Hi ladies,
Honestly I’m so stressed at the moment about financial stability.
Both my husband and I have lost some work due to covid 19 however neither of our companies are eligible for the job keeper packages because the companys overall haven’t lost that much work we are down about $800 per week between us.
We are not eligible to withdraw super either.
The hardest part is just before covid 19 my husband was in hospital for 2 weeks and my company lost a major contract where I did about 30 hours a week work so we dipped into our savings to pay the bills then when he came out lots of continued specialist appointments and a special diet that continues to cost about $500 per month that is double our monthly food bill as well as my appointments for fertility issues.
We have now stopped my specialist appointments to cut some money reduced our mortgage to minimum payments
Deferred school fees but we are still using savings every week.
My husband called child support to reduce his yearly income due to not earning as much money as last financial year but they weren’t interested and said wait till tax time we are talking he pays $400 per week in child support. When he was in hospital after tax and child support came out he didn’t even earn enough to pay our minimum mortgage payments. Before every one jumps up and down about he still has to pay child support we understand that but if his wage has gone down why can’t we continue paying smaller amounts in child support until he starts earning more money again.
We have gone from $5000 in savings to under $1000.
I don’t know how to continue financially anymore we only buy bare minimum groceries now and I only eat toast for dinner and fruit for lunch so the children can have good healthy meals. We can’t reduce spending anymore trust me Im trying.
Between us we earnt $1100 this week and our bills were $1300 plus then groceries and petrol for work. We don’t have internet or anything so can’t cut down on bills we only have our mortgage gas electricity land rates and my husband’s specialist fees that are essential at the moment due to him having to have surgery in the near future that is not an option it is classed as an essential surgery when he is well enough for it and our mobile bills that are only $100 between us per month As our phones are old and we own them outright
Any advice would be helpful please
Struggling
Struggling
Posted in:
Mental Health, Health & Wellbeing
17 Replies
I’d honestly cut down on the child support. You can pay it back later.
We can’t it comes straight out of his pay before we see it and his boss can’t not send it each month trust me we have tried
You can't just pay child support later, it gets taken from your pay and your employer gets into shit if they don't take it out.
Defer your gas, electricity and mortgage. Get your phone bills down if you can. See if your husband can see a public specialist.
Cheap meals for your kids won’t hurt them short term, if that’s what you got to do.
If it was me I’d ring CsA again to get a reduction. A lot depends on who you speak to.
You may not qualify for job keeper but do you qualify for job seeker? Have you adjusted your income estimates for family tax benefit? That will increase with a decrease in income. Have you spoken to the specialists - is there an option for a payment plan rather than it upfront or to do any of it as a public patient? Also ring everywhere that you are making payments and explain the situation and ask for them to be deferred or on reduced payments. Your only option with child support is to ring them again and don’t just take no from the first person you speak to, ask to speak to a supervisor or ask how to escalate your enquiry if they say they can’t help you
Hi unfortunately we do not qualify for job seeker either because we are employed and we still earn over the threshold I have updated our income estimate however we do not receive any ftb so it hasn’t helped. We have spoken to the specialists unfortunately they need to be paid each visit we are doing things in the public system but when you have phone appointments it’s still $250 out of pocket each time
Get your mobiles onto a prepaid plan. Hubby and I are with ALDI and pay $15/m each for unlimited calls, texts & 3gb data. There are plenty of cheap prepaid plans around and you can keep your number. Data rolls over with most plans.
I really wish that was an option trust me I have looked into it unfortunately because my husband is an interstate truck driver he needs the service on some outback Rds that most providers don’t service and because we do all our internet stuff on our phones we need at least 20gb a month each plus we share that data with the children for schoolwork and homework
Aldi use the Telstra network. We have also gone from Telstra to Aldi. Also shop around for home internet plans as it may work out cheaper to have 2 prepaid Aldi plans and a home internet.
You can call Salvos or uniting care for free financial counseling. You may need to look at selling your house to free you from mortgage and move to a cheaper area to rent. As for specialists, if they are in the public system you can get free telehealth appointments now. If ur specialist wont do that, shop around for a new one!
You can get pushy and demand to change your income but there's only one month left of the financial year after this one, so that might be why they are saying don't bother because it may not make much of a difference. Check with your local council to see if they are offering anything for rates at this time like deffered payments, same with the bank. See if you're eligible for the early super release. It's a horrible time but it's also a really good time to be having financial problems as there is that much help out there it's not funny! I wish it was all there 5 years ago when I lost my job but it is what it is. Have a decent look and I'm sure you will find there is help available to you in one way or another.
You can update your income for child support online through myGov. Have you tried this? Sounds like the person you spoke with chucked your enquiry into the "too hard" basket. They would be getting a lot of phone calls like yours at the moment. Whilst there is only just over a month left of the financial year child support assessments change over in September to allow enough time for the payee to lodge their tax then for that information to be fed through to child support. I'd deffinently be pushing for child support to be adjusted.
Have you looked into deferring your home loan? I think all the big 4 are offering a 6 month deferal option
1100 a week is a decent income. What is that 1300 a week and how can you cut that down.
I would look again at super withdraw. If you’ve been affected by COVID - 19 and can prove a 20% loss in income you can get it out.
Sounds like you and hubby may qualify and at least have 20k until things pick up a little.
I’m a full time employed person earning 70k p/y
Hubby is self employed and we have felt strain of COVID -19 on his business. He was able to access 10k. I also called the tax department to double check and because it’s based on family income I could withdraw 10k as well.
While we can live on my wage we now have 20k in savings that we can access if needed.
Call the tax hotline for COVID and double check.
Why are you not eligible to access super? I know people currently working who accessed super but have claimed they had a decreased number of hours at work. They didn’t, but if you’re casual and hours have decreased you can access super.
My husband has been off work since January due to illness and was unable to access any payments through Centrelink. We had dwindled our savings down to virtually nothing also. All these Covid-19 supplements and early access to super has helped us get back on our feet.
I would re-look into trying to access your super again.
Good luck ☺️
Telephone CSA and ask to speak to a manager. Tell them that you urgently require a new assessment due to changed circumstances - your husbands illness and Covid-19. Get a medical certificate and get your payslips and mortgage repayment receipts ready to support your application. If you ask to speak to a manager you should get some movement.
Prioritise your mortgage. Make sure that you pay it before anything else. You can speak to the bank and ask them to freeze or defer your repayments. Generally it will extend your home loan but it might relieve some of the pressure at the moment.
Swallow your pride and get some support with food. You need to eat - your children are relying on you! There is nothing wrong with asking for help with food when you need it. Support agencies can also help with your electricity and gas bills. They are there for people who need support so do not feel upset or guilty about asking for help. I have been in this situation and I know that it is hard but at the end of the day you need to do what you can to make sure that you and your family are ok. These agencies are discrete and although you feel like shit accessing them, at the end of the day they are there to support people who need a hand up. Their support is often provided as gift cards that you can use at Woolworths and Coles - so nobody but you knows where they have come from. Please see what is available in your area.
Take care of yourself. Your children are counting on you my friend. I hope that this helps. xo
Firstly, ring your bank, get your mortgage out on hold for 6 months, this is not a freebie and adds time and interest to the end but might save you now. ring utility providers and tell them your issue and how much you can pay per pay day, something is better than nothing. Everyone is in a similar situation with decreasing incomes and financial stress . chin up you will be okay