Please look at my budget

[Savingsspree]

I'm a single mother with two young children. I work full time and earn around 35k I'm a joint tenant with my ex partner and we own the home outright.
Due to DV I am no longer communicative with expartner.
Recently, I found out that WTC had been overpaying and they have removed all support. My monthly income is 2k. After bills, I'm struggling to keep my head above water.
If I sell, I'd need his consent and probably need to get a mortgage. I have bad credit
My biggest outgoings are childcare totalling around 800pcm
my car 300 pm
Gas and elec 120
Petrol 100
Car iinsurance45
Gymnastics for the kids 60
Tv license 14
Rd tax 20
Car insurance 44
Broadband 50
Phone 20
Water 40
cCouncil ttax
250
2 credit cards 500pcm

Thre credit cards have a total of 7k debt

I'm all over the place. I'm a mess and yet in a much better position than most.gt

I think you need to consider the nuclear option of selling the property and starting afresh. This has the benefit of wiping out your debts and releasing you from any connection with your ex.

If the released equity doesn’t give you enough to buy anywhere outright, you will have a big deposit to add to a mortgage or enough to rent somewhere but without this stress.

You won’t get a mortgage as a part owner without the agreement of the other owner and why would he accept that liability (it’s joint and several liability so if you stopped paying he’d be chased for payment)

An earlier poster mentioned Step Change www.stepchange.org/ and they might be able to help you reach an agreement with the credit card companies and go on a debt management plan.

It's important to use a charity, not a private profit making company. At the moment you can't get any other credit and you are paying a lot each month. Step Change would help you set a reasonable budget and then whatever is left is sent by them to the credit card company. Of course, you would lose your credit cards this way but it's the interest and fees each month that are probably making a difficult situation unmanageable.

Entitled to is another useful website for checking if there are any benefits that you are not claiming www.entitledto.co.uk/

I wouldn't get rid of your TV licence as suggested by someone upthread. It is included as a standard expense in Step Change plans. It's fine not having a TV licence as an adult but harder with children. Your lodger would have to get their own licence too if they wanted to watch TV.

Do not switch to tax free childcare without really thinking through the implications. It would end your tax credit claim altogether.

I don't know what's happening with your WTC claim but remember that they use your income AFTER pension payments have been taken out - this made a big difference to mine when I was in a similar situation to you. (Eventually as I earned a bit more it got to the point where tax-free childcare worked out better for me but at your salary with 3 kids and high costs you should still get a lot towards childcare.)

Lots of good advice here but the thing that stands out for me is the car.

£300pm + £20pm tax & £44pm insurance = (3600 + 240 + 528) = 4368 pa.

Perhaps not something you can resolve immediately but this can be much lower. I know my situation is not feasible for everyone but I drive a Fiat 500. Bought ex demo at 6m old with 1k on the cook for about £8,500 with £4K trade in and £4.5k savings. Tax is zero and insurance is about £150 per year. I’ve had it over 5 years now and think it’ll be good for another 5 at least. My total motoring spend is a teeny fraction of yours.

(On the clock, not cook!)

Why are p p saying Afterschool club fees are extortionate? DS2 is now in year 9 but I was paying £12 a night three years ago and it had gone up each year since he was there, so £14-15 a night doesn’t surprise me (in Liverpool not London).
OP, it strikes me that the car is the issue here. Hopefully there is a way you can cut costs here.

@Maray1967

I’m far more baffled by fact that the Op has been entitled to 85% contribution to child care costs as a recipient of WTC (and still will be despite paying back over payment). Ans she hasn’t been. And didn’t seem to know about it

Look at Stepchange for help with debt.

After school care in my area (W Mids) is £15 per child for 90 minutes. Anything over you are charged heavily so i don't see £10.50 as extortionate.

@Savingsspree OP a bit off subject but you say TCs were stopped completely. I know your salary of £35k means your earnings are too high, but did they tell you what the cut off is earnings wise? Also may I also ask was your overpayment high?

I am a single Mom on a low income. I take home under £1100 a month. I only have 1 child but it is a huge struggle. I've cut everything back and my DS is no longer able to do his swimming and boxing classes. Especially now with the cost of living getting so expensive money is having to stretch further. I feel sick with worry how I am going to manage. I need to get us in a better financial position and I am doing this by looking for other work in a previous sector I used to work where I am able to earn better. Though it won't stop me accepting better paid work I am very worried about a TC overpayment.

I'm sorry to ask but potentially being in a position where I am no longer eligible I know it will mean I have an overpayment. I just want to get my head around how it works.

If you are happy to discuss but want to keep it private please PM me

TIA x

Needanewadventure2021 Have you tried contacting Citizens Advice or a welfare rights service run by your local council. Just because you mentioned the West Midlands, I've just used Wolverhampton as an example of contacts for advice on benefits:

www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/benefits/benefits-universal-credit-welfare-reform/advice-line

Money Savings Expert is another potential source to find out what to do if your income changes:

www.moneysavingexpert.com/family/tax-credit-child-working-overpayment/

£1100 is a very tight sum to live off with you and your son. It would be good to do a benefits check to see if there is anything else you are entitled to.

Gingerbread also have an advice line and aim to support lone parents:

www.gingerbread.org.uk/

I've been in your situation almost exactly and personally I would keep the debts on 0p credit card and just pay the minimum for now . At some point something will change and you can start repaying - you won't have childcare costs forever.
I had 10k and it was the pandemic that changed for me as I no longer had to pay £300pm in commuting, your current position isn't forever .

I would also look at moving if you jointly own with ex. He can't stop you selling although it might be a fight (my 10k debt was due to the divorce but totally worth it). Buy somewhere else/smaller mortgage free.

Council tax - if you pay it over ten months, you can ask them to divide it by 12 months instead. Same with other bills like water.
Makes a little difference each month.
But yes, drop gymnastics for a year. Kids won't remember, and it will save you.

Sorry to ask OP but is that the deal you have your your mortgage free so your ex doesn't have to pay for the 2 kids?

Virgin media could be shaved down by half at least. I rang then yesterday and they changed my bill from £26.50 to £20.50 explain your struggling and you may have to leave them.

So your inccome is £2450.

Outgoings :

Childcare £800
Car: £465
Household bills: £510
Phone: £20
Gymnastics: £60
Credit cards: £500

Total: £2355

So you've got £45 left per month to cover food, clothes, gifts and sundries. That's never going to work.

So something here has to change: maybe it's looking for a new job so you're within cycling distance of work? Maybe it's working tax credits childcare money? Maybe it's cutting down your credit card payments temporarily while you do those things and cutting the cards up so you can't spend more. Probably it includes taking the children out of gymnastics. Could you switch them to guides or something; they're often only about £10 per month?

This isn't going to be a short term fix: you've got high debts which will take time to pay off. So the changes have got to be sustainable. How old are your kids (sorry if I've missed it?).

Can you go on MSE and use their debt boards? They'll be harsh but fair and they're really good at stuff like this: ultimately your life will be difficult forever unless you get this under control. Consolidation of your debt probably makes sense here but you'll need to check your credit rating first: the money saving expert website has instructions in how to do that any you can then spend time fixing it. I would also wonder if, given you don't actually need credit sure to not having a mortgage a DRO (debt relief order) might help - but this is where the MSE people know much more than me.

You should also consider contacting step change who are a debt help charity and can help you plan.

Sorry £95*

Are you claiming child maintenance? You don't have to contact him directly about it.

Childcare £800
Car: £465
Household bills: £510
Phone: £20
Gymnastics: £60
Credit cards: £500

Straight off the bat she’s entitled to £680 back in gov contribution. Completely irrespective of the overpayment payback.

The OP should be absolutely fine. I can’t understand why she hasn’t been claiming childcare contribution costs. It’s so easy.

That’s contribution for childcare

My biggest outgoings are childcare totalling around 800pcm you should be able to get a 20% contribution to this through the tax free childcare scheme. Talk to your childcare provider and they can advise, but it would save you £160pcm
my car 300 pm this seems really extortionate for someone with such tight finances!
Gas and elec 120
Petrol 100
Car insurance45 do you switch every year? If you rolled some of the childcare savings into a separate pot and saved it monthly you could also save 10% by paying the whole year upfront
Gymnastics for the kids 60
Tv license 14
Rd tax 20
Broadband 50 this is absolutely horrendous. I've never heard of a virgin only area. We live in the arse end of nowhere and can still change providers. Can you double check with your neighbours that this is correct and also try some other providers?
Phone 20 I pay £8 a month on Giffgaff. Or are you loaning the handset?
Water 40 many water providers will send a free water saving kit, e.g. water saving shower heads and a timer for the shower, things to put in the toilet cistern
Council tax 250
2 credit cards 500pcm what interest rates are you on? Have you explored the possibility of a consolidation loan or speaking to Christians against poverty or another debt advice line for advice on this?

You haven't included food? Do you get child maintenance from your ex?

This is a short term problem, you won’t always be paying childcare, they’ll be old enough to look after themselves or walk to where you work.

You could contact a local college and see if there’s a student or two (easier to rely on two than one and split the cost) an offer £10 per hour for after school care
Bill goes from £150 a week to £100 - they could also drop them to clubs. Easy money for a teenager.

Yes look into a mortgage to clear debts, doubt this will be an issue, it’s a high loan to value and spreads out the cost of the debts - but only do this if you are prepared to save each money some of the outgoing.

Check out any benefits you may be entitled to, free school meals, free bus fares for the kids, school uniform help etc

Consider a food bank of you are struggling for a few weeks - remember when you are in a better position you can donate and pay it forward.

Think about Christmas being fun this year, rather than expensive, children remover the good times over gifts.

Thanks @nettie434 I actually felt bad jumping on OPS thread but I appreciate your advice. Yes my salary is very tight but luckily I do get topped up by TCs. I've had a benefits check done a few times now so I know I am receiving all I can and Tax credits is the better one for me.

My only option is to try and get to a salary where I no longer need TCs as I've found once your on tax credits you arent really better off until you don't need them anymore, because when you earn more your award becomes less so monthly income tends to balance out or not make much difference.

It's good that you've already investigated the best options for you, needanewadventure2021 but a shame that there isn't anything that will increase your income other than finding a new job. Good luck with the job hunting!

If you are mortgage free, why would you burden yourself with a mortgage???

Stay mortgage FREE !