of us have to pay car insurance. Mine is about £30 per month, although I've just renewed it and paid the full amount which was £318. I'm not sure how much Simon's insurance is.
Car Finance
I purchased my Fiat 500 in February 2018 and pay £87 a month. I've two years left on my finance. I would be lost without my car. When I first purchased it, I was driving to and from Simon's apartment outside of Belfast a lot. I use my car daily for going to work and it gives me independence. I'll probably be changing my car in the next year so will have finance to pay for it too.
I purchased my Fiat 500 in February 2018 and pay £87 a month. I've two years left on my finance. I would be lost without my car. When I first purchased it, I was driving to and from Simon's apartment outside of Belfast a lot. I use my car daily for going to work and it gives me independence. I'll probably be changing my car in the next year so will have finance to pay for it too.
Mobile Phone Bills
Simon and I didn't have a house phone and nor does my Dad so we use our mobile phones constantly. I have a Huawei P20 on o2 and my phone bill is about £31 a month. Luckily, it doesn't cost me much more than that. I use my phone for texting, calls, social media and playing games. I'd be lost without it. I'm due to upgrade in October. Simon's phone contract is a bit more expensive than mine as he has the Huawei P20 Pro on EE.
Simon and I didn't have a house phone and nor does my Dad so we use our mobile phones constantly. I have a Huawei P20 on o2 and my phone bill is about £31 a month. Luckily, it doesn't cost me much more than that. I use my phone for texting, calls, social media and playing games. I'd be lost without it. I'm due to upgrade in October. Simon's phone contract is a bit more expensive than mine as he has the Huawei P20 Pro on EE.
Petrol
I'm quite lucky with my car that I don't have to fill it up with petrol every week. £30 would do me a couple of weeks. I didn't fill my car up once during lockdown as obviously I wasn't using my car much. At the time of writing this, the last time I put petrol in my car was the 1st July, over a month ago. I live closer to town now which keeps my fuel usage down. If we venture out for a day, Simon always uses his car as he's not using his for work at all at the moment.
I'm quite lucky with my car that I don't have to fill it up with petrol every week. £30 would do me a couple of weeks. I didn't fill my car up once during lockdown as obviously I wasn't using my car much. At the time of writing this, the last time I put petrol in my car was the 1st July, over a month ago. I live closer to town now which keeps my fuel usage down. If we venture out for a day, Simon always uses his car as he's not using his for work at all at the moment.
Car Park
I went back to work on the 8th June. I've been on and off Furlough since then. I always park in the car park which is right beside my work (lazy, I know) and it costs me £2 per day to park there. If you do the maths, that's £10 per week and about £40 or £50 a month, based on me working 5 days a week. It's an expense I didn't miss during lockdown. I probably should consider parking in my church car park since it's free at the moment.
I went back to work on the 8th June. I've been on and off Furlough since then. I always park in the car park which is right beside my work (lazy, I know) and it costs me £2 per day to park there. If you do the maths, that's £10 per week and about £40 or £50 a month, based on me working 5 days a week. It's an expense I didn't miss during lockdown. I probably should consider parking in my church car park since it's free at the moment.
Lunch
I'm really bad at wanting to buy something yummy for my lunch when I'm working. I'm not the biggest fan of packed lunches. In the past, I've spent a fortune on eating out but I've had to limit myself to one treat per week to save money. On average, I'd spend about £5 eating out for my lunch. Sometimes, I'll buy myself a drink or a sweet treat. O2 priority used to have a free Cafe Nero drink per week which was very handy but I don't think that's a thing at the moment. I will definitely be making the most of the Eat out campaign where you get your meals for half price Monday to Wednesday.
I'm really bad at wanting to buy something yummy for my lunch when I'm working. I'm not the biggest fan of packed lunches. In the past, I've spent a fortune on eating out but I've had to limit myself to one treat per week to save money. On average, I'd spend about £5 eating out for my lunch. Sometimes, I'll buy myself a drink or a sweet treat. O2 priority used to have a free Cafe Nero drink per week which was very handy but I don't think that's a thing at the moment. I will definitely be making the most of the Eat out campaign where you get your meals for half price Monday to Wednesday.
Comments
Post a Comment