To be amazed at how much money some people seem to have?

[TinselOnTheTree]

My Facebook feed today has been totally awash with Gucci and Louis Vuitton bags, Laboutin shoes, tickets to Paris/Dubai/Bali, Tiffany jewellery and all other manner of nice expensive items, given to women from their husbands or partners. Generally these are people who work in seemingly average or low paid jobs, but who seem to have absolutely no shortage of money.

One couple in particular work in low paid jobs; he works as a shop manager and she works 2 days a week in a clothes shop as a sales assistant, yet they seem to have money to burn! They have constant holidays, shopping sprees, kids decked out in designer clothes etc. I just wonder how on earth they afford it.

Another couple have 6 kids; the woman is a SAHM and the man works as a teacher so presumably earns too much for tax credits but not a super high salary, and they too seem to have so much money. Again, kids all decked out in lovely clothes, the woman always has her hair done and has nice clothes, they have an expensive pram for their younger two children, and even went to Barbados a few months ago, all 8 of them!

Oh and another couple, who run a small business but say they make very little profit, got back from Florida 2 weeks ago and now the man has surprised the wife and kids with 2 weeks in Morocco for Christmas, and today she posted photos of their holiday of all the gifts he'd taken out there for her; Jimmy Choo shoes, clothes from Selfridges, a Tiffany necklace, and all kinds of other stuff, it literally filled the whole double bed in the photo!

I'm not jealous, before anyone says I am; I am perfectly happy with my life, and I'm pleased for people that they have and do nice things, and do enjoy seeing the photos of course, but it just totally baffles me that people seem to afford so much top end super expensive stuff!

[Aeroflotgirl]

I haven't seen that at all on my newsfeed.but I hate that type of boasting, very vulgar!

[weresquirrel]

Credit cards, tax credits and loads of debt...

[SamanthaBrique]

Debt debt and more debt? Also agree with a PP that showing off about it is crass. I mean, by all means spend hundreds on your DCs for Christmas but the photos of them on social media surrounded by piles of presents are just tacky.

[RubyWinterstorm]

It's often people who have no money , really, who try to prove to the world how much stuff they have.

[taytopotato]

Inheritance, lottery win, family money

[Hellooooitsme]

The only couple I know like that (low income, flash holidays and presents) lost their home. It had all been on credit cards at the expense of the mortgage.

[Newbrummie]

If I'd stayed in my first house that I owned, I'd be mortgage free now and have been paying £120 a month for a 4 bed town house in a very lovely touristy spot. That's how I pressume "they do it". I'd be doing it if only I'd not wanted a bloody garden 😩

[Crisscrosscranky]

Some people will have 'family money' that's been inherited and invested. It's easy to have that level of disposable income with no mortgage for example. Most will have credit card debt though.

That being said my FB feed has mostly been of kids playing with toys and Christmas dinners. One friend got a pair of 'red soles' but she's a doctor and husband an engineer (no kids yet) and looks like it was her main pressie so not that extravagant.

[donajimena]

It baffles me too. It really does. But there are so many variables. For example my friend and I are both cleaners working for ourselves. We earn pretty much the same.
However due to our housing costs she's actually 300 pcm better off.
Then there are credit cards. I don't have any but some people do.
I went to spain for 5 days last year for £ 200 but all people on Facebook would have seen was sunshine and cocktails not the bargain price.
But yes I do wonder!

[Pettywoman]

Well I got a £20 anorak from Costco and DH got some Aldi fleeces and that is all. We're sick of being skint through to March with Christmas overspending.

[LumelaMme]

It makes me grateful that the Christmas photos on my FB were mostly limited to food and Christmas jumpers.

Posting pictures of piles of presents is just naff...

[happychristmasbum]

squirrel could be right.

I have a few friends like this, but they have inherited shedloads of cash from deceased parents, so despite having low paid jobs, they are cash rich and can afford all these things due to high savings, years after the parents died.

Also, low income/low outgoings might lead to a far better standard of living than high income/high outgoings. So if they have low rent or mortgage then that would also account for it.

[expatinscotland]

YANBU

[jimijack]

I know what you mean.
Recently I went away with a couple of family members who in recent years have had severe financial problems. So bad I have given them hundreds of pounds for food shopping/bills/car mot etc.
They both bought themselves designer handbags, purses, clothes, spending quite a lot of money.
I assume that their financial situation has improved. They are in the same jobs, working hard but not brilliant pay.
I could not afford to buy any of the stuff they bought and was grateful that we only spent an afternoon shopping.
It really got me down.
I'm not interested in shopping, I have no idea what any of the labels mean, I do not have the first idea who ANY of the names are and just thought that £250 for a handbag would feed my family for a month.
I don't get it.
Curious rather than judging. Is it credit cards and loans do you think?

[specialsubject]

There is nothing on that list that I would have any use for! So a big 'so what' seems the easiest reaction.

Borrowing is really cheap, Carney wonders why the nation is in so much debt. Silly man.

[EweAreHere]

I wonder the same thing, OP.

I know some friends budget well and have very small mortgages (they bought wisely/luckily some years ago).

I can only assume a lot of people have a lot of credit card debt. We don't do that in this house. If we can't pay it off in full at the end of the month, we don't buy it.

[SandyDenny]

My facebook has actually been really nice, lots of photos of meals and families, no present mountains and definitely no holidays or designer things. The one things that surprises me is that so many people can afford to go out for Christmas lunch though, that does surprise me

[christmasjolity]

I work with families where there is disney florida at easter and food bank at christmas.

[Cagliostro]

If they're boasting it's crass. Who cares what they have or how they got it? It's not what's under the tree but who's around it that matters

[SillySongsWithLarry]

It could be their only present. DH opened 6 presents this morning and I opened 1. The monetary value of his gifts were the same as mine but to the world I got an expensive and extravagant gift. We have no debt but we do save each month for Christmas. In already saving now for Christmas 2017.

[TinselOnTheTree]

The ones that have got that type of present have got a lot of gifts; one of them had them all in a photo and they covered a double (or maybe king size) bed.

[lovelearning]

amazed at how much money some people seem to have

TinselOnTheTree, it's all relative.

Many people in the world would be amazed at how much you have.

[Imnotacelebgetmeouttahere]

Boasting is vulgar I agree, however I think it's bad form to assume debt / credit cards despite that being possible.

We are a low income family and if someone had seen our day today they might assume the same. The truth is in fact I buy throughout the year in the sales, limit it to a specific list, add long life food items to the weekly food shop a few a week in the months before Xmas - a bottle of wine / a box of crackers / few jars doesn't have a huge impact if you select one weekly. Some of the toys were good quality second hand, decorations built up over the years etc.

No debt / credit card - just careful planning

[Imnotacelebgetmeouttahere]

Admittedly no Bali tickets here however they would have been gratefully received

[leccybill]

My fb was like that a couple of years ago but I think people have realised it's a bit crass now.

Happily, today all I've seen is pics of smiling children and lovely Christmas dinners, emergency chairs and all.