Live on £4000 for a year - part 4 (Oct - Dec 2008)

sophiesmum_2

"Idon't have a private pension. I don't own my own home. My savings could soon be growing at less than the rate of inflation. How willI I pay my rent if I haven't bought a house?" Nykmedia

Nyk - that's when you move into a sheltered housing scheme - Housing benefit will pay all rent if you are on state pension only, you will have all your council tax paid for you, and also qualify for free prescriptions, eyecare, etc and an annual heating allowance - (this year £250) plus get £10 xmas bonus towards your xmas dinner.
Your rent will cover communal heating charges for corridors which will heat one side of your flat, your adjacent neighbours will help heat two more and you will only have the outside wall side to heat;) , rent will also cover window cleaning and gardening charges, and you will be free to use the communal kitchens for any baking etc you wish to do also saving on electricity,use of the communal laundry facilities is also included including unlimited use of washer, iron and dryer. You will also qualify for a communal tv licence at an annual charge of £7.50.
My oldies living on state pension only say they have never been so well off in all their lives;)

cw18

sophiesmum wrote: »

Nyk - that's when you move into a sheltered housing scheme - Housing benefit will pay all rent if you are on state pension only

But I'd love to know what qualifiers will be used once they decide they can't afford to pay State Pensions any more

Mine has "moved" from 60 (which co-incided with my first company pension) to 65 (which co-incided with my second - and 3rd and 4th - company pension), and has now moved to 66 which makes it the last of all my pensions to pay out :eek: And even then they're trying to convince us to defer claiming them for a few years in return for a higher pension when we do

I somehow suspect that the first thing they'll do is say "no State Pension for those with company pensions" -- which is yet another nail in the coffin for those of us who have invested this way..... especially folks like me who've also paid into an AVC scheme in the hope of being able to use that to offset getting a lower pension if I retired early (only now they've TUPE'd me out of that company I don't think I have the option to take the pension at 60 instead of 65 anymore anyway :mad: )

sophiesmum_2

cw18 wrote: »

But I'd love to know what qualifiers will be used once they decide they can't afford to pay State Pensions any more

Mine has "moved" from 60 (which co-incided with my first company pension) to 65 (which co-incided with my second - and 3rd and 4th - company pension), and has now moved to 66 which makes it the last of all my pensions to pay out :eek: And even then they're trying to convince us to defer claiming them for a few years in return for a higher pension when we do

I somehow suspect that the first thing they'll do is say "no State Pension for those with company pensions" -- which is yet another nail in the coffin for those of us who have invested this way..... especially folks like me who've also paid into an AVC scheme in the hope of being able to use that to offset getting a lower pension if I retired early (only now they've TUPE'd me out of that company I don't think I have the option to take the pension at 60 instead of 65 anymore anyway :mad: )

I'm with you on this one CW OH has a very good pension and I have a pension with current employer that I have been making extra payments to for last 6 years so i will always fall outside any means tested help in the future. Amongst my oldies those with private pensions lose out the most as they pay full rent, full council tax etc and are often left with level of income lower than those on state pension only. I seriously considered stopping paying into my works pension as I will be renting and not a homeowner so as it stands it will not benefit me much. I could be having several hundred pounds a month extra to spend now - the only thing stopping me is the extra contribution that my employer makes into pension pot and the tax relief I get - all free cash.:rolleyes:

the_cat

This is exactly my dilemma.

Although I will only get any help in the future if I have spent every last penny and not put aside for a rainy day, pension etc, I find it very hard to relinquish control and trust the 'lunatics currently running the asylum' to provide for me in times of need.

Somehow I feel 'safe' if I have some money set aside and am sure that not having a mortgage I would feel even more so.

With all the doomongering (sp?) about the economy I want a security blanket of savings, but it is in effect costing me money to have it:rolleyes:

The things that I could do to the house would be more of a want than a need so I am struggling to 'allow' myself to spend on them. Bedroom is perfectly servicable and actually good quality cupboards (gross eighties design:rotfl: ). Likewise bathroom is in very (un)fetching grey and pink but has everything I really need.

Ho hum - will probably dither for a bit longer until the desire wanes. Failing that I could look at some prices for stuff. That always seems to make me think 'HOW MUCH! I REALLY QUITE LIKE EIGHTIES TAT AFTER ALL!'

redglass_2

[(only now they've TUPE'd me out of that company I don't think I have the option to take the pension at 60 instead of 65 anymore anyway :mad: )[/quote]

Sorry, CW, what is TUPE'd?

Well, the plumbers (3 of them) are still tiling and plastering away, the plaster fell off one wall as a result of extreme dampness (the old tiles had leaked into it for years) and the electrician has taken up the floorboards in this room and my bedroom next door. It was all supposed to be done and dusted yesterday. :rolleyes: Once it's done it will look very nice I'm sure, and then I can clear away all the dust and muck that has spread into most of downstairs (where the bathroom is), put all the bathroom stuff back in there, and (ta-dah!) have a shower with the New Electric Shower.

Whew.

All the tradesmen were talking about the economic crisis and about pensions this morning, and I have two friends who are in despair wondering how to manage. One of them is facing a bereavement in the near future after years spent as a carer. The plan was to downsize afterwards and generate some desperately needed cash but how is she going to sell the house in this economic climate? What a bluddy mess. :mad:

Frugaldom

Hi Redglass, I got TUPE'd in my last job - it's basically when one company takes over the work of another and the corresponding staff are all transferred to the new company. The technical definition is, 'Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations (TUPE)' supposedly to preserve employees' terms and conditions when they get transferred to the new employer. In my experience, the new employer usually manages to make some changes for their own benefit, change in contracts, make staff unemployed in a 'surplus to requirement, in our opinion' type move etc. A couple of my old work colleagues successfully sued the new company after being TUPE'd and their contracts terminated completely.

cw18

nykmedia wrote: »

In my experience, the new employer usually manages to make some changes for their own benefit, change in contracts, make staff unemployed in a 'surplus to requirement, in our opinion' type move etc.

Yep! We were TUPE'd in May 2007, and in May 2008 they announced that of 160+ jobs they "needed" to lose 90+ to stay financially viable. (Think I remember the figures about right). What's really happening is they're off-shoring all the coding to staff they already had in India before adding us to their workforce :mad:

SmlSave

Hello :wave: I'm ashamed I've been spying on you guys for ages May I join you for the challange next year? Gosh, it's only 4 weeks away now.

If I posted what I think my budget is would you mind taking a look? Just to see if I've included everything and what I could possibly cut back on.

the_cat

Hi SmlSave

Welcome to the gang! Fire away with the budget, most of us have done so at some point recently. I always like to see other people's (no not just because I'm nosey!). Seeing how other people allocate stuff gives us all ideas

DdraigGoch

Hello and welcome, SmlSaver. :santa2:

Don't worry about lurker status, lots of us are, and have been for ages. Come on in, the water's lovely [and solar heated too!!:rotfl:]