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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

In thinking 40k income really isn't a fortune??

731 replies

mummymacbeth · 25/08/2012 19:25

Yes, a thread about a thread kind of. And I am fairly sure it has been done before but still!

I really don't think a forty grand gross income is a fortune. Our income with two kids is currently a bit less than that, though has been that in the fairly recent past. It is - and was - a bit of a struggle. We are not in the south east, we do not have a huge mortgage, expensive cars, kids are at state school and we don't manage to get abroad every year. We are living from month to month. A "fortune" it ain't!! (ref the post about someone wondering whether to have a fourth child)

OP posts:
greenplastictrees · 25/08/2012 22:17

I don't think posters are claiming poverty. And I don't think they own half million pound houses. They have a mortgage on half million pound houses perhaps. That is different.

Krumbum · 25/08/2012 22:18

Yes but you could find a cheaper house.

PooPooOnMars · 25/08/2012 22:18

Should have added that its a 2/3 bedroom house.

BulletProofMum · 25/08/2012 22:19

I'm with you prairie. However my grocery bills feeding 6 are the same. My point is I am not wiping my arse on 50 notes

LaurieFairyCake · 25/08/2012 22:19

I haven't seen anyone claiming 'poverty' who lives in a half million house with kids in private school. Confused

Obviously we don't have kids in private school, our house costs too much for that obviously.

greenplastictrees · 25/08/2012 22:19

I couldn't find a cheaper flat. Or I could but the extra transportation costs to commute for DP and I would make it a silly decision.

BulletProofMum · 25/08/2012 22:20

Green plastics - thank you.

My mortgage is still only a little more than if I were renting

marriedinwhite · 25/08/2012 22:22

I have just had a look at three bedroom flats in Putney. The lowest is £195,000. The highest is £2,500,000. The first private property actually in Putney, within proper walking distance of a zone 2 tube station is £525,000. For less than that the flats are in local authority blocks where even people on the list don't want to live or they are in zone 3 - there are one or two for investment only because they have tenants in them. In the 400's there are some nice flats and very small houses in zone 3. The Putney flats are in difficult to reach areas and not within good school catchments.

Can you link to the £150,000 houses in Surrey.

greenplastictrees · 25/08/2012 22:22

Bullet - your welcome (what am I being thanked for though?!) tired and clearly not with it! Confused Grin

soverylucky · 25/08/2012 22:22

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

NarkedRaspberry · 25/08/2012 22:22

A very rough idea of London pricing. Click on a station for the average house price.

AKissIsNotAContract · 25/08/2012 22:23

I just searched on rightmove for 3 beds in Surrey for £150k and got 3 mobile homes and a houseboat as the only options.

NarkedRaspberry · 25/08/2012 22:24

And if you live a outside of London and commute in, add £400+ a month for a seson ticket.

BulletProofMum · 25/08/2012 22:24

Highlighting the point about not claiming poverty, and living in an expensive house owned largely by the bank

TalkinPeace2 · 25/08/2012 22:24

50% of the working population earn under £18,500
63% earn under £26,000
80% earn under £45,000
99% earn under £149,000

whatever you may think is normal in your social circle, those are the figures whether you like it or not.

NarkedRaspberry · 25/08/2012 22:24

Fool Blush

Here. Click on a station for average house price.

CailinDana · 25/08/2012 22:25

Sometimes it is a matter of choice, and IMO sometimes people make really odd choices. One of my DH's workmates recently bought a flat near us and hasn't stopped complaining since about how high his mortgage is. He bought his flat for £130k when literally around the corner in our area there are houses going for 95-110k. We paid less than 80k for our house last year. If he had just looked literally metres down the road he would have saved himself thousands and got himself a much much bigger place with a garden. The area he is in has a slightly better reputation than our area, and that explains the price difference. It's mad because in actual fact our area is lovely - quiet, safe, friendly and most importantly, cheap!

Krumbum · 25/08/2012 22:26

When I link to right move it just takes you back to the main page.
I just put in surrey. Then refine search made it ascending order, over 100k, 3 bedrooms, houses.
Go past all the mobile homes, theres loads!

greenplastictrees · 25/08/2012 22:27

Just looking on Rightmove. You can get a 2 bed flat for about £150,000 in Surrey. Although most of them I wouldn't really class as Surrey - it's Mitcham/Croydon so more London really. There are some in Redhill but if you needed to commute from there to London it would be tricky.

If you look at the other side of Surrey (Guildford way) there seems to be some 1 bed flats (4 pages) some of which I think are retirement properties!

PooPooOnMars · 25/08/2012 22:27

Calin. That's a tiny mortgage! Im a bit jealous!

Id be rolling in it if my mortgage was to small (or rather i wouldn't have had so very little food to feed the family with last week that i had to borrow money!)

greenplastictrees · 25/08/2012 22:27

Oh yes - with you now bullet!

Prarieflower · 25/08/2012 22:27

Krum no we couldn't.We have 3 dc (boys and girls) so need 3 bed.It has to be near the city dp works in so he can cycle(and we don't pay a fortune on train fares),needs to be near a satisfactory school too and in a town with decent links,not miles across the moor which would eat up petrol.

Everybody wants the same and 2nd home owners eat into the affordable home market.We didn't buy into the housing market years ago as we were still studying.We don't have family willing to give out large sums of money soooo we have a normal but expensive mortgage in this area.

LaurieFairyCake · 25/08/2012 22:28

'you could move to a cheaper house'

Yeah, the cost of moving is so cheap - I haven't got 5 grand laying around for fees/removals and stamp duty. Most people are pretty much stuck where they are.

And if you move there are always consequences - right now dd can walk to school - there's nowhere I could move walking distance that's cheaper. And there'd be increased commuting time/cost if moving to a cheaper area.

Plus our area is shit enough (apparently we already live on the worst street for crime) any cheaper and knife crime/drugs abound.

AmazingBouncingFerret · 25/08/2012 22:28

It wasnt a fortune for us when dh earnt that but we have shitloads of debt so it's our own fault. I often look on the money spreadsheet, delete all our debts off, just to see what we could have and think if only!

CailinDana · 25/08/2012 22:29

I agree sovery, but our circumstances haven't come about due to luck. DH could have taken a job down south but we chose not to, and opted for another job further north as house prices are lower. We chose to live in a cheaper area so our mortgage would be lower. We did have a car, but we decided to get rid of it, and chose to live somewhere with a good bus route instead. I gave up my job and made sure I had enough money coming in to do that, and then found a job working from home. It doesn't pay much at all but it gives us some extra each month without us having to fork out for childcare.

If you're happy to live in an expensive area, and end up with very little money despite working very hard, then that's fine. If you're not happy with it, then you can change it but it means making some tough decisions.