Reply to Shocked: Our bare-bones monthly cost of living is 5K after taxes! What's yours?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]OP, [b]people need to have a line item in the their budget for the following unpredictable expenses:[/b]
1) household repair, upkeep and maintenance

2) car repair, upkeep and maintenance (and insurance, and registration)

3) clothing (including larger seasonal purchases) and hair, nails, etc

4) lawn/property upkeep

5) unforseen medical expenses

6) presents esp. Christmas

7) classes and outings esp for the kids

A lot of us who stayed at home tried to minimize the above expenses by doing it ourselves, learning how to do it on the cheap, making do, buying from thrift stores, etc.   That in effect becomes one of your jobs if you stay at home on a budget.

You should figure out how much you are spending now on these things every year and divide that by 12 to get a monthly budget for each one.  Then decide how realistic it is that you could cut back in those areas.

I don't stay at home anymore, but I did for man years and I almost NEVER bought a toy new for my children -- it was usually handmedowns or thrift store.  Only free activities and classes, or ones that just cost a few dollars.   We made presents by hand.  I learned to do a lot of my own plumbing.[/quote]

PP, not necessarily.

If you live near public transportation, you can do without a car. If you are renting an apartment, you don't need lawn/property upkeep, and major repairs are taken care of by the landlord. And I definitely won't call a manicure 'an unpredictable expense'.

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