Average incomes

[flabbergastedfinances]

Found out that the average family income is around £30,000 a year and I can not believe it. I don't know a single family on anywhere near this low, lowest is possibly 70k mark between two teachers but majority have two earners pulling in 40+ each or one higher earner on 80/90k+

How on earth is 30,000 even possible in light of minimum wage and benefits/tax credits etc? What is even more shocking is that I used the where do you fit in calculator and we are apparently in top 98% of families in the uk. No chance, absolutely no chance.

We might have a high ish mortgage (still only £1000 so not outrageous) and have slipped into bad spending habits (Uber's, eating lunch out every day, new clothes now and then) but we are hardly excessive. We can't afford to run two cars, can't afford foreign holidays, can't afford the posher shops like Boden or northface new and yet this chart tells me we have it better than nearly everyone else in the country?! What am I missing?!

We have a child in childcare a few days a week, so that and mortgage are biggest expenses but combined that's only £1500 and I see everyone else buying £300 coats, spending 1000s on holidays, children in private schools and I am utterly stumped.

How can the average family income be £30,000? Which families are surviving on that? None I know that's for sure and I just refuse to believe that's an actual reality

I think a lot of the lower end salaries would hopefully get a top up from benefits or something

I was roasted here last week for daring to imagine I could get my part time wages topped up with benefits so that I could stay home with my 6 month old instead of returning to work full time. Truth is a lot of people don't realise they're entitled to help.

I love this thread!!😆😆😆

I am southeast, single parent on nmw. lots of people round here are nmw - everyone i work with, for example!😆 We have far too many food banks round here too. It's shocking how bad it is for some people.

Why not use the time your kids are in child care to volunteer at a food bank? I guarantee you live near one.

Are we talking net or gross figures here? It's a bit meaningless without knowing which it is. A £30k income after tax is a lot different to before.

With 30000 being the average, a lot of people, indeed half the population, are on less. A lot of people live on less than £1000 per month family income. It can be done on £600 per month but it's a little harder. I have done but it's very hard.

You're living in a rich bubble, and it's your assumption that you're 'normal' that is annoying everyone. You're not normal, you're very rich but you'll never see that.

I see you now, thinking of people even richer than you, with their millions, but that does not make you not rich. Show some humility! Talk about a "let them eat cake" attitude!

Our total income is less then 30k a year and that includes tax credits and child benefit, hubby earns just over 20k I year while I struggle to earn 6 working part time in a mw job, some weeks we literally go day to day wondering if we can afford to pay bills especially towards the end of the month
But we have no childcare to pay for, 1 of us are always there to pick our 3dc from school, we can afford 1 seaside holiday every other year, we pay full rent (council house) and council tax.
I really don't see the point in working full time and spending most of it on childcare been there done that and won't go back
Once my dc are all in high school then I will go back to full time work till then my dc mean a lot more then money

hellsbells I do tutor one child in the evening which I absolutely love. My disability means I can't drive otherwise there are lots of opportunities for tutoring and other roles that I think I'd be really good at. I do keep looking for things that don't require a car though.

I've done a calculation. For a made up family consisting of 2 parents, 2 DC aged 8 and 5, no disabilities or illnesses, rent of £500 a month, and paying childcare based on £100 a week after school club for 39 term weeks, 5 weeks holiday club at £400 a week and 8 weeks holiday using annual leave or family. They will get no universal credit once their income reaches £40k. That's only £20k each, averaged out. It will be less still if they pay mortgage rather than rent, have lower childcare costs or no/one DC. It's just over £32k if one adult is a SAHP removing childcare costs and just over £22k if they have a SAHP and are paying a mortgage rather than renting. So plenty of people on the £30k that you're shocked by will get little or no help.

@Allmyfavouritepeople You will be surprised at the number of parents who will come to you for tutoring if you can get established. Once you get a reputation and are recommended, you can be turning them away. Another option is to set up a group session - 3-4 pupils roughly the same age. You could book a venue (community hall, even an 'after school' thing) and get a taxi there. Just some ideas for you. I know people earning more than a 0.5 teachers salary on just tutoring, from home.

Really appreciate the ideas. There's a venue I could definitely use so I will get looking into it!

@flabbergastedfinances

Are you 'avin a laff mate?!

Seriously? Your main outgoings are around £2,500 according to your posts, and you don’t have much spare cash on a £100k-plus salary? Admittedly that’s only £65k or something after tax and NI, so that’s £5.5k per month. WTF happens to the other £3k that means you can’t run another car or buy from Boden? If you genuinely have little left at the end of the month, you must be shit with your money.

I’m sorry but you must be piss poor at managing money or your husband is syphoning money away. Our mortgage is over double yours and we’re paying childcare etc and we’ve got plenty.

Also I’m not sure how you can be so deluded. My friendship group is very affluent and I can be in a bubble but it’s obvious how many people are living in low wages. I know what my junior staff are paid, I know what minimum wage is. I know how much I pay my cleaner and how she struggles when other clients take the piss and don’t pay her. It’s really not hard to realise that you are one of the very fortunate ones and you shouldn’t be claiming to struggle.

I've not read the thread but we've been that and below for many years, especially after 2008 credit crunch.

I know our teachers at school moaned about us wanting to go on holiday holiday when it was cheaper (2 nights in UK) and that they face the same costs...

All our head does is moan about teacher wages, and yet in private sector dh has been on much much much lower.
We just thanked our lucky stars that he wasn't made redundant in 2008 because we couldn't pay mortgage.

A friend then told me the pension contributions she got from public sector work and I nealry keeled over. Again dh had pittance. I've certainly spent much time in reduced food sections hoping my fellow scavengers would be gracious and not grab everything and leave something for the rest of us...

We have slightly more and its been amazing. I feel as rich as midas

"The top 98%" that made me laugh!
Not top marks for intelligence here! Certainly not in the top 2% on that.
The median salary would be more useful than the average which is a completely useless figure.

"we live in the south east, husband works in finance and I'm home with our children"

Says it all really 🙄

Do you have any idea about your day to day finances?

Assuming he earns £100k, that's a net income of £5860pm. Take off £2500 for childcare, mortgage, travel and council tax, that still leaves you with about £3300 left. Even after pension contributions, car costs, bills and food, you should still have about £2k per month to spend on luxuries/hobbies/clothes etc.

It would be a good idea to get a copy of your bank statements and an Excel spreadsheet to see where it's all going. Although I guess DH deals with all of this confusing money stuff, doesn't he 🤷‍♀️.

My husband and I are on 27k a year. It's a massive struggle.

oblada
It is entirely possible for the OP to be in the top 98% on that income.

The individual minimum is £0
The individual median (half above, half below) is around £19,000
The individual average (half weighed towards the top end) is around £30,000

THere is no maximum
but the numbers in the very high values are very few
a salary of around £100k puts you well into the top 1%
£1m income = top 0.1%

(which by the way is 0.0001% on a worldwide basis)

We had an income of under £30k for years! Only about 5 years ago did we start earning over that! We now earn £55k between us. I have been abroad twice this year (granted I’m a bargain hunter) and we run two cars! I don’t see how you can plead poverty OP.

I’ve not read the whole thread, but I’m guessing you live in the affluent London bubble, where anyone on less than £100k is considered to be on the bread line.

The top 98% did make me scratch my head too

but I’m guessing you live in the affluent London bubble, where anyone on less than £100k is considered to be on the bread line.
But somehow
Deliveroo
and Ocado
and Uber
and Justeat
and softplay staff
and petrol pump staff
and corner shop staff
do not actually exist to pull the average done to the real world ....

The top 98 percent is effectively everyone except for 2 percent on top of that.
Maybe OP means on the 98th percentile/top 2percent....

Not sure if I've understood correctly but the 30k is after tax so closer to £50k family income as average? That makes more sense to me if so?

Yes, well I think it's under fifty, but yes the thirty grand average is not gross income, but disposable income. The average family has an income of thirty grand a year after tax etc. It's your take home pay.

Wow OP. You're clueless.

The average on this city is £24k! I know plenty on under £20k, I suppose I am now h has left but I get maintenance. You live in a bubble op