Money Saving Housekeeper

Subject: Money Saving Housekeeper Mon Jan 28, 2008 12:39 pm

I thought it would be fun to do a Brocante version of the popular MoneySavingExpert and post the things we do to save undue wear and tear on the household treasury.

As the saying goes; every little bit helps!

Heating

- This winter, we decided we wanted to get the heating bill down so the we put the thermostat down to 16C from 20C. We also set the timer so the boiler only kicks in, if the temps are low enough, for two hours first thing in the morning and four hours in the late afternoon-evening. As a result, the central heating is only on for about 3 hours total out of 24.

We rely heavily on the gas fire in the front room for warmth. Fortunately, we're in a new building so while the other rooms can get quite cool if the temps outside are especially cold, its not freezing either.

We're due a quarterly bill shortly so I'm interested to see what, if anything, we've saved over the same time last year!

- Every Autumn I go onto the price comparison sites and see if we can do better than our current supplier. So far, we've only switched once. Its getting so their all abou the same with the way we want service set up.

Electricity

- Good golly hydro (as electricity is popularly called where I'm from) is EXPENSIVE here ! Short of becoming night owls, I can't see where we can cut back more on this.

The two tiered pricing structure that charges a higher rate per kWh during peak usage hours (4pm-11pm) is outrageous! Bah!

Telephone

- We signed up to this service three or four years ago and I can't say enough good things about them. If you live in the U.K. get onto their website and sign up today!! The service is called 18866.co.uk.

You do need a land line service such as BT, but there is NO subscription fee to pay to 18866. Billing is stricly by email and you must allow DD access either via your cash card or a credit card. You can also register mobile phones.

All calls have a 1p to 2p connection fee. After that, depending where your calling, its a few pence a minute. Rates are incredibly cheap! To call anywhere within the U.K. is 0p per minute. Talk to your mate in Land's End for hours and other than the connection fee, its free! I regularly call home to Canada and the rate is 2p per minute.

All you do is dial 18866 before dialing the number you wish to speak to. A voice over will come on, telling you what the per minute charge will be (this allows you to change your mind and hang up).

Billing is every 8 weeks or so and our average combined local and long distance charge total with them is £4. I kid you not! The same charges with BT would have much, much higher. This service beats anything being offered by other providers, including the package deals ie: phone/broadband/tv schemes.

Here's the website; 18866

Food

- This is another area thats got me stumped. Until we can start growing some of our own veg, maybe get a chicken or two for eggs, there's not a lot more I can do. I don't buy a lot of convenience or ready meals. I cook a lot from scratch. We don't buy alcohol much. Ditto we don't eat out much either. It adds up too quick.

We get our main shop once a month from Tesco as we don't have a car and their great for hauling the heavy tins/bottles/frozen etc.. to us so I can stock the pantry and freezer.

I have noticed our food bill, without us eating more/better than normal, has gone from about £80 a month six years ago, to £200 a month.

If anyone has more suggestions, let me know.

For clothing, housewares, books I frequently browse the charity shops. Persistence does sometimes pay off nicely! Otherwise I try to invest in good quality then take care of it and make it last. I keep my personal care ie: hairdresser, beauty therapist to once every couple of months. And I stopped getting my colour done at the salon, but do it myself.

We don't run a car so its public deportation. Grime and limits your mobility sometimes, but frankly I can't see how we could afford to run a vehicle anyway. Not unless I had a steady job.

Yes, my husband makes a better than average wage, but despite how careful we are, we could still use some extra coming in. Especially at Christmas or when an unexpected hit on our cash reserves happens. We don't use credit cards, so no refuge there in a crunch. Probably for the best, considering.
_________________
Bloomin' Lovely Blog
Pumpkins on the Vine

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Mon Jan 28, 2008 3:18 pm

Crikey Ali! I really do think you have it down to the wire in pretty much every area - well done!

I'm afraid I can't really compete or compare at all! I guess the only other major expenditure we all may have (unless you're very lucky!) is the mortgage, but that's an ever changing and competative market now too, with so many clauses keeping you in for fixed periods of time (if you want a good rate).

I guess what I try to do is keep a budget to try and live within our means. We have very big expenditures (mortgage, bills, business loans, music fees, private maths tuition, school trips etc) so trying to stick to living within what's left is sometimes a challenge we don't always meet, especially around Xmas etc, so I try to redress the balance in other ways.

You are very good only spending £200 a month on food Ali! I can sometimes spend that a week (I really don't know how we get through so much stuff - and there's only 3 of us and two cats!!!?! We're not gannets either, honestly!). I do buy nearly entirely organic though, and like you I cook mostly from scratch and don't buy very many processed foods. We do like our wine though.... What I cannot abide in any shape or form is waste, so I make sure we never waste anything (apparently in this country we throw away a third of our food???!!! Madness when there are people starving in the world) so that money is well spent and feeds us well.

The odd take-away and eating out together is a bit of a vice!

You have inspired me to look at all our utilities and see where we can save! Thank you for the info.

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Mon Jan 28, 2008 3:25 pm

Your welcome.

We rent as we can't afford a house. Not something I worry over as we have an excellent landlord.

There's just the two of us and no pets or I'm sure our food budget would be higher.

I forgot to add we got rid of contract mobile phones and switched to PAYG. It was a total waste of time to have contract as we each only top up £10 once every two months. I don't feel the new phone every year carrot they hold out to you is worth the expense of a contract.

And we also dumped subscription tv (thats cable/satellite to our North American members), which is one thing you have here that we don't in Canada. Freeview has loads of channels and costs nothing. Its a scheme they could use back home as cable/satellite can get pretty expensive, but the terrestrial channels amount to about four very fuzzy ones.
_________________
Bloomin' Lovely Blog
Pumpkins on the Vine

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Mon Jan 28, 2008 4:03 pm

Yes, you see this is where it all adds up. Those crafty little monthly Direct Debits that leech money out of your account faster than you can blink!

We have my car insurance (hubby away so much, I am often a single parent as such most of the week, and so have no choice but to have my own car in order to get my daughter to and from various activities. His is a company car), my mobile phone contract (did have pay as you go but kept running out of credit and worried about being stranded one day on my own without it - due for renewal now though), my opticians contact lens contract (yes, I know I could save by bulk buying online here.... on my to do list to check out), pet insurance, and all the usual bills and utilities, most of which we can't really do anything about.

We don't have any subscription TV either - just Freeview.

I have standing orders to give to Cancer Research, but won't compromise there.

Do you know, you have really made me determined to sit down and look at all our bills now and see where we could get a better (or greener) deal! Gosh when you think about it, the list of outgoings is endless..... I have just remembered that I am due a Dentist appointment (round here there are no available NHS dentists, and ours costs (private) a pro rata rate of £200 an hour!!!!! Usually only in there for 15 min check up, but even so!). Flipping ridiculous, and what choice do I have? No teeth??

And I need new glasses...... grrrrrr!!

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Mon Jan 28, 2008 4:08 pm

We don't use DD, though it would save a wee bit on a couple of bills. The thing is, they don't take the money on the date you indicate when you set up the DD. It can come out as much as five working days early. You run the risk of stuff bouncing, more penalties and fees from the bank and how the hell do you budget if you have no idea what's going out and when?

But you try getting a supplier to accept Standing Orders. They claim they can't do them. What a crock. No different from a DD except it keeps them from taking payment early. Some of the liberties banks and business have over here are shocking. And illegal too where I'm from.

Good luck with your financial overhaul Sasha! It feels good to know your not paying out more than you need to or paying for goods/services that aren't giving value for money.
_________________
Bloomin' Lovely Blog
Pumpkins on the Vine

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Mon Jan 28, 2008 4:40 pm

I'll chime in here, but like Sasha - I can't compete with you on the food bill. That's the next big area I need to crack down and do better. I used to do great and be very budget and bargain minded with food, but since we've made more money and I've been busier, I've gotten lazy with that.

- We pay an averaged payment on our electric bill, which saves us money in the summer months.

- Until last month, when the business came to our house, we didn't have a land-line telephone - only used our cell phones so we weren't paying double fees for phones.

- We have three dogs so I buy the largest bag of dog food available to save money on that. One of the dogs is a lhasa apso with long hair who had to be groomed every month at $50 a month. Last year we made an investment and bought a professional dog dryer and clipper set and we learned how to groom him ourselves. The investment paid for itself in less than a year.

- We have our car insurance, home insurance and life insurance all with the same company and get discounts for that. We haven't found cheaper or better car insurance anywhere else.

- Likewise we have our cable tv, landline and internet with the same company and save money by having a bundle service.

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Mon Jan 28, 2008 5:11 pm

I have been looking over our stuff as well recently... we don't use our cell phones often so it's a waste to spend 110.00 a month on cell phones. If we spend 25 a month it's a lot. BUT if we leave the contract early, the amount they hit us with outweighs what the cost of a prepaid phone would cost us so we lose if we leave (and if we stay).

We combined our home phone, internet and tv into 1 package and it saved us $75 a month.

We buy food once every 2 weeks and we go til the cabinets are bare. We'll spend about $115 every two weeks which is about the same as you Ali.

Electric covers everything from heat to outlets to the water heater and that's a flat fee each year and this year is $127.00 a month.

We have 2 cars which are both paid off and being we drive so close to work, a $40.00 fill up lasts 2 weeks which by today's standard isn't bad. I used to spend $40.00 every 4 days.

Whatever is left over, goes towards paying back bills that are dragging our credit through the mud. I say everything in this world should be free!

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Mon Jan 28, 2008 5:22 pm

Bills and taxes are a fact of life. I accept that. Its just that costs have been rising steadily while our income barely budges. Its got so you feel like your nothing but a cash cow. I expect its the same all over though. So you get proactive.

It sounds like we're all pretty au fait with making what we've got go further.
_________________
Bloomin' Lovely Blog
Pumpkins on the Vine

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Mon Jan 28, 2008 9:57 pm

I hear what you're saying about the DD dates being a moveable feast Ali. Yesterday, for the first time EVER my account went a tiny bit over my agreed overdraft limit (and I never even usually use my overdraft) all because my money which goes into that account was about 9 days later than it went in the month before (and there was obviously still money coming out)! It was only the case for less than a day, but my bank was exceptionally prompt in getting a letter out to me immediately telling me they were charging me a flat fee for going over-overdrawn, then £6 a day thereafter until corrected! For just the ONE DAY they would have been charging me more than it went over by! I soon sorted THAT out on the phone, and as they could see it hasn't ever happened in all my years banking, they waived the charges. SO cheeky considering THEY seem to change their minds month on month when they'll clear my money (which leaves elsewhere on exactly the same date each month btw).

We have a seperate account just for our DD's, and as I know what that sum total should be each month, I budget by taking that sum total of DD bills off the wage total on pay day, as if it's all gone out on day one and accounted for, subtract any other known outgoings for the month, then divide what's left into weekly amounts for us to live on. It works for me.

Council tax is the other one that gets my goat! I don't mind paying of course, but the amount each month??? And the only time I have called the police in the early hours, being neighbourly, when a house alarm was going off and there appeared to be no sign of life, I was told they "rarely respond to domestic alarms, but if they have a patrol car passing they might get someone to look in" !!!!! WHAT??? How do we know the poor people living there weren't being held at gun point and being robbed??? And so what's the point of expensive alarm systems if the police don't even respond/endorse them??? What am I paying for?!

Ok, I need to calm myself now!

On the whole we are very lucky, and we can live very comfortably, so I can't complain too much!

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Tue Jan 29, 2008 9:29 am

I remember my late grandmother's letters from Manchester to us in Canada when the old poll tax was proposed under Maggie Thatcher. Nan declared she'd go to jail before she'd pay it. She would have too. You had to know my Nan to realise she didn't mess about. Council tax just appears to be the old poll tax, reworded.

I'm assuming the councils don't get much in the way of subsidies from Whitehall, so the tax is their main source of income? My beef with it is that it takes no account of age or income. It must be a real burden for the working poor and anyone on a fixed income.

We're lucky too, but only because we're so careful. And it would help if I could find a decent part time job. Let's face it, for most households, two incomes are a necessity. I've had two jobs since moving here nearly six years ago and they were both awful. I have to count myself lucky that I had the luxury of quitting them when it got too much. Most people have to stick it out and hope they find something better.
_________________
Bloomin' Lovely Blog
Pumpkins on the Vine

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Tue Jan 29, 2008 3:15 pm

HAHA gotta love the taxes for everything that's totally useless. My state of New Jersey is so damn expensive beacause we're bordered by 2 large cities: New York City and Philadelphia. People can make SO much money in New York leaving New Jersey the 2nd wealthiest state in the union, the most populated state and 7 of the 21 counties within the state are THE wealthiest in the country. NOW if you don't make 150,000+ a year, you're screwed and you live a harder life because of it. It's SO hard for young people or new couples to get started.

The taxes don't help either. If you look at every bill, there is a tax list a mile long for stuff you never heard of before. My grandparents paid off their home 20 years or more ago. Now, they pay 10,000 a year in property tax which goes up by 1,000 a year. They pay 845.00 a month just in taxes on a home they no longer have a mortgage on! That's a 2nd mortgage that never ends and always increases. Because of these insane rates and living costs, people are leaving the state in the largest amounts ever and the governor is panicing. He's trying to pass a tax law stating that anyone who is leaving the state must pay heavy fines called an Exit Tax. I suddenly feel like I'm in Germany during the Cold War.

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Tue Jan 29, 2008 3:30 pm

Good God, an exit tax? Sounds like the new airport taxes, where you pay a fee to fly out. Property tax can be a killer, especially when you add the yearly water and sewage fees onto it. I expect most people are on the city's W&S so its not free.

How much per $100 of value on their home is the tax? 1%? 2%? Why does it keep going up? Is the State hiking the percentage each year?

You mentioned $150G. Someone here figured the minimum you'd need in Britain today, depending on where you are of course, is £50,000 a year. Which isn't far off the figure you said. The average income in this part of the country is less than £20,000. I figure the whole system is going to implode sooner rather than later.
_________________
Bloomin' Lovely Blog
Pumpkins on the Vine

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Tue Jan 29, 2008 4:00 pm

I honestly don't know what controls the property tax. I believe it's the mayor who asseses the homes every year and based on how much money he needs, he'll tax each home accordingly. But in the past 4 years, it's gone up $1,000 a year. And what's funny, before the voting took place, he stated that he thought we were spending too much money in this area and in township, it's time for a cutback and to alleviate some of these recent taxes. Upon him getting into his office by no more than a month, he jacked up the taxes township wide. The people are SO annoyed I'd be floored if he made it in office again.

I guess I always figured that England was better off than the USA but looking at your figures, I'm guessing I'm wrong.

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Tue Jan 29, 2008 4:20 pm

I may be wrong, but I think you don't pay property tax in England. You pay capital gains on proceeds from the sale of a property and you pay something called "stamp duty" with is just sales tax when you purchase a home. This applies regardless to any residential sale.

In Canada you only pay sales tax on a brand new home. The government tried that trick of extending the tax to all home sales, but it didn't go through. Property tax is a certain % per $100 of the property value. This is standard right across the country and the percentage is decided by the municipalities or City Hall. Sales tax varies from province to province.

Sounds like everything varies from state to state over there. And despite what you've mentioned, I don't think you'd like it over here. At least not if you had to live in or near the urban areas. 80% of the population of the UK (England, Scotland, Wales and N. Ireland) is crowded into England alone. It has just over 150,000 sq miles of land space. Thats a lot of people in a very tiny area. Thats one of the things I miss most about Canada; the space!
_________________
Bloomin' Lovely Blog
Pumpkins on the Vine

Subject: Re: Money Saving Housekeeper Tue Jan 29, 2008 6:48 pm

It's all a big fat rip off isn't it???

In England you only pay stamp duty on a house you're buying if it costs above a certain amount, but considering the house prices are ridiculously high, that's a fair proportion of house sales paying Stamp Duty. No wonder people here are still living with their parents until they're nearly in their 30's, and then prob only leaving in order to rent a shared house (singles especially). Hardly any young people can afford to even get themselves on the proprty ladder.

And yes, as Ali says the national average wage is about £24,000 but goodness knows how you'd live on that with a family, and I know a lot of people who earn a lot less. Where is their hope of getting their own house, starting a family etc???

The costs of everything go up and up, but wages stay the same - yep, it will implode....

I think by far the worst of all our taxes though is inheritance tax! Not only has the poor sod who earned their money already paid maybe 40% tax on their earnings (if they earned a good wage) and VAT on whatever thay spent it on, etc etc, but when they leave their hard earned cash/assets to their loved ones, the government snatches back tax on it ALL OVER AGAIN!!! Talk about money for old rope. For some people these days being left a house or an inheritance might be the only way they get themselves on any sort of property ladder at all, or can help their children through university, or themselves out of the credit crunch or whatever.

That's if there was anything left to leave their loved ones after the government stripped the old folk of all their assets to pay for their old age care in a sub-standard nursing home where their health and safety is not even garrunteed. And they might just have got us all through the 2nd world war and never complained about it.......

Must stop now.....veigns in my neck bulging..... sorry!