‘How we get by on our tiny budget’

We approach budgeting in our house with a sort of resigned abandon. Yet it is a necessary part of life. We start from defeat and then hope to rise to triumph.

The ugly truth is we do not have enough coming in and need to pay a lot of bills, and eat now and then: in fact, an impossible task in some ways. We compromise, juggle and mostly we do it.

We have rent, food, fuel, insurances, electricity and telephone, and a small credit card for paying bills when the bank balance is dangerously low. We repay it immediately, and use it only as a last resort.

The things that have to be really forgotten are what I call my ‘wish list.’ New shoes, new clothes from any shiny shop with big price tickets. No I don’t really need expensive things! Extras for the home, luxury items and holidays — no chance — and garden items like mulch and new plants. All of these are waiting until my ship comes in. I think it has sunk off shore…

I’m often asked how we manage it all.

Rent is vital, we need a roof over our heads after having beautiful homes in the past (we have moved around the world and had 14 homes), and now accept renting is our fate. That said, we have a lovely old house with a large garden and live in a great little town. Rent is always paid as soon as the pension arrives.

We negotiated a great deal on our electricity — we gave our supplier an opportunity to improve or we would go to another company, and they did come to the party. We pay that by direct debit, the same as our water bill. Our telco offered us equipment for free and a good deal, including a small discount. We reduced the megabytes as we don’t need them. I’d suggest anyone looking at ways in which they can save should look at their bill to see if there are items you do not need, which can reduce the amount you pay.

As an example our daughter’s mother-in-law had been paying for services she had never used, or ever requested, and our daughter helped her to reduce her bill by almost three quarters! Unaware of what was happening my mother had also been paying a ‘service’ extra for a gas appliance she never needed. It can be done.

We decided that, even with Netflix, we were not noticing the HD, and as far as we were aware it wasn’t an advantage. We requested it be removed and the cost taken from the bill. Our bill was then $3 a month less, and every little helps.

We pay insurances but keep it low. We made a mistake when we took out a funeral insurance, as it has gone up each year, and we are too late to do much now. It would have been better to put some money in a little account for that, but we are trapped. There are some much better offers, we were too soon taking ours on.

Food is a big and important part of life. I try to feed us well, and buy fresh food. We shop fortnightly at Aldi, and locally for things they don’t keep. Bulk buy milk in cartons, rice and sugar and flour are also staples that are very cheap, butter too is less than local shops, I buy large boxes of cereal as they last well. Porridge is a good winter dish. A nourishing breakfast and probably only costs a few cents a bowl. Vegetables are vital, and so is fruit, it is what makes us healthy at this age, so I look for seasonal specials.

Planning meals helps too. Four chicken breasts make at least two meals, a packet of chicken mince makes two pies or a lot of meat balls. I also buy beef mince and do the same, freeze one for later.

Chicken breast is useful; there are so many things I can do with it! I cut each fillet in two and crumb and fry it, or make it all into a big curry with lots of extra vegetables. Bacon, too, is such a useful flavour and I add it to fried rice, quiche, potato cakes, and turn it into scones. Puddings are just a filler, and I love them, but for the waistline I should probably curb my passion. If I am given fruit I use it as a pie, a cobbler or a fruit sponge.

Although I fail sometimes as I don’t keep food for more than a day, I don’t risk tummy upsets then, I do try to make use of leftovers. For example, I recently made delicious potato cakes from some mash left over from another meal.

I have written many times about my love of opportunity shops for clothes and I really do so well. I manage to find wearable and good quality items frequently. I rarely spend more than about $10, and recently got a pure wool jacket — so cosy for winter — on sale for $2!

Do you have a budget for your expenses? How do you manage on the pension?

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