Where do we go from here?

Scottishmummy

After posting on various other threads for a while now I find I am needing some advice on my own SOA. Bit of background first - we started a dmp 3 years ago when I was expecting my DD as we knew we would struggle otherwise. Just as well, as I was then made redundant after maternity leave ended. Took the first job that I applied for and although I enjoyed it to begin with after 18 months the hours had increased as had the stress levels. After spending weeks in tears every time I came home I decided to leave that job to spend time at home with the children. This also meant that my DH who is self-employed was free to work more hours and not rely on if the childminder had space or not. We seemed to be coping fine. DH was earning enough to cover most things other than occasionally having to raid the kids savings. However now with mortgage, council tax and gas increases we are now struggling. DH hasn't been earning as much this last three months as he was earlier in the year. I am looking for work and was recently offered a temporary one but the enhanced disclosure is taking so long to come through that there is now only three weeks of that position left so probably not worth starting.

Income
DH £850 approx (self-employed varies greatly month to month)
Child benefit £130.86 (£120.80 4 weekly)
WTC £136.94 (£126.41 4 weekly)
CTC £ 343.16 (£314.76 4 weekly)
Total £1,460.96

Outgoings
Mortgage £352
Council Tax £139 (have checked we are in correct banding)
Endowment premium £49 (not actually needed for the mortgage but loath to get rid of it as only has 10 years left to go and will almost clear what is left of the mortgage by then)
Mortgage payment protection £23 (considering stopping this as probably won't pay out due to self-employment - would like advice on this)
Life insurance £31 (have checked for cheaper - not worth changing for £1 saving)
House insurance £32 (recently switched to cheaper and getting £60 through quidco for this)
BT phoneline £18 at the very most - usually less
Mobile £22 at the very most - usually less (tied to an 18 month deal so can't change until March 09)
Broadband £15.99
TV license £12
Gas £60 (was underpaying for over a year so this includes extra to cover that)
Electric £35 (gas & electric both on fixed rate to 2010)
Gas & plumbing homecare £27 (needed as we have old boiler and called them out over 12 times in last three years)
Car insurance £26 (recently got this reduced)
Road Tax £15
Fuel, parking & bridge tolls £50
AA £14 (DH drives for a living so need to keep this going - will check though if he can claim some of it back in his tax)
Car maintenance £20 (probably on the low side)
Shopping £310 for 4 of us (could probably cut back here a bit but already do packed lunches and meal planning)
DS savings plan £10 (don't want to stop this as will get nothing back and it has been going for nearly 8 years)
Dog food £15
Clothing & Footwear £60 ( I know this is a lot but both children have narrow feet which Clarks don't cater for so I have to shop in expensive shops for them DD's last pair cost £40 and she is already a full size larger but has gone even narrower!!! so I need to get her new shoes asap)
DS's Karate £40 (again I know this is a lot but this was coming out of his savings until this month and he doesn't get to do anything else or ask for anything else and he is doing really well at it)
Childminder £56 (this is for one morning a week to let me do things that are easier without DD like interviews, dental appointments, etc and also keeps a place available for if and when I find work - Oh and keeps me sane!)

Total £1432

This leaves £28.96 our payment to CCCS is supposed to be £185.

Our house is worth about double the mortgage but not enough to clear the debt we are dealing with on our dmp. We have no ccj's and thankfully nothing else secured on the house. We don't go out - couldn't tell you when I last had a drink - not even at the new year as DH was working. We need the car as bus services round here are practically non-existent and when there is a bus it still works out cheaper to pay bridge toll, fuel and parking than it is for bus fare. I can drive into town in 15 minutes, on the bus it takes an hour and 15 mins.
I have tried to give full explanations everywhere I can so that you have the full picture. Having written this all down other than the obvious couple of unnecessaries I don't actually see where else I can cut back on. DH will just have to keep on working more hours where he can and I'll just have to keep on filling out those application forms.

Scottishmummy

Gosh sorry that got a bit long

fatbelly

Just did a check on your benefits.

The tax credits look about right but if that's the full Council tax figure that you gave, then on your income, Council Tax Benefit should reduce it by about a third.

Worth applying.

Sorry, but how are you 'dealing with your debt' when you have a dmp that you can't afford? You need to talk to CCCS urgently, either to agree lower payments or to cut your expenditure so that you can afford it.

SunderlandBlackCat

I know you said you wanted to keep the endowment but I'd still sound out whether you'd get a good price for selling it & then whether your creditors would accept a pro-rata full & final settlement offer.

If they would accept that then you can start with a clean slate & get an IFA to either sort you out with a repayment mortgage so there would be no need for the endowment or a good maxi ISA to replace the endowment.

Scottishmummy

The endowment isn't needed for the mortgage as when we moved house we started a repayment one. Our mortgage is currently £47,400 approx (would need to double check this) with 20 years to run. The house is worth £115,000. About half of our debt comes from using CC's to do the house up and it isn't finished yet:eek: Our debt on the dmp is about £67,000. We don't really want to get rid of it as if something should happen to either of us it will pay out £32,000. We have separate life insurance which will cover the mortgage, this would go towards other living expenses or reducing the debt. Our mortgage still has 20 years to go but if we let the endowment run it's course it is estimated to now pay out about £22,000 in 10 years which is less than we were originally told but we have had compensation for that which has already gone towards the debt. What it does mean though is that if we add that £22,000 to the mortgage if my calculations are correct it would only take a further 3 years to be mortgage free and hopefully completely debt free around about the same time.

I am planning to go to university next year and do the nursing degree which would mean in four years time I should hopefully be able to get a decent job and pay things off quicker. The bursary they are currently giving out is more than I was earning when self-employed so we should actually be better off while I am at university but if I can't get a job in the meantime I may have to consider starting this year but I have not prepared myself for that yet.

Scottishmummy

fatbelly wrote: »

Just did a check on your benefits.

The tax credits look about right but if that's the full Council tax figure that you gave, then on your income, Council Tax Benefit should reduce it by about a third.

Worth applying.

Sorry, but how are you 'dealing with your debt' when you have a dmp that you can't afford? You need to talk to CCCS urgently, either to agree lower payments or to cut your expenditure so that you can afford it.

I have the Council Tax Benefit form to fill out, was waiting on some details from DH's accountant.

We have been 'dealing with our debt' for more than 3 years. This is the first month that we just don't have that extra. Since April the council tax has gone up by £30 a month, gas has gone up by £35 and the mortgage has gone up by £18. DS's Karate was coming out of his savings but now that has all gone so we have to take that into consideration too. This month's payment has gone to CCCS so we have until the 1st of July to sort things out with them. I shall be calling them for a review tomorrow.

Kaz2904

I have to say that I wouldn't go for the nursing degree. If it is still the same (it may have changed so check facts) then you may find that the bursary for the degree is means tested whereas the bursary for the diploma is not. Once you qualify the degree makes absolutely no difference to the diphens. It only makes a difference once you get to band 7 level. You can top up your diploma to a degree by doing study courses and one that your trust will want you to do ASAP is the teaching and assessing which is worth 30 points. You don't get paid any more for having a degree than a diploma and it doesn't make you a better nurse.
When I started my training in 99 the degree was 4 years, they dropped it to 3 the following year and we were stunned as the students we started with were going to qualify at the same time as people who started a year later- OMG!
I speak from personal eperience that once you get on the wards there is no difference to having a degree than a diploma at starting level.

Scottishmummy

Hi Kaz
In Scotland you get the bursary whichever you do. At least that is what I have been told. There is an additional part which is means tested but the standard bursary isn't. I want to specialise in child nursing which in this area you can only do a degree course in. I have a friend who did it the old fashioned way by working and learning on the wards and she doesn't see a difference between them. She thinks all new nurses are useless as they don't learn anything:o However I have another friend who did the degree course and she reckons that as the degree course here is done at the hospital university and the diploma course is run at a different university there is an obvious difference. She may be biased there of course. When i spoke to people in admissions regarding job opportunities they did seem to think that preferance was given to people with the degree. Anyway as child nursing here is only taught as a degree all that is irrelevant anyway.

chookwoose

Scottishmummy wrote: »

,
Clothing & Footwear £60 ( I know this is a lot but both children have narrow feet which Clarks don't cater for so I have to shop in expensive shops for them DD's last pair cost £40 and she is already a full size larger but has gone even narrower!!! so I need to get her new shoes asap)


Hi Scottishmummy

Slightly off topic but could i please ask where you get narrow shoes, i have trouble getting them for DD and any help appreciated. Thanks.

Not sure i can help with you SOA but getting good advice already from the others, if i can think of anything later i will post, bit early at the moment!

Scottishmummy

Hi Chookwoose
The last pair I got for her was from a shop in Broughtyferry, Dundee called This Little Piggy. I think they might have a shop in Perth too but don't quote me on that. She measured a 6.5D then but even there we tried on about 8 pairs before we found a pair that fitted. Startrites still seem to be on the big size for her. She is now measuring a 7.5C. This time around we have been told of a shop in St Andrews - Lindsay something. Dreading what the prices there will be as I once bought my DS a pair of swimming trunks there. We were going on a December break to a hotel with pool and nowhere stocks swimsuits in December. The lady said she had stock at home so went all the way home to get some. Because she had done this we felt obliged to buy them at £17:eek: for a 3yo!!!I think we got almost three years out of them though. Apparently they have expanded and now do shoes too so we will take a look there soon. Has to be soon as DD is having to go around barefeet or in wellies.

Scottishmummy

Have just come off the phone to CCCS and all is not lost yet. Have to send proof of reduction in income (copy of tax credits form) as the creditors are cracking down on those who want to reduce payments apparently. Would then need to be able to find £70 minimum to be able to carry on with the dmp. I think we can do that. The person I spoke to has really helped put my mind at ease for the time-being. We haven't changed any of the details yet until they have the proof of income then we will discuss what to do next.