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Money - How much do you...
A) Spend on yourself (or have to yourself) monthly?
Spend with your OH - i.e. date nights, etc?
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A) About £30
Spend on me - not sure, not a regular amount. Maybe take into account if I need make up/clothes. I don't have set amount so if I need something il but it (within reason) which means I could go a whole without buying things then buy a lot one month
Spend with h on date nights, erm zilch! We have no childcare so rarely go out (if at all!) so if we have alcohol at home or a nice meal it comes out the shopping budget
Spend on me? No idea! I buy clothes and make up/toiletries as and when I need/want them but I couldn't even guess at an amount. Nothing extravagant as it's all high street stuff.
On date nights we've just started to make sure we go out once a month for dinner. This can cost us around 200-250francs including a babysitter which is about £175-200.
Not a lot tbh, since we had the children, most of our money goes on them. I very rarely buy new clothes unless it's with birthday money or Christmas money, or unless i'm absolutely desperate for something.
I pay for slimming world, so that's £4.95 a week, but that's about it.
We don't very often have nights out, we don't have a lot of childcare options anymore. We had a night away for our wedding anniversary earlier on this month so we probably spent about £150 in total on a hotel, food, drinks, tickets for a band, but before that we'd not had a "date-night" as such since we were in Barcelona whilst we were on holiday and mum and dad had the kids for a few hours for us.
I don't have a set budget really, it depends on what's going on, for example if there are lots of nights out/birthdays/hens then it could be £100's, if not then <£100. Are you including clothes? Make up? If so add another £100.
For date nights, umm, not much, and again not budgeted it more depends on the opportunities that arise (I.e. babysitters offering). Tend to spend £50-£100 per date night, or more if it's a date day (tend to do things like karting, white water rafting) then a bit more.
There's not really an average month tbh.
Helpful much?
No set amount on myself, if I need something I buy it.
Date nights? No idea. We don't really do them, I don't see the point unless its a special occasion! We have every evening together & eat together. We do family stuff both days at the weekend.
Do you all have one account only with your partner?
We have the joint account then put a little into our own.
I think I'm swaying towards just having 1 account though.
We are not the sort of couple to resent each other from spending any money etc, so I just think having it all separate is pointless.
Just one account here. Plus a joint savings acc.
I think it is the way forward. We keep say £200 each, and most of our expenditure is when we are together! It makes more sense to have it in one account then any extras we need, so be it, who cares I say.
We have our own accounts where our salaries are paid into then we pay a set amount into the joint account per month. It's made slightly more complicated that H tops up my salary since I went part time but that's what happens when you marry an actuary - every thig is worked out the be fair to the penny.
If I wasn't working at all, then 1 account would make more sense but whilst we both earn I like to keep some separate so I can spend my money on what I like without him seeing what I spend on what. Plus buying presents for each other would be difficult.
We have a joint account and a joint savings. We have a joint credit card too but I NEVER use it other than for things we get cash back on and things like holidays and pay it off iyswim
Crikey I feel bad. I bet I spend circa £600 on getting nails done, hair, clothes, make up. Sometimes more if I've got something big....
On date nights depends what we are doing but anywhere from £200 to £500 (only if going to theatre or an event)
Monthly?
LegallyBlonde, please share your pennies! Lol!
Do you have your own accounts or a joint one?
I'm toying with what is best for us.
Yeah monthly. See now its in black and white I see why DH moans at me haha!!!
We have one current acc and two joint savings.
Haha!! If you have it spend it I say!
Per month I have slimming world money (£20), and clothes - some months none, some months £200. And, pre-pregnancy, wine money
For us going out - well, sometimes my son is with us but I'd say on average we eat out 3 times a month, then cinema + snacks. So probably £300-£400 a month without special events, birthdays or going away. We're supposed to be ploughing all our cash in to the house because it needs so much doing to it, but we're both a sucker for a nice night out. It'll change a lot when baby comes, we'll need all the cash for childminding and will have no energy for going out!
Having separate accounts REALLY stressed me out. Even though I earn double what he does I hated the idea of it being a month where we skinted him out. So we each have a sole account, just because our wages go there, then we have a joint savings acct (opened when we got engaged in October) and a joint current account (opened when we bought the house in April). We don't use our sole accounts.
Counter I agree. I earn more too but definitely see our money as 'ours' rather than anything else. We have always kept some of our money (same amount each) just so we had money to spend as we wished, but to be honest, I'm past that and really don't care if he wants to take out £80 to go and spend on a night out with the boys. I think financially we would be able to manage our money better if it was all just in one pot.
I have friends who do their joint account (mortgage etc) based on % of their salary - great, it works for them, but I couldn't do it. I hate the thought of me having £800 in my personal account whilst my husband has £80 (off the cuff example here!).
Exactly Mrs A. And I have always felt like that. This is the 3rd relationship where I have lived with someone and would always rather it was 'ours' whether one of us is putting in 1p or £1m. We're a team and if I am doing well (or he is), or not, it's because of what we put in overall, between us. I would have been really very upset if he hadn't wanted to go 'all in' as it were.
On me - not much maybe averaged throughout the year, about £50 per month
Going out with H - we don't!
We each have a current account that our wages get paid into. We then have a 'bills' account that we each pay a similar amount into each month. We both get paid roughly the same anyway so it all works out. I get paid on the 27th and he gets paid on the 15th so we just spread money out paying for things.
No hang ups with different accounts and we are still a team just historical really and no reason to change. We have 3 current accounts with 3 different banks so we get the benefits that come with each account and also the deals that you are offered from each as an account holder. For example, we are currently remortgaging and getting a good deal through my current account, we use the travel insurance from H's current account, we each have AA cover through our different accounts etc