Money saving ideas.

We also have to pay for those ads SW Water keep putting on TV and YouTube. Why do they do that? 

The Govt contribution is £50 P/A (£25 off each half yearly bill) but even with that deduction, our payments for metered water are £48 P/M. I wonder how many holiday makers realise we pay so they can enjoy our coastline?

We had a water meter installed at our previous house and made a worthwhile saving over the non-metered cost. This house was already on a meter when we bought it so I cannot make a comparison.

Waterbills do seem to vary a lot, we're on a meter, 3 bedroom bungalow, 2 of us, cost £21.20 a month.  We don't have a dishwasher or tumbledrier, shower rather than use the bath and only occasionally use a hosepipe if absolutely necessary.  Washing machine 2/3 times a week.

The Earth would have to turn flat before I gave up my Dishwasher. Had once since first married and loathe pot washing.

We do a “where are we” income/expenditure review around every 18 months now. It all started when I decided to give up work early, and we took a long hard look at our finances to see what giving up the larger of the two salaries (at the time) would be like. It was the best thing we ever did, as it made us focus on the things we need, the things we cherish and love, and the stuff that is just “padding” really. I have developed and honed my bargaining skills when dealing with such as insurance, wifi providers, etc… and never ever accept any so called deal or offer they think might keep us onboard. 

I feel for those who have never been in this situation before, if you have an existing mortgage or loan, interest rate rises will hurt, and there’s nothing you can do but pay up. Whilst the rates were three times higher when we had our first mortgage, we went into it knowing how high they were and made decisions accordingly. I think some will need to make priority decisions over what is the most important aspects of their lives. For others, it’s going to be a matter of struggling through if they can. Which is despicable in a country as affluent as ours, the spread of wealth and well being is badly skewed.

Whilst the interest rate rise is not good, except for savers. It was so much higher for years while we were paying our mortgage. Two years running, or more, we paid the required amount all year only to find at the end of the year we owed more!

Oh yes DEBSC! Well do we recall17.5%. That sweet little letter every month or so, telling you rate was going down quarter of a % was met with such joy😁 

As to savings….Premium Bonds. We seem to win at least every other month, and we have had some prizes up to £250. £50 this month👍

It really is a matter of getting priorities right. Many of us, I'm sure, will remember when mortgage interest rates were 15%. Yes, 15%. We managed, we decided which expenditure was the more important. The mortgage came top of the list, we didn't want to lose our house. But we coped. If we couldn't afford it we didn't have it. Credit cards hadn't been invented although major purchases such as a washing machine could be bought on hire purchase. We were far more aware of the value of money and soon learned how to manage it once we started work. The end result, as far as I and my wife are concerned, is that now in retirement we have a very nice house and garden, a caravan of course which allows several holidays a year, a decent car albeit 7 years old and, very importantly, no debts. We are still of a mind that if we can't afford it we don't have it until we can and also consider carefully any purchases that we make. I'd like a newer car and a better camera but what we have already more than adequately does the job. 

We had one holiday a year, staying in the UK, frequently reducing the cost by going with my in-laws. We didn't have mobile phones, iPads or anything similar. They hadn't been invented. Our TV had very few channels but from which we could easily find something interesting to watch, or we made our own entertainment. We didn't have or need dozens of streaming services. We had one modest car which got us around with no problems. In the very early days, early 1970's, we didn't even have a phone in the house, we used the phone box up the road. Tattoos were almost never seen except for a few people in the services. Now, it looks as though more than half the younger population has them and, I understand, they are not cheap. 

To my mind, the younger generation spend far more money as a percentage of their income on things which are not needed, except in their mind. They are frivolous unnecessary luxuries.

I know a lady in her late forties quite well, a single mother,  who has told me that she goes to the supermarket actively looking for bargains. There is nothing at all wrong with that but her reason for doing so is that she has to pay for her latest i-phone, her 12 year old son's i-phone and several TV streaming services because, in her words, " Me and Ollie (her son) like to binge watch". If ever I have asked her if she saw a particular programme on terrestrial TV she tells me "I never watch those channels". I don't think she is alone in this mindset.

Speaking to the lady's father many years ago, I commented that he and his wife (we knew them well enough to talk candidly) appeared to be trying to keep up with the Jones's. His reply was "We are the Jones's". Perhaps that is where his daughter got her financial education. Soon after, he had to hand his car back as he couldn't afford it.

One day I am sure that real life will catch up with her and many others like her and they will come down with such a bump but grumbling as they do so that the state should give them more financial assistance. 

The answer is to get priorities right. Simple!

brue as to light bulbs we are all Led except microwave, oven and sewing machine even Oh's shed 1 old style light with a double D fluorescent tube, I remember my late MIL she used to do a lot of knitting and crochet and used to like the 150w bulbs everywhere gosh it did seem bright in her house.

France is all on water meters and we had a new one fitted no charge as they do them every 15 years whether they need changing or not and the rates are reasonable compared to some countries, we did have water meters when we lived in Malvern many years ago, also do use a small dishwasher and have changed the washing machine not long ago and use a cooler wash also make sure I have a full load as to help with saving water and have never used a water hose from the tap only for watering the garden or washing cars and caravan as we generally use the water butts as the Karcher pressure washer has a built in water pump that is used with the water butts, we have 1 of the square cuve/water container and that take 1000 litres our friends have 6 of them also others friends have 6 we will put more around this Autumn.

We have 3 good sized water butts but intend to install another. We'd probably all be better off with underground storage which could be pumped up somehow. Years ago above ground soft water storage tanks were quite the norm. At present our water butts are dry so not much use to us! 

Our local river is 8ft below it's normal level on the deep stretches for this time of the year. Looks like we need to save our natural supplies as much as our spending levels.

"we generally use the water butts", writes RedKite. We do as well when we can. There have been several recent comments from various 'official' sources and also from gardening gurus about having and using a water butt. What they all seem to overlook is that there has been no significant rain in the past several weeks and none in the forecast for people living in the southern half of the country to put any water into the butts. Our butt (200 ltrs) has been empty for weeks. How are we supposed to use them? Fill them with a hosepipe from the tap???

I remember we had a credit card back in the mid 70s.......Access, your flexible friend.........so they were around at the time of the 15% mortgage interest.