What is a realistic WEEKLY budget for a family of 3?

[brergnat]

So, I've decided to take Suze Orman's "Back to Cash" challenge.

The premise is, STOP paying with plastic. All of it. We have been charging all of our daily expenses on our AMEX Gold card for the points (FREE airfare!!!), but I think I am spending too much every month, because it's so easy to "swipe."

So, I'd like to try this. The idea is withdraw from the ATM ONE TIME each week on the same day. The money you take out has to last all week. EVERYTHING you buy has to be paid for with cash. Any left over at the end of the week is "fun money".

Now, just to be clear, this money is for stuff like food, toiletries, gas, etc. It is not meant to cover bills like utilities, etc. That stuff is "exempt" from this budget, for the purposes of this challenge.

So, I was wondering, since you all seem so good about budgeting, what is a realistic weekly budget for a family of three (one adult, two kids 6 and 4). This money has to include food, toiletries, and all random expenses (gifts, school supplies, etc.)?

I thought $350 would be good. However, after 5 days, I am down to $32, and it's supposed to last for three more days! Maybe I went too low?

Thanks! And, anyone who wants to join me in the "back to cash" challenge, let me know! We can start a new thread.

 

[Darcy03231]

I don't think there is any one amount. You're going to see numbers all over the place depending on where people live as the cost of living is different all over the states. Also, there are people that commute a fair distance to work while others don't. I know for where I live the cost of living is fairly high. Also my husband drives about 100 miles per day roundtrip and I drive about 40. One car gets about 28 mpg and the other about 20 mpg. That will play into the costs too. Our costs are going to be a lot different than someone who lives in a lower COL area and doesn't commute to work.

I can tell you that I spend about $35/wk in gas and DH spends about $120. In the late spring, summer and early fall this goes up as we go to our lake house on the weekends.

 

[mom2val]

Now, just to be clear, this money is for stuff like food, toiletries, gas, etc. It is not meant to cover bills like utilities, etc. That stuff is "exempt" from this budget, for the purposes of this challenge.



I buy groceries every 2 weeks when dh gets paid and I spend @$200. We fill up both cars with gas @ $100. Then over the course of the next 2 weeks dh will need to fill his gas tank 2 more times @$70. We'll spend another $50 on fresh fruits, veggies, milk, bread, eggs. We'll also spend another $30 on misc items - school, gifts, fast food. So $450 would be our budget for our family of 3 for 2 weeks.

 

[momx2]

I have been thinking about doing this myself. The difference would be that I get paid bi-monthly on the 15th and 30th. So, there would be more than 2 weeks between sometimes, so I would allot for a bit more everytime to stretch to cover the longer months. Here is what I have come up with so far.

Groceries, shampoo, etc.: $325
Gas: $100
Allowances: $100
Miscellaneous: $100 = $625 total.

We are a family of 4, DH, me, DD (12) and DD (9). Gosh, this looks like a lot, but I think it is realistic.

When I get paid on the 30th, I think I will try this. I'd be glad to hop on a new thread to see how this works.

 

[brergnat]

I have been thinking about doing this myself. The difference would be that I get paid bi-monthly on the 15th and 30th. So, there would be more than 2 weeks between sometimes, so I would allot for a bit more everytime to stretch to cover the longer months. Here is what I have come up with so far.

Groceries, shampoo, etc.: $325
Gas: $100
Allowances: $100
Miscellaneous: $100 = $625 total.

We are a family of 4, DH, me, DD (12) and DD (9). Gosh, this looks like a lot, but I think it is realistic.

When I get paid on the 30th, I think I will try this. I'd be glad to hop on a new thread to see how this works.

Is your $625 for a week, or per paycheck?

We (DH) also gets paid on the 1st and 15th. He's military, so our income is the same every payday.

I've been putting between $2500 and 3000 on the AMEX each month. That is TOO MUCH! I admit, I just buy whatever I want, when I want (usually stuff for the kids, though, I never indulge myself). We go out to eat a lot, etc.

I want to get our "living" expenses down to $1500/month. So, for us, that breaks down to around $375/week. We should be able to manage that, but I'm already feeling challenged. I shop for food at Super Target (now with Groceries...YAY!!!) mostly, and Trader Joe's. I spend about $150-200 per week at Target and TJ's. Gas is once a week (DH is deployed for now, so it's just me driving...I don't work outside the home, so I only do misc. local driving).

I guess what I didn't "budget" was that my son got sick and I had to spend close to $50 at CVS. Then, one of my kitchen appliances broke, so had to spend $40 at Bed Bath and Beyond, etc. That was $100 right there, so now I'm down to under $50. Luckily, I shouldn't need to do any shopping until my next ATM trip (on Tuesday). But, I feel unsettled having only $32 in my wallet. This is quite eye opening, for sure!

The whole reason I am doing this is not even for Disney. We are moving next summer and want to buy a house, so we are trying to save like crazy. In order to make our "goal" of money in savings by next June, we HAVE to sock away a good 1/3 of DH's take home pay each month. We can do it, but it's tough, after not having to worry about money for so many years. I feel sort of embarrassed about it, actually.

 

[momx2]

Is your $625 for a week, or per paycheck?

We (DH) also gets paid on the 1st and 15th. He's military, so our income is the same every payday.

I've been putting between $2500 and 3000 on the AMEX each month. That is TOO MUCH! I admit, I just buy whatever I want, when I want (usually stuff for the kids, though, I never indulge myself). We go out to eat a lot, etc.

I want to get our "living" expenses down to $1500/month. So, for us, that breaks down to around $375/week. We should be able to manage that, but I'm already feeling challenged. I shop for food at Super Target (now with Groceries...YAY!!!) mostly, and Trader Joe's. I spend about $150-200 per week at Target and TJ's. Gas is once a week (DH is deployed for now, so it's just me driving...I don't work outside the home, so I only do misc. local driving).

I guess what I didn't "budget" was that my son got sick and I had to spend close to $50 at CVS. Then, one of my kitchen appliances broke, so had to spend $40 at Bed Bath and Beyond, etc. That was $100 right there, so now I'm down to under $50. Luckily, I shouldn't need to do any shopping until my next ATM trip (on Tuesday). But, I feel unsettled having only $32 in my wallet. This is quite eye opening, for sure!

The whole reason I am doing this is not even for Disney. We are moving next summer and want to buy a house, so we are trying to save like crazy. In order to make our "goal" of money in savings by next June, we HAVE to sock away a good 1/3 of DH's take home pay each month. We can do it, but it's tough, after not having to worry about money for so many years. I feel sort of embarrassed about it, actually.

I was saying per paycheck. I live in a fairly cheaper cost of living area, not the cheapest, but better than most. I think $625 a pay period is too much, but realistic.

 

[meriface11]

i would take gas out of the mix and count it more like a monthly utility expense with the rationale that your weekly gas expense should be pretty consistent and it's not exactly like you go to the gas station and might be tempted to buy more gas than you need (like you might at the grocery store). plus, it's a pain to pay with cash--much easier to charge or debit at the pump.

 

[semo233]

I budget $200 per week. This covers food, entertainment and misc. Gas is put on the credit card and clothes come out of my husbands paycheck. But if I or my DD14 want something like a new purse or to see a movie, or new sneakers for sports, it comes out of that money.
I've gotten real good about not HAVING to get something right then and there, making coffee at home and just doing without. I've also gotten very good at managing our groceries. We waste close to nothing....I can always find something else to use leftovers for. If there is a small piece of steak or chicken, or some veggies leftover, it goes in the freezer and is used in a soup or salad.

 

[brergnat]

i would take gas out of the mix and count it more like a monthly utility expense with the rationale that your weekly gas expense should be pretty consistent and it's not exactly like you go to the gas station and might be tempted to buy more gas than you need (like you might at the grocery store). plus, it's a pain to pay with cash--much easier to charge or debit at the pump.

Yes, that's a fair point. I mean, it's not like I can NOT purchase gas.

However, I don't have to fill up every week, usually. This week, for example, the fact that I DID have to made me change my mind about ordering pizza for dinner one night. So, in that way, it did help curb an "impulse" purchase. I made pancakes for dinner instead.

 

[jsmith]

is your Husband a reserve soldier or an active duty one when he is not deployed? If he is Acrtive why are you doing the majority of your grocery shopping at Target and Trader Joes? the Commissary will save you money-just the tax savings is usually signifigant-and if you are on Tri-care prime most of the stuff you got at CVS should have been prescribed by your PCM and there for no cost at the MTF pharmacy.
We spend about 250 a week for both of us in discretionary spending-including groceries-lunches out-i take lunch to work but usually wind up in the food court at the px or meeting non military friends off post about once a week. I dont spend alot on gas-i drive a vehicle that gets 50 miles to the gallon-and we ride together when ever we can. we have kind of displined our self out of "buy what ever we want" spending-mostly by making a rule that if you still want it tomorrow its fine to go back and get it-most of the time we decide we dont need what ever it was. The one thing we do differently than you are talking about is that what ever is left over at the end of the two week period goes into our travel fund. Frequently i go two weeks and spend less than 40 dollars on discrestionary items-but-again my car gets exceptional mileage so i spend less than 50 per month on gas.

 

[tinker&belle]

Now, just to be clear, this money is for stuff like food, toiletries, gas, etc. It is not meant to cover bills like utilities, etc. That stuff is "exempt" from this budget, for the purposes of this challenge.



I buy groceries every 2 weeks when dh gets paid and I spend @$200. We fill up both cars with gas @ $100. Then over the course of the next 2 weeks dh will need to fill his gas tank 2 more times @$70. We'll spend another $50 on fresh fruits, veggies, milk, bread, eggs. We'll also spend another $30 on misc items - school, gifts, fast food. So $450 would be our budget for our family of 3 for 2 weeks.

From what you told us, here is your approximate current budget for two weeks:

Groceries:$250
Misc:$30
Gas: $240
Total:$520 (instead of $450)

So for a 4 week period (approx. 1 month you are spending $900 on the listed items).
What I would do is this:

Take the entire amount you make a month and list, then list out utilities, mortgage/rent, the expenses you listed, and other spending (movies, eating out etc if there is any left over).

Make sure the budget balances, preferably with some leftover for rotating expenses (christmas, birthdays, license plates, etc.) and savings and debt repayment.

 

[shortbun]

So, I've decided to take Suze Orman's "Back to Cash" challenge.

The premise is, STOP paying with plastic. All of it. We have been charging all of our daily expenses on our AMEX Gold card for the points (FREE airfare!!!), but I think I am spending too much every month, because it's so easy to "swipe."

So, I'd like to try this. The idea is withdraw from the ATM ONE TIME each week on the same day. The money you take out has to last all week. EVERYTHING you buy has to be paid for with cash. Any left over at the end of the week is "fun money".

Now, just to be clear, this money is for stuff like food, toiletries, gas, etc. It is not meant to cover bills like utilities, etc...

I thought $350 would be good. However, after 5 days, I am down to $32, and it's supposed to last for three more days! Maybe I went too low?

Thanks! And, anyone who wants to join me in the "back to cash" challenge, let me know! We can start a new thread.

So add another $50 and start with a $400 budget this time.

 

[fredflintstone]

My husband is Active Duty and I avoid the commissary! I don't agree at all that it is cheaper. You are not paying sales tax, but you are paying a surcharge, at last check was still 6 or 7%. So you can't really use the no sales tax as a "savings". I am sure it all depends on what area you are in as well. I found at our commissary (this was in GA) that prices went up 3 days before payday up to about 3 days after payday on items. Since you don't work, you can really go shopping and seriously check out your prices and compare the commissary to TJ's and Target. I found Publix with their B1G1 was a way better deal than anything the commissary had to offer. My advice, use coupons and compare places for items. Also, a HUGE help is if you have your meals planned out for the week and make your list off of those items. If I don't have meals planned out, I spend way more than I need to for the week. I too would go to CVS for RX because really the savings off the Pharmacy onpost are not worth the stress of having to deal with that and wait for hours to get them filled! I would just pay my $3 or $9 copay and be in out in less than 15 min! Again, all this is based off of where you live! I am in Germany now and do all grocery shopping onpost, I do not and never go the Px! They are beyond overpriced, so I now shop online for everything!

You have the will to do this, and I think you will do a great job! You can't help the unexpected popping up! So just budget it out and maybe add an extra $50 or so to compensate for the unexpected. We are trying to save up alot as well so when we leave here it will be smooth sailing! I may just join you on this!

Good luck!!!

 

[libraryfreak]

You are correct.

I heard on Dave Ramsey that the average person will spend 30% more when they use plastic. I believe it. There's something about handing the cashier $150 cash for your groceries rather than swiping your card, it's a totally different feeling. Swiping to me doesn't feel "real."

There's a reason McDonalds and the other fast food chains went to accepting plastic, and I think it's what DR said. It's so easy to add a Big Mac to your order when you have access to credit, whereas if your wallet says you have $10 you make sure you order $10 (or less, so you're not standing there digging for change).

 

[lisaross]

What i suggest is b4 u start to write down what u think u need it each area then next month try withdrawing the money and splitting it into different enelopes

example

Food Shopping - $300.00 (month)

Weekend Spending - (350.00)

your personal spending (200.00)

Perhaps u could charge gas - get points for that and if u need gas u need gas - perhaps try charging ur gas at exaact amount each fill-up i usually put in 30.00 of gas whenever i need it.

Good Luck!

So, I've decided to take Suze Orman's "Back to Cash" challenge.

The premise is, STOP paying with plastic. All of it. We have been charging all of our daily expenses on our AMEX Gold card for the points (FREE airfare!!!), but I think I am spending too much every month, because it's so easy to "swipe."

So, I'd like to try this. The idea is withdraw from the ATM ONE TIME each week on the same day. The money you take out has to last all week. EVERYTHING you buy has to be paid for with cash. Any left over at the end of the week is "fun money".

Now, just to be clear, this money is for stuff like food, toiletries, gas, etc. It is not meant to cover bills like utilities, etc. That stuff is "exempt" from this budget, for the purposes of this challenge.

So, I was wondering, since you all seem so good about budgeting, what is a realistic weekly budget for a family of three (one adult, two kids 6 and 4). This money has to include food, toiletries, and all random expenses (gifts, school supplies, etc.)?

I thought $350 would be good. However, after 5 days, I am down to $32, and it's supposed to last for three more days! Maybe I went too low?

Thanks! And, anyone who wants to join me in the "back to cash" challenge, let me know! We can start a new thread.

 

[lovemygoofy]

Is your $625 for a week, or per paycheck?

We (DH) also gets paid on the 1st and 15th. He's military, so our income is the same every payday.

I've been putting between $2500 and 3000 on the AMEX each month. That is TOO MUCH! I admit, I just buy whatever I want, when I want (usually stuff for the kids, though, I never indulge myself). We go out to eat a lot, etc.

I want to get our "living" expenses down to $1500/month. So, for us, that breaks down to around $375/week. We should be able to manage that, but I'm already feeling challenged. I shop for food at Super Target (now with Groceries...YAY!!!) mostly, and Trader Joe's. I spend about $150-200 per week at Target and TJ's. Gas is once a week (DH is deployed for now, so it's just me driving...I don't work outside the home, so I only do misc. local driving).

I guess what I didn't "budget" was that my son got sick and I had to spend close to $50 at CVS. Then, one of my kitchen appliances broke, so had to spend $40 at Bed Bath and Beyond, etc. That was $100 right there, so now I'm down to under $50. Luckily, I shouldn't need to do any shopping until my next ATM trip (on Tuesday). But, I feel unsettled having only $32 in my wallet. This is quite eye opening, for sure!

The whole reason I am doing this is not even for Disney. We are moving next summer and want to buy a house, so we are trying to save like crazy. In order to make our "goal" of money in savings by next June, we HAVE to sock away a good 1/3 of DH's take home pay each month. We can do it, but it's tough, after not having to worry about money for so many years. I feel sort of embarrassed about it, actually.

When you say you are spending 3k a month on your credit card, does that include ALL the monthly bills as well as your extra spending?

I'm also a military spouse. We started out budgeting and doing this out of sheer necessity but luckily we don't have to now though we do just out of habit.

First, your son getting sick shouldn't be paid from your cash. The cash is for weekly everyday expense. This expense should be paid from regular savings, not your house payment savings account. The appliance breaking well unless it was absoultely necessary then that would be your choice. If it's something like a coffee bean grinder then I would use your extra spending money on it.

Another thing that might help you is to seperate your cash. You don't have to do the envelope system per se but you need to see where your money is going. Have a specific amount for eating out of the house. For 3 people for 2 weeks maybe $150. When that specified amount is gone, you don't eat out. Pretty simple.

When you go to the grocery store, do you have a plan? Idea of meals and extras that you need? Budget what your family is realistically going to eat. If your family is going to eat out more because of the deployment, and hey who doesn't, then purchase less grocery and add more cash to your eating out.

Do you have a special savings allotment set up for your house downpayment? We have two different savings allotments set up so when whatever is deposited into the account is what we have for the payday.

 

[brergnat]

To answer a few points.

1. DH is active duty Marine Corps. He is currently deployed.

2. We live 45 miles away from base. He commutes to work when he is here, since he works at the northern end of base (Camp Pendleton), and he can get there in about 30 min. The Commissary is at the southern end of base, and takes a lot longer to get to. It's too much driving to do on a regular basis. I used to shop at the Commissary when we lived in Oceanside years ago. I hated the general quality of the fresh foods. I buy very little packaged stuff, so bad produce, dairy, and meats turn me off big time. I have found that by using Target, Costco, and TJ's, I can buy food relatively cheap, and better quality than at the Commissary. Stuff like cereal, coffee, etc. is priced almost the same at Target.

3. We have NO "savings". Well, now we have a couple thousand, since DH has been deployed and I can sock away all the "extra" money we are getting. We were, essentially, living "paycheck to paycheck". But, DH makes a good amount of money, so we were not struggling at all, just spending all we had, and not saving (except for retirement--10% of base pay to the TSP, and 529s for the kids).

4. We are trying to, mostly, save up so we CAN have an "emergency" savings. We need, according to my calculations, about $30K, and that is the goal we are trying to reach.

5. We will be buying a house using a VA loan, so 0% down. We might need money for closing costs, but we can also likely negotiate that with the seller. What I want to have money on hand for is all the OTHER expenses that come with buying a house. (possible major applicance purchases, furniture, repairs, additions like a fence, etc.)

6. We are on Tricare Prime. We use network providers, because I had HORRIBLE experiences going to the Naval Hospital prior to having kids. I avoid the base like the plague, for the most part. The medications my son needed were two $9 co pay prescriptions, Claritin ($21 for children's chewable tabs, not covered by insurance), and an expensive OTC nasal spray ($9).

7. When I look at our AMEX bill, the $2500-3000 "average" monthly spending included a couple autopay bills, like our cable ($180) and cell phone ($75). Gas, groceries, Target trips (THIS is what was my downfall...), Costco trips, online purchases (clothes, shoes) and then mostly "fun" spending---eating out, day trips to Disneyland, including a meal and maybe a candy or toy purchase for the kids, etc.

8. My kids are both on the Autism spectrum, so cooking meals is difficult. Therefore, I can't "plan" meals too much, because there's not much my kids will eat. I tend to make the same 4 meals every week, and then on days I don't cook, we do breakfast for dinner, and I eat a lot of cereal. So, my weekly food expenses are pretty much the same week to week.

9. Our utility expenses and rent are amounts that are fixed every month. Taking those out of the equation leaves us close to $5000 per month in excess. My goal is to save $3000 per month until we have what we need. In order to do this, our "extra" expenses have to remain below $2000 per month. $1500 is what I budgeted for the month. The extra $500 is for "unexpected" purchases, or things that I HAVE to put on the credit card (online purchases, for example, where I buy most of our clothes, shoes, etc.) We have no consumer debt. No credit card debt, our cars are paid off (and still new, only 2 and 3 years old each, so no car expenses besides general maintenance, etc.)

The reason I did this challenge is because I knew there were things I was buying that I did not NEED. The purpose of this challenge is to only buy what you NEED, not what you WANT.

For example, the appliance I needed to replace was a kitchen scale. Certainly not a necessity, but something I use every day. I am trying to lose weight and so I use this scale to keep track of proper serving sizes. So, I made the decision to spend from my weekly allocation because I did need a new one, although I COULD have lived without it.

Anyway, it's been an eye opening experience! I think I am going to continue it for another 3 weeks, and if I can figure out the magic weekly amount that will always work, I will go back to using the AMEX, but treating the receipts as the "cash" that I spent, and not letting them total higher than my weekly allocation.

 

[jsmith]

Okay it all makes more sense now-since you said you had never had to worry about a housing expense i assumed you lived on post. I dont live on post but work there and the commissary is a savings for me because i pass it on the way to and from work. I am in colorado springs and civilian groceries make an effort to compete and there is not sales tax on food-just soda and candy even on the economy-and i still save money but doing my research and purchasing things that are cheaper and better quality in the commisarry ( Meat is better quality and safer-you never risk e-coli contamination because they grind their own) staples and breakfast cereal-and then purchasing produce and speciality items at the local kroger chain( we dont have TJ's or super target-i refuse to do any business with walmart on principle and Safeway is high). Also understand you not using the MTF if you had a bad experience-im blessed because Evans ACH is a really great facility and with BRAC bringing more troops here they are improving it everyday.
As Tina worship said-plan your meals when you shop-if you know you serve your kids the same 4 things-shop for the ingredients on sale and with coupons.
DONT FALL INTO THE 0% down trap-if you do a 0% VA loan you will pay a huge funding fee-like 5% of the loan-depending on who your lender is-if you go VA but do even 10% down it will push down your interest rate and reduce your funding fee. Over the life of the loan that will save you alot of money.
Fun spending is the killer-and thats where not being able to swipe will save you. Boarders was my down fall -there is one on the way home from work-i love to read-and comsume books at an astonishing rate-when hubby was deployed i discovered i was spending in excess of 75 dollars a week there-thats when i went to a cash in my pocket budget-and it made a huge difference.

 

[mom2val]

From what you told us, here is your approximate current budget for two weeks:

Groceries:$250
Misc:$30
Gas: $240
Total:$520 (instead of $450)

So for a 4 week period (approx. 1 month you are spending $900 on the listed items).
What I would do is this:

Take the entire amount you make a month and list, then list out utilities, mortgage/rent, the expenses you listed, and other spending (movies, eating out etc if there is any left over).

Make sure the budget balances, preferably with some leftover for rotating expenses (christmas, birthdays, license plates, etc.) and savings and debt repayment.

I think you got me confused with OP... those are my numbers. I just posted as a point of reference for what my family spends. Also gas is total of $170 for 2 weeks - we fill both cars up for $100 and then dh fills his car up twice for a total of $70 more in gas- each fill up at $35 for his car

 

[amylynne01]

If we used all cash, this is what we would need weekly for my family of 4:

$90 groceries/HBA/paper/etc
$60 gas
$40 allowance ($20 for each)
$40 extra (clothes, splurges, eating out, etc)
=$230 a week