To not understand how people fund their lives and feel a bit jealous?

My parents are paying this on their pretty modest detached house (which I could never afford 😂). We are not in the SE.

There’s plenty of areas in which you could pay over £400pcm in council tax.

As I said to OP, not everyone living there is commuting into London and earning mega money! There are still TA's, cleaners, retail & hospitality staff etc earning minimum wage who manage to live in the area. Compared to our relatives in the NW we do feel significantly poorer despite being on similar incomes. Obviously not everything is more expensive here but as a few examples, B&SIL live in a 3 bed semi like us - £80k mortgage paid off. We have 10 years left on our £180k mortgage and are frankly, bloody lucky it's so little purely because we are old enough to benefit from house price rises. I used to pay £7ph for my DC's childminder 5 years ago (per child) my SIL now only pays £4.20ph. G&T in my local pub £7.40, £4.90 in hers.

We have a combined income of c.£55k and we manage OK. We socialise with some very wealthy people who I suspect would never in a million years imagine we earn 'so little'. But please don't think everyone in the SE is rich.

I don’t think that’s fair. I upgraded to my current car because:

• I spend a lot of time in it driving to new places and so I wanted a screen that was compatible with Apple Car Play
• My last car was needing work done on it every year
• It was diesel so becoming uneconomic
• I spent half my life in winter defrosting the car, and wanted a heated windscreen.

I’d like to upgrade my current car because I’d like heated steering wheel and heated seats, and I’d like to move to an electric car. I can’t justify the spend at the minute as it would be £40k+ to get what I want, and I’m not willing to spend that but I have reasons for wanting a new car that are more than it gets me from A to B. In fact, I can justify a new car way more than I could justify new clothes, or even a new phone (which a lot of people replace every few years when the old one is just fine).

I live off 20,000. Solo parent, live in similar priced area on coast. Child attends extra curricula. Have 13 year old car and still manage. Don't eat out or go on holiday but have no debt whatsoever
You just live to your means. You're obviously not

Don't worry op - it is a rare person who hasn't misjudged their tone or had their tone misjudged, especially in writing. You live and you learn eh. x

Yes many people know the price of everything but the value of nothing…

look at how the sick and disabled, young and old are treated

Our income is slightly less and we have so much money my partner saves £20k a year minimum

We live in London.

Let me guess, expensive tastes?

£400 council tax? I don’t think there’s a tax bracket in the UK that even comes close to that! Your figures are obviously just plucked from the air.

It's not just the aspirational fantasy. It's the complete inability of so many people to value both themselves and the people around them on individual merit and attributes such as pleasantness, humour, loyalty, respect for learning, and so many other things. Instead we only seem to value things we can put a price on, which if you think about it is a really odd way of measuring self-worth.

I'm not interested in wearing my wealth or parking it outside the house for all to see. The ones who look down their noses at me because I'm wearing 20 year old clothes with frayed collars, or because my DCs coats come from Vinted rather than Versace, are people I'm not likely to rub along with anyway.

Move up north,I’m not normally one to judge but on that salary you are taking the piss.

You’re overspending and frittering. With only one child you can easily afford a new car, private school if that’s your thing, holidays and eating out. Write down what you are spending and get a handle on it.

Comparison is the thief of joy, you earn more than most and are still not happy because your neighbours have more than you
Forget about the neighbours and focus on yourself
You should easily be able to live on what your income is

Inheritance
famiky support such a free childcare
health
age wheh they bought their first home(if at all)

are all the biggest factors in why it isn’t a level playing field

CatrionaBalfour

But still jealous of the people "wealthier" than they are to open a new thread.

The OP has stated she won't come back to the thread, presumably because after writing her agenda, she no longer wants to answer questions from posters.

Apparently not. It's really very odd.

Luck and inheritance, would be my guess.

Have you really failed to comprehend some people will have more money that you?

You live in an area that only rich people can afford to live, do comparatively, you feel poor. Move to somewhere people have nothing, like a council estate on the outskirts of a large city and you'd be too embarrassed by what you have and would never consider writing this post.

I have an income of £50,828. I am a single parent and have 4 children. 1 adult, 3 at home. I have one long haul holiday each year, help my eldest out financially with things like white goods /furniture etc, lease a nice car, eat out regularly and although we don't splurge, the kids all have the nice clothes/days out etc. I rent and pay £1300/month for this. How you think you have to go without, on a salary more three times mine, baffles me.

I doubt it is a genuine post ladies. I wouldn't waste your time commenting.

Spend the 15k on a car instead of a holiday?

You can't afford to replace your car or buy new clothes but can go on a £15k holiday?? I think your priorities are off.

Nails it.

So, so sick of these types of posts and I actually hope most if not all, are on the wind up and there aren’t actual real people out there who are on this type of income who are so dense and out of touch.

FFS another one of these bleeding heart posts from completely tone deaf people living in lalaland. Do you not realise quite how ignorant you sound? You do realise that not everyone 'in SE commuter belt' has big salaries don't you? I live there and our combined income is less than a third of yours. We live a normal frugal but happy life & are definitely not alone. I do also know plenty of people who have 2nd homes yet plead poverty or say things like 'you can't possibly retire on less than £50k a year' or suggest meals out at Michelin starred restaurants and be surprised when not everyone is keen as it's 'definitely worth paying the little bit extra'. Mind boggling.