Good salary- no money - struggling to afford everything!

[Boxingshibes]

This is mainly a vent- so please be gentle
I work ft in a full on role.
I have to travel for work at short notice so would find it difficult to get a 2nd job.
I make £62k which sounds loads
But this is to support 4 people. Myself
Dh is disabled and unable to work.
2 teenagers. Dd1 is looking for any work but not found anything.
Dd2 is autistic and agoraphobic.
We also have 2 dogs and 2 cats.
We rent in the SE. Our rent is going up by £100 to £1800 next month.
Next years council tax is almost £3k.
Gas and electricity is about £250
Food is about £150 a week.
Everything just keeps going up.

We may have to pay for dd1s college next year then there will be uni which we can't afford.

Dh will progressively get worse. Dd2 will possibly not be able to leave home. My df is in and out of hospital at the moment and dm is showing signs of dementia.

I just want to run away.

Sorry that you are struggling OP. An office is a nice to have not an essential room. Surely your son can work from home?

I'm pretty sure the OP doesn't have a son???

This is a ridiculous thing to say - surely you understand that property prices vary dramatically depending on the region?

We can't afford to move. Maybe once my parents have died things will be different.

Dd1 has another year of college to go.
For work I need privacy so need an office.
Dh needs rest so can't just stay in one room.

This

no one would say get rid of your youngest /older child /adopt them to another family

Apologies - I didn't read the last line

Yes i do. That is my point.

The op is self employed works from Home.

She can do it anywhere.

Paying 1800 month in rent when she is struggling is ridiculous.move somewhere cheaper.

I agree, pets must go. Then she just needs to drop the kids off at social services and Nanna off at the old folks home and life will be much better🙄

Some people see pets as family members that they’re responsible for. Not some disposable item that ‘has to go’

No worries . I requoted you too before I'd read your next post. Apologies.

You can't afford NOT to move

Your situation sounds tough going.
You mention you work in IT training, could you make some IT resources to sell online..training guides of some kind that people or companies might purchase. Once the content is there and for sale there's no further time outlay, it's not huge money but a few sales here and there can help.

Other ideas..you like pets, could you mind additional pets in your home, would your family have the energy and mental capacity to take on the duties required, rather than an additional job for you.

Ironing would be another option, any household members enjoy that?

You're probably budgeting carefully for everything but switching providers/ food brands can help reduce costs but not massively unfortunately.

Sorry, these ideas probably aren't much help and I don't mean to be patronising.

Hope you manage to stay afloat, it's so hard with costs rising and the stress of family and responsibilities.

Ditch the pets

She is entitled to it.

Is your DH able to work at all- from home?
Is his disability something that affects his mobility or could he do something to bring in some money.
Is this likely to change?

Longer term you need to really find a way to buy.

I'm sorry you're in this situation but why have you never been able to save when you both worked?

Renting into old age is not a good idea if you can possibly somehow buy.

Are your parents able to help out? Early inheritance etc?

A mortgage could be less than your rent as renting a 4-bed for £1800 pm is very cheap indeed. Where I am you'd pay twice that or more. So Im assuming house prices are lower where you are.

Not sure what to suggest that hasn’t already been aired, but 💐

But they are… if someone is struggling to make ends meet and pay bills etc, then a pet, no matter how loved, is a luxury. And it’s a luxury that many families forgo for the simple fact they cannot afford to have a pet…

It's actually very cheap for a 4 bed rental, which suggests it's an area where house prices aren't as high as in some parts of England.

Their kid has one year left in college. IF this is a fairly average house cost for their area then HE cannot afford to move.

Callous much!?

Hell would freeze over before I rehomed my cats!

It's one thing deciding you can't afford to get a theoretical pet, quite another when it's a much-loved pet you already have!

Could you move to somewhere with lower rent?

I had 3 years of saving 20k per year, plus 10k from DH's gap year, plus 5 years of paying down the mortgage including 2 years of overpaying 1k to 1500 per month in addition to regular mortgage. My mortgage for a 2 bed flat is 1282 and i have 40% equity thanks to 8 years of saving and paying down the mortgage (since i was 24 years old basically as i have never paid rent out of my salary in my life and neither has dh, we rented as students and parents paid my rent, dh lived at home and used student loans for year abroad). Market rent for the same flat is £2000. We have neighbours who rent out same flat as higher rate taxpayers and they basically make no money.. the flat is worth 400k.

That's why rent is this price cos even as it is, it is barely possible to make any money even with 40% equity. I think I will lose money if I rented the flat out.

On paper, it seems sensible to rehome pets in order to save money. (Food, litter, vets, insurance).

However, people’s pets are basically family members. Especially if you’ve had them years and before circumstances changed. It’s not as easy as just rehoming them -many people would be heartbroken without their pets.

"Why don't poor people just buy houses, it's SO much cheaper than renting"

What a brilliant idea! I wonder why @Boxingshibes never thought of that! All she will need is that £50k deposit she has failed to mention, to repair her credit rating which will be simple, cos she has so much disposable income and the mortgage offers will come flooding in!

@Justa60sRockChick Don't you think us renters know that "renting into old age is not a good idea"? People who suggest this sort of thing either bought when prices were low, got help from their parents or had an inheritance.

My DH and I bought a house 25 years ago, with no help from anyone, after saving a 10% deposit. 18 years ago I became disabled, and was no longer able to work. We had to move to a different area so family could help with the DC, and unable to pay the mortgage alongside rent on the new place, we had to sell our home quickly, and after 8 months of dual rent and mortgage payments, we barely broke even. We've been in rented ever since, and yes, I am terrified about what happens in the future, but "just buying a house" is not as simple as you make out. I actually find your post quite rude and insensitive.