fatima04:
@killingmesoftly truth is everything is in stages with what you have decided to do and since you made up your mind to stay back you have to face the harsh reality.

Focus on raising those kids because getting a job and studying right now with your status is near impossible and immigration is very fluid in all this developing countries so planning 3k income ahead is not necessary and no point to it because there are toooooooo many uncertain variable in your equations.

And also hope you know cost of childcare is expensive for one kid not to mention 3 so eventually working may not be worth it.

All the best in your chosen path

imnotconfused:
@killingmesoftly

A good income is relative..all depends on lifestyle choices.

I know people earning 20-22k pcm before taxes mostly sole earners with wives who don't work.

3k may seem a lot to some but there are people earning double and triple , quadruple of that & still not satisfied.

Important thing is to do what you can and be happy..there will always be someone who outearns you.

Make sure you are living within your means,keep expenditure way less than incoming,mix with people who inspire and challenge you to be better.

I've not seen mentions of importance of extracurriculars for the kids..i cannot stress on how important this is.Swimming classes,dance classes,football,karate,tennis,music you name it i'm sure there's a class for it somewhere.

Find out what interests the children have and let them enrol in at least one of them.

Councils usually run cheap classes for children,it's quite useful to keep them busy.

Also broadening horizons for the children is great,visits to the museum,zoo,parks,overy inexpensive but serve to educate in a fun filled way.There are even places to pick fruits,farms that offer cheap riding and petting classes with ponies for a day..sea world to learn about sea life etc


I won't even go into how important it is to go on holidays.Once a year?Doesn't have to be very expensive,there are places you can book within the uk that are amazing and you can book a year ahead sef while saving.

Time out to chill is very very important.I will write more as i remember.

NB I don't count going to nigeria as a holiday.It is usually very very stressful for me

wonlasewonimi:


Which area of IT do you enjoy? You can can follow these lucrative career path because of money... You need passion and money will follow.


A fresh area for me would be programming and software development...but other areas I would be very comfortable

shaybebaby:

Check Auto trader and Ebay. Avoid dealers, they know all the tricks in the book including clocking the mileage.

Try to buy from private sellers.

Red flags to look for;
Number of previous owners: the higher the number relative to the age of the car, that's not too good.

2)Number of miles on it: chances of more wear and tear if the mileage is high although you may have to compromise mileage to get something cheaper. I personally do not go for anything with more than 50k miles.
3) Check out the history of the car, see if its has been in any accidents which has not been disclosed. If it has been, shouldn't be more than a cat c (fender bender) to avoid stories that touch.

Use this website; www.mycarcheck.co.uk. For a 20 quid, you will be able to check the history of up to 4 cars by just entering the reg number.



Lastly, haggle on the price.

Ralphlauren:


There’s nothing wrong in buying a brand new car as your first car as long as you can afford it. Do not let Lexusgs430 and co rain on your parade.

My MRS went straight to the dealership to pick up a brand new car barely days after she received her driving license in the post. The car was worth around £22,000 at the time. It was a finance deal and after 3years, she returned the car back to them and went to another dealership to pick another brand new car.

The insurance wasn’t bad as a first time driver. It was around £120 or so if I remember correctly. She didn’t pick a provider from a comparison site. She asked the dealership to recommend an insurance company and she went along with the quote she was given.

Brand new cars come with its “perks”, so I won’t fault anyone that decides to get one. You have to be very very careful with used cars as it is easy to get your fingers burnt.

Imagine paying £4,000 for a car only to change all four tyres, brake pads and shocks within a year. And then shortly after you get told by the mechanic that the car’s engine is almost gone and you should prepare to SCRAP the car. This happened to a guy I know.

Mamatukwas:


Lol ok but I haven't heard good things about gumtree so be careful. If you guys have Arnold Clark dealerships where you are check them out, they are very experienced used car sellers. Jisike.

NosoChic:
Please I hope we realise that information on this forum is easily accessible to whoever- we do not encourage anyone to overstay their visas.

We represent law abiding Nigerians and will not be caught encouraging anyone who willingly and knowingly chooses to break the law.

Lexusgs430:


I dey miss o.... Abeg anybody know any woman wey get triplets for body?

Ralphlauren:


To start with, you should have gone back to nigeria and have your husband file for you to return back to the UK as his dependant.

You’ve said your partner is on a work/business visa. I assume this is the entrepreneur visa so why is he working at a nursing home? Has he considered switching career paths? What’s his educational background ?

It’s going to take up to 2-4 years if not longer to obtain your discretionary leave to remain. If you had returned to naija, with all the right paperwork, within two weeks, you would have obtained your dependent visa which gives you unrestricted rights to work and also study and you would have returned back to the UK with your kids as legal migrants.

It would have cost your family a lot financially but when you consider lawyer fees, the back and forth with home office, the 2-4years (or more) of unemployment on your part (lost income), then you will see that returning to naija would have been a better option.

This route you’ve taken is just added stress on your husband. Being the only income earner for a family of five is tough and considering the fact is not eligible for any benefits at the moment.

Be wary of friends encouraging and advising you to overstay. I would also be wary of friends advising you to work at mental homes (when it’s clear you have no passion for such roles). Such friends are usually the group of people that believe the only roles immigrants can get in the UK is care job which is an absolute fallacy. You needs friends around you that will advise you to do things the legal route. Friends that can inspire you to aim for a role in a fancy office at Canary Wharf.

Now that your visa has expired, if you return to nigeria and your husband files for you with his current status, you will be refused. You will have to wait till he gets his citizenship (another 2yrs+) before he can file for you under the spousal visa route.

Until you regularise your stay, it’s going to be very difficult earning an income. Focus on your kids, decide on what career path you want and go on udemy and see if there are short courses you can take.

marylandcakes:


I think it’s better to buy a used car because no matter the make of the car, once you have driven it out of that forecourt almost half of the value has been knocked off. Even if it’s six months old to me you still make a saving. Insurance. Is also very high on new cars. The financial commitment is a lot for someone just coming in to settle down in the uk. Better to take on a mortgage than a car finance in my opinion but maybe it’s the accountant in me that’s speaking.

Lexusgs430:


You are forgetting the little matter of the deposit, mileage restrictions and option to buy fee.......

Yes they are always looking to shift stock, but at whose expense?

Ralphlauren:


There’s nothing wrong in buying a brand new car as your first car as long as you can afford it. Do not let Lexusgs430 and co rain on your parade.

My MRS went straight to the dealership to pick up a brand new car barely days after she received her driving license in the post. The car was worth around £22,000 at the time. It was a finance deal and after 3years, she returned the car back to them and went to another dealership to pick another brand new car.

The insurance wasn’t bad as a first time driver. It was around £120 or so if I remember correctly. She didn’t pick a provider from a comparison site. She asked the dealership to recommend an insurance company and she went along with the quote she was given.

Brand new cars come with its “perks”, so I won’t fault anyone that decides to get one. You have to be very very careful with used cars as it is easy to get your fingers burnt.

Imagine paying £4,000 for a car only to change all four tyres, brake pads and shocks within a year. And then shortly after you get told by the mechanic that the car’s engine is almost gone and you should prepare to SCRAP the car. This happened to a guy I know.

Mamatukwas:


Lol ok but I haven't heard good things about gumtree so be careful. If you guys have Arnold Clark dealerships where you are check them out, they are very experienced used car sellers. Jisike.

Aphrodite007:


You see why I love you guys , I’ve learned too much from here. I honestly was thinking that was a cheap car . My co-workers say that I should buy a new car from the dealers. Maybe I’ll check gumtree. Damn I feel stupid

Aphrodite007:


Wait you found a car for 4K? Wow! No wonder Oga shouted when I told him I wanted a 14k car. I was thinking 14k was cheap o , ah they will just sell me in this country

DaveChapelle:


That deposit sef will buy a car and the insurance.

This place wey nobody send you even if you're driving ferrari... The problem is a lack of creativity on how to spend money

Spent 4k on an old lexus with 68k miles and the insurance and am angry I didnt buy the cheaper one for 1, 6k at least till my insurance drops and I have a house.... 14k will get you 5% deposit on mortgage.... Besides when financing, a new car, you spend about 6k extra than actually paying cash

DaveChapelle:


You can. Get a car for 1k too... Is it not to get you from A to B

DaveChapelle:


Because you can afford it doesn't necessarily mean it's a wise or rather cost-effective investment

Lexusgs430:


I have known people buy cars for £650 and drive it for over 4 years......

Nothing mechanically went wrong with the vehicles, apart from regular maintenance.

And they end up selling the car for over £300.......... Talk about motoring on the cheap.......

And yes it only takes you from point A - B...........

fatima04:


Now u are in my neighbourhood oo, was thinking na me dey do stingykoko oo For a start we are planning to get something one off price within dt range and use that opportunity to get used to the road and also save up for other things

Lexusgs430:


Best idea....

fatima04:


Thank you boss, but u fit dash us dt ur Lexus we go manage am.
You need to change ur car

fatima04:
@madamekofo welcome to the thread oo for work I will suggest still searching for something u have practised in and existing qualifications while u get the UK experience and probably money if u need it.

Getting all this trainee roles can take a while and most times it's targeted at recent graduate or current student

As for selling things, Amazon is still ur best bet and u can shop for things online and in store at reduced price and sell on Amazon, you can even try african stuffs if u can dabble into that.

But then all u Amazon pple dey kill people's business case in point is this house of Fraser store closing more dan half of there stores

Lexusgs430:



Welcome back Geetrix.....

MadameKofo:
Aphrodite007 Thank you for referring me to this thread. Ive been reading it since morning and getting answers to so many questions. Wish i knew about it earlier mehn.

Fatima04 starting this thread was such an awesome idea. God bless you and all who have contributed to this thread. Its really informative.

Back to reading mode.

marylandcakes:



Thank you very much. This is the point I’ve been trying to make. You hit the nail on the head.

Lexusgs430:


I have known people buy cars for £650 and drive it for over 4 years......

Nothing mechanically went wrong with the vehicles, apart from regular maintenance.

And they end up selling the car for over £300.......... Talk about motoring on the cheap.......

And yes it only takes you from point A - B...........

DaveChapelle:


Sometimes I feel like showing myself,sell my car and buy something new, you know...parking assist, lane maintaining and all the papas in these new cars,but my dream car is probably the new E class with the double iPad speedometer

DaveChapelle:
it's like driving, because the car can do 150 miles/HR, doesn't mean we go all out. The extra money can be used to invest in a retirement plan like buying houses and when you remortgage your house, who knows buy a chacha 2020 range rover...all cash and they even deliver to your house on a flatbed . Now, that's balling!

marylandcakes:


I don’t think you understood the point I was trying to make. I was indirectly talking about the depreciating value of the car in comparison with a house whose value goes up.