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)

no boiuncy castle and no dj, cd player and games. parents dont tend to stay otherwise get a cup of tea and kids left overs.

It doesn't seem a fortune to me but then we live in London. And have just had a two week holiday in Italy.

Dont get a bouncy castle do it on a mates trampoline.Same thing but free.

Marriedinwhite- I think Londons different but chains similar to wacky warehouse do it that cheap with food box.

"Book people did a party bag set of horrid henry books and stuff for ten pounds for ten kids last year."

Yes, they did. Do you know how many times my DC were given one at the end of a party?!

Can I ask a question. I'm getting the impression a lot of you went to university with all this talk of student debt. If you are all so skint and struggling in badly paid jobs - why? What was the point? How has it benefitted you? Wouldn't you have been better off to have started work at 18, skipped the debt and had a longer time earning and living at home and putting some money aside before you set up home.

I've done all the parties at home but researched if it would be cheaper to do it at various soft play places, ceramic cafes, etc. Each one was about 200.

Entertainers by themselves are close to that.

I don't know anyone who can lend me a bouncy castle so that's 75. I usually do that.

Married. I would imagine they would feel unfulfilled doing a lower level job if they are intelligent enough to go to university.

Friends trampoline? What import it into your garden? How?

We have a big trampoline. DC's wouldn't have been impressed if that was the party, with a few games thrown in. Like a normal Sunday afternoon around here.

We have done cheap parties, home made invitations, themed games in the garden, home made cake, bonfire. Not expensive, but more than £30. Times three DC, and buying that new car is not looking too promising.

"Book people did a party bag set of horrid henry books and stuff for ten pounds for ten kids last year."

Yes, they did. Do you know how many times my DC were given one at the end of a party?!
that has made me proper belly laugh. mine didnt get any and everyone was so impressed with it.

Beebee. Im really not sure any of my friends would be happy with me having my children's party on their property!

Do these book people do that frequently?

Its not alot, We live in an affluant part of London, we bring in 80k between us, live in a three bed maisonette, have two children under five, never go on expensive holidays, don't have any savings and are always overdrawn at end of the month. Our mortgage and childcare take up half our budget. We hardly ever go out and don't buy expensive clothes.

and might be getting why the mortgages are more, you couldnt fit a bouncy castle in my garden.

DH didn't go to university - he doesn't do a 'low level job' . He is a company director and has always earned more than me (solicitor). He is also 2 years younger than me. He is just very driven and works really hard.

On the other hand, I know plenty of graduates of very very good universities who do jobs that do not require a degree and who earn a lot less than DH. It is no longer true to say that a university degree necessarily = better paid/more senior job.

Dita. Can't get a normal one in mine either, have to get a narrow one which is rare so have to book in advance and have to pop the pump up on a ledge!

My friends who have done it for other friends. All young parents though so I think different ways of doing things.

Dd did have ten at a wacky warehouse type place 4.50 a head with box meal, party bag and 2 hours play.Went to a birthday party a few weeks ago iceland food, trampoline and wilkos stuff in party bag was 30 quid.

emsyj. What i meant was if you want to be a doctor, solicitor etc you need to go to university. Not going because of the cost might well mean you can never fulfill that dream.

I am a type of designer and that's bloody hard to get into without a degree unless you have a family business to go into or know the right people etc. It doesn't even really pay that well but if i hadn't studied that I would have always wondered and been a bit sad. Not following the one thing i was good at would have left me in my part time supermarket job. There is nothing else Im good at.

University is only useful for those planning on going into post grad jobs, or jobs that need the knowledge gained from university.

Take midwifery for example, you HAVE to go to university, i highly doubt anyone who studies to be a midwife goes into a non post grad job out of choice.
But then you have engineering which 9 times out 10 prefer people with hands on experience. My father never went to college let alone university and he runs and owns 3 engineering companys and has a mind that works in a way that no university degree could have taught him.

trainee I have seen you on a couple of things today and I feel I must say hello and worship at your feet, I am trying to get onto midwifery degree at the moment, what year you in?

I can't help but be irked by people who say they couldn't live on 40k a year

if you have a choice of course you don't, who'd live on 40k when they have 80k coming in

but if you have to live on 40k you'd manage

we have 24k joint income, 2 kids, mortgage, blah blah blah, we manage, cos there's no bloody choice

i don't see it as a choice really morethan after uni when i was penniless and in debt, i couldn't have chosen to go anywhere but home to my parents? With no rental deposit or job. I didn't really see any alternative and i still don't.

Also marriedinwhite i don't see education as a way to earning potential. I think education should be for education sake. I did History of Art - hardly a vocational course. The very few jobs in galleries are also very badly paid and hotly contested. However, that is where my passion was/is so that is what i studied. I did end up getting a job at 2 national galleries, but they were so badly paid and such long hours I couldn't continue after 3 years. I am now only worth min wage as an admin monkey and at nearly 36 earn less per hour than i did before uni.

What you actually said though Poo was, "I would imagine they would feel unfulfilled doing a lower level job if they are intelligent enough to go to university." I didn't interpret that to mean what you are saying now, which appears to be "some careers require a degree so they might have had to go to university to get that job".

I think the careers that require a degree are in the minority. I'm trying to think of all my friends from school and work out what proportion of them are now in jobs that require a degree. I'm struggling to think of more than one tbh. Anyway, I think married's question was relevant, and the jobs you refer to Poo are those that largely pay a 'graduate' salary. Married is, I think, questioning the value of going to university if you end up in a job that doesn't require a degree. From a financial perspective, I think her point is very valid. Of course, if you want to go to university for the life experience, to enjoy the study of a subject you love or for a non-career reason then you absolutely should - but then you have to accept that this may mean significant debt and no increased earning power. I do think that a lot of young people are herded into university under the impression that it will mean better job prospects, and I don't think that necessarily follows for many of them.

re cars. we got a 2004 citreon c8 in immaculate condition with less than 60 000 miles on the clock for under 4k so yes you can get a good car for that amount of money.

parties poundland is your friend! i hired a hall for £30 and a face painter for £50, had to really ring around to find face painter. but tes it easily adds up. did a build a bear for ds3 fir eight children but ordered from an online place and did it at home £80 and they all had a bear plus outfit to take home.

our holiday this year is a week in devon £300 fir a self catering place that will sleep seven. diesel will be the othet big expenditure to get there!

So, what was the point then spuddy?

All I'm saying is that rafts of people have been sent down the uni route, have picked up debt, and have not ended up with better prospects than otherwise. If you had a passion for History of Art, you could have read about it, done part-time courses, etc., but you didn't need to do a degree in it.

FWIW - I didn't go to university (in the late 70s you had to be in the top 3-5% academically to do so and I certainly wasn't) but that didn't stop me earning six figures from 1986-1995. It took DH until 1997 to overtake me but he did uni and a traditional professional route. I work locally now and have done some professional quals. I have people working for me on between 25k and 35k who all went to uni, who have or are taking professional quals, but they are not what used to be uni material, they are well qualified but they aren't particularly well educated and they have masses of student debt hanging around their necks. I just genuinely can't work out what the point was - I pulled off the same professional qual (with a distinction) without a degree - you don't need it. These are people who 35 years ago woudl have got jobs in high street banks, local authorities and the civil services. They didn't need debt or degrees to do so then.

Finally, 35 years ago you didn't need a degree to become a midwife or a nurse. You needed good O'Levels and practical experience. One of our neighbours retired as a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist about 8 years ago. One of the reasons he was relieved to do so was because of the deterioration of the nursing/midwifery care compared to 20/30 years earlier. I think he knew what he was talking about.

ditavonteesed I start in 29 days. (not that im counting) WOO HOO. You dont understand how excited i am.