What happens if I can't afford any more tax increases ?

knird evol

OP, adopt a positive attitude.

Good Luck

Rabidlamb

Confab wrote: »

OP let me guess

You have two sub-3 year old cars with attendant loans No loans on either, 2003 & 2006
You have a big loan for home improvement or something similar No, no other loans
You didn't shop around for childcare €250 a week FT care for 2 kids, not bad
You have at least 2 credit cards, one maxed out One CC with €2k owed
You shop in Dunnes or Superquinn Aldi & Dunnes comes to €130 per week
You haven't talked to your bank about rescheduling your mortgage We've a good tracker, don't want any renegotiation
You have a big Sky/UPC package €30 p/m Sky €65 p/m Eircom Bundle, no UPC unfortunately.

Answered some of your queries above.
We're not that out of the ordinary.
I can't help but think there are many more families in the same boat but saying nothing.
4 hairshirt budgets will wreck some people.
What happens in 2 years when the ECB start moving rates up aswell.

mickydoomsux

Based on those figures you given OP, where does the money go then?

Those numbers look pretty manageable with 2 decent incomes.

knird evol

Are those bastards in Anglo getting free haircuts now as well. My barber charges me €10

PeakOutput

Rabidlamb wrote: »

Answered some of your queries above.
We're not that out of the ordinary.
I can't help but think there are many more families in the same boat but saying nothing.
4 hairshirt budgets will wreck some people.
What happens in 2 years when the ECB start moving rates up aswell.

if you dont want to give this info obviously i understand but the important part of this equation is

A) your income
the cost of your mortgage

you say that both of your are well paid professionals so a low end guess of your salaries are 30-40K a year each


so judging by your own figures either your mortgage is absolutely massive and you had no business taking it out in the first place or your not being honest about your discretionary expenditure

also getting rid of sky or having one of you use public transport(if you live in a city) will more then make up for any extra tax you are going to be paying after the budget

Banned Account

OP,

Pimp your wife and kids - if the latter doesn't cover the cost of keeping them, just sell them on the internet.

After that, move to Mosney where you will instantly become a millionaire and get a free flat screen television personally autographed by the government.

Shoot the Green party in entirety to prevent more taxes being snuck through in an attept to prevent you enjoying anything that doesn't involve natural tampons made from unwanted cherokee indian hair.

That should free up enough for you to take a holiday to a foreign country where you can 'disappear' in a mysterious canoeing accident and allow your family to use the life assurance policy to buy themselves back from their new owners and start afresh in somewhere much more civilised like on a farm, in Zimbabwe.

thebigbiffo

mickydoomsux wrote: »

Based on those figures you given OP, where does the money go then?

Those numbers look pretty manageable with 2 decent incomes.

well heres a thought: if he spend it on beer he pays vat to the exchequer and keeps a barman/pub owner in work and also paying taxes.

if he spends it on foreign holidays he keeps the airlines in business to again pay more taxes and employ a fellow citizen, the travel agents etc.

see what i'm getting at here? doesnt matter a jot where he spends it as long as its spent and the economy keeps moving - keep civil servants cushy, people on the dole with enough to live on and the bondholders laughing all the way to geneva...

you cant tax the middle classes out of a recession. end of f'uckin story

Rabidlamb

mickydoomsux wrote: »

Based on those figures you given OP, where does the money go then?

Those numbers look pretty manageable with 2 decent incomes.

One place we burn money, literally, is on petrol.
Cause we couldn't afford to buy a home near our families & place of work it costs us €350 p/m on petrol.
Then the extra cost of tax & insurance for the 2nd car, love to get rid of it but can't cause we live in the sticks.

PeakOutput

Qualitymark wrote: »

http://www.tribune.ie/article/2010/apr/25/anglo-faces-further-haircut-of-500m/

thank you for proving my point that you have no idea what your talking about

mikom

Rabidlamb wrote: »

One place we burn money, literally, is on petrol.
Cause we couldn't afford to buy a home near our families & place of work it costs us €350 p/m on petrol.
Then the extra cost of tax & insurance for the 2nd car, love to get rid of it but can't cause we live in the sticks.

It's not getting any better............ http://www.independent.ie/national-news/motorists-face-blitz-of-new-tolls-on-main-roads-2366410.html

mickydoomsux

Rabidlamb wrote: »

One place we burn money, literally, is on petrol.

Trade in you cars for a similar year, if not even a bit older, diesel vehicle. The fuel costs less and if you pick the right car it'll use much less fuel than the equivalent petrol model.

thebigbiffo

Rabidlamb wrote: »

One place we burn money, literally, is on petrol.
Cause we couldn't afford to buy a home near our families & place of work it costs us €350 p/m on petrol.
Then the extra cost of tax & insurance for the 2nd car, love to get rid of it but can't cause we live in the sticks.

medical bills for the 2 kids? servicing said cars? entertainment for the children. clothing. essential items for the house. socialising (which you are bloody well entitled to seeing as you work hard and are raising the next generation of taxpayers in this country)

this thread stinks of posters trying to out you as the middle class enemy

Rabidlamb

Rabidlamb wrote: »

One place we burn money, literally, is on petrol.
Cause we couldn't afford to buy a home near our families & place of work it costs us €350 p/m on petrol.
Then the extra cost of tax & insurance for the 2nd car, love to get rid of it but can't cause we live in the sticks.

I'm in a similar position, but with only one income, so things are a bit tight!
edit: and I don't have a "middle class income*" either!

*where is the line between "industrial" & "middle class" income €50k

ejmaztec

2 adults + 2 children = 4 saleable kidneys.

Rabidlamb

thebigbiffo wrote: »

you cant tax the middle classes out of a recession. end of f'uckin story

Ah yes, but were apparently the ones with all the disposable income.
Note to any young couples out there:
Have the snip & a hysterectomy to be safe if you intend having any fun in the next 10 years.

phill106

ejmaztec wrote: »

2 adults + 2 children = 4 saleable kidneys.

or a meal for 4?

/gets coat

stovelid

thebigbiffo wrote: »

this thread stinks of posters trying to out you as the middle class enemy

The majority of whom are probably jobless, childless and living with their Ma and Da.

Austerity

Get rid of the television. Sell it and finish your subscriptions. This way you'll save lots of money. Use less heating in winter time, wear warmer clothes instead.

Would it be possible for you to sell the house and move closer to work?
Renting could be an option.

pickarooney

Move your mother in with you or start working remotely.
There's no need for both TV and internet.

MagicSean

Rabidlamb wrote: »

I know the answer but I'm looking to see who many other people are in the same situation.
Both my wife & myself work 2 professional well paid jobs & have 2 children under school age.
After we take out the mortgage, childcare, bills, shopping, petrol etc. we just about break even.
We haven't put away any savings in the last year & we've taken all the austerity measures.

All the tax increases being mooted will affect us directly.
More PAYE, reduction in child benefit, possible property tax or water rates, increase duty on fuel.
Any one of these will be enough to tip us over the edge & into debt.

I cant understand how any couple with a recent mortgage & kids can cope, the figures just don't add up.
Anybody else in the same sinking boat ?.

Go on welfare. In this country it works out better than having a tax paying job.

Rabidlamb

k_mac wrote: »

Go on welfare. In this country it works out better than having a tax paying job.

God damn pride prevents me going down this route.
We have the comfort of knowing that if one of us gets laid off that redundancy + JSA - childcare - 2nd car would leave us better off for a year anyway.
Great system.

Mr Benevolent

stovelid wrote: »

No.

I think the smugness of your epistle is more than adequate as it is.

I love being smug when I'm right. Sadly, this time I'm wrong. It's rare but it happens.

th3 s1aught3r

Rabidlamb wrote: »

I know the answer but I'm looking to see who many other people are in the same situation.
Both my wife & myself work 2 professional well paid jobs & have 2 children under school age.
After we take out the mortgage, childcare, bills, shopping, petrol etc. we just about break even.
We haven't put away any savings in the last year & we've taken all the austerity measures.

All the tax increases being mooted will affect us directly.
More PAYE, reduction in child benefit, possible property tax or water rates, increase duty on fuel.
Any one of these will be enough to tip us over the edge & into debt.

I cant understand how any couple with a recent mortgage & kids can cope, the figures just don't add up.
Anybody else in the same sinking boat ?.

Your going to have to start cutting costs. look at your weekly budget and find ways to start saving money, it might be possible to save on energy costs too, or even food costs, maybe grow your own vegetables
There are 4 hairshirt budgets on the way so its pain all the way

Mr Benevolent

ejmaztec wrote: »

2 adults + 2 children = 4 saleable kidneys.

6 saleable kidneys.

Amhran Nua

k_mac wrote: »

Go on welfare. In this country it works out better than having a tax paying job.

Welfare won't cover mortgage payments, as far as I know.

Amhran Nua

Amhran Nua wrote: »

Welfare won't cover mortgage payments, as far as I know.

Only the interest element, I believe.

Austerity

Austerity wrote: »

Get rid of the television. Sell it and finish your subscriptions. This way you'll save lots of money. Use less heating in winter time, wear warmer clothes instead.

Would it be possible for you to sell the house and move closer to work?
Renting could be an option.

Living up to your name there.

For a lot of people, selling the house simply isn't an option - there are no buyers!

Rabidlamb

k_mac wrote: »

Go on welfare. In this country it works out better than having a tax paying job.

Deleted User wrote: »

Living up to your name there.

For a lot of people, selling the house simply isn't an option - there are no buyers!

We're about 5 years into a 25 year 90% mortgage so the outstanding amount would just about be covered by a sale I reckon.
We have thought about moving up the country to rent but the we like the area & the kids have made friends.
Like anywhere you put down roots over time.

coffee_cake

Rabidlamb wrote: »

One place we burn money, literally, is on petrol.
Cause we couldn't afford to buy a home near our families & place of work it costs us €350 p/m on petrol.
Then the extra cost of tax & insurance for the 2nd car, love to get rid of it but can't cause we live in the sticks.

No bus eireann etc? Loads of people take in one car and drop off the OH/kids on the way ?

Echospace

I think it's crazy and completely backwards that the people actually contributing money into the country's finances through PAYE (I presume you are both private sector workers), are struggling. And yet the social welfare class who contribute nothing, but extract money from the country, are fine. The political/developer class who contribute nothing, and also extract money from the country are fine. The public/civil service, who are still being paid 28% higher than the average private industrial wage, and who also contribute nothing towards the country's finances (and the concept of public sector "tax" is laughable) are protected by union agreements.

This situation can't continue for much longer anyway. A young married couple, BOTH working, shouldn't have to worry about being able to afford television/broadband bills. These are the type of people who will actually get the country OUT of recession.