Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To be absolutely fucking amazed how much money people have?

390 replies

HiggsBoson · 26/04/2013 17:54

I thought we were in a recession.

I thought people were genuinely struggling.

DP and I certainly do as we are on low incomes, but we try to be grateful for what we have.

How is it then, that so many people can afford ipads, clothes from the likes of Joules and Boden, Mercedes and Audis, Hunter wellies for their kids ffs, expensive overseas holidays and huge 10/20/30K weddings?

Honestly I'm quite baffled. Everybody seems to have an ipad - they're £500!!

What's going on?

OP posts:
usedtobemankymolars · 26/04/2013 20:23

We are better off as we no longer pay extortionate full time nursery fees now that DC at school. Also I have gone back from 80% time to full time.

Also, we don't go out really at all during the year, but save up for one luxury annual holiday.

Roseformeplease · 26/04/2013 20:25

Also, living in the wilds of Scotland, no pressure to privately educate (and no need) and really good local schools anyway so no need to move into catchment areas. Property prices are ( relatively) cheap and we no longer pay for childcare, which used to cost a fortune. I also don't thing the recession has been bad for everyone. Also, people do just seem more label conscious now than in my childhood so wealth (or at least spending) is often very much more visible in labelled clothing, cars etc.

My clothes at 12 came from M&S. My son wants Levis for his birthday (just won some on eBay - he will be delighted).

givemeaclue · 26/04/2013 20:26

Poppywearer, wow you must be saving lot. I guess thoughcanyou a afford all those things but choose to save instead, so its not really unfair if others save less but spend more , its a different choice.

Want2bSupermum · 26/04/2013 20:27

I also think housing might be a function of parents passing on their wealth before they get to the stage of needing a care home. If you buy the house now when the parents are in their 50's it will be at least 20-30 years before they need to think about care homes. I don't see the government going that far back to check on assets given to children.

PoppyWearer · 26/04/2013 20:29

givemeaclue you're correct that saving is a choice. But I was brought up to believe it's an essential, as was DH, so it's something we do when we can afford it, even if it doesn't leave as as much as we'd like for luxuries!

I guess I was raised by frugal parents.

sydlexic · 26/04/2013 20:30

I bought my house in 1990 with a fixed rate mortgage.5% over base rate, which was around 8 % the payment was £850 per month. At the end of the five years the mortgage went to 1% over base so I expected. It to go up, I was returning to work so that wasn't a problem.
When the 5 years finished the base rate had dropped to .5 % so. Then paid 1.5 % which is £292 per month at least £600 less than I budgeted for.

BellaVita · 26/04/2013 20:30

Because we both work. Because DH earns a decent salary. Because of lots of things.

We have new cars, holidays and gadgets (cars paid for in cash btw from shares that DH gets from work and holidays are paid for with my salary), eat in nice restaurants.

We also save every month too.

Ours sons are teens so we do not need child care and when they were little I worked evenings.

kilmuir · 26/04/2013 20:30

We are better off now than we were a few years back. Paid off a lot of crippling debt, DH has a better paid job, and I am more grocery shopping savvy! I refuse to give the large, expensive supermarkets a large percentage of our income.

sydlexic · 26/04/2013 20:32

Yes end of childcare makes a lot of difference.

Original poster
HiggsBoson · 26/04/2013 20:32

Blimey, rub it in why don't you!

OP posts:
MinnesotaNice · 26/04/2013 20:33

'Depends on where you live too, I suppose. I live in a teeny town in Midwest America. Houses are cheap, food is cheap. Only one (state) school so no school fees. DH has a decent job. I work part time at a cinema for very little...it's just my "extra" money and we go to the cinema for free so days out that way are cheap.'

Yes this. My parents live in the US. DM works shifts at a grocery store and DF is a truck (lorry?) driver. So def not generally high-paying salaries. They own a detached home in a nice (as in safe, not as in naice^) area of town.

Also, remember in the US, at least for now, there aren't the high taxes to pay for socialized health care. My parents have always either bought private insurance when only my DF worked as he is self-employed or now have insurance through my DM's employer. As much as people on MN want to bash the American healthcare system, there also aren't sky high tax rates to pay for health care. I say this with a DB who went through cancer treatment as a toddler and my mom needed an emergency hysterectomy a few years back so they have had health issues, but insurance covered most of the costs.

skaen · 26/04/2013 20:33

We both work in reasonably secure professional jobs, but have spare income because we sold our flat in London and moved out. The equity paid for most of new house as prices in London were so stupid.

Mortgage now paid off so we give 10% income to charities and save anything else in care if redundancy/ needing a car/ holidays etc

FasterStronger · 26/04/2013 20:36

I dont like buying small things like ipads which makes life easier to buy big things like houses. Soon we will have the latest mortgage paid off, then I want a holiday home and a wood. after a large extension.

I don't get the children in hunters. The whole point of hunters is living somewhere where you wear them frequently and cheaper wellies would not last. Hunters for children is just pointless.

expatinscotland · 26/04/2013 20:37

'I don't get the children in hunters.'

Not when you can buy them on the cheap abroad and then sell them on here for more than you paid for them Wink.

FasterStronger · 26/04/2013 20:39

Well that is very sensible Grin

CheerfulYank · 26/04/2013 20:41

MinnesotaNice do you live in Minnesota?

Whatalotofpiffle · 26/04/2013 20:41

Weird isn't it! Image is everything to so many people though and they would rather be in debt than go without

NeverKnowinglyUnderstood · 26/04/2013 20:42

we have benefitted from the recession.. it feels uncomfortable emotionally.

my mortgage is for £35,000 repayments of £75 per month. interest rates couldn't be lower! (taken out in 1997)

DH's salary hasn't grown but his company has still given all the staff an annual bonus.

Car was bought in 2004 and is reliable and I get 650-700 miles of diesel from a tank.

we don't have lots of spare but we don't have lots of outgoings YET.. DS's are moving to private school in september so we will really feel the pinch but it is a choice we have made.

DrCoconut · 26/04/2013 20:43

You might assume I'm loaded if you see me with my I pad. But my employer provides it as they require me to have one.

ComeYoniWithMe · 26/04/2013 20:44

moms thanks
william I bought my house for £55 k it is now worth £165k I have approx £5000 left to pay therefore my mortgage payments are £22 per month. Is that ok with you?

DontmindifIdo · 26/04/2013 20:46

childcare is the big divider of wealth in my opinion for parents, those who get it for free and those who pay for it and those who are SAHMs, a full time preschooler place is about £1k a month here, if you are getting childcare for free from grandparents you will have far more disposable income than those paying for it, or those who are paying for it by having a SAHP.

Also, most of the better paid careers are standard office hours, so those who have to look at shift work so they can fit round their DP's work hours because childcare costs too much are also not able to take jobs with the best prospects of moving up pay wise.

We did toy with the idea of private school for DS, but then nursery fees aren't far off private school fees, we're just used to paying stupid money out for him. We're not going to, and I had expected to feel rich once he was at school and only having to pay for wrap around and holiday care, (probably releasing about £400 a month once you factor in holiday childcare costs which i've realised are best to budget for year round rather than being killed over the summer) - of course, I've since got pregnant again, so start all that again, only this time with wrap around for DS to pay for (who'll be starting school around the time I'm due back from mat leave), so am seriously considering staying at home.

ComeYoniWithMe · 26/04/2013 20:48

Forevergreek I did say plus wtc and maintenance. So no I don't live off £200 per month but that is my salary.

paintyourbox · 26/04/2013 20:51

Childcare makes a massive difference, we pay £463 per month for 3 days per week but I work every Saturday and do the equivalent of another days work from home in the evenings (lucky to have an employer who doesn't mind me working from home)

So we are paying for 3 days childcare but make 5 days wages as DP looks after her when I am working on the Saturday.

Everyone else I know who has kids and a lot of disposable income has family who live close by and do most of the childcare.

givemeaclue · 26/04/2013 20:55

Childcare is very expensive, we are £10k a year better off now dcs have started school

suebfg · 26/04/2013 20:55

people have different money priorities. DS goes to private school but I shop at Aldi, rarely treat myself and am very careful with money in terms of material things. but I do like a good holiday but I value education and experiences more highly than material things.

I'm sometimes shocked by the amount people spend on clothes or cars or whatever but then if they're not spendingon school fees etc, they are probably spending less than me each month.