How much would you need to earn....

[spexsavers]

To be comfortable as a single parent in this climate?

I'm on my own, earn 46k. Have a mortgaged modest 3 bed house, no finance on my car, live fairly modestly buying hardly anything extra for me and the kids, 2 young teens. Ex pays maintenance and I'm still not in a position where I'm not shitting myself. How much does it take these days to have a decent standard of living? I grew up in poverty so I'm good at not wasting money. I'd have thought years ago on 46k I'd be on easy street but I dread to think what would happen if I had even one more thing added to my outgoings. There's no chance of luxuries like a holiday. I know I'm lucky to have what I do, and I'm not complaining as I know there's so many struggling worse, I'm more bemused than anything. Hats off to anyone managing on much less than this, I do not know how you do it 😖

Once again a two income household is not comparable so please don’t. Also for the teachers who have double the annual leave entitlements to most of the other public sector again not comparable.
The stress alone of being the sole provider and paying for childcare for holidays all eats into take home pay.
My budgeting skills are great and replay don’t need work.

@spexsavers are you sure you are not entitled to any universal credit? They use you take home pay so after ALL deductions. Dh is the sole earner earns similar to you takes home £3000 give or take a couple of £ and we get around £800 per month universal credit and that is due to increase in April after the 10.1% benefit increase. We obviously have no child care costs as I am a sahp and dd are 11-16 anyway.

How can you claim uc if 1 oarent works and the kids are over 5 unless on dla?

Why wouldn’t you be able to?

Because people who can should work? You can't get the tax payer to pay you to stay at home? Surely even current rules say any adults in the home must work? Unless the child is under 3?

You do

16 hrs age 3, 25 hrs 5-12, 35 hrs 13+. Unless you are a carer or recieve other benefits because you cannot work yourself.

It doesn’t stop you claiming it though, but you have to be looking for work and able to show it, and attend appointments. Unless you are unable to work.

Why don’t you claim any benefits just out of interest?

I'm on a similar wage to you but also have a partner. We rent a 3 bedroom house at a similar rate to your mortgage but I'm just waiting for that to go up - he hasn't put the rent up in 4 years and it was a state when we moved in. We've improved the place eg put in new carpets, but his mortgage is going to come up for renewal at some point. Partner earns a bit less and we get by reasonably comfortably. We are paying full time nursery fees too. If I was on my own I think I'd be feeling the same way as you though.

@Boomboom22 I have no commitments to look for work. DH earns more than x2 35 hours at minimum wage which is £34580 and will do after April 6th when it increases to £37492. I hope that helps, you know nothing about me or my family and have jumped to conclusions.

Overpayments happened a lot with tax credits but universal credit is much easier to manage. Also child benefit takes care of itself so it’s just daft not to claim that.

Also you can have savings, it just reduces your universal credit after 6k and stops it at 16k

You are financially better off than a lot of working couples on minimum wage.

Most people that claim them do need them, if you had housing costs you would need them. Earning 16k you are never in danger of needing to pay child benefit back and it’s for your kids not you.

I could comfortably cover all household and other expenses for me and DS, with the exception of his private schooling. Earn just short of £70k.

I’m PT on £40k my childcare alone is over £1k p/m I own my car but wouldn’t manage on my own with a £700 mortgage.

You can’t claim if you earn over £29k so what are your friends doing?

Child benefit wouldn’t allow you to buy designer clothes, but currently you buy them from charity shops, so I guess it would bridge the gap a little. Nothing wrong with buying from charity shops, but it’s not like I’m suggesting you will be living a luxury lifestyle by claiming the £80 a week if you have one child or whatever it is. And I didn’t say benefits were just for the desperately needy, I said most people who claim them need them, which is true.

You just sound a bit paranoid… like you think there’s a conspiracy theory here.