Housing help?

[PeachIceTeaPlease]

Not exactly an AIBU but didn't know where else to post. Me and DH both with full time but I make more than him, we split rent and bills equally but I've just found out that my workplace will only pay me my full wages for the first 2 months and then it will be 50% for a few weeks (can't remember how many) and just SMP for the rest of the time.

We live in London and moving away isn't an option due to our jobs. I am due in January and our rent contract ends in December, and not sure how we will be able to afford rent whilst I'm off work. Our rent is £1200 for a one bedroom flat and that seems to be the going rate for our area (easy commutes to both our jobs + family nearby, but we don't mind moving a little further out) I guess my question is would I be entitled to housing benefits whilst on maternity? We will still have DH paycheck but they wouldn't be enough for us to pay rent AND live on. I am getting really stressed out thinking about it and I'm not sure what to do. I will try to see the advice bearou in the next few weeks but has anyone been in this situation before?

We don't and have never received benefits so not even sure what we would be entitled to.

Try using a benefit calculator like turn2us, you put in all your details and it gives you an idea of whay you might be entitled to. You can do multiple calculations for your differing income and see what it comes up with.

Without knowing your DHs income it's hard to say, but unless his wages are pretty low, it's unlikely

How much does your dh earn?

Your maternity pay is actually very generous though.

Check it out for definite but probably not I'm afraid. We were in this situation and had to save up quite a lot before I went on Mat leave to make it through. Could you live with family for 6 months to save some money?

He makes about 21k a year but is on a 0 hours contract so we could only calculate it through his payslips. We can't live with family as none of them have spare room for us. I'll check out the calculators and see if we are entitled to anything x

@AldiAisleOfCrap I assumed it was bad as I know some of my friends were on like 6 months full pay

You have 7 months before you go to 50%,budget now,save all you can and work out the minimum you can manage on.When are you going to go back to work,what are you going to go back to work?
You rent is your major issue and when you child is a year old you will be looking to move for more space.
You need to sit down and look at wether you can afford to stay where you are and if not you still have time to sort what you do.
Don't waste time worrying.
And congrats.

I mean this constructively OP but 21k and zeros hours contract isn't great for London. What do you both do? I think to be able to afford family housing in London you need to be earning a fair whack. You might need to think seriously about relocating. As a pp mentioned, what will you do when you need 2 bedrooms?

To be honest I haven't really thought about needing more space, just want to focus on the first year for now as I don't handle stress very well. After birth I can panic but not now.

I know his contract is absolutely shit, and he has been trying to get them to change it for a while now. I work in an office and he's in hospitality. I guess moving further away would be the only realistic option, I'm probably just fooling myself thinking we can still live here.

I think you've got a decent maternity deal as well. What are you going to do after your maternity leave? Are you planning on going back to work, in which case you will need childcare, I assume, which also costs? Could you move somewhere cheaper? Or get a studio flat? I've got several friends who are in studio flats with children aged about four and even upwards, so I disagree with those who are saying you'll need two bedrooms. But use a benefits calculator and find out. You might get tax credits as well.

Yes op, on your dh income and high rent I think you would be entitled to some HB at some point during your maternity leave.

If your DP's current employer can't/won't improve his terms then he probably needs to look elsewhere. I think I'd be encouraging your DP to look for work in more affordable areas to be honest. Somewhere with decent transport connections to where your family live so you can visit easily.

When you do the calculations I'd also do one for when you return to work so you know what you're dealing with. Do you plan to go back full time? What are your options for childcare?

In terms of childcare I have a cousin who is a SAHM and is willing to help out for the day whilst I'm at work but I could only let her do half day and the rest of the time is need to look at some childcare options, as I don't want to put too much on her because it wouldn't be fair on her. Ideally I would have wanted to go back to work part time but I know that's not an option so BEST case scenario would be to find a job with similar pay and less hours (I do 40+ now), I have seen a few but haven't applied.

YABU. Plenty of people commute from outside of London. If you can't afford to live there you really have no right to expect other people to pay for it.

I'd expect 5 half days of childcare to cost around £150 to £200 a week so I'd factor that in to your calculations going forward.

I would suggest its not worth looking at new jobs now OP. Something to look at when you're returning from mat leave.

Do you earn significantly more than your partner? Could they be a stay at home parent and you return to work?

I am one of the commuters, but to be fair, £1200 a month is not that bad in rent - for the area. You will be able to find the equivalent for £900ish a month in the suburbs, but your commute will get more expensive. I don't live in London for financial reasons, I simply cannot afford it - but greater London is not that cheap either.

Not saying that saving a couple of hundred pounds a month is not worth it, just to check ALL your costs when you relocate! (include childcare, I paid less in nurseries and nannies than my London friends but I spend a fortune in station car park and train ticket).

@Ttbb did you read the question? Did I ask if I'm being unreasonable in regards to commute? Don't speak to me as if I'm sitting at home waiting for a handout.

@coddiwomple yes I have been looking at places more on the outskirts (Kent, Middlesex) and we'd definitely be able to afford being there. DH can ask to be relocated but I work in central London, although I don't see it as a problem as I know a lot of people who do commute in.

@Sunshinegirl82 we haven't discussed the option of either of us being a stay at home parent but I think it's worth thinking about it. I don't earn significantly more, but it might mean not paying for childcare and one less person commuting into London everyday.

Perhaps look for somewhere where you could then move jobs to be nearer home when your mat leave is finished? If you're living in a cheaper area perhaps part time might not be so impossible?

Just as an example, I live in the SE and around here a PA could expect to earn around £28k - £30k. It's possible to get decent salaries in the regions and with living costs being cheaper you could be quite a bit better off.

As a word of warning when you use a calculator make sure you enter the rent as the local housing allowance for where you live, or where you might live, because housing benefit will only allow for the lha rent, not what you actually pay. And make sure you use one that calculates tax credits and hb together, because tax credits are counted as income for hb.

Although to be honest on his income and your half income it's highly unlikely, the threshold is low

Just checked on the calculators and we would be entitled to a little help just not enough to stay where we are now which is ok. Will start looking at places a bit further out and as you suggested @Sunshinegirl82 I'll look for work closer to those areas.

I feel a lot calmer now that I checked things out, so thank you for all your help x

A good tip is to start living on DH's salary + the equivalent of SMP now and save as much of the rest as you can. It'll show you what the shortfall is and you can then figure out a) what you can cut back on and b) how much you need to save to make it up. DH and I started this when we started TTC and I never thought it would work as we hadn't really saved much but now we manage it easily so I know we can live on my SMP and we've saved more than enough to cover 3 months unpaid should I wish to take a full year off.