I’m not missing something here am I? Universal credit, renting and saving for a deposit.

[tiredconfusedhungry]

Keeping it a bit vague. I’m separated, STBXH and I were looking at figures last night and we’re not going to come out with much to put towards a deposit. We’re looking at around £15k each, I’d need a deposit of around £60k - £70k and that’s to buy a 2 bed house.

We’re in the South East and house prices here are high, rent is high. We’re already in the ‘cheaper’ part, moving further away from where we are puts us in prime commuting land and would be more expensive.

Anyway, it’s likely I will end up renting and saving for a bigger deposit. I did a calculation on entitled to (based on no savings) and I could get some help with rent, which is great. It means I could save some money each month and then hopefully buy after about 4 years.

But now I’ve looked into it further, if you have more than £16k in savings you aren’t entitled to any help. Which I do understand, but it then means that after all essential bills and costs are covered, I’d have about £200 left a month. Which doesn’t go far with 2 kids and certainly wouldn’t leave me anything to save.

So essentially I’m never going to be able to save a deposit am I?

You were advising people pay into a private pension then spend it all before reaching retirement age and then claim means tested benefits to pay their rent and council tax in their retirement years !. Firstly no-one would be able to take all of a private pension like that, secondly spending large amounts of capital and then claiming means tested benefits would not be allowed due to deprivation of capital rules.

As pp has said you need a better paying job. If you are top of the pay scale now you don't have the potential to earn more any other way than finding something better paid. Any potential to move in with family whilst you save up? Not ideal perhaps but would make a substantial difference to your saving.

And so have I. I’m only 30, but I’ve gone from earning £14,000 as admin 12 years ago to £27,000 now as a case worker. But as I’ve said, there isn’t anywhere for me to go in my current role without doing a 4 year degree. So I need to look at a complete career change. Not easy to do with 2 children, not impossible, but also not easy. You make it sound like there are plenty of jobs just waiting to be applied for. I’ve applied for 2 jobs in the past year (which were long shots) within my organisation, I got interviews to one but there were over 200 applications for both. Of course I’m always looking for promotions but it’s not an instant solution.

I feel for you, the job market is dire at the moment.

People just jump on the "tax payers money" bandwagon without considering that it is probably cheaper long term to allow people who have a job but still qualify for UC to save and get on the housing ladder as they then get no housing element on UC and no housing costs in retirement. They also have an asset to pass on which lessens their family's need for support. Tax credits really allowed people to better themselves, universal credit is 100% designed to keep the less well off in their place and "tax payers money" flowing to private landlords.

Depends how you do it. Most pension pots aren't massive. People are allowed to fund changed working patterns, buy household items, cars, holidays, without it counting as deprivation of capital.

Then claim housing benefit to cover council rent, which is just moving cash stream from one public pot to another, having paid council rent for a couple of decades previously. No fleecing involved.

Certainly not on the same scale as landlords getting £13 billion public money every year to buy their investment properties with.

It's definitely not easy. I have 2 jobs work 60 hours a week. Don't have 16 grand in savings and not entitled to benefits. We have to make the most of what we can do.

Apologies if someone has already suggested it but you could consider Shared Ownership? You could start with purchasing a small share and then buying more over time.

In addition to what I did with shared ownership, I also got a fully funded degree including 85% of my childcare expenses plus a bursary and studied full time for 4 years, I started on 27k and now 4 years into my career I’m on 38.5 and I’m at the bottom of my pay scale and only just starting out in my career. I won’t tell you any of it was easy but it’s doable.

Your children will grow up - your entitlement to UC will change.

This. Once the kids or maybe even the eldest kid are off the claim you may not receive any UC so will be free to save. You will hopefully still be young enough to get a mortgage over 20-25 years.

Yup. The system is designed to ensure you have zero chance of upward mobility

Can't advise on housing in the SE but just mentioning that if you were considering social work, look into doing a degree apprenticeship so you can continue earning and not take on any debt.

Yes we do.

That's not a great increase over 12 years. Now you're single, you need to be focusing on increasing your salary as a priority, that probably means changing professions

It’s true, but as you say that market is being subsidised by the taxpayer. The question is whether we’d like individuals to receive taxpayer support while working and saving, or landlords to receive taxpayer support as largely passive income. One or other is inevitable.

It’s always been like this so I don’t know why it’s a surprise. And why should tax payers help you with UC whilst you save? That’s not what it’s for. And £15k in savings is a lot more than lots of people have

it may be a case of moving from where you are now north where it’s cheaper, or maybe looking at going to the council to see if you can get on the housing list and therefore a secure tenancy

It’s rubbish and it’s unfair. We saved up our house deposit while we were on tax credits. We’re now homeowners, no longer in receipt of any benefits, will pay stamp duty when we eventually move house and won’t need any topups when we hit pension age. Surely that’s what you want? Not people trapped in rental accommodation receiving UC and then pension credit for the rest of their lives?

This is actually a really good point.

I know people who kept their businesses afloat with money from Tax Credits.

Would a shared ownership scheme be feasible in the circumstances?

It's not a given that people will claim benefits/ help with rent for the rest of their lives though ? There are a number of things that could mean this wouldn't happen. Op could meet someone else and not be eligible for tax credits, she could save once the kids are off the claim and she is no longer eligible for help, she could inherit money and be able to buy, she could get a better paid job as others have said. Many many people get on the housing ladder later in life and don't claim anything into their retirement years. Many pensioners in fact still have small mortgages to pay and manage to do so quite easily out of their state pension and private pensions without any help from benefits. Just because she needs a bit of help now does not mean she's going to be a life long benefit claimant.

This is really helpful advice. I’d missed OPs post you were replying to and thought ‘but what if she does a valuable but poorly paid vocational job’. And lo and behold, she works in social services. Isn’t it shit that a supermarket pays better than an important public service.

OP I sympathise, I’m local to you and it’s a tricky place to be work wise, commuting is very expensive. Getting into a better paid industry is probably the only real solution. You’ll have a lot of transferable skills.

I'm sure there's a way around it, maybe if youre saving for your dc?

Just an idea, i'm not advocating for it

But also, when I think of the millions in taxes that the rich save off the back of us, i kind of am advocating for it 😬😬😬

But not everybody is capable of getting higher paid jobs, and someone has to do the lower paid ones! So basically you are advocating for a caste/class system which keeps certain people down no matter what they do. That's just shit.

Indeed.

It’s about time the British public stopped ignoring the fact that it is landlords and employers who are having their incomes and payrolls subsidised.