I want to stop drowning

enthusiasticsaver

£350 for car, presents, clothing sounds a lot unless that includes fuel. It may be time to get tough re school trips as they are nice but not essential. We very often said no to ours for expensive trips if we couldn't afford them and you obviously can't. Same with presents regardless of whether your family expects them. Are there any nhs dentists you can move to or a cheaper dentist? Your daughter is 3 isn't she? Does she not get 30 hours funded childcare?

Maybe post a new soa with your husbands basic salary and your new salary. As I understand it you did a recent money transfer for moving costs but hadnt done one for a while before that? You absolutely cannot keep going down that route but you know that.

You know you have to move and I think your anxiety is kicking in because of the worry of this and apprehension on starting a new job. It will settle once you have moved and you can see where you are. Just focus on paying for essentials only (rent, utilities, travel to work and school and food) clothing can be bought cheap for the children and work clothes for you from supermarkets or primark and paying minimums on the debt until the move has taken place and see where you are in September or October.

debtaghh

The £350 needs to include car mot, service, tyres, daily sch trips, sch uniform , general clothing, birthday , Christmas presents, dentist ( nhs but my dh has major teeth problems ) annual health card, tv licence.

DD is only eligible to 15 hours ( I rang up and enquiried). I won't be working enough hours and don't make enough money through my business.

Not including debt our basics would be like this:

Rent £1300
CT £250
G & e £115
Water £50
Fuel £200
Internet, phone £35
Mobiles £65
Food £350
Nursery £110
Car insurance (2 cars) £70
Gen spending £100 ( to include hair cuts amd any entertainment)

Total £2645

Dh basic £2500
My new salary approx £440
Child benefit £197

Total £3137

We also pay over £900 on minimums per month so if you include that our outgoings will be £3545. This doesn't include the £350 savings as mentioned above. Even without this we have a shortfall of £408. My dh does get some overtime and I do normally earn some money from my business but none of it is guaranteed.

efes_shareholder

can you get in to the new property and then enter in to a DMP or IVA or similar once your history is not so important

enthusiasticsaver

The plus point is that your income will be going up by £330 due to you starting work after paying childcare and that will improve over time.

Yes the rest of your outgoings have a shortfall and a significant one so I think you will have to take it month by month. You will obviously have to take it back to basics which is speaking to your family and saying you cannot afford presents and just maybe a budgeted one for your DC for birthday and xmas. No school trips and cutting food back as far as possible and same for entertainment. It is certainly tough but you have a perfect storm of expensive rent and high debt and limited income. Only you and your DH know what the eventual answer is.

To be honest I think you will have to consider a DMP at some point even if it means moving to a less desirable area to make renting easier. You already have a rental contract in place for 2 years now don't you so going on a DMP wont affect it now? It also means that you have to come to a more affordable repayment for the family debt as a DMP wont cover that.

So essentially you need to decide between you whether you carry on trying to muddle through hoping for overtime and business income or bite the bullet and go for the DMP now to make the debt repayments more affordable and at least you have a house for the next 2 years. You spoke to stepchange a few months ago didn't you? What did they suggest?

debtaghh

We haven't taken on the new property yet and are seriously considering not to take it and looking at not so nice areas.

I stopped doing presents for my family last year.

enthusiasticsaver

debtaghh wrote: »

We haven't taken on the new property yet and are seriously considering not to take it and looking at not so nice areas.

I stopped doing presents for my family last year.

Sorry, I thought you were settled on somewhere. That £1300 is for the house you were going for then is it? What is availability and price in a cheaper less desirable area? When do you have to be out of this house?

Good you stopped with the presents. When you have such a tight budget I think that has to go first.

enthusiasticsaver

The council tax is really expensive too. That should be considered when looking at properties to rent.

debtaghh

We found some where but haven't legally committed. Yes that info was based on us moving to the new house. There are other areas within 5 miles that we could get a half decent property for £50 cheaper and £80 less council tax. It's just waiting for the odd property to come up. We have to be out of our current house by the end of June but then could stay at the family members house. So potentially have accommodation until the end of August .

debtaghh

enthusiasticsaver wrote: »

The council tax is really expensive too. That should be considered when looking at properties to rent.

This is the exact issue, we have done loads of research and for some reason this house and only a few others on that road are such a high amount. All other properties we have been interested in have been at least £80 less council tax a month.

enthusiasticsaver

How often do properties come up if you widen search area by 5 miles then? At least you do have an option of staying at the relatives house but you may be cornered into taking something which is not right but then compromises have to be made whether on area, no of bedrooms or living space. One thing you obviously do not have wriggle room on is price in that you can afford to go lower but not higher.

Is it 3 bed house you are looking at? If properties are extended the council tax is only rebanded when the properties are sold. Ours had an extension before we bought it in 1988 and it is a Band D property because it was rebanded then. Our neighbours did an exact same extension but because they have not moved theirs is still Band C for the same size house.