I usually let my Sims have their §20,000, but when young Chandler Jackson moved into New Desconia, I used FamilyFunds to cut that to §8,000 to see how he could cope with a lot less. As I recall, his available funds never dropped below §2,000, so I suppose that "about" §5,000 is what he actually spent buying his "house". Chandler bought a wooden hut on a 1x2 lot, and has lived there ever since. The hut rests on a proper foundation with steps to the front door, so it's really not too cheap and nasty. But inside it's just a single room. There's not even a wall separating the toilet -- it just sits in the corner. I use christianlov's No Bathroom Privacy hack, so no one complains. The original furnishings were all as cheap as he could get. There's no wash basin beside the toilet -- you wash your hands at the kitchen sink. He has a very cheap shower (§25) by Numenor from our sister site. (It also allows teens and older to boost their fun motive while they take a shower.) He started out with the cheapest single bed, but as soon as he could save a little money, he replaced it by christianlov's Easy Bed (§2,200). He is after all a Romance Sim and he doesn't like to sleep alone! In a neighbourhood where most Sims rely on Kaching and FamilyFunds, Chandler actually works for a living; he earns his money doing freelance exotic dances at the local nightclub. The going rate for a private dance is §80 (using a hacked chair from our sister site) and, when he and his live-in boyfriend Grant Lucas work the club together they can make §700 - §800 on a good night. So, although his living conditions remain very basic, Chandler isn't really quite so poor as he was. He's even begun to prettify the hut a little. In the picture below (of him and Grant having breakfast this morning) you can see some of the pink ceramic tiling that he has recently put on the wall in the cooking area. Although their fortunes are improving Chandler and Grant are still the poorest household on the island.



Recently the topic of Monty Python humour surfaced in a thread here, and Chandler often reminds me of the Monty Python "We was poor but we was happy" sketch. When I see him, he invariably has a smile on his face, and more often than not, he's in platinum mood. Despite his relative poverty, he's clearly happy to be able to live the life that he wants, and with 13 concurrent lovers (and counting), including his steady boyfriend Grant, he's clearly popular. (Fidelity isn't something that New Desconians expect!) I'm glad he's happy; it stops me feeling guilty about using FamilyFunds to take money from him -- the only time I've ever done that.

Well you convinced me to give this a try, I created a family in my personal desert neighborhood (which I consider an isolated community of people seeking a secluded area) with a backstory that a single mother escaped an abusive relationship with the clothes on her back, her toddler, and said $5,000. (No I'm not going to mod their memories to include the stuff, it's just mentioned in their description. Oh, and the toddler has zero nice points.) I'll probably post details in the 'what's happening in your game' thread when I've played it, for those interested.

Really my strategy is going to be placing them on a very small lot, making small enclosed rooms for sleeping and the toilet (or maybe some 'walls' made out of the tall shrubs), getting them only bare necessities, and maybe an easel if there's enough left over since the mother probably can't afford to hire a sitter. I don't use that many mods and I play this neighborhood as having only bare essentials (something similar to the gas station in Sedona), so I'm going to find out if this is doable and if she can keep her child.