To think £30K is a decent salary?

[priceisright]

DH earns that. He is under 30 years old. I earned that before but now earn far less due to wanting to be there for my son all the time, and taking a considerably big pay cut when going PT in a less skilled role.

Between us we have about £45K a year. I feel well off... We go abroad twice a year, can buy luxuries, no worries about bills or food, save a small bit. I feel very privileged.

If I worked full time, we'd earn around £55-60k between us. That seems like loads to me! I feel as if my life is already very comfortable so to earn that would be even better.

AIBU to think 30k is a decent salary? And £55-60K combined salary is fantastic?

I do wonder what people spend their money on. I say that as someone who wastes a lot of money buying baby clothes and eating crap on rubbish.

We live in the South East. Currently saving for a mortgage, but rent is £900 per calendar month if that helps.

In fact by the time I’ve added all our transport costs including diesel and additional electricity, parking, insurance, tax, servicing, tube fares-we’d probably need your entire salary to pay for just those. That’s insane actually.

You have ludicrously low travel expenses. DH’s season ticket to get to work costs £650 a month.

Do you not think it's the other way round, and that your DH has ludicrously high travel expenses?

I think 30k is a decent salary and it’s nice to read the OP has a nice lifestyle. For such a young couple I think they are doing very well.

The thing is with average salaries - do they include part time salaries? Because if they do, then it's nonsense isn't it? And the actual 'average' salary pro rata would be much much higher.

For example, I run my own business. I earn about £10k per year. But no one has ever asked me how many hours I work for that. I work 3 hours a week for that approx. About £65 per hour. So, my pro rata salary would be £130k. In the National stats my salary would presumably go down as £10k not £130k.

You’re 22, your dh is still in his twenties, you were earning 30k before having your second child (who is at least old enough now for you to have returned from maternity leave) ... id say you’re ok really. I’m assuming you’re not a graduate as I can’t see how you’d have fitted in university so to be on 30 k by the age of - what ? 20? - before having your son is pretty damn good. I realise you’re living on a lot less now because you don’t earn very much but it all sounds doable, especially as you seem to have very low outgoings. Personally I would want to be bringing in more but then there are so many variables aren’t there? I built up my career for much longer before having kids and then had 3 so had huge childcare costs. Also personal choice is a factor... i would hate an all inclusive pool type holiday so wouldn’t be able to get such a cheap deal as you. So really there is not much point in asking people’s opinions because as long as you’re happy then that’s fine

Me and dp earn around 50k between us. With dp being the higher earner. I wouldn't say we can afford many luxuries. We haven't had a family holiday abroad in years. We do try to save as much as we can, and treat it as a bill. I'd say we live comfortably most of the year but def feel the pinch at expensive times (like christmas)

Acci No, I don't have a second child. I just have DS (who is my first child). DD was my second child but isn't with us so not a second child as such, since she isn't here so we don't pay for her

Between my wife and I we make about £110k a year. I know we are very fortunate to be in that position and not to worry about money but I have been at the other end and I can definitely say that the more you earn the more you spend! It’s not an intentional thing, it just happens. I don’t necessarily think it’s how much you earn it’s how much you have left at the end of the month. Some people / families can survive on £25k others a lot less, others a lot more.

I think you are financially comfortable when you can afford to not work for a year or more through illness or injury. So for example, if you were ill and couldnt work for some time or even had to leave your job altogether, would you both be able to get through the changes that would bring. For example, you might not be able to do as much childcare as you do so that would increase on him without the extra from you. The benefit system wouldn't support you much at all.

@priceisrightYes I realise that , I was talking in terms of timings. You have had two children by the age of 22, and you are back at work after the second one so he must be at least 6 months or so. I was talking about your previous earning being £30 so to earn that much by age 20/21 presumably means you’re overall in a stable financial position longer term, provided you keep yourself in the job market which you’re doing by continuing part time.

So, while you’re on a lower income right now, it’s clearly manageable and of course longer term you can earn more

We have a joint income of 60k. We pay about 10k a year on childcare, although this is only short term. We also put money into savings and sometimes have home maintenance/ renovations.

Can't afford foreign holidays though.

”Do you not think it's the other way round, and that your DH has ludicrously high travel expenses?”

No, I think it’s both. His are high (although not ludicrously as that’s perfectly normal for a London commute), but most families have at least one car so £150 for any car payments, insurance, maintenance, petrol, parking charges, bus/train/cab fares seems very low.

OP I'll sum it up for you - your income's average but your outgoings are really low. Really low. You live in a cheap part of the world, you rent a small place. Therefore you feel rich. Is Beds SE? I'd have said more Midlands tbh, certainly not expensive SE. If you lived in London you'd be absolutely struggling.

When your income is average and your outgoings high, you'll be on here saying it's not enough.

Not quite sure what you don't understand about that tbh.

You have ludicrously low travel expenses. DH’s season ticket to get to work costs £650 a month. Then car parking at the station every day. Plus we run two cars. Both need insurance, fuel, maintenance...

Is it really ludicrous? Aren't yours ludicrously high.
I live 1m away from my school and 3m from oh school. We jointly have low travel expenses.

I don't know many people that spend over £100 on travel in my neck of the woods. So ludicrous ? I don't think so.

No, I think it’s both. His are high (although not ludicrously as that’s perfectly normal for a London commute), but most families have at least one car so £150 for any car payments, insurance, maintenance, petrol, parking charges, bus/train/cab fares seems very low.

Well, I have free parking both at home and at work. So does DH, so no parking charges. Fuel is about £25-30 a week each. Insurance paid for annually but it equals about £50 a month for both of us. I never take public transport as I don't live somewhere where it's reliable, so I drive or walk everywhere.

I would say my monthly fuel costs are £120 at the absolute most. If I add insurance and putting say, £25 aside for service and MOT (which is around £400 a year), it's still only £170 or so.

£650 is just under half of my monthly salary - the idea of spending that much just on transport is just utterly ludicrous to me!

It's totally fine. My parents probably only earned that between them in the last 10 or so years of their working life and they have retired just fine, paid off their mortgage etc.

Yes, times are a little different now, but when you've grown up with very little, 30K is loads. Some people just have unrealistic expectations of how much you need.

” Is it really ludicrous? Aren't yours ludicrously high.”

As I just said, it’s both.

”I live 1m away from my school and 3m from oh school. We jointly have low travel expenses.”

Clearly that is not normal, surely you realise that?

”I don't know many people that spend over £100 on travel in my neck of the woods. So ludicrous ? I don't think so.”

I would think having no one anywhere near you who runs a car is more ludicrous tbh. Average running costs for one car, not even including the cost of the car itself, £162 a month here. Average.

If most people near you don’t spend over £100 on travel I assume none of them have a car, or if they do, they do about 4 miles a fortnight in it, never park it anywhere and it has a very low insurance premium.

Perhaps people all live very near work and all amenities where you are, or public transport is cheap and regular, but both of those things are definitely not the norm.

Op what was your job earning £30k before 20? Asking for a friend.

It’s all relative. You sound comfortable and are doing well, that salary wouldn’t stretch far in London and the South East where property is more expensive but then you’d accordingly earn more for doing the same job there. I have a lovely home which I wouldn’t be able to afford if a whirlwind picked it up tomorrow and dumped it in Hampshire.

”£650 is just under half of my monthly salary - the idea of spending that much just on transport is just utterly ludicrous to me!”

Welcome to London commuter belt! Revel in your short commute and free parking!

It’s fine, I’m not complaining - DH could have a shorter commute and either earn a lot less or we’d spend a lot more on housing, and I realise that for the rest of the country where commuting into London isn’t perfectly normal, that’s a lot. But £150 for a family seems very low.

I would think having no one anywhere near you who runs a car is more ludicrous tbh. Average running costs for one car, not even including the cost of the car itself, £162 a month here. Average.

If most people near you don’t spend over £100 on travel I assume none of them have a car, or if they do, they do about 4 miles a fortnight in it, never park it anywhere and it has a very low insurance premium.

Perhaps people all live very near work and all amenities where you are, or public transport is cheap and regular, but both of those things are definitely not the norm

My point was they are not ludicrously low. Just low. Yours are eye wateringly high.
I accept the initial car cost is high yes and that should be taken into account.
However people have a car for other reasons and not just commuting. My car is worth about 3k and the insurance is about 250 PA.

I do realise I live close to my school. There are 12 in my department. 10 live in the town. I think the furthest any teacher travels at my school is 30m. So obviously he will pay more than me but nowhere near 650.

DH’s commute costs £500 per month and we run two cars so must spend £700 plus a month on travel, I’ve never added it up before.

Living 1 mile from one partner’s workplace and 3 miles from the other partner’s workplace must be very unusual- most people would have a longer commute. So that’s hardly typical- like the OPs transport costs which are also exceptionally low

I think it depends on your lifestyle. A foreign holiday could be a fortnight in Benidorm or 2 weeks in the Maldives flying 1st class, so it really depends on what you want to do/the way you want to live.