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Milford couple Paul and Lisa Roberts have shaved hundreds of dollars off their monthly bills - thanks to a little free advice from a budgeting service.
Despite both having jobs - Paul works at a lighting and home design company and Lisa is a supermarket checkout supervisor - they were struggling to make ends meet until they spoke to North Shore Budgeting.
"With petrol prices, and the cost of living going up so much, we thought it was a good way to start living a little bit more within our means," says Paul.
"It's difficult, but we are sticking to it, and now we are starting to save more money," says Lisa.
The budgeting service had a spreadsheet made up for the family, giving them a clear weekly spend.
Parents to 7-year-old Alexander, the couple got "ruthless", trimming extras such as Sky and now only text from mobiles wherever possible.
Lisa has also cut up to $30 from the family's weekly shopping bill.
She's now only "allowed" to spend $100 per week and visits both local supermarkets and the fruit and veg shop to ensure that she gets the best bargains.
The couple's power bills were regularly reaching $200 so the family is taking heed of power saving tips. "No more baths," says Paul.
