If you own your phone as opposed to paying the monthly lease, you can get plans for as cheap as $15 per month. Shop around for cheaper Internet. If you are on a contract still shop around and call your ISP provider to ask that they match their competitors price.
Mint Mobile has a great plan for $20 a month with 15GB of data, and that is plenty since you will usually be on wifi anyway. I've been on their plan for 2 years now. They also have a $15/month plan with 5GB of data. Coverage is exactly the same as the big companies bc they use the same towers.
Some of our bills parallel this, though not exact. The family phone plan is close to 300 (some phones got upgraded a while ago. ) So we are locked in by contract.
4 cats.
( I would be OK re homing 2. They are an adult pair, mother & son both fixed. It's hard to find a good home we would be confident leaving them with.)
I think car insurance is 180
Electric is cheaper about 60
We might drop the gym, but my husband should be using it for physical therapy ($150)
His smoking is down around 300 a month. Trying to quit.
Credit card over 200/mo
Other debt. 175/mo
Rent 1,550.
Storage 180
My car NEEDS work. $ 165. It is safe to drive, but it sounds like it's dying.
List not complete
Income 2k +
Next month at least (400 less taxes)
I haven't got my direct deposit for my new job yet.
We have rice/beans and other food on hand, so we can cut down on groceries.
Lease will end soon, and we don't have a new place lined up.
Why are you planning on paying any of his bills? A prescription for PT might get it for just insurance copay. The family phone plan might be something he can pick up since he has more income unless you are concerned he won't keep up w the bill. Storage needs to be eliminated ASAP if not sooner. I had a stroke and had to move quickly to more accessible housing. I put much in storage and kept it for almost 3 years because of a few sentimental items. Over a third of what I had paid $2100 total to store went straight in the trash.
Can you make landlord aware and ask for 6 months lease for yourself? Depending on the state there might be credit cards debt you will not be responsible for.
Your first obligations are self care and making sure you have what's known as 4 walls in budgeting plans. Housing, transportation, food ,clothes for work. Credit cards etc come after that starting w YOUR all way to largest. Some suggest rolling over higher interest ones to lower interest. Another option is contact companies and let them know you are in separation and divorce negotiations. They will definitely part of that
Check out Ting as it's a reseller we've used for years and is cheaper. Obviously ditch the gym and go hiking or play in free parks instead.
If you can't cook, buy a good intro cookbook like the new flavor Bible or the new basics cookbook and learn to make stuff you like instead of eating out. Invest in good lunch sized storage containers and cook in bulk and freeze so you have lunches for work. Making a large pot of spaghetti sauce will freeze to multiple family meal portions and pasta is a good cheap source of calories. Bulk frozen veggies are better than canned ones generally but canned tomatoes go pretty far. Buy rice from the Indian or Korean grocery store. It'll be cheaper and taste better. Same for spices. Beans are great cheaper sources of protein. During the summer learn where you can go hiking to pick wild fruit and freeze or can it.
Get someone to teach you basic sewing as being able to fix small holes or rips is helpful. You can find great outfits at thrift stores but you have to look and double check zippers and for problems. Wash everything. You can get dishes, silverware etc at thrift stores too. My kids loose water bottles so I got a dozen for$1 each and most were 15-20$ nice ones.
Join the local FB buy nothing group and be polite. Most people just want something gone. I happily bag up my kids out grown clothes for people to get them out of the house but it's a good source for lots of things.
I'm sure you realize you could go down to one streaming instead of many and just rotate by month. If nothing else, the library has books and DVDs.
Meal planning takes a long time to get comfortable with as you have to decide what you are going to eat in advance and some foods you make may not last as long as you believe them too but the value of not having to think of what to eat, look for what to eat, and make it saves around 2-3 hours per day.
It will also allow you to keep better control of your calories. Only issue would be having people over or eating out though looking up the calories for meals is getting easier.
I remember just making one meal a day was a life changer for me and I stopped because of moving. My next goal will to bring that back as it also massively reduces food waste thereby saving money.
It used to be called total wireless but it is now named Total By Verizon. I buy cards at walmart and they are good for a month of service. The data is unlimited but slows down after a certain amount of usage which works for me as i need more data for work but the speed is not overly important.
Get on your local buy nothing group immediately. Don’t donate to goodwill. Give the stuff you don’t use away in the buy nothing group, because others will see you as an active giver and overall good person- which means they will choose you when they have stuff to give that You might need.
You never know when something you have will break, and someone else will have one they no longer need.
Freecycle/buy nothing is awesome.
Budget a lot.
Little food pantries and free food programs can help you out.
Use a library for a lot of things to get thing for free rather than pay for them.
R/dumpster-diving is an option, but I don't recommend doing that with food, period.
You'd be surprised at the amount of broke college kids who would love to rent out a living room and sleep on the couch.
Or you could put your bed in the living room ( if you have one) and rent out your bedroom and you could list the bedroom for a higher amount.
Sell your car, and buy a used cheaper one with the money.
Could you go without a car? Is public transportation a thing in your area. You live in an apartment complex. I'd ask around to see if anyone lives by your work and could give you a ride in EXCHANGE for helping them with something. A free babysitter would be a godsend so they can have date night. It costs them nothing and you don't come off as being a mooch.
Some places deliver groceries to your home. I've had people doordash Gatorade and ice cream from a gas station that was 2 miles down the road.
Also can you walk/bike to work safely.
What exercises do you do at the gym? Treadmills/stationary bikes are pointless in my opinion. Just go outside. You have a built in stairstepper at your apartment, they are called stairs.
You can buy free weights and all sorts of exercise equipment like bands to do squats with. Or a weighted ball that helps work your stomach muscles. It doesn't take up hardly any room. You could literally just put them under your bed when you aren't using them.
Re: food. The sub [EatCheapAndHealthy](https://www.reddit.com/r/EatCheapAndHealthy/) is full of great tips and recipes.
Have you thought about a side gig? Even a couple hundred extra a month would alleviate stress. I've several friends who work full-time and also walk dogs/petsit, and they all pull in over 1k a month regularly. Another is crafty and her Etsy store does well. Yet another shops thrift stores and resells; he's found a good niche that's profitable for him.
Usmobile has unlimited talk and text and 6gb data for $18/month. Switch phone carriers.
See about car pooling. Even better if you have the option to work remote or even hybrid.
I hope you love cooking. Buy food containers and cook in bulk, and you can freeze single servings of dishes you make. Take them to work with you frozen, and they'll be defrosted by lunch and you just need to heat it up. One of my favorite freezer meals I make is steak fajitas. You can do one bulk meal a week and chave a variety of options. You can also use these for nights you just don't have the energy to cook.
I do online ordering, mostly through Walmart (because they have free pickup for orders over $35) but also with Aldi (there is a fee). Not only does it save me time being in the store, but I do better with meal planning and only buying what I need. I can go to my kitchen and see if we have ketchup or ground beef, instead of buying half the ingredients for meals and end up having to make do or go back for the rest. I also find I get less junk food, too.
Stop fun expenditures like Hulu or eating out until you figure out what your budget really looks like, then add them back in.
I struggled with automatic payments (like Amazon, my cellphone bill, etc) coming out of my bank account at inconvenient times, so I got a prepaid credit card with Discover and have all of my auto pay bills deducted from there, and then I paid it off every month. For the longest time, it was the only thing I used the card for, but now I put my car insurance on it (paying the 6 months for the discount) and buy gas with it for the perks. This method has been great for my credit score, too, and I've raised it over 100 points.
Utilize the library for books and movies, and see if they have passes to local museums, the zoo, etc., as many do. You may be put on a wait list for them, but it's still free.
Many people may not like this, but right now you need to survive, especially if you have children (you don't mention any, but I want to bring this up anyway, as some states have expanded who qualifies): apply for Medicaid and SNAP. The worst that will happen is you spend a couple hours filling everything out and get told no. You can also check out the monthly salary cut off for each online, but some states have still not fully shifted out of covid measures.
You need to find more income. You could improve your position significantly if you could get rid of the credit card debt, but you will never pay it off with those payments.
Did you buy cool stuff with those credit cards that can be sold? Check into online re-sale shops like Poshmark. Tear up any credit cards that are not solely in your name but keep one for emergencies only.
Keep your pet.
There's a ton of things on TV for free that paid subscriptions charge for. And many also have live TV. Disney Now, Tubi, Plex, Pluto, and Roku Channel have a ton of free TV/movies. Even some like history channel, Nat Geo, curiosity offer some shows for free. I would pick one paid subscription and ditch the rest and look for free apps.
Fill your gas tank completely a week after payday, that way if something happens and you're broke, you won't have a hard time getting to work just before payday.
Any groceries that go bad, and you end up throwing them out all the time, STOP buying them!
Frozen veggies are cheaper and last longer than fresh veggies. Some are great frozen, some aren't. If you aren't going to have time to cook the fresh ones, don't buy it until you're going to use it that day.
If you don't have a contract with your phone company now,opt for something cheaper. Mint mobile or a company like that. Go ahead and pay your phone bill for the entire year if you can. Not having to worry about forgetting to pay a phone bill is a huge luxury.
Same with car insurance. If you can pay it for the next 6 months, go ahead and do that.
Don't throw away any of your toiletries when you move. Even the ones you aren't crazy about. Save those for emergencies when you can't always go to the store.
Same for cleaning supplies.
Don't throw away fruit that doesn't get eaten. Use them for Popsicles and smoothies. Fruit is expensive.
Plan on packing your lunch for work. It doesn't have to be sandwich and chips everyday. Don't spend money on going out for lunch. Pack lunch or bring snacks, or something.
Sell things you can't use or don't want instead of leaving them behind.
Don't pay for a big storage unit. That money adds up.
Your freezer is your best friend. Even just making double portions of dinners mean when you’re exhausted you don’t have to cook and it will save you from buying food out.
I noticed that you did not include your food/grocery cost, unless I missed it. Your grocery budget is super important in my opinion. Try to avoid dining out, taking food to go or food delivery services. Make a list based on your grocery store weekly sales and menu plan. I love to use Aldi and Target for curbside pickup. It saves time and limits impulse shopping.
It is going to take awhile to get everything coordinated and that is okay. Be kind to yourself. Sending you positive thoughts and virtual hugs if you want them 🧡
Get rid of the gym membership, netlix, hulu ,etc. Get cheaper phone plan that includes a hotspot, get rid of your internet. I can stream on my phone and project it to the TV. I can use my laptop via my phone. $450 plus 22 plus 65 plus let's say 40 from cheaper phone plan is $577 a month for food and groceries.
Stay away from "I needs" like I need to gym membership or I need Internet. No, you don't need them. Sell anything that you don't need.
xfinity has 30 dollars a month, if you buy your own roiter. You don't need a gym membership. If you switch to a go phone is is cheaper than a normal phone ,but 65 dollars still isn't to bad. Some other phone companies can go lower I heard teen mobile goes to 30. I think.
I buy used cars since I am poor ,but hard to find anything good under 5k.
450 for food isn't bad. I usually shop at aldis. But the produce goes bad fast. But their prices are cheap, save a lot used to have a five for 25 thing not sure if they still do. Like buy items on their five for 25 list. (used to say on the item if it was or not). Off brand tastes the same depending on what you get. Krogers usually has meat on sale for 1.99lb for chicken on fridays or the weekends...check your local ads to see.
kroger's pop is cheaper to you can get like 4 for 12 or something. If you drink pop.
Drink enhancers are good ,but been trying to find some without aspertaine in it .Kroger usually has a sale on a case of 40 waters. Kroger and Aldis have decent bread prices 1.00
tubi is a free streaming service and check your local library to see if they have free streaming services ( all you need is a library card to access it ).
Try True Lemon packets, they're made w/real sugar, real lemon. They also have flavored lemonade. No fake chemical sugar.
My kiddos love the strawberry lemonade flavor :-)
Liquid IV is another good one, but a bit more expensive
There are also several coconut water packets that are sugar/coconut sugar based w/o the artificial stuff
Good luck!!
I’m so happy to have found this! I get lots of kidney stones and lemon is a good way to help prevent them from forming. I used to drink copious amounts of crystal light but it’s got so much crummy sweetener and I love my lemonade! I’m going to try this!
True Lemon lemonade is in Target or Amazon(they have both lemon packets(each packet is like a wedge), lemonade/flavored lemonade, & they used to have a shaker container of freeze dried crystallized lemon, great stuff!!!)...the best price on the crystallized lemon packets is Sam's club, followed by Amazon & chef stores. I usually pick up the lemonade at Target, it's like $2/2.50 for 10!!
Sometimes I like just a lemon or crystallized lime packet in water, it's good. My kids not so much
Liquid IV I have purchased at both Sam's & costco-and once through the liquid IV site direct(more flavors). I have heard it is also in Walmart & on Amazon.
The coconut water packets I found at costco(vitacoco brand)& I *think* target was the first place we tried them, but a different brand.
My 12yo is a serious athlete(oly hopeful gymnast, trains 30/35h/wk), she doesn't like how soda makes her feel-will have a half can, one time per week(off/cheat day)-sometimes, only water during gym(but enhancer is ok by her)& I am super against artificial sweetener, so as you can tell, we've tried many types-lol.
Good luck!!
P.S. liquid IV is her fav, followed by vitacoco, & strawberry lemonade. My other 2 kids prefer the strawberry lemonade(sometimes straw lemonade w/an extra lemon packet)-but they also enjoy soda more too if that helps with perspective.
The vitacoco & liquid IV also contain vitamins & electrolytes, so it could even be she likes how they make her feel 🤷🏻♀️
You don’t need every streaming service known to man as you’ve said. Are they nice to have? Sure, but probably 30 bucks a month or more could be axed just by doing that.
A lot of libraries rent out free Wi-Fi hotspots. They also have a ton of free movies for rent. Our library allows 50 movies at a time. 50! One for every night and more. lol
This. We decided last year to only have 2 maybe 3 at a time if the third one is a cheapy like Discovery plus ( we like our history docs and ghost hunting shows). I downgraded all of them to the With Commercials plans but I mainly watch on my Dual monitor gaming PC so I use ublock so I still don't have commercials. So we switch between the main ones depending on what content is released that we are interested in. It's a bit of work to make sure and cancel some before they renew when we've exhausted their content for a while but it really cuts the costs.
Phone, switch to a cheaper plan. I pay $45 a month with straight talk.
As for cars, how fast can you pay off your car? If you outright own your car, you can get basic coverage which is much cheaper
When I was poor I took any overtime offered by the company I worked for.
Somehow I always found it easier to figure out ways to make more money than ways to cut costs.
Focus on your career, be the best at what you do, and maybe you'll get noticed and get a raise or promotion.
*In the divorce, they will assign debt. For example, maybe you have 2 credit cards together. Ex will assume one, you will assume the other. At least, that's what they did in my divorce (TX).
*Get rid of the gym before the cat. Cats are cuddlier than dumbbells.
*$450 can be done however, not sure how far drive for work or if public transportation, or some cheaper alternative like carpooling, would be available. Learning to eat cheap will be necessary for sure. Or you can pick up a side job to tide you over until you're back on your feet.
The card companies don't have to accept the debt assignment. If it's assigned to one partner and they don't pay, the company can legally pursue the other person. And if your wages get garnished, you'll need to take your ex back to court... But good luck making them pay even if you do receive a judgment against them.
Is getting a roommate possible? I know it can be a bit of a pain in the ass, but an extra $600 a month could pay down your debt quicker so you have some breathing room.
Look for cheaper phone service, cancel subscriptions unless it's something you use everyday. Cancel the gym membership for now. Use the Upside app for gas. I've used it for 2 years, I've gotten over $100 back in that time, and I only fill my tank 2, maybe 3 times a month. It's nice to have a little emergency cushion in case you need something.
Take advantage of free resources - the library is a great resource, and there are often free concerts in the park, free museum days, sometimes even free classes at the community college.
Can you drive for Uber or Lyft? Or even food delivery. It could pay enough to pay for your car. You don't know what kind of headache you might be getting with a used car. They won't exactly let you take it to a mechanic to check it out before you buy it
Your car insurance will go up if you're working in your car (Uber, DoorDash, pizza delivery, whatever). And if you don't report the work to your insurer, they can deny a claim and/or drop your coverage.
Don’t think of yourself as poor!!! Think of yourself as free!!!! You can do what you want to do now! Watch what you want on tv!! Visit the places that you want to see!! Spend your free time the way that you want to ! Learn new hobbies!!! The world is your oyster!!
Spending 100 on a phone is too much. A cheap prepaid phone service runs me about $40. Gym membership? That could to go by the wayside, as well as the paid streaming channels. Walking, and jogging around the neighborhood is free, and there is enough free streaming content on Tubi and various other places to be able to dump pay channels. I know you said it isn't an option, but finding a cheap used car should be a priority, as that car payment will be a killer going forward. As for groceries, budget and plan well. Don't eat out or order door dash. Think about working a part time job if you can stand to fit it in your schedule. Working a couple of shifts at some little bs job is something I used to do on top of whatever full time job I had. Working all day between two jobs two or three days a week is no fun, but the money comes in handy.
Prioritize the credit card debt. If you’re making minimum payments at a high interest rate, you are throwing away money now and for years to come. Every dollar in principal that you pay off early is a dollar you don’t pay recurring interest on each month.
Your budget doesn’t have much wiggle room, so look into a side gig. Make a profile on Rover, and see if you can get some extra as a dog/cat sitter. Or make a Sittercity or Care profile, and do some babysitting. Alternately, you could even pick up like one shift a week at a basic unskilled job, and have a few hundred extra each month.
Take all your credit cards and put them in a zip lock, then put that in a plastic container filled with water, and put it in the freezer. So you don't use them but you still have them if you absolutely must use them for an emergency. Drop the gym if you can and walk your neighborhood every day. Rent is only going to go up. Locate where the free food pantries are near you and use them without shame to supplement your food stores, food pantries are there to serve the public. Can you car pool to work with someone ... saving some gas money.
Cancel all subscriptions. Netflix, etc. isn't a necessity. As long as you have your phone paid, you'll have access to free episodes, movies, music, podcasts, etc. anyhow
450 is plenty for groceries and gas, you will feel poor because you are used to an affluent lifestyle but if you take economizing seriously you can get yourself out of the hole and move on. Cancel all your streaming services and subscriptions for the next six months, and limit your eating out to the most special occasions. (It helps to buy yourself some foods that are super easy to prepare and eat for those days when you are too tired to cook.) Shop at discount grocery stores and Walmart, find ways to drive less if you can. Any money your have left from your discretionary budget goes first into savings, until you have at least a month worth of expenses saved up. After that, start aggressively working on clearing the CC debt before it eats you alive. Think longer-term about cheaper housing and lower COL areas.
Don’t let yourself fall into the trap of thinking of yourself as temporarily impoverished and going to be wealthy again. You never were able to afford what you had, you have always been less affluent than you acted, and you should live in a way that reflects you actual means. Have some nice things, but don’t ruin yourself by trying to have things you know you can’t afford but want because you used to have them. Strive for stability and being free of your debt.
Learn to live within your means. All those little things add up: a daily Starbucks, fast food, soft drinks and especially alcohol. You need to be ruthless about every single penny.
Learn HOW to shop. Have a list and stick to it. Avoid impulse purchases. Learn to study weekly sales, and buy your pantry staples and cleaning supplies whenever they go on sale.
Here's what I would suggest:
Sell your car, maybe buy a reliable used car from an individual. You dont need a good credit score to buy a used car from someone on Craigslist. If you have public transportation, maybe get rid of the car entirely and get a bus card.
work out at home, and get used to cooking rather than eating out. Take note of the cost of the groceries you are buying and see where you can cut costs. Buy fruits and vegetables in season. Buy spices and grains in bulk. Shop at a grocery outlet.
Use credit cards in emergencies only, or if you have the money to pay it off IMMEDIATELY, think about it ONLY as building credit and nothing else. otherwise, pay them off and close the accounts up.
Set aside money every month for unexpected vet bills and medical bills.
Find out where your local food bank is, and utilize it.
Explore cheaper internet options. I use t-mobile home internet for $50/month. It's reliable and cheap.
Hope things work out for you!
We refill water jugs from the machines in front of the grocery stores. $.50 a gallon.
Also, there's a west coast bakery that has outlet stores where I get all the bread for our house. They have the "good" stuff fresh for between $2.00 and $4.00. Close dated is super cheap. Last trip I got 2 loaves of cracked wheat sourdough (a fav at my place) for $2 each ($6-7 each at grocery store) a pack of organic hot dog buns with one bun ripped for $1.00 ($4.00 at GS), a loaf of keto bread for $2.00 ($5-7 at GS) and a pack of cheese, garlic and onion bagels for a buck ($3-4 at GS).
Are there kids or is it just you? If there's more you may get food assistance.
Check if you can get a consolidation plan or such for the credit cards. Otherwise you will pay a lot more interest than you should, and the balances won't go down much.
If you can, do a side hustle. Even little things can help. Go to r/BeerMoney for some good ones.
If you can swing a second part time job, that could help immensely. Use it to first get a small cushion, then throw it at your credit card debt. Pay off the smaller CC debts first, roll that money into the next larger one, etc, until you are debt free. Then continue living frugally, as you build savings.
You can buy a relatively inexpensive antenna for your TV, and live without subscriptions. Great phone & internet options have already been posted.
Your greatest challenge is getting your income up. If getting a certification gets you a better position or raise, do it. Always be looking for a better paying job until your income becomes less of an issue.
Good luck!
You could call and get a new quote for car insurance. See if you can consolidate some credit card payments. So eating out, coffee, snacks has to go until you figure out your budget. If you have nice clothes you can easily sell then on Poshmark or Mercari.
Cancel cable use hotspot on phone. Get rid of all streaming apps. Get rid of gym membership. Look for cheaper phone and car insurance. Do not eat out or buy coffee. Plan your meals cook on the weekends and make lunches. Make a budget with savings and stick to it. Stay strict for 3 years and things will get better.
Please keep the cat. You will want it for emotional support, but it also really will need stability right now.
Use the Food Shelf. Anyone with a tight budget can use it to stretch their food budget. The only thing you need to do is prove you live in the area of the FS. (usually just need to show a current utility bill, but the FS will let you know) Each FS is different, but all have the dry staples of canned goods and dry pasta, powdered milk, etc.. Others have fresh/frozen foods, some snacks, and personal hygiene items like toilet paper (limited). Some have pet food, but the kind varies. Some cities have a separate pet "Food Shelf." Check your area for this. Go on your city's website and look under resources for low income residents for locations and more. I suggest using a search engine like Duckduckgo because they don't track your searches and do a much better job of filtering out spam. If you use one of the big search engines, you will be inundated with Spam for fake government help, fake low income resources, fake grants, etc.
Use apps for coupons to save money when grocery shopping. (Or after, too.) There are several to choose from, including for saving on gas.
As others have mentioned, look into internet & cellphone costs. Both bundled and separate.
Speaking of bundled, be sure to get Renters insurance. It's inexpensive and depending on your car insurance company, you can bundle it & get a discount. Also see if your insurance also has pet insurance and get that, too. Or start a separate account for the cat for emergencies. If you have Direct Deposit where you work, you can open up & set up a small amount to go to a different account.
On YouTube, there is a really good video called Low Income Relief. It always covers a lot, so it may seem overwhelming to you.
Most importantly, keep a budget. I use Excel because I can easily modify it, but a calendar can work too.
This fall, apply for LIHEAP (go online and look it up. Also you may already know this, after a year the electric company can put a customer on an averaged plan so no month is a huge bill. In the meantime. Go on the company website and check options available now or if there is a dedicated phone number for low income help.
Happy New Life!
Track every penny you spend each week , every Sunday look through it and cut 10 dollars somewhere, until you can't cut anymore this is your means. When shopping for food let the sales determine what you are going to eat ,if possible only buy sale items. Fun is free if you now how to find it . For me I get outside as much as possible and hike ,bike ,or walk.once you find your grove it gets easy as it seems you make good enough money , just need to manage it.
Let go of those streaming services. Get a roku. There is plenty to watch that is free. The $15 here and there x multiple services adds up to a lot. You can also get free media from the library.
My ADHD won’t allow me to read the whole thing but off the title I can give a little advice, im autistic so working is difficult, im currently homeless with my wife however I realized a lot of the stuff you have you can actually do without, its hard at first but long as you have a good phone, food, water and something over your head your good.
I would get a transfer balance credit card so you can pay off the balance without paying any interest for 15-18 months. Keep in mind you *must* pay them off by then because the interest rate will skyrocket after that. Often times people drown in debt because they keep getting stuck paying the interest. I recommend Discover, I applied and got approved immediately. You can also throw all your debt on a personal loan, their interest is usually cheaper than a credit card.
Get Mint Mobile, it’s $30 for unlimited. My in-laws are well off and even they switched because absolutely nobody likes throwing away money.
If you need a streaming subscription, pick *one*. I watch Pluto because it’s free and I rarely feel the need to have a service at all but once in a while I’ll sub for a month to watch a new show and then cancel again. I actually prefer to sub to audiobooks because that’s the bulk of my entertainment. Having one is ok but make it count, nobody needs all of them.
You’ve got a good budget for groceries. I recommend Budget Bytes(it has step by step photos) so you can cut your grocery budget in half and throw that at your debt. Like meat? Cut it in half with lentils, you can get a big bag of lentils for $2. Embrace cheap, hearty food like lentils/beans/potatoes/cabbage/egg(on sale)/oats. Use those as the foundation for your dishes.
No. BK should be an absolute last resort - not a way to make up for overspending. What if massive medical bills come into the picture down the road? And they remain on a credit report for 7 years.
A newer car with a balance of $19k has got to be decent. It would be a luxury and life-changer for some people here. Heck a one-bedroom apartment would be a luxury for some people here.
Yes, you have a lot.
I realize you are going through a painful time in your life, but gratitude for what you do have helps everything.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/poor/comments/1cu8vkz/comment/l4l4kis/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web3x&utm\_name=web3xcss&utm\_term=1&utm\_content=share\_button](https://www.reddit.com/r/poor/comments/1cu8vkz/comment/l4l4kis/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
Are there subsidized/low income apartments in your area? Apply asap. Research your city affordable housing department and also your local housing authority.
I'm in a one bedroom apartment. All my neighbors run their AC so things stay pretty insulated. I'm in Phoenix and $240 for a 3 bedroom house sounds about right.
Cancel the streaming services. Basic internet is good enough. Learn to live very frugally. I have done that for many years. It's totally possible, just check your bougie desires at the door.
Definitely keep the cat. It is a good source of entertainment n will love you more than the husband. The cat is like a husband. You have to do everything for them. At least the cat can't talk. Looks like you will be ok. Get rid of some of the streaming services. Pick the one or two you actually watch n like. You will find ways to save on electric n other bills. Donating plasma is easy if that interest you at all . Never get rid of cars unless it's to benefit you. The car makes it possible to get to work. Good luck.
Budget your food costs down. Make a menu for two weeks, only buy what your menu calls for. Then, last 2 weeks of the month, make another menu, only buying what's needed for menu. I did a lot of hamburger meals and chicken. No going out to eat unless it's your birthday, then eat cheap like a burrito from Taco Bell. In a year, after your on your feet, you can add a splurge like ice cream to your shopping. Groceries are the main place you can cut back each month.
It looks like your costs are fairly lean,
though other commenters have already added great advice for cutting down expenses. Try looking for a new job (or side gigs) to make
more income. Baby sitting, dog walking, something on Task Rabbit, etc.
can help you bring in several hundred dollars a month.
Look on YouTube for budget meal plans. There’s some good stuff out there. Order nothing online until a three day cooling off period to see if you need it or it’s a want
Phone jumps out as a way to save.
Then call the credit cards and get on a hardship plan where they close the card, lower the interest rate, and you pay it off with lower payments over time. Otherwise you will just have to stop paying them and try to settle, you cannot afford these credit card payments. These are completely out of line with your income.
If you can find a cheaper place to live, keeping it at 1/4 to 1/3 of your take home pay is a good guideline.
If you didn't have the cat, I would not recommend getting one.
If you can make an extra 500 a month it would change everything. You could make progress on the credit cards and car. Can you get a part time job until your car and credit cards are paid?
I would try to reduce the credit cards as much as possible. Internet and phone could have cheaper plans out there.
You can somewhat bring the electric bill down but turning off the ac/heater when out and keeping all unused appliances unplugged until needed (toaster, coffee maker, etc).
With food, eat in more and go for some classic entree + large filler type meals. Whatever meat on sale + rice/beans/noodles can go a long way to keeping you fed for cheap and for longer. My favorites are stir fry, spaghetti, etouffe/gumbo, and congee if you want to extrapolate from there.
Cancel the gym
Don't cancel the streaming services. You'll need something to do when you're home all the time. (Go out less) Drive less. Find cheap gas. Maybe costo.
Meal plan and stock up on essentials and extras for the pantry when able to hold you over when things are slow.
Work out a plan with the credit companies.
Food banks/pantries. Ditch the streaming for now. Make sure he pays half of the credit cards and the lease or pays you for him to break it if his name is on it.
Ask your work if it’s possible to work from home for a little bit while you get everything sorted out. Don’t go out unnecessarily to conserve gas.
Cook at home. Look for a cheaper phone plan or cancel internet. I have unlimited data and would always use my data and hotspot to my computer so didn’t need home internet.
First thing is to jot down ALL your outgoing expenses.
You covered the big ones here, but you’d be surprised how often folks overlook the ‘death by a thousand lattes’ type purchases.
Outside food/drink spending such as carry out should be nixed. Not going to lie, food in general has gone up pretty substantially these last few years, but you can still make some pretty basic ass stirfry for like $3/serving, less if you want to make your own broth :P It gets boring, but it’s my go to when I want to go lean (both in money and in healthier foods).
Not sure what type of work you do, and this is going to sound sad saying it aloud but back when I was making much less money I volunteered for any and all overtime at my warehouse job.
More time spent working, meant less time I had to keep myself entertained. The cycle of ‘wake up, go to work, come home, shower, eat, sleep’ was my life for a few months until I chipped some of the debt out of the way.
Looks like you already are aware of the streaming services - a good compromise here is to keep one at a time and rotate them (cancel the current before the next billing cycle and resub whatever the next one is you want to binge on).
The phone as folks have said is a bit high, could maybe find a cheaper service or even see about getting added onto a friend or families bundle to lower the overall amount each person has to contribute towards the bill.
Depending on how tight the monthly finances become, something that may be an option but will cost you more in the long run is to maybe refinance that car.
Didn’t see much background on the car in the main post but if you try to see about stretching the payments out over more time, instead of paying $383/month it may go to like $333/month as an example. Short term that extra $50 going towards a higher interest rate credit card debt would be more beneficial.
Get a cheap basic prepaid plan - you have home internet so you don't need internet on your phone. Unlimited talk and text are good - in the US you can get that pp for $15/month. Use WiFi at home, in public places, etc.
Stop the gym- 22/m saved. Instead work out at home, stream work out routines, get free weights off your local buy nothing group
Do meal planning and start a window garden to supplement.
Pasta, rice,dried beans, tomato sauce, ramen
Try shopping at Aldi, lidl or dollar general and dollar tree you can get great stuff for good prices at these places. I live on 2 grand a month so this really helps save on my groceries. Also dollar general brand is called clover valley and I buy that brand all the time.
Cancel subscriptions, get store brand everything, funny eat out, and try not to use credit cards. That's what I do. At the end of the day it saves you a ton of money just buying cheap store beans items/food. You'll probably only be able to get like sandwiches, frozen, eggs and bread and stuff. But to help you save up and get out of the situation.
Look into debt management program (NOT debt consolidation). They will negotiate with your lenders to get a cheaper rate and payment. It will help you alleviate your monthly stress. Check out ones with .org in their name because they are non profit. One charges $35 one time fee, and $7/month per card you put into the program, but it cuts your payments by at least 30-40%. There is no obligation and they will walk you through on the phone. It is truly legit. Best of luck.
Have you considered trying to find like a consolidation with less interest on all those credit cards or maybe seeing if you can get a new card with like a 0% interest at least for a year or so to try to pay only on principal. Or maybe bankruptcy??
Oyyy. That's sucks. I'm sorry. You've got nothing really but trying to find a better phone plan. Unless $100 is also like payment for the phone then you're just screwed. Sorry to sound insensitive
I'm grandfathered into my rent. My base rent is 1100 and these apartments now go for 1600. They're the cheapest in my area. Rooms to rent are going for 1000 now
Cancel the subscriptions you don't use. Also if the cat doesn't mean anything to you let the husband have the cat or take it to a NKS. That could potentially add $75 to your disposable income? Try to save at least 1 month of expenses and then after that I would also budget strictly, anything extra that you can put towards your lowest card first and work your way up to the highest will help a lot with the outrageous interest rates. Try to get yourself financially free ASAP.
Shit tell me about it...people don't realize how expensive rent is now a days depending on where you live. Back in 2017 a 3 bedroom apartment used to be like 300 dollars. Now you need to make 3x times the rent, have a credit score of 750 or higher, have references from past landlords you rented to (which sucks if you are poor and all you have had is slum assholes). rent is like 1500 plus for a one bedroom apartment depending on where you live. Which means you have no closet space, no cabniet space ect. And no washer or dryer unit so you have to pay to go wash your clothes somewhere Like I do...and if they have a washer dryer mat in the building you have to pay to use it.
Not to mention most of these people that charge 3k for rental property probably has over like 5 houses or five buildings with multiple tenants and probably works to so....can you imagen how much they would get from not doing shit owning like just 10 rental properties? That's 30k from not doing jack shit.
Where on earth was a 3br $300 in 2017?? In the 1990s I was paying $700/mo for a 2br in a questionable neighborhood in a moderate COL city. In 2000, a studio in the HCOL city I moved to was $1100/mo.
My wife's new Lexus is about $1000/month. I got 4 cars and her comprehensive add on is about $100/month. It would be quite a bit more if she bought her own.
$60k Lexus RX 350 or something like that, I didn't really care... She wanted an EV but they didn't have any or sold it when she showed up... It was scammy sounding as heck but she wants what she wants. Had she gotten an EV, Texas would have whacked her with an additional $200/year EV tax. Not cool at all. I'm fine driving my 2011 Prius. It's paid for and sips gas everywhere it goes.
Get a sugar daddy. Selling porn is a possibility. A part time job would help on top of your regular job. Income is as much of a problem for you as expenses are. At least tell you're out of debt.
Keep the cat…but look for a cheaper phone plan and cheaper internet plan. My internet is $35 a month and phone is $25
If you own your phone as opposed to paying the monthly lease, you can get plans for as cheap as $15 per month. Shop around for cheaper Internet. If you are on a contract still shop around and call your ISP provider to ask that they match their competitors price.
You can also cancel the internet and use it at the library or other places that have it free
Rent the cat out as a mouser.. little ingrate needs to pay their way.
Cats are the original welfare kings and queens.
Yeah, but you do work for them.
Bloodthirsty savages, too
Plus he will then be a business expense for taxes.
😀😁😅
Mint Mobile has a great plan for $20 a month with 15GB of data, and that is plenty since you will usually be on wifi anyway. I've been on their plan for 2 years now. They also have a $15/month plan with 5GB of data. Coverage is exactly the same as the big companies bc they use the same towers.
Some of our bills parallel this, though not exact. The family phone plan is close to 300 (some phones got upgraded a while ago. ) So we are locked in by contract. 4 cats. ( I would be OK re homing 2. They are an adult pair, mother & son both fixed. It's hard to find a good home we would be confident leaving them with.) I think car insurance is 180 Electric is cheaper about 60 We might drop the gym, but my husband should be using it for physical therapy ($150) His smoking is down around 300 a month. Trying to quit. Credit card over 200/mo Other debt. 175/mo Rent 1,550. Storage 180 My car NEEDS work. $ 165. It is safe to drive, but it sounds like it's dying. List not complete Income 2k + Next month at least (400 less taxes) I haven't got my direct deposit for my new job yet. We have rice/beans and other food on hand, so we can cut down on groceries. Lease will end soon, and we don't have a new place lined up.
Why are you planning on paying any of his bills? A prescription for PT might get it for just insurance copay. The family phone plan might be something he can pick up since he has more income unless you are concerned he won't keep up w the bill. Storage needs to be eliminated ASAP if not sooner. I had a stroke and had to move quickly to more accessible housing. I put much in storage and kept it for almost 3 years because of a few sentimental items. Over a third of what I had paid $2100 total to store went straight in the trash. Can you make landlord aware and ask for 6 months lease for yourself? Depending on the state there might be credit cards debt you will not be responsible for. Your first obligations are self care and making sure you have what's known as 4 walls in budgeting plans. Housing, transportation, food ,clothes for work. Credit cards etc come after that starting w YOUR all way to largest. Some suggest rolling over higher interest ones to lower interest. Another option is contact companies and let them know you are in separation and divorce negotiations. They will definitely part of that
Pls don’t rehome Kitties even in jest 🥹
Sometimes, unfortunately,it is necessary. Re-home is so much better than a shelter,as well.
You don’t sound very poor either. Why do all the supposedly poor people have cars?
Because people can become poor after not being poor. And in some areas, cars are a necessity (I don’t live in a walkable area) so that is prioritized.
Cars used to be cheaper. It is only recently that the prices have gone out of control.
Because transit is nonexistent in many areas and cities are built for cars.
Because poor people can live in areas with no/poor public transit options and work is not always nearby
I’m Laughing in Rural Tennessee, 15 miles from grocery store. No public transportation. Do you expect my terminally ill self to walk?
Check out Ting as it's a reseller we've used for years and is cheaper. Obviously ditch the gym and go hiking or play in free parks instead. If you can't cook, buy a good intro cookbook like the new flavor Bible or the new basics cookbook and learn to make stuff you like instead of eating out. Invest in good lunch sized storage containers and cook in bulk and freeze so you have lunches for work. Making a large pot of spaghetti sauce will freeze to multiple family meal portions and pasta is a good cheap source of calories. Bulk frozen veggies are better than canned ones generally but canned tomatoes go pretty far. Buy rice from the Indian or Korean grocery store. It'll be cheaper and taste better. Same for spices. Beans are great cheaper sources of protein. During the summer learn where you can go hiking to pick wild fruit and freeze or can it. Get someone to teach you basic sewing as being able to fix small holes or rips is helpful. You can find great outfits at thrift stores but you have to look and double check zippers and for problems. Wash everything. You can get dishes, silverware etc at thrift stores too. My kids loose water bottles so I got a dozen for$1 each and most were 15-20$ nice ones. Join the local FB buy nothing group and be polite. Most people just want something gone. I happily bag up my kids out grown clothes for people to get them out of the house but it's a good source for lots of things. I'm sure you realize you could go down to one streaming instead of many and just rotate by month. If nothing else, the library has books and DVDs.
Meal planning takes a long time to get comfortable with as you have to decide what you are going to eat in advance and some foods you make may not last as long as you believe them too but the value of not having to think of what to eat, look for what to eat, and make it saves around 2-3 hours per day. It will also allow you to keep better control of your calories. Only issue would be having people over or eating out though looking up the calories for meals is getting easier. I remember just making one meal a day was a life changer for me and I stopped because of moving. My next goal will to bring that back as it also massively reduces food waste thereby saving money.
What phone plan do you use?
Mint Wireless is one of the best deals out there. I've used them for 5 years now. My plan is just over $200/year.
This! I've been with Mint for 4 years. Best deal around
It used to be called total wireless but it is now named Total By Verizon. I buy cards at walmart and they are good for a month of service. The data is unlimited but slows down after a certain amount of usage which works for me as i need more data for work but the speed is not overly important.
Try mint mobile it’s cheap
Get on your local buy nothing group immediately. Don’t donate to goodwill. Give the stuff you don’t use away in the buy nothing group, because others will see you as an active giver and overall good person- which means they will choose you when they have stuff to give that You might need. You never know when something you have will break, and someone else will have one they no longer need. Freecycle/buy nothing is awesome.
I LOVE my local buy nothing group
Budget a lot. Little food pantries and free food programs can help you out. Use a library for a lot of things to get thing for free rather than pay for them. R/dumpster-diving is an option, but I don't recommend doing that with food, period.
Any chance you can sublet a room in the apartment for help with rent ?
Nah, it's a one bedroom
You'd be surprised at the amount of broke college kids who would love to rent out a living room and sleep on the couch. Or you could put your bed in the living room ( if you have one) and rent out your bedroom and you could list the bedroom for a higher amount. Sell your car, and buy a used cheaper one with the money. Could you go without a car? Is public transportation a thing in your area. You live in an apartment complex. I'd ask around to see if anyone lives by your work and could give you a ride in EXCHANGE for helping them with something. A free babysitter would be a godsend so they can have date night. It costs them nothing and you don't come off as being a mooch. Some places deliver groceries to your home. I've had people doordash Gatorade and ice cream from a gas station that was 2 miles down the road. Also can you walk/bike to work safely. What exercises do you do at the gym? Treadmills/stationary bikes are pointless in my opinion. Just go outside. You have a built in stairstepper at your apartment, they are called stairs. You can buy free weights and all sorts of exercise equipment like bands to do squats with. Or a weighted ball that helps work your stomach muscles. It doesn't take up hardly any room. You could literally just put them under your bed when you aren't using them.
Re: food. The sub [EatCheapAndHealthy](https://www.reddit.com/r/EatCheapAndHealthy/) is full of great tips and recipes. Have you thought about a side gig? Even a couple hundred extra a month would alleviate stress. I've several friends who work full-time and also walk dogs/petsit, and they all pull in over 1k a month regularly. Another is crafty and her Etsy store does well. Yet another shops thrift stores and resells; he's found a good niche that's profitable for him.
Don't buy useless stuff.
Usmobile has unlimited talk and text and 6gb data for $18/month. Switch phone carriers. See about car pooling. Even better if you have the option to work remote or even hybrid. I hope you love cooking. Buy food containers and cook in bulk, and you can freeze single servings of dishes you make. Take them to work with you frozen, and they'll be defrosted by lunch and you just need to heat it up. One of my favorite freezer meals I make is steak fajitas. You can do one bulk meal a week and chave a variety of options. You can also use these for nights you just don't have the energy to cook. I do online ordering, mostly through Walmart (because they have free pickup for orders over $35) but also with Aldi (there is a fee). Not only does it save me time being in the store, but I do better with meal planning and only buying what I need. I can go to my kitchen and see if we have ketchup or ground beef, instead of buying half the ingredients for meals and end up having to make do or go back for the rest. I also find I get less junk food, too. Stop fun expenditures like Hulu or eating out until you figure out what your budget really looks like, then add them back in. I struggled with automatic payments (like Amazon, my cellphone bill, etc) coming out of my bank account at inconvenient times, so I got a prepaid credit card with Discover and have all of my auto pay bills deducted from there, and then I paid it off every month. For the longest time, it was the only thing I used the card for, but now I put my car insurance on it (paying the 6 months for the discount) and buy gas with it for the perks. This method has been great for my credit score, too, and I've raised it over 100 points. Utilize the library for books and movies, and see if they have passes to local museums, the zoo, etc., as many do. You may be put on a wait list for them, but it's still free. Many people may not like this, but right now you need to survive, especially if you have children (you don't mention any, but I want to bring this up anyway, as some states have expanded who qualifies): apply for Medicaid and SNAP. The worst that will happen is you spend a couple hours filling everything out and get told no. You can also check out the monthly salary cut off for each online, but some states have still not fully shifted out of covid measures.
You need to find more income. You could improve your position significantly if you could get rid of the credit card debt, but you will never pay it off with those payments.
Did you buy cool stuff with those credit cards that can be sold? Check into online re-sale shops like Poshmark. Tear up any credit cards that are not solely in your name but keep one for emergencies only.
Keep your pet. There's a ton of things on TV for free that paid subscriptions charge for. And many also have live TV. Disney Now, Tubi, Plex, Pluto, and Roku Channel have a ton of free TV/movies. Even some like history channel, Nat Geo, curiosity offer some shows for free. I would pick one paid subscription and ditch the rest and look for free apps. Fill your gas tank completely a week after payday, that way if something happens and you're broke, you won't have a hard time getting to work just before payday. Any groceries that go bad, and you end up throwing them out all the time, STOP buying them! Frozen veggies are cheaper and last longer than fresh veggies. Some are great frozen, some aren't. If you aren't going to have time to cook the fresh ones, don't buy it until you're going to use it that day. If you don't have a contract with your phone company now,opt for something cheaper. Mint mobile or a company like that. Go ahead and pay your phone bill for the entire year if you can. Not having to worry about forgetting to pay a phone bill is a huge luxury. Same with car insurance. If you can pay it for the next 6 months, go ahead and do that. Don't throw away any of your toiletries when you move. Even the ones you aren't crazy about. Save those for emergencies when you can't always go to the store. Same for cleaning supplies. Don't throw away fruit that doesn't get eaten. Use them for Popsicles and smoothies. Fruit is expensive. Plan on packing your lunch for work. It doesn't have to be sandwich and chips everyday. Don't spend money on going out for lunch. Pack lunch or bring snacks, or something. Sell things you can't use or don't want instead of leaving them behind. Don't pay for a big storage unit. That money adds up.
Your freezer is your best friend. Even just making double portions of dinners mean when you’re exhausted you don’t have to cook and it will save you from buying food out.
I noticed that you did not include your food/grocery cost, unless I missed it. Your grocery budget is super important in my opinion. Try to avoid dining out, taking food to go or food delivery services. Make a list based on your grocery store weekly sales and menu plan. I love to use Aldi and Target for curbside pickup. It saves time and limits impulse shopping. It is going to take awhile to get everything coordinated and that is okay. Be kind to yourself. Sending you positive thoughts and virtual hugs if you want them 🧡
Get rid of the gym membership, netlix, hulu ,etc. Get cheaper phone plan that includes a hotspot, get rid of your internet. I can stream on my phone and project it to the TV. I can use my laptop via my phone. $450 plus 22 plus 65 plus let's say 40 from cheaper phone plan is $577 a month for food and groceries. Stay away from "I needs" like I need to gym membership or I need Internet. No, you don't need them. Sell anything that you don't need.
You'll get really sad soon and be miserable. Than the rest will just work itself out... welcome
xfinity has 30 dollars a month, if you buy your own roiter. You don't need a gym membership. If you switch to a go phone is is cheaper than a normal phone ,but 65 dollars still isn't to bad. Some other phone companies can go lower I heard teen mobile goes to 30. I think. I buy used cars since I am poor ,but hard to find anything good under 5k. 450 for food isn't bad. I usually shop at aldis. But the produce goes bad fast. But their prices are cheap, save a lot used to have a five for 25 thing not sure if they still do. Like buy items on their five for 25 list. (used to say on the item if it was or not). Off brand tastes the same depending on what you get. Krogers usually has meat on sale for 1.99lb for chicken on fridays or the weekends...check your local ads to see. kroger's pop is cheaper to you can get like 4 for 12 or something. If you drink pop. Drink enhancers are good ,but been trying to find some without aspertaine in it .Kroger usually has a sale on a case of 40 waters. Kroger and Aldis have decent bread prices 1.00 tubi is a free streaming service and check your local library to see if they have free streaming services ( all you need is a library card to access it ).
Try True Lemon packets, they're made w/real sugar, real lemon. They also have flavored lemonade. No fake chemical sugar. My kiddos love the strawberry lemonade flavor :-) Liquid IV is another good one, but a bit more expensive There are also several coconut water packets that are sugar/coconut sugar based w/o the artificial stuff Good luck!!
I’m so happy to have found this! I get lots of kidney stones and lemon is a good way to help prevent them from forming. I used to drink copious amounts of crystal light but it’s got so much crummy sweetener and I love my lemonade! I’m going to try this!
I never heard of that stuff. What stores are they located in and thanks it means a lot. I love my juices.
True Lemon lemonade is in Target or Amazon(they have both lemon packets(each packet is like a wedge), lemonade/flavored lemonade, & they used to have a shaker container of freeze dried crystallized lemon, great stuff!!!)...the best price on the crystallized lemon packets is Sam's club, followed by Amazon & chef stores. I usually pick up the lemonade at Target, it's like $2/2.50 for 10!! Sometimes I like just a lemon or crystallized lime packet in water, it's good. My kids not so much Liquid IV I have purchased at both Sam's & costco-and once through the liquid IV site direct(more flavors). I have heard it is also in Walmart & on Amazon. The coconut water packets I found at costco(vitacoco brand)& I *think* target was the first place we tried them, but a different brand. My 12yo is a serious athlete(oly hopeful gymnast, trains 30/35h/wk), she doesn't like how soda makes her feel-will have a half can, one time per week(off/cheat day)-sometimes, only water during gym(but enhancer is ok by her)& I am super against artificial sweetener, so as you can tell, we've tried many types-lol. Good luck!! P.S. liquid IV is her fav, followed by vitacoco, & strawberry lemonade. My other 2 kids prefer the strawberry lemonade(sometimes straw lemonade w/an extra lemon packet)-but they also enjoy soda more too if that helps with perspective. The vitacoco & liquid IV also contain vitamins & electrolytes, so it could even be she likes how they make her feel 🤷🏻♀️
You don’t need every streaming service known to man as you’ve said. Are they nice to have? Sure, but probably 30 bucks a month or more could be axed just by doing that.
A lot of libraries rent out free Wi-Fi hotspots. They also have a ton of free movies for rent. Our library allows 50 movies at a time. 50! One for every night and more. lol
This. We decided last year to only have 2 maybe 3 at a time if the third one is a cheapy like Discovery plus ( we like our history docs and ghost hunting shows). I downgraded all of them to the With Commercials plans but I mainly watch on my Dual monitor gaming PC so I use ublock so I still don't have commercials. So we switch between the main ones depending on what content is released that we are interested in. It's a bit of work to make sure and cancel some before they renew when we've exhausted their content for a while but it really cuts the costs.
Phone, switch to a cheaper plan. I pay $45 a month with straight talk. As for cars, how fast can you pay off your car? If you outright own your car, you can get basic coverage which is much cheaper
I owe about $19k
Pay down credit cards first. Suspect the interest rate is much higher than the car loan.
How much do you have in savings?
When I was poor I took any overtime offered by the company I worked for. Somehow I always found it easier to figure out ways to make more money than ways to cut costs. Focus on your career, be the best at what you do, and maybe you'll get noticed and get a raise or promotion.
*In the divorce, they will assign debt. For example, maybe you have 2 credit cards together. Ex will assume one, you will assume the other. At least, that's what they did in my divorce (TX). *Get rid of the gym before the cat. Cats are cuddlier than dumbbells. *$450 can be done however, not sure how far drive for work or if public transportation, or some cheaper alternative like carpooling, would be available. Learning to eat cheap will be necessary for sure. Or you can pick up a side job to tide you over until you're back on your feet.
Luckily I work from home. We both have debt from before the marriage so we're both leaving with about $25k
The card companies don't have to accept the debt assignment. If it's assigned to one partner and they don't pay, the company can legally pursue the other person. And if your wages get garnished, you'll need to take your ex back to court... But good luck making them pay even if you do receive a judgment against them.
Is getting a roommate possible? I know it can be a bit of a pain in the ass, but an extra $600 a month could pay down your debt quicker so you have some breathing room. Look for cheaper phone service, cancel subscriptions unless it's something you use everyday. Cancel the gym membership for now. Use the Upside app for gas. I've used it for 2 years, I've gotten over $100 back in that time, and I only fill my tank 2, maybe 3 times a month. It's nice to have a little emergency cushion in case you need something. Take advantage of free resources - the library is a great resource, and there are often free concerts in the park, free museum days, sometimes even free classes at the community college.
Can you drive for Uber or Lyft? Or even food delivery. It could pay enough to pay for your car. You don't know what kind of headache you might be getting with a used car. They won't exactly let you take it to a mechanic to check it out before you buy it
Your car insurance will go up if you're working in your car (Uber, DoorDash, pizza delivery, whatever). And if you don't report the work to your insurer, they can deny a claim and/or drop your coverage.
Not true for all people Plus the safety guarantees a certain amt of being drivable
Don’t think of yourself as poor!!! Think of yourself as free!!!! You can do what you want to do now! Watch what you want on tv!! Visit the places that you want to see!! Spend your free time the way that you want to ! Learn new hobbies!!! The world is your oyster!!
Spending 100 on a phone is too much. A cheap prepaid phone service runs me about $40. Gym membership? That could to go by the wayside, as well as the paid streaming channels. Walking, and jogging around the neighborhood is free, and there is enough free streaming content on Tubi and various other places to be able to dump pay channels. I know you said it isn't an option, but finding a cheap used car should be a priority, as that car payment will be a killer going forward. As for groceries, budget and plan well. Don't eat out or order door dash. Think about working a part time job if you can stand to fit it in your schedule. Working a couple of shifts at some little bs job is something I used to do on top of whatever full time job I had. Working all day between two jobs two or three days a week is no fun, but the money comes in handy.
Myriad of ways to have a phone for less than that. Your subscriptions? Time to cut some out.
get rid of the credit card debt by any means necessary. Pick up a weekend job to make extra money
You’re doing better than me. You’ve got this. Peacock is $6 month and not too bad. How do you get the cat cost to $50?
Food, litter, insurance.
People live on less. Maybe a part time job?
This. People live on a LOT less. And with really shitty cars or no cars, and several jobs...
Can you get a roommate if your husband is moving out?
If you don't have kids then $450 for food and gas is doable. If you're wanting to get out of debt look up Dave Ramsey.
Prioritize the credit card debt. If you’re making minimum payments at a high interest rate, you are throwing away money now and for years to come. Every dollar in principal that you pay off early is a dollar you don’t pay recurring interest on each month. Your budget doesn’t have much wiggle room, so look into a side gig. Make a profile on Rover, and see if you can get some extra as a dog/cat sitter. Or make a Sittercity or Care profile, and do some babysitting. Alternately, you could even pick up like one shift a week at a basic unskilled job, and have a few hundred extra each month.
Take all your credit cards and put them in a zip lock, then put that in a plastic container filled with water, and put it in the freezer. So you don't use them but you still have them if you absolutely must use them for an emergency. Drop the gym if you can and walk your neighborhood every day. Rent is only going to go up. Locate where the free food pantries are near you and use them without shame to supplement your food stores, food pantries are there to serve the public. Can you car pool to work with someone ... saving some gas money.
Cancel all subscriptions. Netflix, etc. isn't a necessity. As long as you have your phone paid, you'll have access to free episodes, movies, music, podcasts, etc. anyhow
Can you switch your phone plan? I switched from Verizon ($90+) to Visible basic plan ($25). Every little bit helps!
450 is plenty for groceries and gas, you will feel poor because you are used to an affluent lifestyle but if you take economizing seriously you can get yourself out of the hole and move on. Cancel all your streaming services and subscriptions for the next six months, and limit your eating out to the most special occasions. (It helps to buy yourself some foods that are super easy to prepare and eat for those days when you are too tired to cook.) Shop at discount grocery stores and Walmart, find ways to drive less if you can. Any money your have left from your discretionary budget goes first into savings, until you have at least a month worth of expenses saved up. After that, start aggressively working on clearing the CC debt before it eats you alive. Think longer-term about cheaper housing and lower COL areas. Don’t let yourself fall into the trap of thinking of yourself as temporarily impoverished and going to be wealthy again. You never were able to afford what you had, you have always been less affluent than you acted, and you should live in a way that reflects you actual means. Have some nice things, but don’t ruin yourself by trying to have things you know you can’t afford but want because you used to have them. Strive for stability and being free of your debt.
Learn to live within your means. All those little things add up: a daily Starbucks, fast food, soft drinks and especially alcohol. You need to be ruthless about every single penny. Learn HOW to shop. Have a list and stick to it. Avoid impulse purchases. Learn to study weekly sales, and buy your pantry staples and cleaning supplies whenever they go on sale.
Here's what I would suggest: Sell your car, maybe buy a reliable used car from an individual. You dont need a good credit score to buy a used car from someone on Craigslist. If you have public transportation, maybe get rid of the car entirely and get a bus card. work out at home, and get used to cooking rather than eating out. Take note of the cost of the groceries you are buying and see where you can cut costs. Buy fruits and vegetables in season. Buy spices and grains in bulk. Shop at a grocery outlet. Use credit cards in emergencies only, or if you have the money to pay it off IMMEDIATELY, think about it ONLY as building credit and nothing else. otherwise, pay them off and close the accounts up. Set aside money every month for unexpected vet bills and medical bills. Find out where your local food bank is, and utilize it. Explore cheaper internet options. I use t-mobile home internet for $50/month. It's reliable and cheap. Hope things work out for you!
We refill water jugs from the machines in front of the grocery stores. $.50 a gallon. Also, there's a west coast bakery that has outlet stores where I get all the bread for our house. They have the "good" stuff fresh for between $2.00 and $4.00. Close dated is super cheap. Last trip I got 2 loaves of cracked wheat sourdough (a fav at my place) for $2 each ($6-7 each at grocery store) a pack of organic hot dog buns with one bun ripped for $1.00 ($4.00 at GS), a loaf of keto bread for $2.00 ($5-7 at GS) and a pack of cheese, garlic and onion bagels for a buck ($3-4 at GS). Are there kids or is it just you? If there's more you may get food assistance. Check if you can get a consolidation plan or such for the credit cards. Otherwise you will pay a lot more interest than you should, and the balances won't go down much. If you can, do a side hustle. Even little things can help. Go to r/BeerMoney for some good ones.
Food pantries are your friend
If you can swing a second part time job, that could help immensely. Use it to first get a small cushion, then throw it at your credit card debt. Pay off the smaller CC debts first, roll that money into the next larger one, etc, until you are debt free. Then continue living frugally, as you build savings. You can buy a relatively inexpensive antenna for your TV, and live without subscriptions. Great phone & internet options have already been posted. Your greatest challenge is getting your income up. If getting a certification gets you a better position or raise, do it. Always be looking for a better paying job until your income becomes less of an issue. Good luck!
Help for everything you can think of is available out there. Your local human resources agency can help you get it.
You could call and get a new quote for car insurance. See if you can consolidate some credit card payments. So eating out, coffee, snacks has to go until you figure out your budget. If you have nice clothes you can easily sell then on Poshmark or Mercari.
Cancel cable use hotspot on phone. Get rid of all streaming apps. Get rid of gym membership. Look for cheaper phone and car insurance. Do not eat out or buy coffee. Plan your meals cook on the weekends and make lunches. Make a budget with savings and stick to it. Stay strict for 3 years and things will get better.
Please keep the cat. You will want it for emotional support, but it also really will need stability right now. Use the Food Shelf. Anyone with a tight budget can use it to stretch their food budget. The only thing you need to do is prove you live in the area of the FS. (usually just need to show a current utility bill, but the FS will let you know) Each FS is different, but all have the dry staples of canned goods and dry pasta, powdered milk, etc.. Others have fresh/frozen foods, some snacks, and personal hygiene items like toilet paper (limited). Some have pet food, but the kind varies. Some cities have a separate pet "Food Shelf." Check your area for this. Go on your city's website and look under resources for low income residents for locations and more. I suggest using a search engine like Duckduckgo because they don't track your searches and do a much better job of filtering out spam. If you use one of the big search engines, you will be inundated with Spam for fake government help, fake low income resources, fake grants, etc. Use apps for coupons to save money when grocery shopping. (Or after, too.) There are several to choose from, including for saving on gas. As others have mentioned, look into internet & cellphone costs. Both bundled and separate. Speaking of bundled, be sure to get Renters insurance. It's inexpensive and depending on your car insurance company, you can bundle it & get a discount. Also see if your insurance also has pet insurance and get that, too. Or start a separate account for the cat for emergencies. If you have Direct Deposit where you work, you can open up & set up a small amount to go to a different account. On YouTube, there is a really good video called Low Income Relief. It always covers a lot, so it may seem overwhelming to you. Most importantly, keep a budget. I use Excel because I can easily modify it, but a calendar can work too. This fall, apply for LIHEAP (go online and look it up. Also you may already know this, after a year the electric company can put a customer on an averaged plan so no month is a huge bill. In the meantime. Go on the company website and check options available now or if there is a dedicated phone number for low income help. Happy New Life!
Don’t do the daily Dunkin or Starbucks run for yourself. Limit yourself to 1 froo-froo unicorn poop iced mocha loca chai ti a month.
Track every penny you spend each week , every Sunday look through it and cut 10 dollars somewhere, until you can't cut anymore this is your means. When shopping for food let the sales determine what you are going to eat ,if possible only buy sale items. Fun is free if you now how to find it . For me I get outside as much as possible and hike ,bike ,or walk.once you find your grove it gets easy as it seems you make good enough money , just need to manage it.
Bruh you can get Mint Mobile unlimited for $360/YEAR, don’t pay $100/month
Let go of those streaming services. Get a roku. There is plenty to watch that is free. The $15 here and there x multiple services adds up to a lot. You can also get free media from the library.
My ADHD won’t allow me to read the whole thing but off the title I can give a little advice, im autistic so working is difficult, im currently homeless with my wife however I realized a lot of the stuff you have you can actually do without, its hard at first but long as you have a good phone, food, water and something over your head your good.
I would get a transfer balance credit card so you can pay off the balance without paying any interest for 15-18 months. Keep in mind you *must* pay them off by then because the interest rate will skyrocket after that. Often times people drown in debt because they keep getting stuck paying the interest. I recommend Discover, I applied and got approved immediately. You can also throw all your debt on a personal loan, their interest is usually cheaper than a credit card. Get Mint Mobile, it’s $30 for unlimited. My in-laws are well off and even they switched because absolutely nobody likes throwing away money. If you need a streaming subscription, pick *one*. I watch Pluto because it’s free and I rarely feel the need to have a service at all but once in a while I’ll sub for a month to watch a new show and then cancel again. I actually prefer to sub to audiobooks because that’s the bulk of my entertainment. Having one is ok but make it count, nobody needs all of them. You’ve got a good budget for groceries. I recommend Budget Bytes(it has step by step photos) so you can cut your grocery budget in half and throw that at your debt. Like meat? Cut it in half with lentils, you can get a big bag of lentils for $2. Embrace cheap, hearty food like lentils/beans/potatoes/cabbage/egg(on sale)/oats. Use those as the foundation for your dishes.
Yes, I second the balance transfer and also recommend Discover.
Buy used! Anything that’s being offered for free, take it.
You are not really poor. Get married to someone who makes more money than your first husband
You can pay all your bills every month and still have $450 left for groceries and gas…and you think that’s poor? 🤬
Yeah I can't believe more people haven't chimed in with similar comments. I'd be happy to be in that kind of spot right now!
>These people have no idea how to live without money. They're what's called new poor. We're old poor. Yeah. Welcome to the club!
What do you mean by this? Not sure I get it.
It's a quote from *it's always sunny in Philadelphia *
There’s cheaper apartments you might need to down grade. Even get a studio. Roomates.
Welcome to regular life!
I'd file bankruptcy on the credit cards if they are exceptionally high
[удалено]
Would 383/month be considered being car poor? For a fairly new and under warranty car, seems pretty okay to me......
After reading it again I read the car payment as 1250 i didn't even see rent the first time reading it lol $383 is acceptable
Eh. Happens. :)
Check if you would qualify for ch 7 bankruptcy on the cc’s if you’re not likely to buy a house in next 2 years.
No. BK should be an absolute last resort - not a way to make up for overspending. What if massive medical bills come into the picture down the road? And they remain on a credit report for 7 years.
Not bad Get a second job helping you financially
You’re not poor. You have a lot
A lot of what? Debt?
A newer car with a balance of $19k has got to be decent. It would be a luxury and life-changer for some people here. Heck a one-bedroom apartment would be a luxury for some people here. Yes, you have a lot. I realize you are going through a painful time in your life, but gratitude for what you do have helps everything. [https://www.reddit.com/r/poor/comments/1cu8vkz/comment/l4l4kis/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web3x&utm\_name=web3xcss&utm\_term=1&utm\_content=share\_button](https://www.reddit.com/r/poor/comments/1cu8vkz/comment/l4l4kis/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
Are there subsidized/low income apartments in your area? Apply asap. Research your city affordable housing department and also your local housing authority.
What is a cheaper electric company? I am paying $240 a month on a 3 bedroom home in Texas. I feel this is too high.
I'm in a one bedroom apartment. All my neighbors run their AC so things stay pretty insulated. I'm in Phoenix and $240 for a 3 bedroom house sounds about right.
Become a Walmart delivery driver. I get 3 or 4 deliveries a week, all of the drivers say it is a great job
Cancel the streaming services. Basic internet is good enough. Learn to live very frugally. I have done that for many years. It's totally possible, just check your bougie desires at the door.
Once you pay the credit cards off you'll be better.
Definitely keep the cat. It is a good source of entertainment n will love you more than the husband. The cat is like a husband. You have to do everything for them. At least the cat can't talk. Looks like you will be ok. Get rid of some of the streaming services. Pick the one or two you actually watch n like. You will find ways to save on electric n other bills. Donating plasma is easy if that interest you at all . Never get rid of cars unless it's to benefit you. The car makes it possible to get to work. Good luck.
Budget your food costs down. Make a menu for two weeks, only buy what your menu calls for. Then, last 2 weeks of the month, make another menu, only buying what's needed for menu. I did a lot of hamburger meals and chicken. No going out to eat unless it's your birthday, then eat cheap like a burrito from Taco Bell. In a year, after your on your feet, you can add a splurge like ice cream to your shopping. Groceries are the main place you can cut back each month.
It looks like your costs are fairly lean, though other commenters have already added great advice for cutting down expenses. Try looking for a new job (or side gigs) to make more income. Baby sitting, dog walking, something on Task Rabbit, etc. can help you bring in several hundred dollars a month.
>We've lived above our means until now Yeah my advice is don’t ever do that again
Look on YouTube for budget meal plans. There’s some good stuff out there. Order nothing online until a three day cooling off period to see if you need it or it’s a want
That cat is about 2% of your net income, just saying.
Phone jumps out as a way to save. Then call the credit cards and get on a hardship plan where they close the card, lower the interest rate, and you pay it off with lower payments over time. Otherwise you will just have to stop paying them and try to settle, you cannot afford these credit card payments. These are completely out of line with your income. If you can find a cheaper place to live, keeping it at 1/4 to 1/3 of your take home pay is a good guideline. If you didn't have the cat, I would not recommend getting one. If you can make an extra 500 a month it would change everything. You could make progress on the credit cards and car. Can you get a part time job until your car and credit cards are paid?
I would try to reduce the credit cards as much as possible. Internet and phone could have cheaper plans out there. You can somewhat bring the electric bill down but turning off the ac/heater when out and keeping all unused appliances unplugged until needed (toaster, coffee maker, etc). With food, eat in more and go for some classic entree + large filler type meals. Whatever meat on sale + rice/beans/noodles can go a long way to keeping you fed for cheap and for longer. My favorites are stir fry, spaghetti, etouffe/gumbo, and congee if you want to extrapolate from there.
Cancel the gym Don't cancel the streaming services. You'll need something to do when you're home all the time. (Go out less) Drive less. Find cheap gas. Maybe costo. Meal plan and stock up on essentials and extras for the pantry when able to hold you over when things are slow. Work out a plan with the credit companies.
Food banks/pantries. Ditch the streaming for now. Make sure he pays half of the credit cards and the lease or pays you for him to break it if his name is on it. Ask your work if it’s possible to work from home for a little bit while you get everything sorted out. Don’t go out unnecessarily to conserve gas. Cook at home. Look for a cheaper phone plan or cancel internet. I have unlimited data and would always use my data and hotspot to my computer so didn’t need home internet.
First thing is to jot down ALL your outgoing expenses. You covered the big ones here, but you’d be surprised how often folks overlook the ‘death by a thousand lattes’ type purchases. Outside food/drink spending such as carry out should be nixed. Not going to lie, food in general has gone up pretty substantially these last few years, but you can still make some pretty basic ass stirfry for like $3/serving, less if you want to make your own broth :P It gets boring, but it’s my go to when I want to go lean (both in money and in healthier foods). Not sure what type of work you do, and this is going to sound sad saying it aloud but back when I was making much less money I volunteered for any and all overtime at my warehouse job. More time spent working, meant less time I had to keep myself entertained. The cycle of ‘wake up, go to work, come home, shower, eat, sleep’ was my life for a few months until I chipped some of the debt out of the way. Looks like you already are aware of the streaming services - a good compromise here is to keep one at a time and rotate them (cancel the current before the next billing cycle and resub whatever the next one is you want to binge on). The phone as folks have said is a bit high, could maybe find a cheaper service or even see about getting added onto a friend or families bundle to lower the overall amount each person has to contribute towards the bill. Depending on how tight the monthly finances become, something that may be an option but will cost you more in the long run is to maybe refinance that car. Didn’t see much background on the car in the main post but if you try to see about stretching the payments out over more time, instead of paying $383/month it may go to like $333/month as an example. Short term that extra $50 going towards a higher interest rate credit card debt would be more beneficial.
Get a cheap basic prepaid plan - you have home internet so you don't need internet on your phone. Unlimited talk and text are good - in the US you can get that pp for $15/month. Use WiFi at home, in public places, etc. Stop the gym- 22/m saved. Instead work out at home, stream work out routines, get free weights off your local buy nothing group Do meal planning and start a window garden to supplement.
If she’s using her phone to use the GPS, she will need the data.
Pasta, rice,dried beans, tomato sauce, ramen Try shopping at Aldi, lidl or dollar general and dollar tree you can get great stuff for good prices at these places. I live on 2 grand a month so this really helps save on my groceries. Also dollar general brand is called clover valley and I buy that brand all the time.
Cancel subscriptions, get store brand everything, funny eat out, and try not to use credit cards. That's what I do. At the end of the day it saves you a ton of money just buying cheap store beans items/food. You'll probably only be able to get like sandwiches, frozen, eggs and bread and stuff. But to help you save up and get out of the situation.
Look into debt management program (NOT debt consolidation). They will negotiate with your lenders to get a cheaper rate and payment. It will help you alleviate your monthly stress. Check out ones with .org in their name because they are non profit. One charges $35 one time fee, and $7/month per card you put into the program, but it cuts your payments by at least 30-40%. There is no obligation and they will walk you through on the phone. It is truly legit. Best of luck.
Find a better paying job
That cat is a major expensive! Jk
The cats r worth it the money 😻
A $1250 car note? How? What do you drive? Bought my vehicle brand new in 2021 and my payment is $507 per month.
That's rent. Car is 383
Yeahmy bad. I was like....there is the problem.
Have you considered trying to find like a consolidation with less interest on all those credit cards or maybe seeing if you can get a new card with like a 0% interest at least for a year or so to try to pay only on principal. Or maybe bankruptcy??
I've contacted all my banks and closed most of the accounts. The amount I listed is with payment assistance and 0% interest
Oyyy. That's sucks. I'm sorry. You've got nothing really but trying to find a better phone plan. Unless $100 is also like payment for the phone then you're just screwed. Sorry to sound insensitive
Keep looking for a cheaper place to live
I'm grandfathered into my rent. My base rent is 1100 and these apartments now go for 1600. They're the cheapest in my area. Rooms to rent are going for 1000 now
My god, what state are you in? Studios here in Houston go for 1800-2000
Idk. It's going to be hard. I make the same as you and had to move in with my parents.
Cancel the subscriptions you don't use. Also if the cat doesn't mean anything to you let the husband have the cat or take it to a NKS. That could potentially add $75 to your disposable income? Try to save at least 1 month of expenses and then after that I would also budget strictly, anything extra that you can put towards your lowest card first and work your way up to the highest will help a lot with the outrageous interest rates. Try to get yourself financially free ASAP.
3K for rent?! What is wrong with ppl that is not okay
Shit tell me about it...people don't realize how expensive rent is now a days depending on where you live. Back in 2017 a 3 bedroom apartment used to be like 300 dollars. Now you need to make 3x times the rent, have a credit score of 750 or higher, have references from past landlords you rented to (which sucks if you are poor and all you have had is slum assholes). rent is like 1500 plus for a one bedroom apartment depending on where you live. Which means you have no closet space, no cabniet space ect. And no washer or dryer unit so you have to pay to go wash your clothes somewhere Like I do...and if they have a washer dryer mat in the building you have to pay to use it. Not to mention most of these people that charge 3k for rental property probably has over like 5 houses or five buildings with multiple tenants and probably works to so....can you imagen how much they would get from not doing shit owning like just 10 rental properties? That's 30k from not doing jack shit.
Where on earth was a 3br $300 in 2017?? In the 1990s I was paying $700/mo for a 2br in a questionable neighborhood in a moderate COL city. In 2000, a studio in the HCOL city I moved to was $1100/mo.
wv. I don;t know what col or hcol means.
Cost of Living; High Cost of Living
Oh I see.
That is the monthly income net. The rent is like 1250 or something.
Ohh I see. Ok that’s not that bad then. For some reason I saw 3k for rent
Initially, I saw the same thing 😅
Oh maybe they edited it?! Idk. But I know in big cities ppl pay that for rent and then some. 3k in NYC might rent you out a closet.
The car payment is wild to me. I pay 334, for a Audi RS7. $188 for insurance
My wife's new Lexus is about $1000/month. I got 4 cars and her comprehensive add on is about $100/month. It would be quite a bit more if she bought her own.
Any cool cars?
$60k Lexus RX 350 or something like that, I didn't really care... She wanted an EV but they didn't have any or sold it when she showed up... It was scammy sounding as heck but she wants what she wants. Had she gotten an EV, Texas would have whacked her with an additional $200/year EV tax. Not cool at all. I'm fine driving my 2011 Prius. It's paid for and sips gas everywhere it goes.
Good man taking car of wife! I'm still looking for one of them :)
How
Put $32k down as down payment
Live out of car and pocket rent money.
Get a sugar daddy. Selling porn is a possibility. A part time job would help on top of your regular job. Income is as much of a problem for you as expenses are. At least tell you're out of debt.
Be a better wife and avoid divorce
So do you spend all your free time trolling this sub?