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

[mummymacbeth]

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)

I don't have the debts or the fares but I regard the rest of that as my before I pass "go" point.

but beebee its all down to perception isant it.

lots and lots of people think oh i only have this amount i can possibly afford to do this when the rest of us would probally be dont be daft ofcourse you can.

its the same perception who ever you are rich or poor and what you class as basic and what you class as luxury. the chap involved may very well class entertainment as a basic need rather than a want. people do on many scales.

to some people having a certain type of house is essential to others its a want
same as location things like near family/friends is a need to some its a want
same as tv/social stuff basicly lots and lots of things even down to food.

food is a need but lots of people have the view that a certain type of food is essential.

to my sister having a house where she can keep her horses is essential to me its not

to a friend of mine a car is not essential but to me even tho i know i could live without one the convienance of having one makes me concider it to be essential

to some family members of mine having the only house in a entire postcode is essential to me not.

I agree Vivienne, My exBil lives at home on £1000 per month (late 20's) and doesn't pay a penny, they say he can't afford it, he 'cant afford' driving lessons either so his mum drives him to work etc. He always has money to go out and buy tickets to gigs and the football tho.

When exPILs were telling me how hard it is for him, i did the sums and said i wished i had £250 per week to just spend on myself! All relative really.

It's not a fortune but it's not a bad salary. But someone who commonly earned £250k a year might regard it as a pittance. And someone who earned £10k might think it was megabucks. The real question - the only question that matters - is how to live on one's salary.

Haircuts : shave your own head
Toiletries: Deodorant costs £1.20, moisturiser max £3.00, hair gel maybe £4.00, decent razor and gel £6.
£40 for lunch!! What happened to a nice homemade sandwich??
Why on earth would someone on only £1000 per month spend £1200 a year on clothes?
I have a smart phone that costs £5.27 a month, there is absolutely no need to spend £25

So under my budget:
Fares: £120
Lunch: £25
Phone: £6
Debts: £300
Barber: £0
Toiletries: £7 (assuming not everything needs to be replaced every month)
Clothes: £40
Which leaves about £500 for rent and disposable income.

married 100pcm on work clothes is probally one of those ones people can be perfectly smart without spending that equally as such a megga scruffy person could be spending that and more.

I think entertainment and nights out a
re essential and a car per household, and smart phones internet and sky.

The horses is too far but even my friends on very low income have got all above.Got to stretch your money I think.

Cailin - of you're still reading - your posts on this thread have been quite inspiring. (I am trying to rein in my frittering tendencies) :)

Just as an aside can I ask you where you get your mobile contracts for? I've cancelled sky tv and cutting down mobile costs are next on my list!

(or anyone else who had a very good deal).

Sorry for hijack

also a person on that income wouldnt be paying a s-loan and could certainly arange to repay other unsecured debt at lower amounts. its a choice to not do so

I want to know about the phone contract too. Mine is very high.

Skys cheap just keep ringing and saying your cancelling and they give it you dirt cheap.

OP

You are clearly doing something wrong. 40K is more money than many would have. I know you probably didn't set out to be insensitive but there are posters on here who really find it difficult to make ends meet.
I don't work and dh earns min wage. We have foreign holiday, one car, no mortgage but did have, kids in state school and 4 private music lessons/ 5 private dance lessons for dd each week. Also 2 annual fees for sports clubs for ds's. We are very well off compared to some, and I consider us lucky.

I cancelled sky as DH and I realised 95% of our viewing was DVDs, e4, bbc or channel 4! And about 75% of that our west wing box so no point

Glad to see you know what I mean Spuddybean. Your bil sounds a bit like the person I'm thinking about. Who can't even afford a holiday poor soul. And guess who's paying for that!

There are loads of great cashback deals online where you can get free line rental and then cashback on top of that. We use quidco. Basically things like quidco are an alternative to comparison sites. Comparison sites like comparethemarket get paid by companies to advertise their services. Quidco advertise but pass on a proportion of the money they're paid to the consumer. So if you click a link for a product on the quidco site and then buy the product you get a certain amount of cashback. We use it for insurance, phones etc.

I don't want to seem like I'm advertising but if you go to quidco then go to buymobilephones.net they have some really good offers there. It can be a terrible faff because you have to claim the money back periodically throughout your contract (I think mine's every three months, must check that, just got a new contract!) but it is worth it. The deal I'm on would cost about £25 a month but with cashback and free line rental it's about £5 a month, so a massive saving over the 24 months of the contract.

With broadband, we were with virgin, on about £39 a month, they wanted us to stay with them when we moved house so DH said "Right we'll stay but we're paying £20 a month" and they agreed! So it pays to be a bit ballsy at times.

It isn't here in the south east.
House prices are ridiculous. Private rentals are also ridiculous.
Factor in commuting costs (this is a commuting town).
It's all about budgeting though.
Live within your means.
Lots of things people think of as necessary are actually luxuries.
Holidays, mobile line contracts, cinema trips, sky tv. All luxury.

Cailin - I have a subsidised canteen at work and can a sandwich and an apple for about £2.50. Do you have any idea how expensive London is? School dinner money is £2 a day and that's what I have allowed. Or perhaps you would prefer he used his mum's provisions for it.

If the lad has a decent job then he needs to be clean and neat and tidy and cannot possibly shave his own head. I reckon my 17 year old spends £15pcm on toiletries btw - you haven't included soap, shwr gel, toothpaste , mouthwash or shampoo. If he has an office job and little or no basic wardrobe he cannot possibly manage on £40pcm for clothes. I have just bought our ds an M&S suit with two pairs of trousers £225.00, five shirts £125.00, and a pair of basic shoes from office - £79.00. I am hoping that will get him through the upper sixth with an extra pair of shoes, socks and pants topped up. He will also need a few things for outside school. His suit for last year (only bought four shirts - one was lost) and other school stuff was on its last legs by May.

MEDIAN household income as quoted above of £26,000
ie half the households in the country have less than that
and half more

remember that AVERAGE is affected by multibillionaires
but Median shows what is really happening

marriedinwhite - you can get full suits in next in suit bag for 79 quid

Yes you can BeeBee12 but they are for the odd night out or occasion, don't come with two pairs of trousers and wouldn't withstand day in day out wear being hammered by a 17 year old. I imagine I would end up buying at least three if not four of those and each would look "shredded" or start falling apart after a couple of weeks.

I'm sure his mum lets him eat food out of the fridge married, realistically. I doubt he has his own supplies.

My DH has a very responsible job, shaves his own head and spends nowhere near £100 a month on clothes or toiletries and looks very respectable. £350 for a suit and 5 shirts is very reasonable - realistically a man would not need to spend another £850 a year on top of that.

Even if a man attends a barber, surely he doesn't have to go every single month? DH shaves his head once every 2 months at most.

i compleatly agree that for me and most people i know internet is essential but not a smart phone or sky tv and many people do live in places where they dont need a car.

the horses thing if you sat down and spoke to her after an hour or so of being talked at you would probally agree with her i know loads of people who end up agreeing but to my ideas its bonkers.

im usually concidered to be a bit of a cash point for my family and i do concider myself to be wealthy but in my household im fairly carefull tight they think im bonkers because i choose not to indulge in the horses/houses bigger than needed/champaign lifestyle they do choose.its my choice to make certain that i make sure the children i gave birth to never have to use the benefits system when i am dead. not that i think anybody who does is wrong but i know that i can do something to prevent it iyswim?

bigkid tesco currently have a sim only deal with a reasonable allocated minutes 5000 txts + either extra minutes extra txts or net use for £7.50 a month they use o2 masts.

YANBU

It is, as many have demonstrated here, enough to be comfortable if you adjust your fixed outgoings accordingly, but it is not a fortune.

My DH and son go to the barber once a month. I think a man, working every day, probably does need two suits, two pairs of shoes, a few casual things, a raincoat, something warm, a pair of trainers. I don't think anyone just has one suit and thing have to be replaced topped up. OK perhpas he could manage on a bit less but I still think it's an on-going topping up exercise.