What's the point?

I just figured out that all the expenses that coincide with commuting to and from a city job (25k/yr) leaves me with less money a week than working 30 hours on £7 at a local supermarket would.

What's the point?

I did think mortgage wise obviously you can borrow 3.5 times your income so it's more 'desirable' to have the £25k rather than £11k yearly earnings, but even then, nowadays they look into all your expenses and won't allow 3.5 with such expenses in a lot of instances anyway.

Is it me or am I just not seeing the point??
Why should I give myself hours of commute time and stupidly long, tiring hours (8:30 - 18:30) to earn LESS than I would in a pretty stress-free super market job?

Reply 1

Student-95

What is the job? What is the progression like? How much are you spending on travel? Could you get a similar job nearer or move closer to this one?

Reply 2

username853993

Original post by PerhapsPhysio

career progression and salary potential, enjoyment of job etc etc. You start on 25k but that will go up (a lot in some careers too) where as you wont earn much more than the £7 an hour throughout your entire career (there will be some career progression but for most people, very little)

jsp makes a great point too, £800 a month on travel is far too much, move closer to where you work or find a job closer to you

(edited 6 years ago)

Ride a bike then

Original post by J-SP

Your take home pay on £25k is nearly £1,700 a month.

Your take home pay on £7.50 an hour at 30 hours a week is only £936.

Where are you commuting from to be spending £800 a month on travel?

North Cambridgeshire
- Costs the same to travel to London, Birmingham or Nottingham which are the three places where I'm finding jobs.

Reply 5

username853993

Original post by PerhapsPhysio

North Cambridgeshire
- Costs the same to travel to London, Birmingham or Nottingham which are the three places where I'm finding jobs.

move closer to the job then? the reason you arent coming out with more money is because you have a stupidly expensive commute

Reply 6

username3433134

Original post by J-SP

Cambridge to London is less than £5k a year, I am not sure where the other £4k is coming from.

My advice would be to move closer to which ever city you end up working in. Particularly if it is outside of London, you will save money and time.

Neither am I to be honest. It's about 20 miles to either Peterborough or Ely station which cuts the cost considerably into London but I don't drive and thus would have to rely on parents to drive 40 miles just to drop me off which would be utterly ridiculous!

Trust me, if I could afford to move out I would have done so by now!
Whether I blow a significant portion of my earnings on commute or rent it's dead money either way.

Reply 7

username3433134

Original post by madmadmax321

You and Student-95 totally hit the nail on the head. Thank you. I needed a bit of a wake up call! You're right. It's about the experience and potential. Long term wise I'm sure it'll repay me somehow.

I've tried for the past six months to find something much closer as I can't afford to move out and there isn't anything hence why I'm now having to consider stupid commute times and fares.

Reply 8

username3433134

Original post by J-SP

Well you could stay in the supermarket and live off your parents generosity for the rest of your life.....

Wow, what a smart-ass.

You don't know anything about me and you instantly assume I'm living off my parents because I live with them?

I'm disabled, hence why I can't drive, and currently run two of my own businesses which enables me to live totally independently from my parents, just in the same household. I'm saving for a deposit so I can actually get on the property ladder at some point before 30 unlike anyone else I know who rents all their income away.

I'm looking to get an external job to help fund for my grandmothers care fees. It's not like I'm sat on my ass doing nothing all day waiting for mum and dad to cook dinner and wash my clothes?

The reason for starting this thread was because I find it shocking the cost of having to commute to an in-city job when a lot of people don't have the luxury of finding a job nearer/moving nearer to where jobs are, and still need the money.

I suggest you don't judge a person's character and/or motives based on a simple question.

Reply 9

username3433134

Original post by J-SP

Sorry, the defeatist and overly negative attitude you kept presenting made me make some wrong assumption. I apologise.

If you are running two businesses, why not focus on them trying to bring in more revenue rather than finding a full time job that would distract you from them. Or find a job closer to home. It sounds like everything you are trying to achieve is at odds with one another.

I should have made it more clear in my original post what my intentions were - I realise now they can look quite ignorant if one were to think I just 'wasn't bothered' so to speak. I'm just feeling quite fed up because I didn't realise it would be so difficult to find anything closer to home (we moved here about three months ago from an area just outside London so it's been a huge shock).

I'd love to focus solely on my current work but it's utter hell chasing payments at times, and one month I may make £££ but the next not even half which is why I wanted something more sustainable and reliable regarding my nans fees.

I think I'm at a point where I'm panicking because time's getting on, but if I hold out and keep searching for a position nearer to home - even if it means it'll take a few more months to get it - it'll probably be best in the long run (less commute time to have time to focus on other work, lower commute costs etc.).

Reply 10

Quady

Original post by PerhapsPhysio

So rather than rent a place your plan is to live with your parents in the sticks and shelfstack?

lol

Reply 11

username3433134

Original post by Quady

So rather than rent a place your plan is to live with your parents in the sticks and shelfstack?

lol

Look at the thread before you respond with such ignorance my friend!

I run two successful businesses and am looking for something external to pay for a relatives care fees - without having to take from my own earnings and deposit funds.

ps.
Funnily enough some of us don't aspire to live in rented accommodation for the sake of snobbery over a job and thus would indeed prefer to live with parents whilst we save up the deposit funds!

Reply 12

Quady

Original post by PerhapsPhysio

Not successful enough to smooth the cash profit over the year to equal being a workhorse for someone else though.

Some of us got a job, rented on their own, bought at 28 and stopped paying interest on the house loan at 32. I couldn't have done that shelfstaking.

Snobbish perhaps but seems to be working out.