Voluntary redundancy - looking for opinions

NeedOpinions

hello looking for some opinions please. i am 41 years old, married with children. i have worked for a large company for 15 + years - very stressful management job which I really don't enjoy but it pays well - I take home around £3k a month after tax and get a company car.

i have been offered a voluntary redundancy of £43k after tax. our mortgage is only £46k and we have £18k in savings so could take the package, clear the mortgage and a £7k car loan leaving us with around £7k to live on.

wife earns £600 a month and our bare minimum outgoings (after mortgage and loan paid off) is £1350, so after wifes salary thats £750 a month we would need to take from savings so we could for about 9 months before the wolves start howling at the door.

but i'm very unlikely to get another job doing what I do, at that kind of salary ever again, i've worked my way up the ladder where i am now but if I leave and join elsewhere my 'generic' skills only command around £30k, not £60k also i lose the company car and would end up having to commute much further than I do at the moment. with the jobs market so difficult at the moment what would you do?

john

Pips_Mum

Hi John
You could take the redundancy, pay off some mortgage and reduce payments and see how long it takes to get a new job. If its quick then you can pay off rest of mortgage.

My salary was nowhere near those figures but I took voluntary redundancy last year from a job with good pay but long commute, it was the best decision I've ever made.

Good luck no matter what you decide x x

NeedOpinions

thanks pipsmum

the commute is fine in the current job, the office is only 3 miles down the road -but the next job is likely to be much further away (at least 1hour+ each way) as theres nothing else nearby :-(

john

Pips_Mum

The longer commute is worth considering then as it affects every aspect if your life so greatly :-(

If you paid off mortgage could you work fewer hours? That would allow you a better balance even with a longer commute?

If its very stressful and you don`t enjoy it maybe this is a golden opportunity.

notanewuser

NeedOpinions wrote: »

hello looking for some opinions please. i am 41 years old, married with children. i have worked for a large company for 15 + years - very stressful management job which I really don't enjoy but it pays well - I take home around £3k a month after tax and get a company car.

i have been offered a voluntary redundancy of £43k after tax. our mortgage is only £46k and we have £18k in savings so could take the package, clear the mortgage and a £7k car loan leaving us with around £7k to live on.

wife earns £600 a month and our bare minimum outgoings (after mortgage and loan paid off) is £1350, so after wifes salary thats £750 a month we would need to take from savings so we could for about 9 months before the wolves start howling at the door.

but i'm very unlikely to get another job doing what I do, at that kind of salary ever again, i've worked my way up the ladder where i am now but if I leave and join elsewhere my 'generic' skills only command around £30k, not £60k also i lose the company car and would end up having to commute much further than I do at the moment. with the jobs market so difficult at the moment what would you do?

john

At least £13k of that settlement will be taxed, at your highest 40%) rate, so you need to factor that in.

NeedOpinions

notanewuser wrote: »

At least £13k of that settlement will be taxed, at your highest 40%) rate, so you need to factor that in.

i already took the tax off,, the 43k is after tax

Kayalana99

Do you like your current job?

A basic question sorry :-)

You said your on a 60k a year job ? So 45k is basicly 9months paid leave where you would then potencially get a new job at 30k.

Even if you got a new job straight away in less then 2 years you'd be worse of financially you'd also not have a company car so would have to factor petrol/travel costs (not to mention this would make your days longer)

But if you dislike your job maybe its worth doing as it would bring you a new challege? It sounds like you have it very cushy where you are though and I would stay personally unless you feel your job would be at risk futher down line anyway or you were unhappy.

getmore4less

Whats the mortgage rate?

Probably best to keep the cash and review when you have some work.

quotememiserable

What is the alternative your employer is offering if you don't take the package?

Gigglepig

Would you and your family consider relocating for another job? And what would be your chancesof finding a 60k job elsewhere in the country? Would your wife enjoy being the breadwinner for a while? I would probably have taken redundancy, cleared mortgage, and started afresh somewhere new.

itch_for_a_glitch

NeedOpinions wrote: »

wife earns £600 a month and our bare minimum outgoings (after mortgage and loan paid off) is £1350, so after wifes salary thats £750 a month we would need to take from savings so we could for about 9 months before the wolves start howling at the door.

You dont mention tax credits.

http://www.entitledto.co.uk/

Now, or after golden handshake.

Assuming a couple of school age kids, probably £150 a week.