To say there’s always a high earner thread? Tell me about your income vs expenditure if you are of the opinion that you are broke/not well off?

[Moneymadness]

Just that really. Every other money thread ends up taken over by those with large incomes and low expenses, or just large incomes tbh. If you want to. Post your numbers if you are bloody broke and just getting to the end of the month(or not)…a safe space that cannot be taken over by the higher earners maybe?

Yes, have you checked if you can?

I think you need to check
Entitled To...
This doesn't sound right.
https://www.entitledto.co.uk/

If you have a mortgage you get excluded from the housing element of UC. The only help you could get is a loan for the interest on your mortgage.
Because your house is treated as capital, even though you don’t technically own it, the bank does, and you can’t withdraw cash from it easily.
I find it very unfair that people on the same wage as me but who rent end up with more disposable income when I had it drummed into me how important it was to get on the property ladder. And that’s before you also consider who’s responsible for maintenance and repairs in mortgage vs rented!

I wouldn't count money for rent as 'disposable'
Sell your house and rent if you think you'll need better off.
(No one EVER does this, just moans they don't get help towards their mortgage)

We live on about 1200 euro a month but cost of living is cheaper than in the UK and we own outright and have no debt. Still have days where i'm searching for small change though!

But if the money from UC housing element pays towards rent then of course there would be more disposable income for someone earning the same as someone with a mortgage. They’re getting more money into the house.

The problem with selling then renting is that if you have equity you then have to live on that until you qualify for UC, that’s the only way to release the capital. So it wouldn’t really be any benefit to do it, which is probably why ‘nobody’ does.

Eligibility for UC opens doors to other benefits like free school lunches, which I don’t get for my son, just because I have a mortgage. How is it fair that someone with the same salary and outgoings but rents, gets that help and someone with a mortgage doesn’t? I can’t draw out cash from my bricks to pay for it is all I’m saying

However, that’s not the point of the original post

If you sell your house you'll be way over the savings limit and won't be able to claim anything. In a few years time, you'll be left with no savings and no house. Bit of an own goal.

So I would by MN standards be classed as a high earner - what is your definition of one? What’s the cut off? I take home circa £4k per month……except I’m a single mum of 3 -ex husband pays zero CMS. My mortgage is £1.5k and full time before/after school childminder is £1.8k!!! By the time insurance, council tax, heat light and power paid that leaves circa £600 a month for all food, petrol, school lunches. I don’t have savings - £150 per week for a family of 4 just drains away

(not entitled to any benefits either - not even child benefit)

And in a few years you won’t need the childminder and will be sitting inside a valuable asset

your high salary enables you to make those choices - including most likely the option to leave your ex - which isn’t an option for many

@itstheteathat would be true yes - albeit I didn’t choose to leave my husband - there are other posters here who work part time and own their properties outright and there could be classed as higher earning as well as the posters who have a combined income the same as mine who could also be classed as being in privileged positions also

I am well fascinated by how the other half live.

Our combined household income before tax is £41k and we don't want for anything. 99% of time have money left over at the end of the month. If I earned £200k per year, I swear I wouldn't know what to do with it.

I've been properly broke op. Single parent, 2 kids, extremely absent ex who saw the kids maybe twice a year. Fortunately benefits supported me to pay rent and I worked minimum wage (thanks to being messed around by ex unable to go back to previous role post divorce) around the kids using favours for childcare when I needed it. Gone without meals myself just so kids could have school lunches, eaten value-ingredients spaghetti Bolognese for 4 days in a row, one time our weekly 'luxury' grocery item was Kellogg's cereal.

15 years later, kids are older now, mostly flown the nest but keep popping back. Job back on track/ft but never recovered to the level I could be at. Managed to secure a mortgage once the divorce (finally) went through and I got some equity from the house sale, borrowed the max they would lend me on my PT wage at the time (£60k, live in a very cheap area) and wowsers was that tight for a few years.

Since then it's been slightly easier. Some horrid periods, but managed to have some budget holidays etc.

No idea what I'd do if I lived in a more expensive area. Boils my piss even now when I hear friends complain that they're skint after paying for a spa holiday and a girly week in the med as hubby manages all the household bills. No love, you've absolutely no idea what skint feels like.

Sell your house then!
UC doesn't make you eligible for FSM. Being an incredibly low earner entitles CHILDREN to this.

Of course it's nuts the Housing Element is often straight into the pockets of landlords but thats not the fault of the person needing help with their rent. They'd be homeless if they didn't pay their rent.

Also, mortgages often go down over time, and is eventually paid off. Then, YOU OWN A HOUSE.
My rent is £900 per month, I get some help with this coz I've got school aged kids and a shit wage do to disability.
The exact same house next door is HA their rent is £375 a month. My friend owns similar round the corner , her mortgage is £535.
Ill NEVER own a house. Ill always have to pay rent.

Yes, the world is unfair, but not the way your thinking it.
Wanna swap?

You’ll have an asset in time though. Renters won’t.

When the mortgage is paid off at age 70, doesn’t help in the here and now

Blimey, you’re angry aren’t you!

Im trying to say that I am in a similar situation BECAUSE I’m not entitled to help and I have no liquid cash. I either sell my house and run down all the money, leaving me in a worse position or I remain at a point where I teeter at break even, when actually the UC help that a renter in the same position would get would make an awful lot of difference.

is that really so hard to get?

I think its the demographic on here. Ita weighted towards over 35s. Wages generally peak early 40s, so there's probably a lower proportion of mumsnetters on low wages than the population as a whole. There will be loads of late teens/twenties age people on min wage, but when you get into 30s and people have built skills and experience more people have been promoted up and reached higher wages.

Im a nursery nurse and the pay is horrendous.

Im a nursery nurse and the pay is horrendous.

If you're doing 35 hours per week at minimum wage then you should be on just over 22k

Are you being paid less than minimum wage? Or not working full time?

I work 37.5 hours a week. I get £1,500 a month

Then that sounds like it's below minimum wage unless you're classed as an apprentice. By a quick calculation you should be getting 1600 after tax and ni.

Might be worth contacting Citizens Advice. Do you get proper payslips?

Im not angry. Im sad that ill never own a house. Im gutted I probably won't physically be able to work til retirement. Im disappointment I'll have nothing to pass on to my kids. Wasn't part of my plans, but thems my breaks and I'll have to live with it 🤷
We pay the majority of our rent, the help we get for the rest goes straight to my landlord. It's not extra cash in my pocket.

I know exactly what you're getting at.
You think it unfair that you don't get government help because you own (part of) of a house, thems the breaks 🤷
Sell up, spend your money on rent til it's gone. Then you'll get help from the Gov, same as me.

You earn quite well as a household, similar to me, you're just bad a managing your money.

No one on high salary has answered yet..