Today it takes two incomes to live comfortably and the adjustment to one is difficult. When you cut your income in half and add a person to your family living on one income is tricky but possible. The reality is that sometimes you have to reduce your income because of circumstances. It could be that one of you loses your job or you decide to stay home with a child because the cost of daycare is so much. There are something that you can keep in mind to make the transition easier.
*Bills get paid first
*Reduce the household spending
* Cut down on extras
*Save
*Plan ahead
*Bills get paid first
The bills get paid first. Make a list of them and make sure that your income still covers them. Then see if there are any that can be reduced. You’ll have effectively made a budget to assist you during the transition which is the toughest time. Once you get used to your new situation you’ll find that it’s no where near as hard as you might have imagined to live off of one income.
Light bills can be reduced with a little effort. All it takes is to pay attention to what you are doing. Some communities offer a budget billing option so you can know exactly how much the bill is each month.The only drawback to the budget billing is that if you go over the alloted amount for utilities then you will have to pay the difference at the end of the billing cycle which could leave you with a rather bad taste if you didn’t leave room in the budget or surprises.
Then there are bills that are on payment plans. Take these and see if there is any possibility of lowering the payment each month or paying one or two off in preparation of the decreased income. When attempting to pay off the bills you will want to prioritize them by the ones that are the largest or the ones that you can pay off the fastest to have them out of your budget.
*Reduce the household spending
Household spending includes groceries, household items, clothing, and transportation cost. Some of these costs can be cut to reduce the stress on the family during the transition. Once you have gotten used to spending less you will find that it is rather enjoyable. Plan shopping trips to get all of your errands done at once to cut down on travel expense. When going to work make sure you go to work and home; occasionally plan errands that can be done on the way home from work.
When it comes to buying items such as clothing you can check the thrift shops to see if you can find some clothing in fairly good condition at less than half the costs of new clothes. You can see if you can’t use an old newspaper with a mixture of water and vinegar to clean the windows in order to reduce the amount that you spend on cleaning supplies.
*Cut down on the extras
Going out to eat everyday is not a necessity. You can limit the amount of time that you eat out. You can make a deal with your partner not to go out to eat for one month. Then you can put that into savings. There are other extras such as movie rentals or buying a new book just because you see it on the shelf that add up. Try the local library to find some books and movies; they have them both available at no charge so you can actually watch or read what you want before you buy it. When you find one that you like check the used book stores in your neighborhood to see if they have it on the shelf.
*Save
Hopefully the budget you have has an amount no matter how small set aside to let you save some money. When you cut down on your monthly expenses and the extras you were used to hopefully you will have a little bit of money from your purchases that you can put aside as well. You can start a change jar for emergencies. You’d be surprised how fast your change can add up when you leave it alone; you may find that you can use it to buy yourself some gas in an emergency.
*Plan ahead
There will be times when you want to go on outings with the family. Plan ahead for these times and the ones where you stay at home. Planning trips out in advance can save a lot of trouble and expense when doing so on one income. Meal planning can save time at the grocery store. Buying the things that you can keep on hand without worry of spoiling is a good idea.
There are dozens of ways to make living off of one income easier on you and your family. It just takes a little patience and determination.