We're aware that some users are experiencing technical issues which the team are working to resolve. See the Community Noticeboard for more info. Thank you for your patience.
📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!

Can I save any more money?!

Options
1246728

Comments

  • nmealey
    nmealey Posts: 76 Forumite
    Having forgotten this twice, please forgive me if it has already been suggested ( i dont want to forget it again as I finish reading.). Does your mortgage lender allow for a payment holiday, either 1 month or two with no payments. This would get you about a years worth of shortfalls - think sideways....your mortgage lender is you friend really - speak to them.

    You could also change the date of your mortgage payment, as we did on a car repayment, we were REALLY skint one month so changed the date of the repayment date by a week, which made it after my next pay day, hence saving a months payment - £400 !

    or

    This is drastic, but, any debt you have is half his too, if it was made during your relationship.

    or

    Move - It sounds like you are in an urban area, I got a letter from my daughters school last week telling me that due to the regional shortage of teachers, she will be getting public speaking classes instead of Craft, design & technology - come to central Scotland, loads of jobs, cheaper houses etc.

    or

    This is the service I wish I had locally - Iron other peoples clothes, If your in the house anyway, stick a card in the supermarket advert board, charge per bim bag, and you will make a mint.

    PM me if you need someone to "talk" to. and let me know how you get on

    Neil
    If you can't say something nice - SHUT UP :p
  • I think you ought to sit down with the CAB or even better a family lawyer. I am not sure if you were married but you have children together you need to sort your housing needs. Am sure you could call a few lawyers and sign up to the legal help scheme to enable you to get the basic of information regarding Ancillary Relief.

    At least go to the CAB most even have a lawyer one night a week who operates a free clinic.

    All the best
    All my views are just that and do not constitute legal advice in any way, shape or form.£2.00 savers club - £20.00 saved and banked (got a £2.00 pig and not counted the rest)Joined Store Cupboard Challenge]
  • Sofa_Sogood
    Sofa_Sogood Posts: 5,258 Forumite
    SarahSaver?

    I've been following this topic and wondered if people really live like you say? I mean - buying an air rifle to shoot wood pigeons? Kids growing cress (?) at the river?

    It's obvious you're having a bad time, and I'd love to help, but are those things really part of your plans?

    Maybe it's just me, but I'm finding it hard to believe. And I know I'm risking the wrath of the board, but something doesn't seem right.

    Is it only me that thinks this way?

    And apologies if it looks like I'm being disprespectful/wary/astonished. But surely what you're existing on can't be right? Can it?

    (I'd still like to help, just can't understand the logistics)
  • crana999
    crana999 Posts: 573 Forumite
    Sofa

    - Ithink the shooting pigeons was a bit of a joke! Sarahsaver doesn't actually do that! And I don't see really that getting watercress out of a river is that weird - it's just like picking mushrooms or blackberries, really. Her daughter doesn't GROW the cress in the river - watercress grows naturally in rivers sometimes and just needs picking.

    When you consider that she's paying over £600 a month in mortgage/endowment payments and has kids to support pretty much just on a small pension it's not hard to see, imo, why times are so tough.
  • Sofa_Sogood
    Sofa_Sogood Posts: 5,258 Forumite
    crana999, I appreciate the reply, and your loyalty to Sarah and people like Sarah.

    But if we're going to be precise about her situation, maybe it's best if Sarah was precise about what's fact and what's tongue in cheek - re the reference to shooting wood pigeons, letting her daughter collect cress from the river (what happened to blotting paper and window sills?) and hopefully, her 'joke' about the soup made from an old baked potato. Among other things.

    Let's be precise here and sort out what's what.

    My heart goes out to her. Enduring a stroke at 34, the problems with one of her children, her ex-husband etc etc. BUT, I'll let you into a secret.

    I've been poor, and I mean really poor. But maybe 'poor' to some of you might seem like 'rich' if I say my brother bought us a stone of potatoes, a couple of dozen eggs, and tins of peas galore. And his rations from being in the T.A. for a few months.

    What he wouldn't have done is provide us (yes, there's two of us, 3 if you count my daughter, more if you count her friends) with those 'luxuries' - the spuds etc, if I had access to a computer, the internet, and a mobile phone.

    I'm treading very carefully now, because I realise that Sarah's got problems of which I'm aware of now, and that she's well known apparently for her efforts to save money.

    One thing I can't get my thought process around is: mortgage for that much money? Endowment that costs so much? Mobile phone - albeit a cheap one like mine? An ISP to worry about?

    Now weigh all that up and consider the people that can't afford a mortgage, a mobile phone, a pc, etc etc.

    I know what my friends would say if I ever had to cut costs as much as that.

    The first would be to sell the pc, but I realise that it's probably Sarah's lifeline to the outside world. But the mortgage and endowment?

    Something's not right, and although Sarah's tried all the money saving tips, and even provided a lot apparently, if she can't work for whatever reason someone's told her, and taking into account her ill-health and problems with one of her children, wouldn't it be better if she worked whatever hours she could for charity or something? That has it's own rewards, and I don't just mean altruistic rewards. I mean the choice of things handed in to sell.

    Something is really wrong when she's in such a state yet has a mortgage and endowment as high as it is.

    I'm sorry Sarah if this upsets you. You're obviously well liked on this board, but if I even jokingly mentioned I'd boiled, or whatever, a jacket potato, I KNOW my friends would have a strong word with me about outgoings. Particularly the mortgage and endowment.

    Just as an addendum, my brother who bought the spuds, eggs and peas is STILL in his council house, doesn't have access to the internet or even a pc. And he works full time in a job that will probably see him off. How ironic.

    There's a strange twist in all the above - maybe he should apply for everything he can for himself and his family, bearing in mind his wife had a stroke not that long ago? He's nowhere as 'rich' in some things that Sarah is.

    My apologies once again. This is not an attack on Sarah. Maybe it's an attack at the system. But the cress story, killing wood pigeons etc, should be clarified, and people like myself might take it more seriously.

    It was beginning to sound like a Catherine Cookson story.

    Good luck anyway Sarah, and thanks crana999 for attempting to try and make me see some sort of irony in it.

    I failed.
  • tiff
    tiff Posts: 6,608 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker Savvy Shopper!
    Absolutely incredible :mad:

    I dont believe Sarah was joking about the pigeon etc. Why would she.

    What is your solution to the situation then Sofa. Sell the pc, get rid of the phone, then what?
    “A budget is telling your money where to go instead of wondering where it went.” - Dave Ramsey
  • Spendless
    Spendless Posts: 24,644 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    The way i understand SarahSavers problem is this

    She lives on a low income which consists of CTC and a pension. This entitles her to some benefits but not help with her mortgage costs.

    She has looked into working but by doing so would loose the benefits she is currently entitled too (ie she would be no better off)

    From a previous post she made (on old site) her mortgage has gone up due to a previous discount ending and this has co-incided with her ex packing in his job to avoid paying maintainance.

    To sum up she know has a larger mortgage whilst living on less money.

    She can't change the mortgage due to her exes name being on it.

    A lot of us are aware how little Sarahs shopping bills are, which is why we've struggled to give her suggestions to cut it further and come up with growing her own veg and bartering her trades.

    Some including myself have urged her to re-consider the mortgage situation and get some professional advice.

    I really hope you manage to sort this situation out Sarah. Big Hug
  • Sofa_Sogood
    Sofa_Sogood Posts: 5,258 Forumite
    tiff wrote:
    Absolutely incredible :mad:

    I dont believe Sarah was joking about the pigeon etc. Why would she.

    What is your solution to the situation then Sofa. Sell the pc, get rid of the phone, then what?

    If I knew the solution to it all tiff, this topic would be closed wouldn't it? Selling the pc and phone, wouldn't, in my opinion, achieve much at all apart from maybe isolating Sarah even more. It wouldn't solve anything and she'd miss out on the help and advice that's being given here.

    I find it as incredible as you seem to find my comments? But looking over all the questions and answers, it does seem that the mortgage and endowment is the biggest problem of all. And only Sarah can sort out that one, again, in my opinion.
  • tiff
    tiff Posts: 6,608 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker Savvy Shopper!
    You seemed to imply that she was "rich" because she has a pc and phone (and your brother doesnt). You didnt offer any constructive help or advice, just criticism of the situation.
    “A budget is telling your money where to go instead of wondering where it went.” - Dave Ramsey
  • tru
    tru Posts: 9,138 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Photogenic
    I haven't got any solutions, sorry :o

    But I wanted to say, my sis-in-law's parents have a rifle, they shoot rabbits and pheasants. They also grow their own fruit and veg and make great meals out of leftover anything, they don't throw anything away :)
    Bulletproof
This discussion has been closed.
Meet your Ambassadors

🚀 Getting Started

Hi new member!

Our Getting Started Guide will help you get the most out of the Forum

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 350.8K Banking & Borrowing
  • 253.1K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 453.5K Spending & Discounts
  • 243.8K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 598.7K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 176.8K Life & Family
  • 257.1K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 16.1K Discuss & Feedback
  • 37.6K Read-Only Boards

Is this how you want to be seen?

We see you are using a default avatar. It takes only a few seconds to pick a picture.