Summary
Welcome to our April spending post! Our total spend for the month was £10,415 or $12,811.
Our first full month of living in the Caribbean!
The budget was totally blown this month because of our large up-front rent payment. Luckily this is on an interest free loan, but we still wanted to include it now to give an honest account of our set-up costs. As you can see on the chart below, this totally dwarfs the previous 12 months! We obviously knew this was coming with moving to a new, high cost of living country – but it’s still painful to look at!
We’re slowly getting to grips with the higher cost of living, as well as using $ for everything! Hopefully once the first few months are out of the way we can settle into a ‘steadier’ spending pattern.
Next month will be another large total because we’ll be buying a car! Thankfully it’s on an interest free loan again which is a huge help. Anyway, back to our April spending.
We break our main expenses down into broad categories starting with the big 3; housing, food and transport. Everything else falls into the entertainment category, with any large inclusions explained in detail.
| Category | Amount (£) | Amount ($) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | £6,607 | $8,126 | See below |
| Food | £902 | $1,110 | See below |
| Transport | £1,993 | $2,452 | See below |
| Entertainment/misc | £913 | $1,123 | See below |
| Total ($) | $12,811 | ||
| Total (£) | £10,415 | ||
We break each of these categories down in the following sections, giving detail for any large expenses.
Housing
Ouch! We had to pay 3 months’ rent in April. We signed up for a 6-month lease and you’re required to pay first month, last month and security deposit all up front! Luckily Mr Way’s company have given us this as an interest free loan, but we’ll still log it as an expense this month.
| Category | Amount ($) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | $7,950 | |
| Internet | $176 | |
| Total ($) | $8,126 | |
| Total (£) | £6,607 |
Food
Our April spending on food was £902/$1,110. As explained previously, this includes everything on our supermarket shop receipts for the month.
We’ve been trying to stock up at some of the ‘wholesale’ type places on the island within these first few weeks. Fingers crossed we can reduce this slightly in future.
Transport
This category is particularly painful for us, having spent so little while in the UK!
To start with, fuel is actually similar prices to the UK but we currently have a Jeep Wrangler which is NOT efficient! We’re getting a Suzuki Swift soon so fuel costs should reduce.
We also booked a trip back to the UK for this summer. It’s pretty expensive, but we’re keen to see family and friends. We don’t know how often we’ll head home once we settle here, so the cost going forward is a bit unknown right now.
As well as seeing family and friends, heading to the UK is also a good chance to stock up on cheaper shopping. Most things are either ridiculously expensive, or just unavailable on the island. We’ll be making the most of our baggage allowance and bringing back as much food, clothes etc as we can carry.
| Category | Amount ($) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Fuel | $220 | |
| Train Tickets | $210 | |
| Plane Tickets | $2,022 | |
| Total ($) | $2,452 | |
| Total (£) | £1,993 |
Entertainment/Misc
Our April spending in this category isn’t actually too bad. We spent a lot eating out because we’re still trying to make friends here and settle into the community. That will definitely decrease in future months, but should be a worthwhile investment up front!
| Category | Amount ($) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| UK Phone Bills | $14 | |
| Lottery | $10 | |
| Eating Out | $403 | |
| Presents | $63 | |
| Instrument Repair | $185 | |
| Holiday Nursery | $65 | |
| Student Loan | $210 | |
| Weaning Workshop | $10 | |
| Postage | $9 | |
| Clothes Airer | $40 | |
| Snorkel Gear | $74 | |
| Plants | $40 | |
| Total ($) | $1,123 | |
| Total (£) | £913 |
That’s All for Now, Folks!
See you next month!