Aus Stay at Home Mums - How do you afford it?

[pradabooties]

Hi ladies,

I'm in a bit of a stressful position and looking for advice. I'm 30 weeks pregnant and the company I work for has switched my role to contractor (prior to informing them I was pregnant) and now I've been informed the entire set of Australian staff will be let go within the next couple of months.

I'm entitled to 4 months paid parental leave from the Government which is great but I am worried about after that. My partner does not earn a great salary and in our city its incredibly difficult to find a new job at the moment... on top of which he doesn't really have qualifications outside of what he's doing.

I'm not saying anything against mothers that opt for childcare but I personally feel strongly about not putting our baby into care. The job I am about to lose is a from home position so would have been perfect to have after bub. I was planning on doing some additional study online after bub is born anyway and from what I can see the Government offers a parental payment to mothers that are either studying part time or job hunting but it looks like every semester break - so twice a year - they'd need me to job hunt even just for the two weeks off

I never intended on "living off the Government" but I am extremely stressed about our financial future and want to hear from other Australian stay at home mums. What government benefits do you receive and do you have any advice?

 

[Berri]

I'm in Aust too (Melbourne) so the first thing is that I don't know how you could be moved to a contractor in the first place? Sounds fishy but anyway...

I only got the PPL 18wks each baby (no employer support) so I was back to work when that finished so I'm not a SAHM. There is just no way that we could pay our mortgage and basic bills with just DH working so I work part-time. My parents watch the kids one day and they are at creche 2 days a week (a small, community based centre which the kids love). In the beginning though I was able to work afternoon/evening until they were 10mths so DH was home and they didn't go into daycare right away... would that be an option?

As far as Centrelink goes, you should be entitled to FTB A and B if you're on one low income. Also low income health care card which reduces utilities/rego etc. I don't know much about Austudy/newstart but if you have to meet job search requirements to get it then that's what you should do. It's one thing to take the benefits that support you but to take something you're not entitled to sucks! Have you looked at the payment estimator on the Centrelink website... you can put in all your info and it'll give you an idea of what you might be entitled to

Start adjusting now to the income you will have when you aren't working... you should be able to save some for a little buffer when you're at home.

Good luck

 

[pradabooties]

I'm in Aust too (Melbourne) so the first thing is that I don't know how you could be moved to a contractor in the first place? Sounds fishy but anyway...

I only got the PPL 18wks each baby (no employer support) so I was back to work when that finished so I'm not a SAHM. There is just no way that we could pay our mortgage and basic bills with just DH working so I work part-time. My parents watch the kids one day and they are at creche 2 days a week (a small, community based centre which the kids love). In the beginning though I was able to work afternoon/evening until they were 10mths so DH was home and they didn't go into daycare right away... would that be an option?

As far as Centrelink goes, you should be entitled to FTB A and B if you're on one low income. Also low income health care card which reduces utilities/rego etc. I don't know much about Austudy/newstart but if you have to meet job search requirements to get it then that's what you should do. It's one thing to take the benefits that support you but to take something you're not entitled to sucks! Have you looked at the payment estimator on the Centrelink website... you can put in all your info and it'll give you an idea of what you might be entitled to

Start adjusting now to the income you will have when you aren't working... you should be able to save some for a little buffer when you're at home.

Good luck

Thanks for your reply!
What happened was my job went from casual to contractor because the company I work for was sold to an overseas company... unfortunate but apparently legal! But yes my boss isn't a joy to work for anyway, have had my hours cut down to 10 a week since I was 4 months pregnant and as a casual/contract worker there is nothing to be done about it.

My parents have very demanding careers and work 5 days a week often 7am-7pm so unfortunately they wouldn't be able to help. Likewise, despite my OH's low income, he works often 70 hours per week. Although I think it may be possible that he could switch a couple of day to night shifts so thank you for that idea!

It looks from the Government site that I'd be eligible for payments due to studying part time while looking after bub and to be honest the amount is about the same I am earning now. I've just never relied on the government before and the thought of it stresses me out a bit!

 

[Berri]

No worries.

Really the financial stuff will pale in comparison to the good stuff!

Other ways to save $$ are to breastfeed (free baby food for 6mths = can't lose!) and cloth nappies which is a bit more of an outlay upfront but saves long-term (esp. if you're planning more than 1 baby) - some local councils also offer rebates if you do cloth so worth checking with them. Also baby expo's often do really good discounts (you can get free tickets most of the time too).

I don't see it as you relying on the gov't if your husband is working and you are studying with the intent to use that study to return to the workforce at some point.

Do what you can, be sensible and don't get caught up in credit card debt! Also make sure your hubby has personal insurance as he will be your sole income you need to protect that.

 

[stormcloud96]

I am a SAHM in Australia, but I am an American, so I don't qualify for anything until next year when I can get my PR.
When I was working here I just saved what I could, and then we moved, so didn't work after. I also paid bills ahead (I have student loans and one credit card from the US, the cc I managed to pay off).
Luckily my husband is in a pretty good job with some flexibility. Although I have my concerns the company may move to Sydney.
I understand not wanting to rely on government as it can be scary, but just think the taxes you have been paying all these years are for just such a scenario for others, so why not yourself?
We are moving to a more rural area outside of Melbourne and I plan to do farmer's markets, as I make beaded jewelry, and we plan to grow some food/herbs. Is there something small you can do like that to pass the time and possibly make a bit of cash?

 

[jlw617]

Im not from Australia so I apologize if you weren't looking for other advise as I know there's a difference in cost of living/other cultures however I am a sahm and have been for almost 9 years...I will say there are times we really struggle and it can get stressful but I can offer some pointers...meal plan! Food is one of the most expensive things for our family because it adds up so quickly, meal planning helps so much with this. Buy secondhand, I don't know how things are there but I get really nice things for way less than I'd buy new...clothes, furniture...learn to do it yourself, from haircuts to repairs, you will save a ton of money, I cut my children's and husbands hair, and I promise they don't look hideous, just look at a couple tutorials/videos, plus my husband over the years has become quite the handyman, he does most our car repairs and believe me the man used to not have a handy bone in his body and like storm cloud mentioned, if you can sell things here and there (used baby clothes/crafts/food items) the extra little bit is nice

 

[pradabooties]

Thank you ladies!

Good to hear a couple of different views

Very good points. I haven't stopped working for more than a week since I was 14 years old so I think it really scares me to not be earning any income (other than family government support) but on the other hand it is a good way of thinking about it that my taxes have been supporting others and now I'm just taking a turn.

I'm sure we'll make it work! I just didn't expect to be finishing my pregnancy jobless so a little stressed out.

Thanks again