To think we're in the minority?

[richardhammondsgoatee]

Our business was decimated by corona virus. To put it into context it relies on international travel and movement of workers. We were BRINGING HOME (net pay) over £100,000 pa. Within a week we lost our whole income. We had to lay off 3 employees once furlough ended. 2 years later we are bringing home less than half that from 2 businesses - includes another business we started during lockdown. I am also working in a stable job (stable as in there's always work in the field but still only a temp contract) which was my previous career so overall our household income is around half of pre corona. (So around £50,000) I had left that career late 2019 mainly due to not needing to work and ill health.

We moved house in 2019 and our mortgage is big, we could obviously afford it easily then. We can't easily move as we wouldn't get a mortgage on even a cheaper property right now (self assessment) and rent would be the same in even a smaller house. For context mortgage is just less than half of our income now. It's been tough but now we finally have "enough"

We had worked hard to get where we were and continue to work hard and are incredibly lucky to have had the skills to open our new business (completely non related to main business) which also benefited from one of the government lockdown schemes. The profit of that is not enough to live on however (wouldn't cover the mortgage) My career is a government one, there will always be work but pay is limited as with all govt jobs. I am still in ill health.

Things are further complicated in that we have business partners (another family). For various reasons our business relationship has become problematic yet neither family can afford to extricate themselves.

During the last 2 years we have taken a mortgage break which increased our payments by around £100 when we started paying again. I have worked several temporary and at times very difficult contracts and my health has deteriorated further.

Anyway that's the jist of the story, emotionally it has been really tough. We're both very hard workers and in our mid 40s it's tough to have started businesses from scratch again! We have 3 children.

But I don't know anyone else who has such a huge and ongoing impact on their income.

AIBU to think we're in the minority? I can't tell you how many people I see who seemingly enjoyed a lovely break from work on furlough while still being paid or worked from home doing exactly the same work but without the commute.

I suspect I'm being very middle class and actually should get over myself, any anecdotes that make me feel like a twat for how I feel will be graciously welcomed.

I also suspect the problems with the business partnership are making me feel more bitter than I should.

I'm not stupid btw I know people will be worse off than us and we could obviously live on less if it wasn't for the house. It's not a flash house, we just live in a high cost area. I just don't see anyone else on half the income of before with double the effort.

Go ahead and give me a stern talking to if you need to. I'm just glad to get how I feel off my chest!

Surely brexit before the virus had a very very negative impact before the virus?

Actually not so much. Obviously it was going to and since we've started trading again yes, but we are mainly now moving European people around European countries and not working with UK contracts. No goods are exchanged, only skills so no tariffs in that respect. Our biggest issue until recently has actually been covid testing for travel and having all the documentation correct for that.

Plus we'd already worked out how to brexit proof our business. No plans for being pandemic proof though!

Brexit didn't ruins peoples businesses 🙄

@PaddleBoardingMomma

did you bother to read what the OP’s actually hinges on? 🙄

Presumably international recruitment? Contractors!

Far from it, this is one of the least superior posts like this that I’ve read and I’m really sorry. It does sound hard. Even someone who can come along with greater hardship and yes, there are no doubt many, shouldn’t really deflect from your own anxiety about everything that’s happened. I’ve never earned anywhere near that but I know how quickly people adapt to their means and I can imagine the knock was tough.

Middle-class people-trafficking! 😂

I didn’t mean to put an !

Absolutely not superior

You ran a successful business, built up by you and your family. Must be devastating

@Intrigueddotcom correct!

Hilarious that people still think businesses couldn't be ruined by brexit! Obviously completely unaware that we live in a global society and a large proportion of business on the UK relies on trade with the EU. Very short sighted point of view.

I think those people who enjoyed furlough, stayed home and saved will soon be feeling the pinch of rising living costs.

Ha ha. Going to rename the business for sure!

"Surely brexit before the virus had a very very negative impact before the virus?"
"did you bother to read what the OP’s actually hinges on?"

Brexit has had very little effect.

People still travel they have a to get a visa - big deal
Indeed as many east European went home after Brexit and the pandemic they wouuld have been travelling when they otherwise would not have done so

It is. I'm not unsympathetic to other peoples realitiesbut this is the one we're living. It's hard to look outwards sometimes

Read the op.
see her line of work

and then see what the op says about it being ridiculous to think brexit would not have had on her line of work 😂

Yes.

Another hurdle to deal with because of course half our previous income is not comparable with what it would have been living on half of our income 2 years ago.

I didn't mention it though because in this regard there are people becoming completely destitute which we clearly are not.

i think those people who enjoyed furlough, stayed home and saved will soon be feeling the pinch of rising living costs.

Depends on their salary. It's hitting the low paid and those on fixed incomes ie benefits but people earning above average can afford to take the hit of increased living costs.

Agreed

Most people I know who were furloughed are cutting costs but nowhere near penny pinching.

We have changed from a cheap old banger with high mpg to a cheap old banger with low mpg. It might be a cheap old banger but at least I can afford to carry on running a car giving me far more employment opportunities.

My neighbours were furloughed. They've bought a super car - extreme example but illustrates the point!

OP I think there are a lot of businesses large and small that are in very precarious states financially at the moment. On the face of things, people look like they’re doing well but I think there are lots of people who could lose it very quickly.

But I don't know anyone else who has such a huge and ongoing impact on their income

Some people have lost 100% of their income.

I know that of course.

My AIBU is are we/they in a minority? I have read articles of course about this but I don't know anyone.

It's a weird kind of comfort to seek in knowing that other people have experienced it too (or worse!)

It sounds very stressful, good on you for grasping the nettle and trying a new business.
This is what people mean when they say everyone is just three events away from poverty.
OK the pandemic affected everyone but events can and do happen to even the hardest workers, rich and poor.
I work with a range of people from very wealthy to dirt poor. Some are more disrupted than others but if I had to choose the worst one off would be a lady who is a care supervisor (hardest worker I've ever met) in a nursing home. You can imagine her losses but on top of that she also lost her parent and grandparent (and her childcare/ support network) when she caught the virus and took it home.
Money is important but some had severe costs you wouldn't swap for.

OP, your situation is why I was passionately anti lockdown throughout. It's left a proportion of people on their knees.
I think Jo Public looks around and sees that everything appears to be OK (businesses and services still open, their local high street seeming to be intact) but don't realise that many business owners have burnt through the entire of their savings buffer and now have no liquidity, and might have also taken out a loan that they're struggling to repay.
To answer your question, DH and I were unaffected by Covid.
DH works in residential property and lost all of his income for the first 6 weeks of lockdown, then the housing market unexpectedly exploded and he had the most lucrative two years of his life.
I worked for a management consultancy and was already in a home-based role so just carried on as normal. They made record profits (2020 was 25% up on 2019) so gave us all several generous bonuses over the course of the two years. I worked so hard throughout that I also justified a pay rise and got 12.5%.
Of all of our friends and family, literally noone has lost a penny due to their being either public sector workers (a combination of both 'key worker' and home based) or working from home, not on furlough, in the private sector.
My heart goes out to how difficult your situation is.

I totally get where you’re coming from-yes other people have had it tough too, but that doesn’t make your situation any less challenging.

I’m fed up of hearing dh’s colleagues manning about returning to the office. DH used to car share with 3 colleagues (150 mile round trip daily) the 3 colleagues worked from home while dh still had to commute. His travel costs QUADRUPLED for the past 2 years and it’s still ongoing, but these colleagues complain about having to go into the office 2 days a week!

@richardhammondsgoatee

People who were furloughed may have been living in 80% of their salary but they were saving a tonne of money by staying at home. Furlough ended last year, so everyone is back at work earning normal salaries. I don't understand the poster who said that those that were furloughed will soon be feeling the cost of living crisis. Those feeling the cost of living crisis are the low paid and those on fixed incomes, furloughed or not.