Tax changes - are you better or worse off ?

[throckenholt]

Just listening on the news that only the top 20% will be worse off. I had never realised before that I am that well off to be honest !

I think we will be about £250 worse off if the online predictor things are right - we have 3 kids, 1.3 FTE salary (both work part time) with a middling salary (average about 40-45K between us). I think the money we will lose will be from falling off the top of the child tax credit limit (just).

I don't particularly expect handouts from the govt at my level of income, but I was surprised that our income puts us as high as the top 20% - I would have thought a bit above the middle. There must be a very long tail stretching out to the high earners.

It made me wonder roughly how many others are similarly unaware that they are classed as the wealthiest 20%.

[PrincessScrumpy]

Happy - in your ideal world, how would my dh get to work? He drives an hour to get to his office each day, would take more than 2 hours by public transport. Therefore, we wouldn't be better off as dh would lose his job. Perhaps you should stay in your bubble.

[PrincessScrumpy]

adamschic - I actually would be better off not working once my babies arrive as twins in childcare will be more than I earn now the tax credits for childcare have reduced. I'm not claiming loads of benefits (just child benefit and £33 a month tax credits for dd1) and have worked since I was 19. Would love to keep working a bit after mat leave but looks like I'll be a SAHM. Would have prefered to have a choice.

[happybubblebrain]

Princess - most people don't have such a long commute and would be able to get around without a car. I'm not suggesting being car free would be possible for everyone. Besides, if more people started using public transport services would improve. Cars are such a huge drain on resources and on individual pockets. There's nothing wrong with having ideals.

[HarrietJones]

Happy- we do all those except the car. Dh works in the opposite direction(30 mins) to me(40 min), it's compulsory for me to use my car and both of us are rural so we can't do any better that way.

[Blackcoffeeandcigarettes]

Hello, I was going to start a thread about this but was embarrassed. I'm confused as to if we are going to be better or worse. Could someone help me? (dh is working away, he normally explains these things) i earn 17,000 basic and he earns 24,000 basic. Am I right in thinking there will be no changes? We earn commission though, and that varies. Some Times it will easily double our monthly income. Sometimes just 500. Normally we are just taxed on the basic level and the commission just filters into that. We don't have any children (yet) and claim no benefit. Tell me I can still go shoe shopping (and eat)!

[PrincessScrumpy]

happy I'm in the west country and lots of people have long commutes. In the school I work at, most teachers drive for 30mins or more to get to work. dh does lift share with two other people most days so I don't feel we're being reckless. We planned to move closer to dh's work but then the property market went downhill.

We did look into me giving up my car once twins arrive but dd's school is too far for her to walk. She'd be exhausted before she even started.

[PrincessScrumpy]

black coffee have a look at the bbc news site and go to the Polotics tab - there's a budget calculator on there.

We're better off by £376 but won't be when twins arrive.

[Eumenide]

completely confused????

[purits]

want2besupermum The cost of living deduction should be based on the postcode of your primary residence.

No way! I'm not paying taxes to subsidise Londoners' housing costs. Not unless you want to give some of it back when you sell up.

[Blackcoffeeandcigarettes]

£487 better off. £40 a month. Better than a slap in The face with a wet fish.

[Blackcoffeeandcigarettes]

Thanks princess!

[noodle69]

'
1 - Those on a low income receive benefits/credits which are not included in their income. A family earning GBP20k a year will get help towards their housing costs, council tax, nursery costs, tax credits as well as other benefits. While they may earn GBP20k a year their real income is much higher.
'

I have am on 21.5k and have never recieved help with council tax, rent etc as our income is to high. My real income isnt much higher at all I get Cb and will be getting £35 a week tax credits which goes towards childcare.

[noodle69]

Its just if your on low income you spend less. I spend £25 on food a week for a family of 3. Things like that is where you make cutbacks a night with friends would be buying a £3 bottle of cider and sharing it with a friend. Thats the kind of things I do to save money.

[Yani811]

My head hurts after see ing the result of the calculator. I just went back to work in September after being sick for two years. I was soo looking forward to going back to work. Now, after paying rent an utilities I'cant afford to cover the rest of the childcare cost. This government doesn't support family life. I will be better off living as a single mom that with my kids dad.

[Haven36]

Hoping the figures i get are correct i should be better off, but my child care is going up by £40 per month (not alot for some peeps) but for me only working part time its a big chunk plus we are very low income this year as parter was only employed part time for most of last year. I had having to relay on tax credits would love to earn enough for it not to matter each year i dread getting the letter thru telling me how much i will get, very stressful.

[cakeretention]

"if more people started using public transport services would improve"



More people did start using it. Now there isn't anywhere to sit.

[AimingForSerenity]

I haven't checked but am assuming we'll be worse off because we always are!

I remember how hard it was when our children were little and have noticed a few comments on here about the North South divide in salaries/costs, etc. Years ago we lived in Surrey and found it really hard so decided to move up to the North West. Although it hasn't always been easy financially I think it's been a darn sight easier to bring up our children here than it would have been had we stayed down south.

Maybe if people are finding it so hard they should find if they could move and have a better life somewhere else. We have never regretted it (except for when I want some nice shops!)

[OhForASilentNight]

Erm, from the calculator it would suggest that I'd be about £500 better off (£25k between us, 2 DDs, both in childcare)... well, perhaps we would be if our salaries had been increased, DH hadn't just been given redundancy notice, and, oh yes, if it weren't for the fact that utilities, fuel, groceries, clothing, etc hadn't gone up at all in the past year. It has to be said that I certainly don't FEEL better off!

[OhForASilentNight]

happybb I think you'll find that most people living in rural communities couldn't get by without a car. I have to drive 12 miles to and from work every day. There is a bus service, but only on Wednesdays and Fridays. Oh, at 10am and 2pm. And because that is a subsidised service its likely to be axed or reduced.

[Sleepingonthebus]

I'm going to be around £492 better off.

Better than I was expecting.

[wasabipeanut]

I'm too scared to look at how much worse off we actually are. It will be a good few hundred no doubt. We don't get tax credits or any of that but tax threshold/NI changes will hammer DH's earnings. I might keep a tiny bit more as I barely earn enough to pay tax anyway and they have upped that threshold I think.

I only read the first couple of pages of the thread but I can't help identifying with the sense of unfairness that it's people who play by the rules, work hard etc. that get hit every time. In all fairness though I can't really see where else it could come from. The poor by definition can't be taxed any more and the very rich just aren't enough in numbers to raise the sums required. Plus the buggers keep it all offshore anyway

This leaves - us.

[wasabipeanut]

I'm too scared to look at how much worse off we actually are. It will be a good few hundred no doubt. We don't get tax credits or any of that but tax threshold/NI changes will hammer DH's earnings. I might keep a tiny bit more as I barely earn enough to pay tax anyway and they have upped that threshold I think.

I only read the first couple of pages of the thread but I can't help identifying with the sense of unfairness that it's people who play by the rules, work hard etc. that get hit every time. In all fairness though I can't really see where else it could come from. The poor by definition can't be taxed any more and the very rich just aren't enough in numbers to raise the sums required. Plus the buggers keep it all offshore anyway

This leaves - us.

[teahouse]

I'm a single mum but my youngest is in year 11 so no help there. Because I can't afford to live closer to work I have a 15 mile drive everyday, and because I work in the public sector shortly my pension contribution will be so high it'll be food or my pension - has to be food!

Because there is just me even though I don't earn too bad a salary I have a stupidly high rate on my mortgage for my tiny 3 bed ex-council house (bought 5 years ago for my and 2DSs).

With the increase in the cost of petrol I'm stuffed although of course I could be made redudent soon in the upcoming round of cuts and then I will lose my hard won house (rented for 5 years whilst I got qualifications) and my year 11 child will have to live with his dad, and my eldest who is at Uni won't have a home with me to return to in the hols as I'll be homeless (and with so little social housing that could mean I am literally on the streets!).

I'm not earning anything like £40K so I have no idea why the Government thinks 'on average' I'll be better off. On the calculater I'll be almost £90 worse off; thanks Cameron et al

[theanimalswentintwobytwo]

£179.40 better off if I don't work.

£270.75 better off if I work 20 hours per week at minimum wage (excluding childcare cost off course!!)