How do you afford the bills alone?

[Traveller]

I know you need the childcare for your sanity, but could you cut it down to one day a fortnight to save a little money? If you go to a playgroup you could enquire about setting up a babysitting club for if you need more childfree time than that. A lot of mums are in the same position with little money so you may find you can make an arrangement with some of them. I know how tough it can be coping with no family to help out, but if it comes to it you may have to look at dropping the childcare because it is possible to live without it, unlike your other major bills and food.

Where do you shop? I save a fortune by avoiding the major supermarkets and get everything from Aldi. Can you contact your phone provider and see if you can get on a better plan (mobile and landline). Could you cope without a landline?
Also look through your bank statement for the last month (or keep a record of all spending for the next month) and identify any areas that could be trimmed. Things like take-away coffee, magazines and trips to playcentres can be replaced with a thermos, a library pass and trips to the park.

I would recommend contacting centrelink and talking through the payments you are getting to make sure there is not something you are missing financially. It seems strange your payments were dropped when they said they wouldn't be.
I hope you find something you can do to help improve your situation. It sounds like you are doing it really tough and I'm sure your MIL removing half your possessions hasn't helped you any

ETA I hope you don't mind me answering without being a single mum, I used to work in banking and have a bit of experience with budgeting as a result.

[LizLemon]

I have no advice I'm sorry but I just wanted to give you a big .

It sounds like you are doing it so tough and I hope it gets easier for you soon x

[Amity]

It can get really tough. You just need to budget, budget, budget. Don't be afraid to ask the Salvos or St Vinnies for help if you need. Everyone hits rock bottom, but just muddle through.

The best advice I can give is get rid of all credit including credit cards, unless you can absolutely keep the balance at zero. Otherwise you can get yourself in real trouble.

Good luck.

[Gigi]

Are you on the lists for Public Housing and Housing Co-ops? If and when your name comes up, that will mean less rent (but the places are small). While you're paying private rental, have you applied for Rental Assistance (paid with the family tax payment).

Have you applied for the ChildCareBenefit? That can reduce your child care bill.

Financial counsellors are a great resource. (not financial advisors, who advise people on investments, but financial counsellors who advise on budgets for low income people).

Instead of credit cards, you could get a debit card, so you can only spend, what is in your account and no more.
Or if you want to keep ONE credit card for emergencies, keep it in the freezer, so you avoid impulse buys.

Most insurance companies will accept monthly payments.

[Girl-23]

Hi Mum2R,

You should apply for JET fees. Go to Centrelink and obtain the form from them, take it to your childcare centre to complete (the section they are required to fill out). This should reduce your childcare fees alot and if need be, enrol your child for more days because it is affordable and you might need in for your situation. Good luck. Hope all goes well for you.

[Gigi]

i recently found out, that some banks and credit unions have FEE FREE bank accounts. So finding that out, and asking some questions at banks/cr unions, has meant i now have FEE FREE banking. This is saving me some money.

[_JeSs_]

i have just moved, was paying 290, now paying 240 once im all moved in... moved from 3 bedroom to 2 bedroom, baby will have to share a room but 3 bedroom houses are sooo expensive, u might have to compromise!

i was struggling when i was paying 290 but i could still afford clothes for DS and stay on top of bills ect.. im not sure of ur situation but are u getting full single parent pension and both FTB's? and full rent assistance?

with childcare, try cutting that back cuz its very expensive, its hard but i take DS where ever i go, toys and food keep them occupied! and by the way JET funding is only if ur studying lol

try paying a bit off every bill everytime u get paid n that will stop big bills coming in the mail

shop at aldi and coles, the rest are sooo much more expensive... and try just cooking basic as meals and cook big meals n have leftovers..

sell ANYTHING u dont need/use, buy baby/kids stuff off ebay...

umm thats all i can think of atm! just stop 'luxuries' for a while! i dont go to the gym anymore, no credit cards, no going out for tea or lunch or buying food/drinks out... get pay tv cut off if u have it, be careful with electricity/water... try and do free stuff! i dont miss any of these kind of things

[Floweryfields]

Just so you know, JET fees are for studying parents only - are you studying? If so definitely apply - it means you pay only 10c per hour (last it knew) - so one parent I had on JET paid somehting ridiculous like $1.10 per day.

[_JeSs_]

gigi, how stupid is it to have to pay to get gas and elec connected and reconnected, they flick a bloody switch!!! lol... my elec was like 22 to get dc and gas was like 10... i dont get it lol... so will have to pay for that to be connected again at the new place... and i have to pay 230 of the ex's rent that he just decided not to pay... why cant they MAKE HIM pay it... annoys me, they are harrassing me cuz we were both on the lease, hes not answering his phone so it up to me... real fair lol.. but after thats payed i have no more debts to pay related to him so thats a releif

m2r, i didnt think the salvos sold whitegood either! i had then come to my old place to get heaps of furniture and they wouldnt take a cd player, a hair straightner or a clothes dryer lol... depends what everyones credit ratings are like but when i was younger, my mum got one of them harvey norman cards (she was a single mum then too) and as long as u can pay it off b4 the interest starts its a good deal! she got a fridge and a washing machine with it and payed it off in time n never had to pay interest

ausgirl, yer i said that in my post would be good if it was for everyone cuz its soooooo cheap, i had DS in full time last yr when i was studying and it was costing me like 25 a fortnight or something lol its great and u get an extra 60 a fortnight off centrelink for studying so ur pretty much not even paying for it lol