Summary
Welcome to our May spending post! Our total spend for the month was £14,948 or $18,835.
Once again, our spending has been massively impacted by large set-up costs. This month we bought a car for $11,000. We also had the associated costs to pay – insurance, license transfers from UK to local, as well as vehicle registration etc.
As we mentioned last month with our up-front rent payments, we are lucky to have been offered an interest free loan for the car, from Mr Way’s company. We now owe the company nearly $20,000 which is quite scary, but it’s interest free and was a huge, huge help with finding our feet in such an expensive country.
We also made 1.5 rent payments this month, so that will also decrease going forward!
Thankfully we managed to reduce our spending on food this month. We really enjoy trying to create cheap but interesting meals so this is an easy win for us. Even despite our frugal tendencies, the cost of living here has us shocked every time we pay for something!
We also had family visiting during May. While great to see them and spend time together, it did have a large impact on our spending! We spent much more than average eating out, as well as on activities like kayaking and boat trips. It was all very much worth it though!!
We break our main expenses down into broad categories starting with the big 3; housing, food and transport. Everything else falls into the entertainment category, with any large inclusions explained in detail.
| Category | Amount (£) | Amount ($) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | £3,184 | $4,012 | See below |
| Food | £561 | $707 | See below |
| Transport | £10,271 | $12,941 | See below |
| Entertainment/misc | £1,248 | $1,573 | See below |
| Total ($) | $19,233 | ||
| Total (£) | £15,264 | ||
We break each of these categories down in the following sections, giving detail for any large expenses.
Housing
Our May spending includes 1.5 rent payments. This is because we started our lease in the middle of April, and then paid for a half month so that future payments then fell on the first of the month. A bit confusing, but rent payments for the next few months will be more steady at $2,650 (ouch!)
The internet bill will usually be more than this. As for other bills, we haven’t yet had anything through from our landlord so the impact of these remains to be seen.
| Category | Amount ($) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | $3,975 | |
| Internet | $37 | |
| Total ($) | $4,012 | |
| Total (£) | £3,184 |
Food
Our May spending on food was £561/$707. As explained previously, this includes everything on our supermarket shop receipts for the month.
We’re really happy with this month’s total here. We did eat out a lot with our visitors, but we hope to keep this under $800 in a ‘typical’ month.
Transport
This is where the real damage was done. We bought a 2016 Suzuki Swift. It’s actually in really good condition and low mileage for the island, so fingers crossed this will be a very prudent decision going forward.
We’re very glad to finally get rid out our hire car. The Jeep was using ridiculous amounts of fuel so our new car should save us a lot there.
The local system for registering licenses, car registrations etc is crazy. After numerous trips to the traffic department, we have finally managed to register the car, and both get local driving licenses. Or at least, we have the receipts for them. The physical licenses and car registration plates will apparently take months to be ready!! That’s Caribbean time for you.
| Category | Amount ($) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Fuel | $240 | |
| Hire Car | $600 | |
| Car Purchase | $11,000 | |
| Bike | $180 | |
| Driving Licenses | $300 | |
| Car Insurance | $513 | |
| Car Registratrion | $108 | |
| Total ($) | $12,941 | |
| Total (£) | £10,271 |
Entertainment/Misc
Our May spending in this category isn’t too bad. As mentioned above, we spent a lot eating out, but we don’t regret it! Not only did we spend time with family, we also got to know a lot of the local places etc. The kayaking and boat trips were also incredible experiences. This isn’t something we’ll cut back on, because we need to make the most of living in the Caribbean while we’re here!
| Category | Amount ($) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| UK Phone Bills | $14 | |
| Eating Out | $394 | |
| Presents | $90 | |
| Shoes | $38 | |
| Boat Trips | $140 | |
| Kayaking | $134 | |
| Student Loan | $203 | |
| Plants | $117 | |
| Hair Cut | $35 | |
| Toddler Bed | $40 | |
| Nursery Fees | $368 | |
| Total ($) | $1,573 | |
| Total (£) | £1,248 |
That’s All for Now, Folks!
See you next month!