I am about to live off £100 per week

[FlatBrokeForTheFirstTime]

Ok here goes. Please don't judge. I will skim over my background. Divorced and now I am dealing with a lifestyle change like no other. My sons are at Eton.

I have a little house in Wiltshire with a mortgage of £50k. I have a tiny flat in London that I rent out to make some income. I have a crap job and my pay is £30k. What none of my friends know is that I rent a bedsit off a guy near Paddington for £200 p week. After all of my outgoings I have £100 a week to live off.
Out of this I have to buy food, petrol, anything the boys want (so hence I am looking forward to them going back to school so that I don't have to buy them food too) Sounds bad, but that is the evil truth.
I don't expect pity, but I have enough clothes etc from my married life to get by, and they are still in date.
HOW on earth can I do this? Do I take out £100 in cash each week and put that credit card aside, out of my purse, for absolute emergencies? My maintenance from my ex has stopped. I don't get child maintenance as he lives overseas. He does give the boys pocket money and is generous to them.

I don't have a boyfriend. I am just on my own, trying to make ends meet. Apart from my mortgage have no other debts.
My biggest fear is never being able to afford another foreign holiday with my children.
How can I get out of this and improve my situation? What do I eat to make sure I am living within my budget? I think it must be about £60 after petrol.

Who lives in the house in Wiltshire? Can't you live there or in the London flat? Where are your boys now? Who pays their school fees? I don't understand your post really.

Very confused - where do you actually live? In the house in Wiltshire or the bedsit? Why are you renting the bedsit?

Does the hundred quid include bills like Council Tax and utilities, or is it just for food, petrol, etc?

You need to get a much better handle on how much you have incoming and outgoing, and start to put aside something for the non-monthly expenses like road tax and so on, which otherwise will clobber you in the months they fall due. Unless you can ditch the car?

Move to a cheaper bedsit or move into your own flat in London? Or sell your flat in London, and live in Wiltshire?

If none of those are practical then yes, put the CC away for emergencies. Buy your food in lidl/aldi. Explain to your sons that you're skint.

Ok. I'm trying not to judge, but I lost my income due to chronic illness and now have around £100 ESA a week to live on BEFORE outgoings, apart from housing. I have two children, one with SN.
I don't have a 30k job, two properties and kids in Eton.
I don't pity you, I'm just gobsmacked that you think you don't have much.

Sell the house in Wiltshire and live in the flat you own in London.
Sell the flat in London.
Get. Grip.

And (still trying to keep judging pants untangled) my biggest fear is not being able to feed and clothe my childen. Foreign holiday? Oy!

£800/mth for London bedsit + house in Wiltshire + letting another property in London and £30k salary.......

Poor you.

I'd swop any day.

Pmsl. Is it a mills and Boone?

Ok let me give more details. I need the little house in Wilts because I need somewhere for my sons when they are home every 3rd weekend.
£100 a week is what is left after all bills, except petrol. So that is it.
I have told my sons I am skint and it's difficult, they are teenagers, they want stuff. I cook everything from scratch. I tell them I enjoy it (wtf!!) I do it because I am skint.
Life is shit actually.

Give it a rest, UB

There's probably people in third world countries who would be gobsmacked that YOU consider what YOU have not enough, but they aren't posting, are they?

It's very common for the resident parent to feel they have to continue the same standard of living as before a separation. You feel guilty enough without taking away your child's school or home as well.

£100 a week is not a lot in this country and at this time, so quit it with your snide little put downs. Your unhappiness isn't the OPs fault or responsibility.

Actually I have some sympathy - it's hard to go from "ecerything" to "little" and I never had your traps, but did have a BMW, detached house and ski hols... Now I'm on the aforementioned 100/week.

Personally I'd ditch the job in London and move to the house in Wiltshire. Sell the London flat which would hopefully release enough equity to pay off the remaining 50k on the mortgage.

A new job in Wiltshire might only pay 800/month but you'd have no "accommodation" costs and could apply for a single person council tax discount.

I'm sure you have some lovely clothes/bags - sell a few pieces to find the new life and start living a life in Wiltshire. It's comfortably close enough to Windsor and probably less of a ballache to get to than from central London.

My 100/week I withdraw in cash. 25 petrol - food, coal, etc.

I'm not sure what the problem is. Sell one of your properties and live in the other.

Oh to have your problems!!

If not being able to afford foreign holidays is your biggest concern and you can still afford to send your kids to Eton and own two properties then you aren't broke, you are just mismanaging your money.

I won't tell you about our situation but let's just say we are living on less than you with less assets and we manage. There are women in refuges with their kids living on benefits. Seriously think about what you've just posted.

In a nutshell - fuck trying to impress the jones' in London and build a life in your house in Wiltshire which fills your soul with joy. X

Can you move into the London flat instead of renting?

Could you tell us more about your two properties and rented bedsit please? Most people just live in one place.

Who is paying the school fees? Uniforms etc? Can't be cheap at Eton.

How much would you get if you sold your london flat (assume you'd have to pay capital gains tax?)

Why can't you live in little house? Work? Or why can't sons come to you in London on weekends away from school & then sell or rent that house?

Why so much petrol? Is that for work?

What year are they in at Eton? Any chance of switching to sixth form college? Something free?

Foreign holidays don't sound like something you should be worried about right now, but there's always camping in France! It can be done cheaply.

And why do your friends not know where you live? That's a bit odd too.

So do you rent the bedsit in London because you work in London and then go home to Wiltshire every exeat?

Could you sell the Wiltshire house and rent a 2 bed flat so they can come to London exeats/holidays? Or live in your own flat? They may prefer to live in London anyway and it would cut down your travel expenses.

Have you got career options to enable you to earn more- I think this is the answer longer term.

I take it ex pays the fees so no point talking to the school about a bursary.

No I can't move into the London place, it's so small. It's a one person place.It pays me more than £800 a month, so it covers my rent.

Believe me I am not out to impress anyone or keep up with anyone....the old friends I had at school aren't my friends now! Funny that!

Look thank you for your comments. Some have been really helpful, some have been hurtful. Perhaps I should have lied and said my sons were at the local school, I think I would have received more comments on how I live on £100 a week.

Anyhow, we all have one common ground, we are all strong women who put our kids first. I just chose the wrong partner!!

Swisscheese's advice is good.

If the boys are coming up to a natural change age (eg start of L6) I would consider moving from Eton. could they get scholarships if not?

I would definitely sell the place in London, pay off the mortgage, have money in the bank and find a job local to the house in Wiltshire. It's just crazy paying two mortgages and rent when you are left with so little to live on.

Sometimes you need to accept major changes in your life. And if you can't afford the school fees then they will have to move to a school in Wiltshire.

When your boys are back at school £100 a week for one person I think is ample after bills are paid.

I have a budget of £70 a week, £15 of which is petrol. It's fine.

I'm sorry things are difficult for you, OP.

For what it's worth, I completely 'get you.'

It's very easy to carelessly tell someone 'SELL IT' without thinking that -

• the flat may represent capital for her son's
• she can only sell it once
• it doesn't generate money immediately.

I would probably do the same as you OP, with regard to the property, but then I am a big believer in hanging on to property where possible.

With regard to your sons, I can only imagine the sort of families they typically associate with at eton :) and I imagine that this generated the foreign holiday comment. Forget that - honestly, seriously, I think you do just need to have a VERY honest and open conversation with them there.

The school fees must be pretty astronomical though. I sympathise with not wanting to disrupt their education - how much longer are they at school for? Or is your ex or another family member paying?

The only other suggestion I have is a second job, which I know is rubbish, but if it'll act as a stop gap? Care work is always there and they need people at weekends?

The fact that your sons at Eton isn't relevant though is it?

Stray apostrophe sorry iPad

I think the way to look at it is you do have options.

You could sell one/both of the properties/move to Wiltshire/change schools/remortgage? - any of which would give you more cash - or hang on until boys finish school?

I think I'd look to move to Wiltshire & bin the london rented flat - you then have some leeway to take a pay drop in Wiltshire.