Do you think what is wealthy changes depending on age?

[Meghamps]

So I really enjoy reading the ‘what is wealthy’ threads as the subjectivity depending on lifestyle and experiences of posters is really interesting.

So the question- do you think what counts as being ‘ financially wealthy’ changes depending on age? If yes, what are your thoughts on numbers?

To start, in my opinion:

Under 30: wealthy is income over £80k and/or house value over £600k

30+: wealthy is income over £200k and/or house value over £800k

That's quite a big jump there. I'm 32, would fall into the wealthy category 2 years ago. Nowhere near your over 30 category though.

We certainly don't feel wealthy, circumstances have made us lucky with our house purchase but we don't have much disposable income at all.

There's so many other factors, mainly area. Can't imagine 80k goes far in London.

" I knew we had no money but I was rich as I could be. .In my coat of many colours my momma made for me"
the older I get the less I actually want.

I'm on 17k a year, anything over £40k seems wealthy to me 😂😂

So, if my house is worth 500k, we have an income of 55k a year and 300k in savings and are in our 40s.. are we wealthy?

I don't think so. Comfortable. But not wealthy

Op, I’d also agree with that’s quite a jump. I would probably change the ages to under 40 and 40+ and keep your numbers. Mainly due to maternity leave / part time work when children are young / nursery fees.

What area are you basing this ‘wealth” on?

An £80k salary and £600k house would be completely out of reach for almost everyone I know, even those with good jobs, nice homes and comfortable lifestyles.

It’s not blanket one size fits all just doing a search on £600k houses within a 10miles of my home town I’ve got 5,6 & 7 bed detached houses with stunning views and gardens coming up. If I search in london then £600k would buy you 1, 2 & 3 bed flats or a tiny house....

A position where you can afford what you want, but not necessarily need, is wealthy to me.

A position where you can afford what you want, but not necessarily need, is wealthy to me.

This

Under 30: wealthy is income over £80k and/or house value over £600k

30+: wealthy is income over £200k and/or house value over £800k

Those kind of figures are SO far beyond the radar of anyone I know, that this thread then only becomes about a tiny % of people.

'Wealth' is all relative.
Relative to what you used to have / not have, and also relative to what those you have around you have.

Not really to be honest.

If I considered a 29 year old on £80k to be 'wealthy' I'm pretty sure I'd consider a 41 year old in the same position to also be wealthy.

You also can't just pin down wealth to incoming and house value. I know what I would consider to be a 'wealthy' couple in their 50's with income of £60k - from pensions - and a beautiful house worth £400k- but quite a bit more in the bank! Yet they wouldn't meet either of your criteria.

@AliceMcK where do you live, that's where I need to be. I'm in zone 4 in London, looking at a semi detached 700k 4 bedroom house. I don't feel rich / wealthy at all given that everything around me is so expensive.

Salary and house value has little to do with wealth if the mortgage is huge and that salary is used to service debt. Then it just looks wealthy but isn't.
If you own your home outright, have substantial savings, investments and assets and several income streams, that is wealth.

[quote cheesebubble]@AliceMcK where do you live, that's where I need to be. I'm in zone 4 in London, looking at a semi detached 700k 4 bedroom house. I don't feel rich / wealthy at all given that everything around me is so expensive. [/quote]
A long way north of the M25, just keep following the signs to The North for about 5 hours and you will get close 😁

My child once asked how much money we had and if we were rich, to which I said we could afford everything we need and some of what we want and so yes, I think that’s “rich” (financially speaking). That’s my barometer of “wealthy”.

But the amount needed to achieve that will differ between people and at different life stages - needing a bigger house once you’re old enough to have several children for example. Different people will have more or less expensive wants/needs and different priorities. Putting random numbers on it is hard - I feel very wealthy in the position I’m in and I don’t want any more money. I’m entirely content with my financial position- and yet I don’t meet your criteria. I know others would want considerably more than I have and indeed strive very hard to get it. It’s a very individual thing.

Income isn’t wealth anyway - if I earned £200k pa but had a mortgage of £900k on a million pound house and outgoings of £300k a year I wouldn’t be wealthy. I’d be crap at money management! I’d earn a good salary, but I’d be approaching bankrupt after a couple of years.

[quote cheesebubble]@AliceMcK where do you live, that's where I need to be. I'm in zone 4 in London, looking at a semi detached 700k 4 bedroom house. I don't feel rich / wealthy at all given that everything around me is so expensive. [/quote]
But you are wealthy if you can afford a £700k house, which is nowhere near affordable to the vast majority.

It's like saying you don't feel rich because Ferraris feel expensive and ignoring the existence of ford fiestas that people on normal incomes drive.

@BarbaraofSeville it's all relative. I believe if I didn't have a huge mortgage, a child 4 days in childcare in London which is expensive, second on the way which are close in age, so we will need to pay two sets of fees for a year + a car that that will be paid off next year, I'd be in great place financially but I have all those things.

Once they're out of nursery, I will see something of the salaries we are on, we're saving at the moment which will be eaten up by our mat/pat leave + then having two sets of nursery fees which will be about £1500 including the free hours for our first. Being able to afford this is a luxury and I know this, however we might have £100 left at the end of the month and we live frugally. That's basically what people say, everything we earn is being eaten up by our outgoings hence why I see nothing of what we actually earn, wealth to me is something else.

It's a bit of a 'how longs a piece of string' question. I actually think of 'wealthy' as super yaughts and private jets. 'well off' would be those that can easily afford housing etc in the area in which they live.
But generally, yes I would expect someone who is older to have more as they have had longer to earn the money and be on the housing ladder iyswim.

I think anyone who lives in a mortgage free home and has enough money to buy whatever they like within reason is wealthy - I’m not talking exotic holidays etc I just mean being able to go and do a food shop and buy whatever you like without worrying about it, being able to know you can fix something if it breaks. Anyone who can do those things is wealthy whether they realise it or not.