Terrible State!

[Lea_HTH]

I left the cigarette issue alone as it is an addiction, and frankly during this stressful time I cannot imagine the smoker wanting to give it up and doing so takes a lot of determination - it's not the right time. So whilst instinct would have indicated that could be something to go first, reality indicates it's probably the last thing that'll go as I imagine a smoker would rather have a fag than dinner if push came to shove! Besides, for a smoker, it's not an awful lot of money going out over a month.

 

It is excellent that your son is willing to cycle - but you need to factor in a cost for punctures/bike repairs instead of the bus fares, it will probably be significantly less than the bus fares.

 

Cutting the arrears is not about helping you in court - it's about helping you persuade the council that you are not intentionally homeless. If the arrears are marginal/negligible at the time the possession order is granted (and you probably will not be in court until mid-late April at the earliest, with a further couple of weeks thereafter before the notice of eviction can be processed), then the council cannot say that you are intentionally homeless as a s21 claim is no fault - they'd simply have to help to rehouse you again.

[Lea_HTH]

Petrol is also an issue - it pushes your budget right back into a deficit. I read that your hubby has to drive to work at unsocial hours - does he use the car for actual work (i.e. as a taxi driver or similar) or is it merely travel to and from work?

[Lea_HTH]

Do your gas and electric include payments towards arrears? If so, how much is the current usage - and how much is being paid towards the arrears?

[pinkcob]

oh I see that makes sense.... so hopefully they won't make a judgement quickly as I need to pay as much as possible....

 

my husband is a temp agency driver... driving lorries for companies - asda, argos etc and it's unsocialable hours

 

this other info may take a while to gather...

[Lea_HTH]

Your landlord cannot start court proceedings until after 11th March at the earliest (I'm still not clear whether the notice is actually valid or not - did you show it to the housing officer you met with?). Once the proceedings are started, it is likely to take at least four weeks before it is listed for a hearing...once in court, if all paperwork is issued correctly, the notice is valid and there are no exceptional hardship factors, it is likely that possession will be granted for 14 days (if the judge is in the mood to he can give up to 42 days), thereafter the landlord will need to apply for a warrant of execution for the possession order, and then the bailiffs will put a letter through your door giving you the date and time that you have to leave the property - this is likely to be two weeks or so after the date of the possession order. So there is a strong likelihood that even with the shortest time frames, you will not be moving until early May.

 

So your hubby only uses the car to go to and from work - is his job a very long way from home, or is the car a petrol guzzler? If the amount of petrol used could be reduced it would help your budget quite substantially.

[pinkcob]

oh i see.... his work is a long way away and costs £10 per day he works 5-6 days per week some weeks 1-2 bad weeks and then a lil running around... we have a cheaper to run car but it would cost £300 to put back on road ............ I have kids homeworks, baths and bed now... I have husband working on the figures you need etc... so will either type up later tonight or tomorrow morning, I also have landlords agent coming tomorrow for inspection!

[Ell-enn]

What debts are the bailiffs calling fo? if so, are you supposed to pay a monthly amount? you may be able to get the paments reduced by applying to the court