Is your lifestyle similar to your parents?

[struggless]

As an adult, how does your lifestyle compare to your parents? Is it similar, or is it better or worse in some ways? Is there a significant difference or do you essentially mirror your parents footsteps? Are you more/less comfortable etc

I guess I’m just curious about social mobility. I’m in my 20s but can already see a difference in how things may pan out for me vs my parents.

My parents came to England as immigrants with no money. They worked incredibly hard their whole adult lives until their 70s to make a life for me and siblings. My siblings and I went to uni and all have very good jobs/own businesses. Financially we are far better off than our parents were. In terms of time spent with family we probably have less than parents did. As have long commutes and now you can never switch off from work with emails and calls all hours. So we have more money and material things but less time with friends and family.

It’s quite similar in terms of levels of affluence - smaller home but that’s because I’m in a city and they weren’t, as well as crazy house prices.

We have a similar standard of living I think. But my mum didn't work as many hours or earn as much as me, and they had 1 extra kid. So I can tell things cost more now.

Very similar standard of living and we all love travel.

Not similar at all.

My lifestyle choices mean I'm comfortable (for now, anything can change of course).

My parents didn't think this way and are experiencing the consequences of their choices.

We're all different.

My parents are in their 80s. They do have a bigger house than us, but that's because they have been there for years, bought it when houses were £2.50 and extended it, so rattle around in a big house.

Financially, we earn very well, but parents income is equal to ours, as they have cracking pensions with next to no outgoings. They do have a tonne of savings as well.

ooo this is really interesting, thanks for sharing!

For me, my mum was the higher earner as a medical professional whilst my dad had different self employment schemes. His business majorly failed and my parents were in debt with bailiffs etc before I was born. However on her NHS salary (I think £50k) alone, they got through that and purchased multiple homes and businesses and raised 3 kids! I’m on £40k and will be unlikely to buy any time soon. Whilst I’m not struggling with debt they they were at my age, my lifestyle is still tighter than theirs due to cost of living. So on a day to day I’m possibly more comfortable than them but long term, I doubt I’d end up with the same investments.

I guess similar. My dad was a doctor and mum a social worker. I was in publishing and married a high earning lawyer (who earned way more than my Dad ever did). But he also had an ex wife he paid alimony to and two other children.
So similar as I say.
My kids however - my son is a fitness instructor and PT and also has a day job in retail, so not high earning careers unless he risks it and goes into business for himself (he's 21).
My DD is just about to start uni and is interested in Education reform - another not exactly remunerative career! So they will have the advantage of inheritance, but with property prices as they are that won't give them the boost I got. My stepsons - one married into wealth so has a nice house in London, the other did not and has a not so nice house in an ok area in Essex. But heads a department in the council and has done well enough. I imagine the former will send their (3) kids to private school but the latter cannot afford to send his one child (he himself was privately educated).

You need to ask people’s ages. People born in the 80s/90s are likely to have a wider gap than those born earlier. .

I’m in ,y sixties. My husband and I have basically turned into my in laws now. Retired, walking, eating healthily, gardening, early to bed. Similar houses and income.

Similar-ish. We both have big houses, not overly flashy clothes, enjoy similar days out, have simple holidays abroad every year but very nice cars. However, my mother didn’t work and had more children so comparatively, my father’s wage went a lot further. To afford similar, we both work full time and have only two children.

No. Thank God.

Absolutely not. Parents from poor backgrounds, spent most of their lives working casual jobs (labourer, factory work) or on the dole, died early due to ill health. I grew up on a very rough council estate.

my siblings and I all now have professional jobs, own houses, reasonably comfortable lives. A million miles from my parents’ lives. Wish they were still here so we could have looked after them and supported them in older age.

funnily a lot of my middle class friends are significantly worse off than their parents either due to increased cost of living and/or because they had the freedom to pursue less lucrative careers (artists etc) due to their parents having the means to support them/providing a safety net.

Not at all for me or DH.
DHs family is socially declining from major business owners, to small businesses owners to workers. Houses get smaller by generation and basic education levels have got worse too.
I'm the first generation of university education and working out of the home mothers on my side. But otherwise life is not significantly different from my childhood. But more stressful as 2 careers to manage.

I’m probably a bit of an outlier in my family as I’m a high earner married to a high earner who also had high inheritances so our financial situation isn’t typical compared to most, and certainly when compared to my siblings.

I’m better off that my parents ever were, but my siblings aren’t. My parents did benefit from property price increases so, despite being born into poverty, became much more socially mobile than more recent generations.

My parents are in their early 80s with children born in the 1970s and 1980s.

Interesting question. My parents had quite different backgrounds to each other and were the first people in their respective families to go to university. Myself and my siblings are all educated to postgraduate level, all married and have got broadly similar lifestyles to our parents now. I think DH and I probably earn the most between us but we have a massive mortgage (living in the south east) and are a bit profligate with money 🤣 DH’s parents are much better off through inheritance and judicious property purchasing in the 1970s. We can afford nice holidays but not exotic ones, and we shop at Waitrose/ocado mostly. My dad is from a working class background and I’ve inherited my workaholic tendencies from him. Interesting what a PP said about better off kids not earning as much as they can choose less lucrative/more arty careers. That’s definitely the case with my SiL and DH took a long time to find his oomph and drive with his career as he had been raised to be ornamental and charming 😂😂 thankfully for him he managed to find a really niche career that he’s amazing at that pays well so it has worked out for him.

I am much better off that my parents.My mum worked hard all her life but my dad was an abusive cocklodger who didn't support his family at all. If he did have a job he kept all the money to himself.
We are probably similar to my PIL.

Much better off than my parents

I'm in my 30s and I earn more than they did, and I own a house, which they didn't when they were my age.

We have a comfortable lifestyle (born 1970s) but it's lesser than my parents (born at the end of WW2). When I say lesser I mostly mean in terms of accumulated assets. Like many who went into middle class occupations in the 1960s they did very well from property and pensions.

DF is in his 80s and retired a long time ago but in today's money I'd guess his salary was equivalent to £150-200k. We earn just over three figures on two salaries and we've had 4 children where my parents had 2.

Nope not at all!
My parents had very basic jobs (school TA / lunchtime supervisor and a bin man) not much education and we grew up quite poor. no family holidays, lived on a council estate.

My brother has a very similar life to that - in fact he still lives with my dad aged 28 and has also become a bin man.

My life couldn't be more different. I worked hard, became more educated although not university - I have studied in my chosen career path. I have a decent career, I own my house, my children are bought up differently. We have 2/3 holidays a year and don't have to think too much about money. Lucky I appreciate; but also an awful lot of hard work.

I definitely saw what we had as a lifestyle as a young child / teenager and wanted more so I've worked hard for that.

No they have better. Final salary pensions mean retirement much better than ours will ever be.

My parents were wealthy, we are comfortable and my children all University educated and barring one; who has a well paid job will , not be home owners in the very foreseeable future.
They have professional jobs but not particularly well paid

We have less wealth in terms of house value, pension value, and purchasing power of our income than they had if we compare us at 45 and them at 45.

They grew up in poverty, but I didn't cos they got out it through thier jobs. Our jobs are very different but I would say similar level, it's just a house price wage stagnation thing really.

I have much more money, but in terms of education, interests and lifestyle we are very similar.

Significantly better, thank goodness.

I have a degree, a professional career and one ds.
My parents had no careers and 6 children.
My df was an unpleasant belligerent man who alienated everyone.
I have friends and get on with my neighbours.
I exercise and have leisure activities. They didn't do anything.
I love my ds. They couldn't wait to be rid of their dcs.

I thought their lives rather sad.