Living off-campus...monthly food budget?

<p>Daughter will be living off campus this year, and was wondering how much to budget for her monthly food bill?</p>

<p>It depends on how much she cooks. My son cooks most of his meals and survives on $200/month.</p>

<p>…I was thinking that $200.00/month should be fine for groceries. I have already told her that if her roommates are going “out to eat” that she will need to spend her summer savings on this, or budget her monthly food in with this. </p>

<p>Last year, she spent way too much money trying to find food outside of the campus meal plan. She likes to cook, and now that she has a full size kitchen, I am hoping that she will stay in more, and just cook for herself! </p>

<p>So, I think I will start off sending 200/mo for food…any other advice? thanks!!</p>

<p>Another one who gives my son $200 a month for food.</p>

<p>What we did for D1 was we gave her full amount as if she was living on campus. She found an apartment to fit that budget and rest of it for food, and she also had a regular allowance. She used some of her food money on campus for lunch and snacks (red bucks), but when money was tight she would pack her own lunch.</p>

<p>We give D $1000 to cover rent and groceries. Rent is $750 - so I guess she has about $250 a month for groceries/eating out. And, unbelievably, that’s still cheaper than room and board on campus (Washington, DC).</p>

<p>We give our kids the cost of the full on-campus meal plan whether they are on campus or not … they are then free to sign up for whatever meal plan they want (or not) … and they can spend the extra funds as they see fit on cooking, food out, or other things.</p>

<p>This definitely depends on the area. NYC and Boston areas are more expansive.</p>

<p>We are also budgeting $250 a month for groceries and campus food stops (expecting a couple of hot breakfasts a week after 6 am swim practice) for DD1.</p>

<p>DS lived in Boston. He spent less than $200 a month on food, toiletries, and cleaning products. He cooked well, used leftovers wisely, and always packed a lunch. Eating out in Boston is expensive…ditto most other major metro areas.</p>

<p>I forgot to add how frugal your child is too. One of my kids spent money period. :D</p>

<p>Another factor to consider is whether the student has a car or is within walking distance of a supermarket. </p>

<p>In situations where students have neither of these advantages, they often end up spending more for food because they have to rely on overpriced on-campus meals and equally overpriced take-out food that’s delivered.</p>

<p>mdkskj - are you sure you’re not me posting in disguise? That’s exactly the situation my D is in and precisely her way of dealing with it! </p>

<p>I was thinking about $200 also (will do a beginning of semester stock up for the kitchen and cleaning supplies), but will also put some money on the “flex bucks” dining card so she can grab a quick meal on campus when necessary. My fantasy is that she’ll use it for healthy foods that she won’t make at home, but the reality is that it will probably go to the Starbucks franchise…</p>

<p>We give her a little more than what room& board is( although when she lived on campus, she still didn’t eat three meals on campus) Doesn’t have a car, shops at the local farmers markets and co-op weekly, so it is probably more expensive than finding a Safeway, but better quality food. Admittedly, I also visit her every other month or so and take her grocery shopping, make sure she has her prescriptions etc.</p>

<p>$200 per month comes out to $6.50 per day. That seems awfully low if you also include cleaning products and shampoo/soap/deod/toothpaste and over the counter meds.
A cup of coffee is almost $2 for goodness sake. 2 slices of pizza and a salad would set you back $8 minimum.
Even the USDA estimates that a male (19-50) would need to spend $57 a week to eat at minimal US nutrition standards and that does not include other incidentals.
Maybe if you ate cereal and pasta it’s doable but if you want juice or fresh fruits and vegs that’s a tough budget. Especially if you have a big eater. And you’d have to be a savvy shopper and coupon user.
If you needed claritin for allergies or any cold medicine, your budget would be shot for weeks.</p>

<p>flyaround, that’s just what I was thinking. $200/month sounds really low, especially if your kid will be doing a combination of grocery shopping/cooking and getting some meals on campus. A campus “meal” at the dining hall is $9, and D will probably get 3 - 5 meals per week there. </p>

<p>We will be paying D’s off-campus rent and giving her an allowance for food and her cable/internet access (not included in rent, though the other utilities are included). I was planning to take the cost of the full-access meal plan and divide it by 9. Since her rent is cheaper than the cost of a dorm, I’m still saving a little money.</p>

<p>D is living in a huge but slightly run down house, however it is very close to middle of campus. I also think it is expensive considering the landlords are getting rent from four or five girls. They have two refrigerators though so lots of room for everyone!</p>

<p>Check on what financial aid, full scholarships allow for food at the school. Try to stock her pantry and other needed goods from home. Discuss with her how much discretionery money there is/should be in the budget for eating out, coffee and snacks et al. Is a daily Starbucks reasonable? Is once a week or month meal out? Hoew expensive are her dietary habits? Steak costs a lot more than peanut butter… Also be aware that with this summer’s drought food prices will be rising. You can’t necessarily go on last year’s prices.</p>

<p>Took this discussion to the dinner table last night. We decided to stock the kitchen at the beginning of the semester and then have D save receipts for a couple of months, so we can all sit down and check actual costs.</p>

<p>I’m actually less concerned about my college student that about her older sister trying to survive at her first job in the big city on what is turning out to be a really small paycheck. I may end up sending her a monthly check destined to give her something besides ramen and pb&j to eat. :(</p>

<p>flyaround–if she is buying groceries and making her own food, it won’t cost as much though. It doesn’t cost $2 to brew your own cup of coffee and she can make a pizza for less than what 2 slices would cost. $57/week is just over $200/month and most girls don’t eat that much.</p>