Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

High earners - how do you spend your salary?

988 replies

Citygirly · 21/05/2022 10:03

DH and I earn just under £140k combined.

We do maximum pension payments (his is 9% as NHS) and we also give about 10% a month to charity.

Other than that, we plan to start overpaying the mortgage. We invest £1k a month (so £500 each) and save £1k for holidays. We of course do general/specific savings but then have a good chunk left over for disposable income.

AIBU to ask other high earning households how they tend to allocate their money? Just want to see if we could be using it better or this is about right for comparables.

OP posts:
Mummumtum · 21/05/2022 12:07

We’re not, thankfully I’m the higher earners of the 2 of us so this doesn’t leave us short - just hoping to pay the mortgage off and be able to slow down/retire early if poss

Woundabout · 21/05/2022 12:02

I wouldn’t call that particularly high earning but I guess depends where you live. In London it wouldn’t go far - I’m single but earn quite a bit more than half of that and don’t feel high earning so money goes on usual things - holidays, house, mortgage, going out.

JesusInTheCabbageVan · 21/05/2022 11:59

Talliah · 21/05/2022 11:39

Perfect Mumsnet thread. We should get a bingo card going.

'We bought an island while being unable to afford a car that starts reliably '
'I have a bedroom that looks exactly like a room in a particular posh hotel when you do a Google image search'
'Warm spiced nuts'

Um... sure there will be others Grin

TomatoorChips · 21/05/2022 11:59

Mummumtum · 21/05/2022 11:56

We save the entirety of DHs salary mostly - £1500 each into ISAs, then split the rest between ‘holiday’ and ‘house’ savings pots

in terms of other spending our food budget & eating out/socialising budget is pretty high. Couple of memberships, cleaner, I do Pilates sessions, he has music tuition, kids clubs. All adds up pretty quickly

Please dont do that at the expense of living for today

A 55 DH is on his 3rd cancer- not good- we spent like mad and I dont regret a second/

Mummumtum · 21/05/2022 11:56

We save the entirety of DHs salary mostly - £1500 each into ISAs, then split the rest between ‘holiday’ and ‘house’ savings pots

in terms of other spending our food budget & eating out/socialising budget is pretty high. Couple of memberships, cleaner, I do Pilates sessions, he has music tuition, kids clubs. All adds up pretty quickly

TomatoorChips · 21/05/2022 11:50

We were young when we earned £140k

Mortgages
Children
Holidays

Now older and earn more
Holidays
The Pub
Children

Spend £100k on 2 cars every 10 years and keep them

My dog eats Lilys- that quite expensive

HandbagsnGladrags · 21/05/2022 11:42

Save for retirement.
Expensive gym membership
Nice toiletries & makeup
Meals out
Nice holidays 3x year
Nails done every two weeks

Talliah · 21/05/2022 11:39

Perfect Mumsnet thread. We should get a bingo card going.

CTR1000 · 21/05/2022 11:35

Pension (13%), savings, paid off mortgage, some lovely holidays and meals out prior to baby coming along.

Now it’s stuff for the baby and saving for his future. Once I’m back at work a chunk of it will be childcare.

I love not worrying about money - it’s a luxury neither of our parents had. But equally we’re not particularly materialistic so money has always largely been spent on securing the future.

DSGR · 21/05/2022 11:05

Children’s activities, holidays, clothes, always nice food, bit of overpaying the mortgage sometimes, small savings, pay 10% into pension

rainyskylight · 21/05/2022 11:00

I salary sacrifice a lot into my pension and then save a chunk. Occasionally overpay the mortgage. Once it’s gone, it’s gone so we are not extravagant and would like to have options in the future. If we save enough, private school for DC may be an option.

karmakameleon · 21/05/2022 10:57

We save it. Always tried to live off one salary and save the other. Only time that didn’t work was when we had three small DC and employed a full time nanny.

Savings either went on paying off the mortgage (should be fully paid off this summer) and into pensions/ISAs.

nearlyspringyay · 21/05/2022 10:48

Childcare, horses, cleaner, holidays, eating out, gym.

Really irrelevant though, what I spend mine on may be of no interest to you