Thanks Lulu - that's interesting and really good to hear that your DD is going well.

I think by public transport our new house IS about 90 mins from her current school (not wanting to move school and move away from friends is THE major factor in wanting to move out). But if it goes on income, we'd probably be ineligible. But I'd better go see what the threshold is - the last time I checked I wasn't pregnant so I was basing it on two wages.

In theory, she's still at school but has had a lot of absences so it may get to the point where the school doesn't allow her to finish VCE - DP needs to discuss that with them. That's one of the reasons why I think moving out may be good for her. It's looking unlikely that she will finish school. If she wants to rent a place, she will HAVE to find a job. She won't find a job if she's living with us because it's too easy not to. And at least if she has a job, she will build up a work history and be more employable than if she carried on at school in a half-arsed way and came out with a crappy VCE result and no work history. If she stuffs up the job, she loses her rental place and her independence - a big incentive to get up and get her arse into work.