To ask how much you think a family of 4 need to earn ...

[Jesscarbqueen87]

Minimum for a decent standard of living.

You also get the tax free childcare if earning under 100k

Plus a sole earner will have to budget for 2 pension provisions as there wouldn't by a 2nd employer to boost payments.

I think about £3k a month after tax I'd comfortable as a family of 4 but only if you don't have debts.

I'd say about tree fiddy

🤣🤣🤣. This is why mumsnet needs to introduce a like button

In case anyone is wondering what poverty is, the line is a household income in the vicinity of what one full-time worker on minimum wage earns. It's probably not a coincidence that the two numbers are close.

We manage on about 25k, one car (12 years old, bought outright), no holidays but plenty of days out, eat well, save a bit, don’t stress about being able to keep the electric going. I think 40k would be comfy around here (Nort East) and 60k would be very nice.

It's pretty rare that childcare costs reduce to zero even with the 30 hours, or at school age. Saying a couple where one person makes £100k a year is worse off than a couple who both make £49k is completely disregarding the contribution of the SAHP and the likely advantages of that (and of course they have the big financial advantage that the second person could work if needed, whereas it might not be easy for the two-£49kers to increase their earning power if they both already work full-time).

And a couple with only one earner should make provision for the other pension but I would wager that it's pretty unusual that they do.

@Hardbackwriter Sorry I'm not sure why you have taken my post as a reflection on my views of SAHPs?

It was in response to the other posters criticising other posters saying they needed 100k to live on. Often people forget that 2 workers earning less than 1 high earner take home more money & are entitled to more. That was it.

We saved up a lot to buy so had a 100k deposit which means our mortgage is lower than otherwise would be! Our money just seems to get eaten by preschool costs, going out, we eat out or more likely at the moment order in a lot. Clothes for fast growing tot! We try and save too and have private medical and life insurance etc.

I just watched the Ken Loache film (I Daniel Blake), Sorry we missed you. It is a really good insight into those on zero hours contracts. Definitely worth a watch for those who think 100k is minimum needed!!

@SandysMam

I just watched the Ken Loache film (I Daniel Blake), Sorry we missed you. It is a really good insight into those on zero hours contracts. Definitely worth a watch for those who think 100k is minimum needed!!

Yep, but humility isn't really a thing on Mumsnet. These threads are mostly just an opportunity for people to boast about their earnings!

It depends on what you view as essential too. Which may to some extent depend on your life. Eg a sound reliable car is more vital for someone with a long daily commute to work from a rural area than someone living in a city with excellent public transport and working locally. "Work" clothes are needed in some jobs much more than others. Same with laptops, phones etc. All these things cost money, obviously.

@Jesscarbqueen87

You should compare notes with this thread

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/4053257-Money-doesnt-make-you-any-happier

There is no magic amount to secure 'happiness'

Fucking hell i didnt say the amount was poverty. Nobody can say that as it depends on your circumstances and location.

The op asked for an amount to be comfortable. Then someone said an amount that gave them enough food, shelter, electricity and occasional days out. Thats not comfortable. Thats the very minimum basic standard of living. If that is all you can afford, food, shelter, electricity and occasional days out, what happens when you need a new boiler? That’s not comfortable.

Well we have a household income of well over 6 figures and I felt that more than 2 children would be selfish, both the amount of time that would need to be shared and the financial opportunities I could give them. It also meant I wouldn’t be expecting the government to subsidise my lifestyle choices.

That won’t be a popular view on here I appreciate that but when I see threads of here where posters are complaining about having to pay university fees, for laptops for home learning I think it’s a sensible one. Our world is totally over populated.

Yep only the rich should be allowed to reproduce 🙄

Poverty standard is no holidays, no days out and sometimes not enough food to eat when it's coming up to the next pay day...

It depends if 1 or both parents work. Having only 1 working parent is way cheaper in terms of childcare and not needing to outsource cleaning etc, being able to travel to different shops for deals or to akdi/lidl vs online food shopping which can be more pricy. So I would say 60k if 1 parent is working, 80k if it's both.

Stupid question no one can possibly answer. Whatever U C is fot your circumstances is base line. Hopefully you get more than that.

@baobun presume that’s aimed at me. That’s not what I’m saying at all but it seemed loopy to me to have more children. Why would I not want to give them as much time and financial security as possible? I think that’s a valid position.

I live in the east of England with dh and adult son and 1 v pampered pooch. Salary of £28,000 but no mortgage or rent payments. I think we do okay...

What a nonsense thread 🤷‍♀️

@Pumpkinnose it was. I think finances are definitely something to consider & it's fine for you to decide on the amount of financial security you want personally . However that's different to I wouldn’t be expecting the government to subsidise my lifestyle choices & talking about university fees & over population.

What amount do you think people should earn before they have children?

Excluding mortgage or other financial commitments, I've thought £2k in my pocket each month would feel pretty comfy.

I honestly think that 2 should be a maximum if you’re not financially self sufficient. And to expect people to consider the quality of life they can offer their kids, one factor of which definitely is finance.