How much income does someone have to have before you consider them rich?

[buttersky]

For me it would be 500k income a year or more. I feel at this point most holidays, cars, houses can be bought without considering the price.

If you need to work, you're not rich.
If you have high-value assets but they're not liquid (eg property), you're not rich.

So you probably need an unearned income (ie from investments) of £500k per annum - which means that quite a small number of people are truly wealthy.

this is all really interesting.

Some people have mentioned that if your assets aren't liquid you're not rich.

What other options are there for investments other than dividend paying funds, shares and bonds?

My child asked me the other day how much money counted as rich and if we were rich. I said someone who had enough money for everything they need and at least some of what they want and who didn’t have to be worried or scared about money so yes, by that standard I consider us “rich”.

Beyond that I don’t see the point in putting a number on it.

I'd consider myself rich with an income of approx 80-100k or assets you could draw on of around 500k

I think we are quite rich to be honest.

Household income in top 10%. Mortgage is manageable. I am frugalling around heat and food budgets because I want to redirect my spending priorities but that is an active choice.

Personally I think this makes my life quite luxurious as we can cover everything we need.

I work in an area where I deal with other people's finances in detail (divorce and family law) and so i know the appearances are often deceptive. People in dreadful debt who have fancy cars and fancy holidays and ponies. They may look rich and indeed have a fairly substantial income but it is the debt that matters.

@ABJ100 £200k isn't nothing regardless of where you live - and presumably earning £200k gives you the luxury of being able to live in an expensive area. Such a narrow-minded & actually offensive thing to say.

I know so many people who earn big salaries but honestly think they are hard up because they don't have much disposable income completely oblivious to the fact they live in a lovely house in a nice area, with a fat pension pot and healthy savings.

Perceptions of wealth are really subjective; I suspect many people would think of a figure about 50%-100% higher than they earn/have.

Illiquid assets like property can be investments if they are rented out.
A more helpful distinction in my view is between income producing assets and other assets.

Have a look at what Warren Buffett says about owning gold. It is an asset, which stores value but it doesn't produce an income.

So a rental property has a capital value and generates income but your family home has a capital value but actually costs you to live in it.

Rich? £120k?

So someone who has £5 million and puts it all in a house that they live in is not rich.

Someone else buys a house for £500,000 and the rest in investments that produce an income.

The first person is not rich, and the second is?

I don't think it is as simple as whether your assets are liquid or not.

Yep, agree with that.

100%. I think it really depends what you're surrounded by. I don't feel rich but I'm sure there's people who would say we're rich. My DC7 says her friend is rich but we're "normal." Her friend definitely is rich (business owners, multi-million £ house, art collection, income in the millions, etc.) and so are a lot of people in our social circle, so I think human nature is to compare yourself to your peers.

I grew up poor to a young single mother so I know what poor feels like. Even so, I don't consider us rich even though we are both high earners and have plenty of cushion via investments and property.

Ohhh wow you must be sooo rich, I’m so impressed 🤣🤣🤣

Income =/= rich. Rich, to me, = wealth.

A high income, IMO, is anything in the top 10%. But if you spend it all and have no assets, you are not rich.

It really is an individual thing,
DD went to a mixed State Primary and apparently we were considered “rich” by her friends. Then she went to Private Secondary and we were just average. Now she’s at State 6th form and apparently we are “rich again”

Yes as pp says being rich is when you don’t have an income.

Its when you have wealth instead.

£100k, but realistically it’s about disposable income

About £4

I consider us rich as I don't worry about what I spend in the supermarket, if a child loses a tie or a water bottle, I can replace it and if I buy someone a coffee or lend them £10 it doesn't matter too much if they don't repay me or return the favour. If something goes wrong with the car, boiler or similar I can repair it promptly by dipping into savings to pay for it without really having to adjust my spending that month or subsequent months. This is very different to my childhood and early adulthood.
It's also a very different attitude to various people I know who are significantly better off than me.

But you are a bit silly

£1 million in liquid assets excluding the value of primary residential property. However in Hong Kong, that makes you 'middle class' so I think in London it should be higher but not sure by how much. In Singapore, 1 in 6 households fit that definition so that can't be 'rich'.

I don't think owning a £3 million mortgage free home makes you necessarily rich if you don't sell it.

I am far from rich btw..my parents are, but I own a mortgaged london flat and have no other assets. Would probably be a rich old lady though if I inherit. I would consider myself middle class at present which is a very large subset of society.

Why do you say that, @AntlerRose ?

Well, i think you should pay into your pension fund.

Me personally? What has my personal situation got to do with anything? I do pay into a pension.

I am not describing me, I am discussing what level of income makes 'person x' rich.

The hypothetical high earner who isnt rich because they spend all their money. They might not be rich but i think they are silly, because they should put some of their high earnings in a pension fund.