What to do/ Juggling Act

LegacyUser

Hi everyone,

Looking for some insight into my predicament.

Bit of background,
I've had my life on hold for the past 2.5 years to save for a mortgage.
I'm a single applicant on 45k.

Almost two years ago, I had a meeting in work where I brought up my working hours. And my reluctance to keep working additional hours/ days without some sort of agreement/ pay.
Previously, I was your typical green company man - 60-80 hour weeks!

Their response was to slowly erode away my responsibilities and duties.
And now I'm excluded from meetings and discussions and getting information third hand from more junior staff. Anything I still do is micromanaged. Very toxic, only criticised - and not it a positive way. 

I decided after their reaction from the meeting that there was no future for me there. And to focus on saving, getting a mortgage sorted and moving on.
Moved out of my ok apartment in a nice area to a room share in the suburbs, sold the car, spent bare minimum and saved everything. 

I looked into a job change, even went for a few interviews, but they were looking for a degree qualification for someone at my level. Whereas I only have experience. 
Conscious of the 3.5 salary multiplier for mortgages, I decided to stay where I was. 

I finally had enough money saved and received approval in principle last week. 
But I have now found out that the covid subsidy my employer put me on last month (without any notice) is going to impact on progressing my mortgage any further.
Banks are telling people to wait, not allowing draw downs if you're in receipt of the subsidy. 

Naturally, the company I work for is severely impacted by the pandemic. I can't really see how they are going to trade out of it.And given the above, I'll likely be one of the first on the chopping block. 

This predicament and the general uncertainty is really having an effect on me. I usually like to have next month, next year etc. planned or at least have a rough idea where I will stand/ might be. It's causing awful anxiety and sleep issues. 
I understand there are probably lots of people feeling like this at the moment. 

If I still have a job, I don't know how I'll continue with the toxic environment - it has been taking its toll on me. I'd love to tell them where to go, but have a potential mortgage.. which may not even happen fully. Is all of this even worth it? I had my sights set on the security aspect of having your own home, and thought this would enable me to try different career paths or even look at going back to upskill. 

I have this feeling, all this stress will be for nothing. And I'm going to and up back where I started. At the moment it feels like a massive juggling act. 

Make It Real

It's a huge time of change for everyone, whattodo20202, and I'm sorry you've had the rug pulled from under you a bit.


A few quick questions:

- Do you really have to "juggle" now or are things maybe simpler for you than before?

Loads of stuff is out of your control: Covid, company future, your job future, your possible mortgage. There's nothing you can do on those.
So, how could you put some of that stuff aside and only deal with it when something changes on it? What would you gain in terms of mood, energy and other things?


- How can you get real security in your life?

I hear it matters hugely to you. Does a house really give security? You shut the door, but its still only a pile of bricks owned by a bank who could take it back.
What else could give you more security? Better security, which is more real and permanent?


Is there an opportunity for you here?

To say it straight, you don't give the impression that your life has been great in the past couple of years. Read back over your post and you'll see it.

Firstly, what you've done isn't "for nothing" and you're not "back where you started".

Could you potentially be in a better place? You have saved money, avoided buying a liability (house) in an uncertain market, may be eligible for redundancy, know you need to get out of the toxic job, you're a free agent without ties or money pressure when it comes to career change. List them out - it'll look different!


So, yes, the future is unknown and insecure for you - which is uncomfortable for you. But could it maybe be better than what's gone before?


Hope this helps and let me know if I can do anything else for you!

Upforthematch

whattodo20202 wrote: »

I looked into a job change, even went for a few interviews, but they were looking for a degree qualification for someone at my level. Whereas I only have experience. 
Conscious of the 3.5 salary multiplier for mortgages, I decided to stay where I was. 

I finally had enough money saved and received approval in principle last week. 
But I have now found out that the covid subsidy my employer put me on last month (without any notice) is going to impact on progressing my mortgage any further.
Banks are telling people to wait, not allowing draw downs if you're in receipt of the subsidy. 

Naturally, the company I work for is severely impacted by the pandemic. I can't really see how they are going to trade out of it.And given the above, I'll likely be one of the first on the chopping block. 

 

Hi op,

It sounds like you are trying to do all the right things op but you are not seeing the fruits.

It's a pity that you are having such sleepless nights when you only got your mortgage approval last week. That's a really big step. However, as the previous poster said it must feel like the rug has been pulled out from under you.

But.... think about this rationally for a second.

You still have a significant amount saved = your efforts have not been wasted

You are worried about your job security = might be a blessing in disguise that your mortgage is on hold for a (potentially short) while. Imagine how you would feel if you couldn't pay your mortgage repayment!

I highlighted the section of your post regarding other job opportunities. It sounds like your current job is on a road to nowhere regardless of COVID. If you are not happy there - plan to get out.

I also don't get the impression you *exhausted* this option. Most people are *always* on the look out for a better job elsewhere- it's how you get more money. Loyalty is not rewarded in the workplace.

If the lack of a degree is holding your earning potential back would you consider doing something about this? Could pointing some of your savings in this direction pay dividends in a few years?

Be patient Op - if you are a planner keep thinking long-term. Things in life don't usually go our way the first time round.

How about giving yourself a few days off, draw up a few options, go for a really long run to tire yourself out and get some sleep! All the best

leggo

OP for what it’s worth I’ve only ever found stuff like this to be a blessing in disguise in hindsight. I lost a job during the recession and thought my world had ended, it had only begun and set me on a course that defined my life so far, forcing my hand to try things I’d wanted to but previously put off.

The situation is the situation and ultimately out of your control, so allowing stress and anxiety about it to consume you is pointless. As stated already, this isn’t a waste when you have a lot saved and are technically approved already. Getting mortgage approval alone is a huge landmark achievement you should be proud of, you’ve succeeded in your goal. Control what you can, accept whatever comes and roll with it. You’re more than able to achieve what you set your mind to, you’ve proven that now. So just set your mind to whatever the next challenge is on the other side of this and don’t be beating yourself up unnecessarily in the meantime.

Tork

I don't see your predicament in the negative terms you do. Maybe this disruption to your plans is a blessing in disguise and will give you the chance to "reboot". I'm old enough to remember the recession that hit in 2008/2009 and how it decimated many people's wages. That led to some people running into difficulties repaying their mortgage. It also brought the overheating property market to a shuddering halt and left many people in negative equity. We don't yet know what effect the pandemic will have on property prices or wages but I have a strong suspicion it will cause both to drop. The housing market was showing signs of overheating again so this will probably slow things down. If you take some steps in your own career, you can get back to where you were before the pandemic hit but in a better place. It looks like you may have had a lucky escape - you'd have a completely different set of problems if your job went or your wages get slashed. Being shackled with a mortgage and possible negative equity is not what you need right now.

Even if your job survives, your workplace sounds like somewhere you'd be better off moving on from. Your obsession with buying your own place was going to shackle you to it. Would that really be a good thing? I bought my first home as a single person and the novelty of owning my own place soon wore off when the bills started coming in. Don't get me wrong - I never regretted buying the house and it turned out to be a good buy. What I'm getting at is that owning it as a singleton turned out to be a lot harder than I ever thought it would be. You're the one who has to foot all the bills that come in and if something goes wrong, you can't ring the landlord. Money was very tight at times in the first year or two and I thought I'd never take a holiday again or to live a life where the next payday couldn't come quickly enough. Chatting afterwards to friends who'd also bought on their own, they told me that they found the first couple of years very tough too. The average timeline for things to get easier seems to be 2-3 years after getting the keys. What this all translates into is that your ambition to upskill after buying your own home might be a bit ambitious. Homeownership is security in some ways but it's an enormous burden in others. Sometimes home ownership is a case of "be careful what you wish for". With your circumstances, I think it's a warning to be heeded.

I see this as a golden opportunity for you to do something about your lack of qualifications. Without sorting those out, you're going nowhere. With what I wrote about finances when you first buy a home, you might not have the chance to do this upskilling if the fees are high. For now, you have the great advantage of not being shackled with a mortgage and all the bills that come with home ownership. You're in a house-share which is as cheap as it gets and you don't have a car. Your bank balance is healthy so you have a financial cushion. Would it not make sense for you to upskill now and get those qualifications you need? It might put your house-buying prospects on hold for a couple of years but would that really be catastrophic? Look at the long-term benefits. You'll be more employable, earn better wages and be able to move jobs in the way you can't right now. With the way you're going now, you'll probably still be on €45k in 10 years time and stuck in your current job.

This all sounds really daunting for somebody like you, who likes their life to be predictable. I don't subscribe to the theory that things happen for a reason but I see your situation as a way to get you out of the rut you're in and to make things better.

LimeFruitGum

Have you looked into Springboard courses, if you’re concerned about missing qualifications holding you back.

I have just finished a postgraduate diploma through Springboard, which was hosted by UL. It’s already paying off for me in terms of higher performance, pay rise, achieving great results and scoring extra discretionary bonuses at work I have been told by the CEO that my job is safe, and this has a lot to do with the skills I learned through the Springboard course. Some of my classmates have been promoted, or moved to more senior roles in other companies on the back of what they learned as well. It was a lot of work, but it was worth it. I have already made my money back on the 10% fee I had to pay, with cream on top. I don’t plan on moving just yet, but I would aim for at least 10-15k extra if I do.
If you are unemployed, the course will be free. If employed, you pay 10% of the course fee.

Springboard 20-21 course applications will be opening soon, so now is a good time to go through the courses and make a shortlist.