So before I review my monthly spending I thought that I would let you know my monthly budget. This reflects the changes that I have made since discovering FIRE e.g. cutting food costs, beauty treatment costs and increasing savings.
Household Bills
Firstly, about £1550.00 comes out of my account into our joint account. Currently I am paying the mortgage and most of the household bills and my partner is spending the equivalent on the renovation of the house. At present this money is split as follows:
| Mortgage | £560.00 |
| Mortgage overpayment | £550.00 |
| Council Tax | £244.00 |
| Water | £49.00 |
| Gas and electricity | £96.00 |
| TV licence | £13.00 |
| Broadband and line rental | £26.50 |
| Charity donation | £6.00 |
Budgeting for annual expenses
I then have a personal account into which I transfer £300.00 at the beginning of each month in order to save towards annual car expenses and other regular payments. The money in that account is split as follows:
| Car service | £20.00 |
| Car tax | £2.50 |
| MOT | £3.50 |
| Car breakdown | £5.10 |
| Car insurance | £16.00 |
| House insurance | £12.00 (this is towards half of this) |
| Travel insurance | £7.20 |
| Hair cuts | £10.00 |
| Eyebrow waxing | £6.00 |
| Dental check-up | £1.20 |
| Opticians check-up/new glasses | £13.50 |
| Physiotherapy appointments | £96.00 |
| Holiday fund | £100.00 |
Saving and living
That leaves about £815.00. I have direct debits into two savings accounts totalling £435.00, so I am down to £380 to live on for the month. This is divided as follows:
| Food | £140.00 (this is for my half) |
| Petrol | £120.00 |
| Toiletries | £7.50 |
| Professional membership | £24.00 |
| Mobile phone | £10.00 |
| Pilates classes | £40.00 |
| Miscellaneous | £40.00 |
Now, I have some added income every month as I get paid mileage from my company for travelling. It varies from month to month, but can be from £100 to £250. This allows for some extras in this tight budget or adds to my savings at the end of the month.
I will let you know how January has gone in a couple of weeks!