Cost of living crisis 2022 - what have you cut back on?

[nicholab]

I think you need to sit down and do the maths on the mortgage payments - especially if the interest rates are rising.

 

We have a large 4 bed house with solar and the utility bills are not small either! Buying a massive house also costs you more in council tax.

 

Our utility area is more like a short corridor and boots go in the garage. Neither is necessary or essential.

 

It took us 10 years to afford to modernise the bathrooms and 15 for the kitchen.

 

Live within your means. Aspiration is lovely but expensive

 

Total agree we live in a 4 bedroom, 3 reception rooms + study rooms house on a 0.9 acre site.

 

I have aspersions of retiring and going other place on holiday so would like to pay the mortgage off early. Looks like it will be 25 years anyway.

Edited March 5, 2023 by nicholab

[PotNoodleTech]

I have aspersions of retiring and going other place on holiday so would like to pay the mortgage off early. Looks like it will be 25 years anyway.

 

Your plan is much better than your Missus's plan - don't be like everyone else and still be paying your mortgage credit card bills and a couple of PCP car payments when your 60. I know someone exactly like this who is constantly moaning they want to retire. STOP FRIGGIN REMOTGAGING AND HAVING A NEW CAR EVERY YEAR THEN!!!

 

There's like a 20% chance one of you dying by 80 - it's a good idea to arrange your life so you can actually enjoy your retirement 55-80

[DalekSec]

My wife wants to look at buying a 6 bedroom house as it save money as the kitchen and windows are already done and it has solar!

 

She worried redoing a kitchen will cost £35k as that what one of her clients spent on their house! Note they have a his and hers Porsche!

 

How do people’s cope with out a utility room and separate boot room?

 

Depending on kitchen size obliviously, we have a small kitchen that is being turned into a large kitchen. Which has been quoted at 10k to knock down a couple walls, level the floor and put the new kitchen in. Including cooker.

 

With anything you get what you pay for, you could do it all yourself and buy a kitchen from IKEA and would be less than 5k id imagine! No including appliances.

 

Also as someone who was trying to move house before the new year and it fell through, it cost us nearly 2k in just fees and a lot more in stress! We have a 3 bed bungalow and short on space with a 2nd child on the way. But we can make do easily, you can always find a way to live within your means.

[woodham]

loft conversion maybe ? it would give you some more space

[DalekSec]

loft conversion maybe ? it would give you some more space

 

Had looked at it but our loft isn't very high and I'm over 6ft so a no go! Only 1 other bungalow on our road has done it and thats for a bathroom (about 15+ on our road) due to just not really worth the added space!

[BOOT]

What is this, the bragging topic? I'd be thankful for a working toilet.

[DalekSec]

Things i have actually cut back on recently:

 

Named brands to tesco's own, saves about £10 on weekly shop

Cancelling various subs i dont use anymore.

Redoing our sky package to save £20+ a month

Not going to the food truck at lunchtime and instead having pack lunch each day. Saves about £20 a week!

Takeaways, use to be tradition to have takeaway on a saturday, now we have it maybe 1-2 a month.

[JRA]

I have been bulk-buying energy drinks (I get through so so many) and it's definitely helped.

 

Probably not my cardio vascular system but has done the bank account.

[PotNoodleTech]

I have been bulk-buying energy drinks (I get through so so many) and it's definitely helped.

 

Probably not my cardio vascular system but has done the bank account.

 

Dont worry - all of the rest of us will pay for all the future treatment you need via our lovely NHS taxes.

[RedwayNetworks_Michael]

I have been bulk-buying energy drinks (I get through so so many) and it's definitely helped.

 

Probably not my cardio vascular system but has done the bank account.

 

I asked Redbull to sponsor my boxing match, ended up with 2 crates of the stuff, cant even give it away haha

 

- - - Updated - - -

 

Dont worry - all of the rest of us will pay for all the future treatment you need via our lovely NHS taxes.

 

the way things are going in this country there wont be an NHS in the future which is concerning

[Brax]

I have been bulk-buying energy drinks (I get through so so many) and it's definitely helped.

 

Probably not my cardio vascular system but has done the bank account.

Keep an eye on football clubs and their twitter pages especially league 2 clubs. There's always a lot of good Carabao Energy deals they'll tweet out occasionally.

[JRA]

Haha thanks fellas.

 

It's pretty much only the Monster cherry ones that I'm on. The way my health has been going these past few years (NOT energy drink related I hasten to add) I think something else will get me before these do but at least I'll be fully caffeinated.

[mavhc]

Drink water, it's free

[LeMarchand]

Drink water, it's free

 

Not if you have a meter.

[AlistairB1983]

Drink water, it's free

Thames Water beg to differ.

[mavhc]

How much water would you have to drink to cost the same as 1 can?

[Ditto]

Robert Dyas selling some Air Fryers off at lower cost right now https://www.robertdyas.co.uk/special-offers/air-fryer-price-crash.

 

These aren't Ninja's, but they aren't Ninja prices either. I was looking at the dual tray Ninja a while ago, but lack of availability, price inflation, the sheer size of them and lack of OH enthusiasm has put it on the back burner (sorry, that's probably not energy efficient ). Giveng we have a multifunction microwave including grill and convection, I suspect we could achieve a lot of what the air fryer brings by using that more extensively. We've always used it for baked spuds. If I can use it to bangers, chips, pies and not have them go soggy, that would be a big step forward in reducing fan oven usage, especially when cooking for one or two.

[mavhc]

Pepsi is 12p/100ml if you buy 24 cans at once, so £1.20/litre. Thames water on a water meter is 0.1776 p/litre, so 675 times cheaper, good money saving tip.

[Sharkman]

To be fair "cut things you enjoy out of your life" isn't a very good money saving tip. Bulk buying is though, because you're more likely to stick with it. If you just swap to water (which, yes, is cheaper) you're more likely to just go back to buying single cans everyday.

 

But back on topic, I've cut back on coffee, not just because of the price but because I really did consume too much. I have 1 coffee in the morning and sometimes 1 in the afternoon too. Saves more compared to my 6+ cups a day beforehand

[mikeprice]

Anyone looking to save a bit on erergy cost - there is another winter saving electricty 'event' tomorrow

I think the government call them an energy flexibility thingy

 

running between 6 and 7 tomorrow

register with your energy people - if they do not do it then Hugo do through their smart meter app - but take a cut - I think USwitch do something similar but don;t take a cut = but check it out as I am not certain

[BOOT]

Yet another rate hike. As if things weren't bad enough...

[chazzy2501]

welp, this is getting out of hand...

 

 

Single, little cottage and I work 9-5..

[enjay]

Single, little cottage and I work 9-5..

 

I'm not sure how you could test this, but you might find it better to leave your heating on low all day through the winter then turning it up in the evening. A vicar friend of mine says they do that in their church, as it is cheaper than heating it back up as needed.

[LeMarchand]

welp, this is getting out of hand...

 

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Single, little cottage and I work 9-5..

 

That seems very high, especially if there's very little on 9-5.

[LeMarchand]

I'm not sure how you could test this, but you might find it better to leave your heating on low all day through the winter then turning it up in the evening. A vicar friend of mine says they do that in their church, as it is cheaper than heating it back up as needed.

 

Different people report different results with that technique, but it does seem to work out OK for us overnight. (It's on during the day as Mme LeMarchand is on wfh).