Have read through everyones ideas, we are doing it tough at the moment.
Glad i found this thread.

Thanks ladies these tips are great and are working we managed so far to save $800..which isn’t much but is great for us.

We sat down and worked out how much our bills were for the entire year then evidence it into 52 weeks and put that money into a seperate account every week

Join the club so many of us single income families living pay check to pay check. Try buying groceries in bulk when on special. Fresh stuff mostly freezes well and packet/tinned stuff has lengthy shelf lives. Cook in bulk and freeze too. Plan out your meals for a week so you know exactly what to buy at the shop, and stick with it

ge$50 a pay taken from wage and put it into an account with another bank and forget about it…. it mounts up!

We have started shopping online not only saves time. But have noticed cheaper shops as no impulse buying.

Try meal planning and only buying exactly what you need for the meals. Make snacks rather than buy them

Thanks for all the tips this is of interest to a lot of us i think

thanks ladies for the tips

Hi we also are a 1 income family and live pay check to pay check.
We ensure that all our bills come out at the same time every week, so any bills that are direct from account all come out on the same day. I get a set amount for groceries every week which includes fuel money and layby money. (I layby everything if I can).
We very rarely have savings money…but as long as we can pay our bills and have food to eat and roof over our heads that is what it important. Luxuries can wait.

I have calculate how much money we need to put away each pay so that we have money there for when a bill comes in. Then any remaining money from each pay is used for groceries and small amount of spending. You have be strict with keeping your spending and food shopping under you limit and never go over what you calculated you have to spend

We best budget in this house hold by having how much income you are getting in per week or fortnight, then i write down all the bills for that month, and each pay i put money away for that bill. I priotise with the bills though, which ones need to be payed first etc. and i have a set weekly food allowance and i need to stick to that. with bigger bills for eg. car rego, i tend to put a little bit away each pay then you dont have the massive lump sum when it arrives. when you are in the habbit of doing it this way, you can start putting a little spare away each pay so then you have emergency money just in case.

Hi,
I see you have a few budget tips, but as a single mum who also lives week to week, I’ve also looked up some pretty handy savings tips:

Savings tips

1. Be energy wise
2. No takeaway. Pack a picnic
3. Smart banking no ATM fees, low int credit cards etc
4. Sell unwanted stuff
5. Maximise reward programs ie fly buys
6. Make bday cards etc
7. Strict on shopping list
8. Invite friends over for coffee, etc instead of going out for coffee
9. Free events activities
10. Extra batches when cooking
11. Buy quality that lasts
12. Plan to supermarket specials
13. Reduce mobile bills
14. Remove credit card numbers from online accts
15. Buy gifts ahead on special
16. Become a time banking volunteer
17. Enter comps and freebies etc
18. Cut own hair
19. Buy second hand first
20. Hire from library DVDs books and magazines instead of buying
21. Sell stories to magazines etc
22.Become a mystery shopper
23. Babysit other kids
24. Monitor school exams
25. Become an online researcher

There are also some great reads on saving your money on a minimum income and working your savings towards high interest savings accounts, managed funds and further to shares and other investments. Definitely worth a read as they arent about unrealistic get rich plans but actual realistic goals. One have is titled $0 to Rich but again its just about better managing your finances. Definitely helped me alot after separation to manage on one income with a young child and still save.

Just a few thoughts, hope it helps

Yes I agree with writing down every purchase does help with a budget for sure!

Like the other ladies have said – record what you’re spending, and plan ahead to put away money for your essential bills each pay as a priority.you can then find out what’s leftover to budget for the less essential but still important things like clothing, etc. it will take a little while to build up your bills account but it does take some of the pressure off knowing those essentials are covered. The only other option is doing some extra work here and there to increase your income slightly.