How are you faring?

we are all in the same boat

We are just about managing but its tight . We retired over a year ago on savings and a small private pension and allocated ourselves a monthly amount to live on . It was a fairly frugal budget at the time but we have had to cut back a bit further and are having a short UK break this year rather than longer holiday . Any extras are only possible as I am doing a few hours agency work each month . We still consider ourselves very fortunate to be able to have " retired " early and are happy spending our time doing very low cost hobbies .

I have put this up before but it’s worth repeating.
If you are on pension credit you can get your service charge and ground rent paid.
I sorted it for a friend some years ago.

Thanks all of you that responded and sent love, it does help. It really is a sorry mess ....

I emailed my MP, and Adult Social Care in October/December/January/February - they have both basically ignored me! I need some extra hours to get my house in order. The money is there in my Direct Payment Account, I am NOT asking for more, just permission to spend what is already there. They are more interested in clawing it back. SS are no longer caring individuals, they are bean counters for the Local Authority ... I even went down the complaint route in February, they have got rather clever with that too. You can now fill in an online form (which doesn't work) or email the Complaints Team with your complaint. They send back an emails saying they have sent it to the relevant department! Said relevant dept then email to say 'you are due a reassessment with our NEW ongoing Support Team' (probably meaning that they will review and reduce the support you need, as they did last time.

*Bikergran - it's awful the Service Charges they apply. My Mums has gone up just over £1,000 a year. It's a nice place, in a nice village, BUT they want to dig up the whole garden just because it is on their 10 year plan or whatever - it's beautiful! Lovely mature plants, well designed, a large pond etc .... yes, the pond wants a new pump, a a gazebo with some shade would be welcomed if it's going to be as hot as it was last year, that's all, BUT NO, they are going to dig it all up and change it! The residents would far rather have their charges reduced instead, especially when their is just no need for it!

Happygirl79

PamelaJ1

One of my DH’s loves is his daily newspaper but we have been away for 2months so I changed our subscription to online only.
He is becoming used to reading it this way and, although I agree with him that it’s not quite the same, I think we may stick with it and save about £70/month.

If you are a member of your local library, you can read all newspapers for free every day using the Pressreader app. You just log in using your library card number. Your favourite magazines are available too. Saves a fortune.

The trouble with that is the papers have to make some money to survive. If we all start getting it free won’t they go out of business?
I don’t want them to do that.

My dad lives in sheltered accomodation, his rent/service charge has gone up £40 a week! yes thats a week!

I have my broadband, phone and TV ( basic package, no extra Chanel’s) from virgin and finally got round to negotiating with them today. I wanted to stick with virgin as I can’t have a dish on my low lying bungalow and BT does not offer a good coverage in my area. I don’t really need to tv package, I do like to record programmes but was considering downgrading just to broadband.

So I armed myself with lots of research on prices for new customers with all the main providers and got through to a very helpful chap - no wait either! I said I could not afford the increase from £57 to £73 from April and objected to paying more as an existing customer than a new one. I asked for a comparison price for just broadband.

I was very pleasant, not stroppy or demanding and it seemed to work, he even complimented me on my politeness! Eventually after several offers, I got a price equal to what new customers get, £52 a month, with an enhanced tv package, a new improved box and free phone calls! That is lower than BT and Talk Talk were quoting so I was very happy. The price is fixed for 18 months so I won’t have to negotiate again for a while.

It annoys me that we have to do this, it’s ridiculous that existing customers don’t get decent deals without going through this performance.

I am fortunate in that I have a decent teachers pension and was also able to make provision for my retirement in my last 15 years of work when I downsized after my children all flew the nest. I was divorced many years ago and knew that it was up to me to plan for my retirement. Looking back, I’m so glad that I only took a few years as a careers break when my children were young and was able to focus on advancing my careers once I went back to work.

My health is not great but I’m grateful for what I have and try to help others less fortunate, I’m currently volunteering at two different Warm Places three days a week, I run a board games group at one of them and am teaching some ladies to crochet at another - and keeping warm at the same time!

Same thing happening here in Australia and really hard for anyone renting because rents are sky high and rising. Interest rates are going up and so is the price of everyday items and food and power. Wages and pensions never keep pace of course and we have a state government that likes to spend money on re building perfectly functional level crossings.

Dont forget that you may find yourself paying more tax due to the freezing of the personal allowances until 2028. Some people who have never paid tax before will now do so and others who already pay tax may be dragged into a higher tax band.

If you work for an employer you can always reduce your hours or leave the job. However if you are retired then you are stuck with giving more of your income into the grubby hands of the tax man.

However if you are self employed (and especially if you work from home) you may be able to claim more business expenses on utilities/broadband/c tax etc

Made in Yorkshire, so sorry for your plight ……💐💐💐💐💐

I hope you can find some support where you are.
Your story is so sad.

MadeinYorkshire. Can you get your local councillor to investigate your status and get someone to help you sort your right to benefits out.
I hope your fears about your health are unfounded.

MadeinYorkshire- so sorry 😥- I was just about to moan about something, but I won’t - your story is heartbreaking.

MadeInYorkshireI have no answer or solution, but I'm so sorry to read of your horrendous situation.

So sorry to read your struggles madeinyorkshire 💐

Cabbie21

Our Council Tax will be £207 pm, (for 10 months).

Mine will be another £100 pm on top of that 😱

madeinyorkshire what a terrible time you’ve been having. Have you asked your local councillor to help you find out what support is available to you? Life is just not fair,

madeinyorkshire

I am not pension age and as disabled and unwell, am struggling on legacy benefits. Didn't get any cost of living payment because the DWP was paying me wrongly - I recant that tale on another post about the DWP.

No heating, no holidays for 12 years, no decent food, house insurance went up £100 a month because I had a claim (one of my patio doors when 'bang' due to solar expansion, so insurance job it was; and my pet insurance has gone up £50 a month because I had to claim on my dog last year.

I am drowning, I have a house which is fully mine, but I can't afford to improve or repair it. I cannot sell it as that would make me 'intentionally homeless', and it wouldn't even give me enough money to buy anything here (and here I must be) with a garden for my dogs, as it is an ex-council house, and people cannot get a mortgage on it, so would need a cash buyer (as I was). The idea was for us all to move here, borrow the money to get the house to work for us all, and it would be a house for life for my youngest daughter, son-in-law and their 2 small children Little did we know that you cannot even get equity release on it! I tried and tried for months. So they moved out into a grotty, tiny place, leaving me here with my eldest daughter who then committed suicide ... so am rattling around around with a noose around my neck basically. Them moving back in wouldn't work either sadly with the house as it is .

I am feeling like I did in February 2020, when my massive hernia strangulated and I needed emergency surgery - I again have extreme nausea and something just doesn't feel right. I hope it's just stress, but somehow I doubt it, and am terrified as that day was horrific and I keep getting flashbacks to how they treated me before they knew my bowel was dying.

I am not faring too well ....

What irks me most is paying more to fund the annual bonuses to the directors of the utilities companies. Also that so much of our increased council tax has to go on shoring up already under-funded services (schools, social care) rather than improving/ extending them.

madeleine45

I live alone on a pension. There is much advice on how to save money etc. However you cant give up what you have never had so where do we go from this? I hang washing out, no tumble dryer, rarely buy clothes and apart from underwear they are usually from charity shops if I can wash them. Dont smoke, dont have amazon or anything nor netflix so it is difficult to think what else I give up. I have a secondhand mobility scooter which lets me go shopping when I am unable to walk. My biggest spend is on my second hand car, which allows me to go further afield than the local highstreet, and keep in touch with family and friends, but every trip has to be thought about and saved for. I no longer just go out sort of ad hoc. i do go mad once a week and spend £4 to play whist in a warm church hall and have two raffle tickets. It lets me use my brain, meet others to socialise a bit and have a coffee and biscuit, which is good value I think. It is held in a village so go by car, no buses go there, all of 3 miles. Last of the big spenders eh? Eventually expect I shall have to give the car up but that will be very limiting as to where and when I can travel. I am unable to prebook things as I cant know until the day how I am , and whether I can walk far etc. The cost of electricity is my biggest worry as it is the only heating here, no gas so if there is a power cut have got nothing instead, and I cannot guess what the cost will be this time. It is all too depressing to think about and so right now can only live day to day, have been glad to watch the rugby and keep my mind off this situation which I can do nothing about. Hopefully we get some good weather to enjoy and save the power in the summer

I hope you don’t mind me saying but if you are at times unable to walk and need to use a mobility scooter you shouldn’t be surviving solely on your pension. You need to have a benefits check as you are likely to qualify for disability benefits which will make a huge difference to your life. Seek advice from a welfare rights advisor.

benefits-calculator.turn2us.org.uk/

Thank you Happygirl I tried this and probably did it wrong as it looked to be a chargeable subscription x

I did a bit of that very essential adding up this morning, the 2 months of freedom from council tax are finished and so is the, very welcomed, gov energy handout

As well as the usual essentials which crop up over the year, eg car bills, food, tv, chimney cleaning, boiler service, tax , water etc

These are due for me at the end of this month and they are all up

council tax
phone
broadband
energy
house insurance

Just a reminder to me that the no-spending on extras and regular savings are to continue. The regular savings from december are a godsend tbh,with no fixed commitment and in halifax, I can see that safety pot grow month on month

This is me, living carefully and in no need, or want, of holidays, which is just as well. A comfortable life but that forward planning is a great help and an enabler

I used to do microsoft money, which got me and my family through some very tough times. Back to paper and pencil these days, with the months mapped out ahead

I am not faring really as my private pension is only small. I am very hard-up since HMRC made a mistake with my tax code in 2019 and undercharged me, so I had to pay it all back in 2020 which has left my bank account depleted, so have had no holidays or days out since 2018. The House of Lords want to dismantle the heating allowance except for people on Pension Credit or basic state pension which outrages me. Don't know if that bill will go through.

I'm on my own now, and while I am pleased about the State pension increase, it will now (along with my tiny private pension) tip me over the tax threshold, so I will have to pay income tax, which makes me sad, as I have already paid a hell of a lot of income tax, having worked since the age of 14!
I live on Merseyside, where all over 60s get free travel on buses and trains, which means I have been able to give up my car. I do miss driving, but just couldn't afford the insurance, fuel and maintenance costs. I buy groceries and alcohol online every ten days, use my freezer to keep meat and fish till required.
The only time I go into a supermarket is to top up on milk and have a snoop at the yellow stickers in M&S! I have done quite well on energy this winter since downsizing to a 2-bed cottage. My monthly direct debit is £130, but with the £67 from the Gov, that brings it down to £63!

I never eat out, or have takeaways. I do go to a couple of classes, which costs me about £15 per week. I have Amazon Prime and Netflix, I do use both a lot, since I never go out in the evenings. By the way, I hope you Amazon Prime people are taking advantage of Prime Reading? You can borrow 10 items free, INCLUDING MAGAZINES!! This is a real treat for me, I love a magazine, especially glossy ones like House Beautiful. There is a good range each month. Homes and Antiques is my favourite. If you've not tried it, you click on Prime, then Prime Reading, then scroll down and all the magazines are listed at the bottom of the screen. I use my Kindle Fire HD to read them, and the screen quality is really good.