To be so annoyed at this woman's financial incompetence

On another thread someone was complaining about "the singles tax" and how much more expensive everything is when you're on your own. Many posters pointed out that you do have the luxury of your own space, and that is the trade off for having no financial back up, and paying more. Now you don't even want single people to have their own space.

I think the point of the article is £100k a year is a lot of money, no one on that sort of salary should be having to budget or cut corners. It's an insane time we live in

As an accountant, I am always astonished by the amount of people who are really high earners, yet do not save anything, or make use of tax deferral/tax saving options to plan for the future.

I actually do get that house prices and childcare costs have meant salaries don't go as far as they used to.

But the Daily Mail/Telegraph also continue to tell us that it's possible to live the high life on the very small sums available to people disabled etc and they're generally not keen on building more houses!

If we keep doing the things that make us poorer - Brexit, austerity, getting rid of social housing - then eventually everyone gets poorer even if they think that it's other people who deserve the poverty and not themselves.

OP have you ever been single and worked in a high pressured and stressful job?

There no one else to share the cooking, or organising the bills, or gardening, or cleaning, or dog walking, shopping, meal planning

Bring single is expensive and being single with limited down time is even more expensive.

You've revealed your own pathological issues with money rather than hers

You sound like the exception rather than the rule. Most people don’t want a stranger in their home, and don’t work hard to earn a salary of £100K to come home to a shared space.

👆100 % this - it seems that unless people spend their money in the way that the OP finds wise and acceptable, then they are either stupid or illiterate. OP keeps going on about financial comfort and early retirement and having a good life after retirement but cannot understand that this person may want to have a good life now, not when she retires. I find her judgemental. OP if you cannot enjoy life a bit on your 190k household income, then you have a problem too. Do not project your pathological fear of spending money to enjoy life on others. Work on yourself.

You can get therapy or other help for that, it sounds like you have a scarcity mindset. "Pathologically fearful" isn't a way to live. Money is one of the biggest resources on the planet and it's only increasing.

"Don't have dogs" is like saying "don't have children."

Sorry but suggesting someone on £100K takes in a lodger is ridiculous. How much do you have to earn before mumsnetters stop suggesting a bloody lodger??

I don't think you really understand what it is like for young families out there that are just buying homes and paying childcare. You've done well on a modest wage, but its harder for those starting off now.

Assuming no student loan and no pension contribution (both big assumptions) £100k brings in £5,713 pm.

Ave. South England house price £450,000 so say a mortgage of £2,000 pm
5 Day per week childcare £1,200 pm

That leaves c, £2,500 to cover food, bills, motoring, insurances, retirement planning.

You shouldn't be poor, but crikey this doesn't make you rich. We really must have some incentive for doing well.

To illustrate how ridiculous the tax system is, if the person in the article were to earn a n additional £26,000, she would only bring in an extra £834 per month. A rate of tax at more than 60%.

how in the fuck is she paying 1000 per month for "energy, water, TV, internet"

She's being mugged off somewhere

The dog insurance is £250 per month. I paÿ £10 per month for critical illness cover for myself.

Not sure which of us is wide of the mark.

Yes, of course and I agree that we should live as we wish. However, it's not something I personally would speak to a Daily Mail journo about either! Obviously the piece is designed to foment RAGE amongst others less fortunate or more sensible! And so the clicks and comments follow. All according to plan....

I haven't read the article as the summary is more than enough 🙄. I've never earned more than £40k but, at 58, have paid off the mortgage, have no other debts, never had an inheritance, will have 3 pensions with income of approximately £30k and I have savings. And a dog and no lodger.
If you can't manage on 100k, you're burning money on something not really necessary. That's the extent of it.

At least with the taxes she pays, she'll be a net contributor to the UK, unlike everyone else on average incomes and below who are net takers.

@valder but what's sensible is subjective. To her it probably all makes sense and that's her way of enjoying life. She enjoys it so much she thinks she could do with another 40k to max out her enjoyment.

Maybe she'll drop dead in 10 years and never gets to have her pension. She would have made all the right choices today if that was to happen.

I may have sounded smug there, but it's not that hard to be sensible. There's no need to be tight or frugal on a very good income either, just enjoy life within means and make sensible choices about what to spend it on.

OP I don't get your issue. You have a healthy household income yourself, it's not like you are some nurse working just as hard and struggling to make ends meet. This woman is self sufficient. She bothers nobody. She does not rely on society to fund her. She doesn't spend her money to your liking, and you some here to complain. It says something about you, not her.

Maybe enjoy your high household income a bit more. Maybe live life a bit more. Maybe go crazy for six months and spend money on whatever you like. It feels good that way.

I do get it can genuinely feel tight on £100k household income in expensive parts of UK if you have kids, a mortgage/rent on family-sized home and childcare, especially full time. But a single person? No, it shouldn't be that hard.