6 figure incomes and can't afford a load of bread?

[LemonyFresh]

Is it just me or has there been a influx of posts about household incomes of over 100k or similar and complaining or wondering how they're skint at the end of the month and struggling? Is it a stealth boast or do these people actually struggle?

Am I really in the minority with a household income of less than half of this?!

I know we tend to spend to our means but even when DP and I are having a flush month I don't see the point in over spending for the sake of it.

Our household income is nearly a tenth of that. I cant imagine not knowing where every penny goes.

I've seen one thread

And the reason she was so skint was the many costing activities her children do and the fact her dh wouldnt contribute his earnings properly and kept most to himself.

She refused to see the problem was the outgoings in general and not just the fact her dh was hiding money.

The money hiding WAS a problem but the outgoings as a whole was a stupid amount anyway

Like mentioned above it really does depend on your expenditures and often high earning jobs come with bigger outgoings. Even so, ok money might be more to tight, however I just cannot understand how you could be on the bones of your backside so long as you live within your means.

I just make ends meet 'only' earning £26k, I have no mortgage though and a teenager so no childcare costs. My biggest expense other than the leccy and groceries is probably petrol for my commute.

That said I am quite frugal (I have no choice to be). I have few luxuries. E.g I own a second hand phone, rarely buy new work clothes, I upgraded my computer this year for the first time in nearly 8 years. My dd has a part time job which pays for all her expensive gadgets and branded clothes etc.

I have seen a couple of threads recently about not being able to afford the basics on a high salary. One poster has a husband who is tight and stashing the money away though.

However i think its generally people in the London area who struggle because property and rent is stupidly high and they have very high commuting costs plus nurseries and childminders can be triple that what they are in the North West.

I agree lorelei - at times it's just contradictory and a bit odd, but I've come to the conclusion that it's not for me to judge what compromises people reach among themselves. I'd include my household in that - we're currently "a bit skint" (relative to a month ago), but if I gave you the reason you'd look at me like I was barmy.

Likewise I have one friend who works all hours and hasn't had a proper hol (outside of visits to PIL) in 8+ years because the DC are the most elite of elite schools and that is what he'll be doing for the next 15 years. Another friend is working in a job she hates and is "stuck" in because they moved from an affordable £1 mil. house to a pushing it £1.7 mil. house to accommodate the nanny and so that her entrepreneur husband can have a pilates studio in the garden.

I can't imagine choosing that lifestyle for myself, but if that is what works for them, and they're happy/content/whatever, so be it.

We have 18 500 (one income) and are not making ends meet. I have no sympathy for rich people moaning.

And we are in the South East commuter belt >

I think this post is being a bit goady. I know which post you're referring to but TBF the OP didn't say she was struggling what she basically said was 'I know we're high earners so should be saving way more than we are, come and tell me where I'm going wrong'.

I think that's fair enough.

Over the past 14 years my salary has gone from £12.5k to over £100k. I can definitely tell you that it's true that your spending rises in line with your earnings!

By no means am I struggling but it does cost a certain amount to live near London where my job is, costs over £5k to commute to work, the hours I am out of the house with work means I use cleaners (yes, choice but I don't have much free time) and eat at work (again, choice but I have very little time to do otherwise).

Childcare here is £70+ per day, per child.

When you're working long hours you do tend to spend money on things that facilitate you being able to work those hours IYSWIM.

Dreams of a salary with 6 figures.

Promises never to moan

I eat on an income, after rent and bills, of 300 a month. Not much fun though.

Threads about threads, why? Just post on the original thread!

I actually did our budget yesterday and we have to have a minimum of £4000 a month just to cover fixed costs.

We live in a normal 3 bed house, no kids, a 10 year old VW Golf and haven't had a holiday more than a long weekend for 4 years.

i would say though, it's not just higher earners that moan about choices they could easily have made otherwise. i've got a few graduate friends (we're all pushing 40 now) who've chosen nice relaxing jobs that are safe but don't earn a lot - I don't feel they have a particular right to be indulged when they moan that their choices didn't net them more cash either.

Stumbly I see what your saying about higher incomes but a lot of us work long hours and still cannot afford cleaners and the like.

Rogue...agreed. It works the other way around. People moan to me all the time about not having the money I have but then would not commute four hours a day, work more than 9-5, etc.

Is this another fishing thread for daily mail fodder?
Where is the OP?

When you're working long hours you do tend to spend money on things that facilitate you being able to work those hours IYSWIM

I understand this, but it kind of defeats a lot of the arguments on the £27k thread about how earning a lot of money is the route to freedom and happiness.

In a lot of cases it seems to be a route to slavery to a tyrant of an employer that expects hours well beyond a standard 40 hour week and you end up spending an awful lot of your big salary on an expensive mortgage, commuting costs, eating on the go, cleaners and childcare where relevant, leaving you no better off than people with lower salaries in jobs where they have the time and energy to have a life outside work .

Is this another fishing thread for daily mail fodder?

Just in case, can I chuck in a Hello, you article-thieving cunts! while we're still on page 2?

They live the lifestyle that they can afford with their income but it is bolstered by debt ie. hire purchase and large mortgage also outgoings in general can be high such as private education

I would never moan, but london costs are high. We have one child - nursery not a more expensive nanny is close to £20k. Renting a small 2 bed flat is 20K, paying mortgage on our house in home country 12k. Transport to work 4K. We earn well but neither of us earn 100k and that's over £50k in outgoings before we've paid a bill or bought food. These are of course our choices, and we manage fine, but our careers are in big cities so limited choice there, and I can easily see why people feel like it's a struggle despite being on good incomes and especially with more than one child. To reiterate, I knew we are extremely fortunate and we are very happy with our life!

Our combined income is about £38,000, sometimes less. I am never skint at the end of the month. But then we have made decisions about our outgoings such as only having 1 car.

Barbara...

I haven't been on the £27k thread but would absolutely say that earning a lot of money is not the way to happiness.

Long hours, high expectations, high stress, potentially long commutes, etc.

I dream of taking a lower paid, less stressful job closer to home but I'm the breadwinner and feel like there are expectations that I will provide a certain level of living (from other people and from myself).

I haven't been on the £27k thread but would absolutely say that earning a lot of money is not the way to happiness.

While it isn't the route to happiness it is very stressful if you're always worrying about whether you've got enough to last until payday.

We also go out quite a lot. But then most people I know don't have big earnings, so our going out is cheap. Going out for a pint (literally), or having a party round a friends house.
And I don't have a partner who is financially abusive.

DH & I decided the optimal setup was 2 mid range earners in a couple, both working 9-5 jobs (or 8-4) living near their family (for childcare backup) and not in the south east. there you have it, the formula for happiness :) We didn't follow that plan obviously!