# Money matters....



## Ally Wally (Mar 1, 2011)

Morning, we have just completed prep course and currently waiting to be allocated a SW but I have a few money issues I need your wonderful advice on. No real specific questions but here goes....

My dh and I are saving £100 a month towards our adoption fund but I really feel this is nowhere near enough. This may cover the initial expenses of buying things but I am more concerned that we should be saving more to allow me to take a year off. However, my dh feels that he wants to enjoy his free cash now as when the little ones arrive, he won't have any. (he loves tinkering with his landrover and I think he knows very well there will be alot less landrover time when the little ones(s) arrive. I totally see his point but do you all agree we should we saving way more than £100 a month?

Also, is the SAP subject to tax or is that guaranteed £135 a week in your pocket?

yes, i could save all my free cash but is that fair...yes it probably is as he will be paying all the bills for a year. i would be interested to hear how others have approached the financial side of things.

ally


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## funnychic (Feb 2, 2012)

Hiya 

Well the first thing I can tell you is that SAP will be taxed and national insurance will be taken out and if you pay any pension to your employer they also take that as well!!!  However if you are eligible ie. you and hubby are on a low income you may be able to get working families tax credit  while you are off work.

With regards to savings I am a single adopter so crucial to have savings to help me last on my year off, things I have done for this is change my mortgage to a company that will allow me to take a 6month mortgage break while I'm off,  borrowed some equity on my mortgage and have been saving £200 a month for nearly a year!  I'm bloody well skint every month and haven't been on holiday for over 18  months, don't have many nights out and have stopped buying clothes!!!  However I know feel that I will be able to relax while I'm having year off and wont be worrying about how I will pay my bills and be able afford everything I need.

I understand where you hubby is coming but he needs to realise that if you don't save now and you are off then the buck will stop with him.  You wont have any money to contribute to the family income cos £135 isn't going to go far so all the expenses will be on him! lol,  I can only speak for myself and I think the sacrifice now will be worth it in the long run for peace of mind when the time comes and I have a little one at home.


Best of luck xx


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## Old Timer (Jan 23, 2005)

Hi

Personally if you can save more then I think its a good idea, the last thing you want is to be worrying about money when you should be focusing on settling and bonding with children.  Its all very well preparing for a year off but you just never know what is going to happen and you may find that a year isn't enough, you need to be able to be flexible in case the child(ren) need you home longer.

First time round I also looked at all our outgoings and looked to see where I could make savings by changing elec/gas companies, car insurance, phone etc etc.  It may only be a few £s a month but it all helps!

At the same time, you do need to enjoy the time you have now as a couple, don't stop all your hobbies etc as your hubby is right, there won't be the time and possibly the money when you have children placed - they do cost a lot - and you may find it is months and months before you can leave them in the care of someone else just for a meal out!  The worse bit is not knowing how long you have to save so it may be worth sitting down and working out how much money you will need and work towards a figure, when you have that saved you can ease off a bit but still save cos having more will be far better than having just enough.

You will also get child benefit, can be applied for as soon as LO moves in, which is approx £80 per month for 1 or £135 per month for 2 children, though I'm not sure where the Government are on plans to change CB.

Good luck
OT x


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## julesF (Apr 7, 2009)

we also saved for adoption leave and never dipped into it, as you learn to adjust. We got expenses from the LA we adopted from £500 settling in allowance and petrol expenses as we were 3hrs away, also for during intros.


you also get child benefit and once adopted our kids are 8 and 5, you get there child trust funds which we plan on saving and adding to for the future.


you'll also be amazed at how people will help with stuff you need for kids we were overwhelmed.
with adoption pay and child benefit we figured it was just under £700 a month. But you can also ask the LA you adopt from to means test you to see if you can have an allowance our friends get £100 per child they adopted 3 for a year plus a cleaner if they want one. every LA is different


don't forget you free nursery hours and childcare vouchers for when you return to work


best of luck


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## Ally Wally (Mar 1, 2011)

thanks so much for all your comments and your honesty...gosh, i have a huge amount to learn re: benefits and tax credits and childcare vouchers and allowances. i really need to look into this more. without getting too personal, at present our joint salary is just over 60k....not sure if this low or not?  as much i want to be a stay at home mum...realistically i will have to go back to work part time after a year or so due to mortgage commitments.


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## funnychic (Feb 2, 2012)

Ally

60k is definitely not low and you will not be entitled to working family tax credits.  Not sure about anything else though.

Best wishes


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## Ally Wally (Mar 1, 2011)

thanks funny chic..do you know what the threshold is for working tax credits...only as our joint income will be much much less if i go back part time?


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## KJB1978 (Nov 23, 2010)

The threshold is really low (£26k with both working and 1 child or £32k with more than 1 child) and even then there are so many criteria that lots of people wouldnt be eligible.

As JulesF said you just learn to adapt to much less money.  I have a birth child and as soon as I found out I was pregnant we started "living" on one wage and saved my whole salary to buy the baby bits and bolster our savings.  It was a really good way to check to see if we could survive on one wage even just for a year or if I could become a SAHM and made you appreciate what is essential and what is a luxury in your new lifestyle if you know what I mean.  Is this something you could try for a few months?


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## Ally Wally (Mar 1, 2011)

thanks kjb...a good idea....i did suggest this before but dh wasn't too keen (like i said...he wants to enjoy his hobbies now while he can) but i think i might suggest it again even if it's just for a month or two to see if we can manage? i am sure the sw would appreciate seeing us doing this too.  although i totally get what he is saying, it's hard for me to understand as my hobby makes money (i make cakes in my spare time) but you are all right...it's all about making small changes. we have already switched to groceries online which saves heaps.


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## smudgerbabe (Sep 16, 2011)

Hi - there is masses of really good info on the Inland Revenue web site about working tax credits and child tax credit (different to child benefit which you would get I think as long as neither of you is individually earning £44K or over from next year subject to change of course!).

There is also a calculator which I have used quite a lot with different scenarios to see what tax credit I would be entitled to if any. You can input different numbers of hours/income etc. Links below:

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/taxcredits/index.htm
http://taxcredits.hmrc.gov.uk/Qualify/DIQHousehold.aspx
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/taxcredits/people-advise-others/entitlement-tables/index.htm

HOWEVER next year the new Universal Credit will be introduced and there's no info yet as to exactly how this will be calculated although they say people won't be worse off (that are already on benefits) but who knows!

I doubt you will be entitled to a lot to be honest if your household income is say £30K and upwards - that is way higher than the average household income in the county I live in.

Good luck though it's a minefield and I'm still trying to wade through it!


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## thespouses (Jan 5, 2006)

I think they've stopped child trust fund now (but some older children may have already got one?)

Just out of interest, did you all get Child Benefit while your child was still LAC?


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## julesF (Apr 7, 2009)

you can get child benefit from the day placement begins, they will check with LA that you aren't getting FC allowance and it can be back dated to time of placement


child trust funds have ended they did approx 3-4 yrs ago but when we adopted our kids they were 5 and 8 and their child trust funds had been held as all LAC kids ones are. and as no one is saving for their futures £250 gets added at age 5 and another £250 at 7.


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