My budget has been blown up.

[stevewool]

6 hours ago, virginprune said:

Electric charges can vary dramatically depending on what you are powering, air con being the main thing for higher bills. We don't have aircon and only one big fan outside on the rear verandah if it gets too humid. We have and run all the usual appliances and devices that most households have and our bill is around P1100 a month. 

Water, which I don't have piped in, is not too expensive I believe, neither is drinking water.

Thank you for your reply,

[sonjack2847]

The cost of all things can vary depending on location.A friend of mine lived in Pampanga and he told me his electricity was 27p per KWH.All the locations (3) I have lived have been 10p.Water was cheaper where I used to live and Tv was more expensive.If you visit me you should  allow at least 500 p per day for my Pilsen that is in stone and will not change from week to week.

[Dave Hounddriver]

13 hours ago, stevewool said:

it was mainly Electric charges, water charges and other charges like these

These are all over the map.  I know a man just down the street who lives in moderate filipino style.  He rents a piece of land at cheap Philippine prices and he built himself a half decent 2 bedroom house for about half a million pesos.  He intends to rent the land until he dies and leave the house to whoever moves in next.  He figures a half million pesos is cheaper than renting a house if he lasts at least 10 years.  His electric and water and other charges are negliible, but you have to go half way native to live like that.  I could, I've been here 10 years and understand what goes on.

On the flipside are expats in high end subdivisions or condos with HOA fees and taxes and electric charges and water charges that are more than a typical expats pay in rent.

So your mileage will vary extensively depending what you live in and where it is.

[Gratefuled]

9 hours ago, Queenie O. said:

If you follow a rather particular predictable lifestyle and spending habits, and live in the same place, in a pretty short time you can see a pattern and try to tweak your spending habits to fit your desired budget. Of course you have to have a good sized buffer in case of those "what ifs"  and those always seem to appear in some way or another. There is no room in a budget for going "hog wild" and having a lot of spending sprees, or you could come come up short halfway through the month. If you had to spend more one month for some things, you might have to tighten your belt in other aspects for a while. You also have to figure out what you're not willing to scrimp on, and maybe be more frugal in other aspects. It's a kind of balancing act on some parts of your budget, and other parts are pretty routine and predictable I think. The other day I noticed that my husband had been writing down in a notebook daily purchases. I don't do that.

Since I persuaded my wife to retire early and become a full time mother and full time wife, the only income she would have had is the rent from her boarding house. She put all of the money she received from the hospital on retirement in the bank.

This was with the understanding that I agreed to give her what we jokingly call "honorarium". Once a month I give her a set amount to cover groceries for her and her son. They eat different than I do. In addition to this, I include money for her social security her health insurance ( which she included me ), life insurance, and extra spending money for incidentals. I'm frugal but I'm not a tightwad. I spring for everything when we go out. As long as she is happy, I'm happy. 

P.S. She misses her work and her co workers. They still meet once in a while for dinner someplace, usually Yakimix.

[Snowy79]

I'd add to that you can run your money down if it just sits in the bank and gains a little interest. Some work on having x amount of money to last them 25 years thinking they'll be dead by then. They could get a shock when the money runs out and all they have is a pension which chances are won't keep up with inflation. 

I've went down the route of buying a condo to rent out with the hopes that any surplus cash saves me drawing down my savings. I'm only one week into ownership and already getting bookings into next year. At my rates it'll be paid for in 5 years or if I spend the profit I'll not have to touch my savings and have a guaranteed income. 

Edited July 18, 2017 by Snowy79

[stevewool]

It's trying to get the budget right, if you have people to leave your cash and property too all is well and good, but if you have not well you may as well spend spend spend, I am sure there are lots of rich dead folk in the cemetery, it's that fine line we all try to walk but few manage it.

[hk blues]

I know everyone has a different philosophy on budgeting, I'm of the school of thinking that my income is finite and I have to match my budget to that number. 

I aim to spend as little as I have to, leaving me enough left to spend as much as I want to!

[bows00]

Personally, I find that budgets don't work.  I quit doing them.  There will always be unaccounted for expenses.  

But then again, I never go overboard on expenses, unless I am on vacation...

[Dave Hounddriver]

1 hour ago, bows00 said:

Personally, I find that budgets don't work.  I quit doing them.  There will always be unaccounted for expenses.  

They work.  Part of a budget is accounting for unaccounted for expenses and when something comes up that is over the top then you have to decide which other part of the budget to take the money from.

There are only 3 scenarios.  First you have so much money that you don't need a budget, you spend and spend and still have money left over.  Second you budget (mentally or on paper) because you know that what goes out must be less than or equal to what is coming in.  Third you keep going deeper into debt as you quit doing budgets.

[AlwaysRt]

47 minutes ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

First you have so much money that you don't need a budget, you spend and spend and still have money left over.

Which is still being on a budget. Otherwise you would be buying airplanes, 1st class tickets every other weekend, cars for friends... living within your means is living within your budget.