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Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
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Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Jun 6, 2010 07:33 PM
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That is the question I am asking myself this month as I started a $1,200 budget challenge for the month of June. I want to see if I can raise my family of five on just $1,200 this month (including the mortgage, bills, food, and fun).
This is impossible for those of you living in high cost areas but I live in the midwest and we have a reasonable mortgage, no debt, and our cars are paid off. You can follow my journey at www.trenchesofmommyhood.blogspot.com
What would be the minimum that your family could live for a month?
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(24 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Jun 7, 2011 04:59 AM
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I think it will be impossible with the cost of everything increasing, gas at $4/gallon, just food and mortgage will take you to $1,000. I live just by myself and support a house and have a car payment, utilities, car insurance, auto insurance, no cable, internet service, property taxes on house, maybe you can get away with it because you have alot of tax deductions called kids and can't you deduct mortgage payment from taxes too? I live in an inherited small home, only have had rent for several years.
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(25 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Jun 7, 2011 06:16 AM
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Sometimes when people speak of how little they live on each month, they tend to forget about some of the entitlements they recieve each month that other families are paying out of pocket.
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(26 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Jun 11, 2011 09:32 AM
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Right Fairprice:
Many people think they are entitled to have children whether they can afford them or not. My 2nd job at Walmart has many where I work not being able to afford a place even on their own (living with parents), but they have children out of wedlock and then pull out their WIC check and food stamps when leaving for the day. I've never understood the mentality of why they would think it's okay to do this.
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(27 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Jul 30, 2011 06:39 PM
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Wow I couldn't do that. Basically petrol alone, the mort, electricity payments would use up all but 100 dollars. I don't think you can do that with 5 children and live properly.
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(28 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Aug 23, 2011 04:27 PM
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MAYBE, Me and my family live Okay on $1,200 a month and $600 in foodstamps. If you limit food you might be fine. We pay $600 for rent, pay for cable, hpone, netflix, ciggarettes, electricity, heat, and others, we never have any spare money. But we do get $600 in food stamps so IDK.
If you give a mouse a cookie.......... he will sell it on eBay.
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(29 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Aug 23, 2011 04:28 PM
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BUT, it is possible, People in Haiti live on the American equivelent of $116 a YEAR! They live less long, and live in huts, and get there own food, and don't pay rent, but think about it, its possible.
If you give a mouse a cookie.......... he will sell it on eBay.
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(30 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Sep 30, 2011 01:15 PM
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You have food stamps??? Why? You obviously don't need them if you can afford to pay cable, netflix, cigarettes and a phone. All of these are wants not needs and food should be the priority. No wonder our country is going to pot. Our Nation is truly a food stamp nation....sad.
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(31 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Sep 30, 2011 01:18 PM
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I can't tell you about a family of 5, but we are a family of 4 and we live on $1200 take home pay a month. $1800 before deductions like taxes and insurance. We don't have food stamps, but use LOTS of coupons for food. We don't have cable, we have free wifi at the library to use daily. we don't go out to eat, use cloth diapers, have one car payment and 2 insurances. Car and rental. Our rent is 675 a month and we usually have about $20 left over every month. So for us, yes it is possible. I am a stay at home mom with a newborn and toddler. Good luck!
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(32 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Sep 30, 2011 01:21 PM
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I can't tell you about a family of 5, but we are a family of 4 and we live on $1200 take home pay a month. $1800 before deductions like taxes and insurance. We don't have food stamps, but use LOTS of coupons for food. We don't have cable, we have free wifi at the library to use daily. we don't go out to eat, use cloth diapers, have one car payment and 2 insurances. Car and rental. Our rent is 675 a month and we usually have about $20 left over every month. So for us, yes it is possible. I am a stay at home mom with a newborn and toddler. Good luck!
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(33 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Sep 30, 2011 01:23 PM
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Oooops posted twice
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(34 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Oct 16, 2011 09:49 AM
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ganga-, The way you describe is pretty much the way we lived, with 5 kids. We bought high-end fashion clothing at yard sales and thrifts. The only things I bought new were underwear, socks, and shoes. We had a big garden, and canned produce every year. Often I would read aloud to kids by lamplight, burning free-for-pickup wood in the fireplace for warmth. (We had electricity but I was a cheapskate!)
The kids have all graduated from or are in college now. They say it was a good life.
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(35 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Mar 12, 2012 12:27 PM
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I have a family of 3. My self, wife, and 16 month old daughter.
I have set myself to a budget of $800 a month and sometimes don't even need that much.
Our house and cars are paid for. We spend maybe $20 a week on groceries, put gas in our vehicles once or twice a week, our utility bills total maybe $400 a month, 3 packs of diapers a month.
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(36 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Mar 12, 2012 12:34 PM
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Groceries: $20 a week = $80 month
Gas for vehicles: $40 a week= $160 a month
Diapers- $30 a month
Utilities- $400 average a month
Internet Service- $36.76 a month
House and cars are paid for.
Don't use our TV
Medical insurance due every 6 months
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(37 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Mar 25, 2012 07:56 PM
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I frankly don't see how a family of five could survive w/ todays cost increases. Food and fuel being the two biggies. Good luck to ya.
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(38 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Apr 10, 2012 09:08 AM
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Couldn't do that here in SoCal.
"Life's hard. It's even harder when you're stupid." - John Wayne
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(39 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Apr 15, 2012 03:56 PM
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I'm still on my $800 month budget and may just keep it that way
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(40 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
May 3, 2012 09:48 PM
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Our health insurance is over $1200/month for three people.
Is the morale improving around here yet?
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(41 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
May 4, 2012 06:17 AM
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By using many coupons plus weekly specials, and by getting ONLY items you actually do consume, it is possible to see incredible savings on groceries-using this discipline, I have saved over $500 the first 4 months of this year($150/month); note, there is just one person here, more folks would mean more coupons and I could never figure out the "extreme couponers" that use coupons for things they don't use or donate to shelters.
Some people are clinging hideously to their idiocy!
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(42 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
May 5, 2012 09:42 PM
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theatricalhead2toe wrote:
We spend maybe $20 a week on groceries
What do you eat for $20 a week? Gosh, babies are expensive! They need so much. I don't understand how you can have such a meager budget with a baby. The doctor visits etc. cost so much.
We're thinking about building a chicken coop out back and raising some chickens for the eggs. Dunno much about it but lots of people do it and have lovely eggs for their trouble.
.
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(43 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
May 31, 2012 06:30 AM
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I know this is an older thread, but there is no way our family of 5 can survive on $1200 a month. Our mortgage with property taxes is $1450 a month, so we are automatically disqualified lol. I do envy all of you , who are able to tho! 
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(44 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Jun 14, 2012 08:35 AM
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It all depends where you live.
I'm in a small city in the Midwest.
Milk is $1.80 a gallon. I can buy bread for 75 cents a loaf, eggs less than a dollar / dozen. Whole chicken 99 cents/ pound. Boneless chicken breast 2 dollars pound.
Are you paying the mortgage for a $150,000 house? Or one that you paid $30,000 for?
Lynn
You love me for everything you hate me for
.
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(45 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Jun 28, 2012 12:26 PM
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Long Island NY, the property taxes here are $10-14K a year, houses are generally $250,000 and up for older and upwards of $450k & up, depending on location, size. Milk is $3.89 gallon, bread is $3.49, gas is $3.59 gallon.
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(46 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Jun 28, 2012 09:26 PM
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OMG Long Island prices! I worked for a company based in Happauge in the late 70's, and I was constantly in shock at what my counterparts up there paid for housing! They did get cheap lobsters though!
A big shout out to the Dutch Inn in Ronkonkoma! Can I still spell that correctly? I spent many a night there!
Gas in Atlanta today 3.19 gal, bread 99 cents at the day old store, but I don't live near it now, and it's going to be horrid when I go to Publix for a fresh loaf of Roman Meal for my first homegrown BLT!!!! But I did splurge on locally made applewood smoked bacon for that huge dead ripe red tomato.... I can splurge on bread too!
I remember when bread was way less than a buck. I think it's 2.89 this week. Milk is about $3 at Publix, but it's a loss leader. I paid $6 for half a gallon of raw goat's milk "for pets only" at the farmer's market today as a treat!
Where on the Island are you trueblood? I have some really fun (but inebriated) memories of trips to the home office back then. I will try to pull out the names of my favorite restaurants, LOL! Besides the one at the Fire Island Ferry that had maybe 6 tables and the dog stayed in there next to the wood stove. Some place that when they saw us come in, they gave us our own room... And the night we took a case of beer and sat out in front of the Amityville house...
Is the morale improving around here yet?
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(47 of 68)
Re: Can a Family of 5 Survive on $1,200
Jul 2, 2012 04:07 AM
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Burnsville,
Yes, the Amityvill house, drove by there a few times The prices here can get high for sure, but it's beautiful. We are located east end/north shore close to Riverhead. My sister in law is located in Queens, and wow are her prices for food even higher lol. Lobster is not bad, if you get it from the local fisherman, and produce is nice from the local farmer's markets. Ronkonkoma, I bet you are one of the few that can pronounce that, and Happage!
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