What would you do with £10,000 a month?

[Betty94]

I didn't want to ask this in money matters as that seems like a thread people go to for help and this is just for fun as I'm a very pregnant awake lady - disclaimer this is not my income (sadly ) but I know it's some peoples wages but I'm referring to the lottery game in this instance:-

I can't decide if this is better than winning a full jackpot in the sense as it's not a lump sum so it's less likely to ruin peoples lives and turn people against you (as it's not a lot in that sense, I mean it's definitely a lot to say you've not done anything to earn it - you know what I mean haha but it's not multi millions we're talking like of you won the euros)

I think I'd still work and I'd encourage DH to do the same at least that way our wages would cover the mortgage of a new property and I could feel like I worked for something as I'd feel a bit weird having money just handed to you (nice but weird), firstly I think I'd pay of all my debts a month at a time, shouldn't take too long I'd try and save a lot of it too over the 30 years at least half.

We have a baby on the way and live in a new build property which is a bit boxy and small so I'd love to move to something just a bit bigger, nothing fancy but something with two reception rooms and nice big bedrooms ( the bigger the house the more you have to clean ).

I'd treat immediate family members to a holiday or a new car or whatever they wanted as a nice little present. (Although if they chose the holiday, we'd have to wait for covid to Buggar off actually no it's my fantasy and covids already gone ) I also like to think I'd treat strangers as well in little ways so maybe pay for someone's shopping or someone's meal or pay someone's go fund me off etc just like the little everyday miracles that'll make someone smile.

And then I really don't know, I bet people have better ideas than me which is why I thought of asking this question - sorry if it doesn't make sense, sleep deprivation in the 3rd trimester is a real thing ... also the lucky people who are on more than 120k plus a year can join in and tell us what you do with 10k a month if you want to, be kinda cool to see how it differs from reality and fantasy. ( I don't mean lucky in that way as I'm sure you work very hard complex jobs for it and absolutely deserve it).

This thread is just for fun, hope it gives someone a nice ten minutes to think about what you'd do too

I'd retire from teaching for a start!
I'd also prefer this rather than a huge amount all in one go and I'd be 83 when it stopped which would suit me fine.
There was a scratchcard out a few years back which was £40,000 a year tax free for life. That would have been my dream win. Enough to live on comfortably without having to work.

@40PlusTTC your spending sounds very similar to mine. It is the private school fees that kill a lot of it. I have also bought and am renovating a second home in the countryside where I grew up. That will be where I retire back near my family and a home to pass onto my children near their cousins etc. It’s so interesting to hear all the sensible things people would do with the money and I am now thinking I do fritter money away on nice food and silly things for the kids. Private schooling is a real luxury for the children and I remind them of it honestly - paying for the best education I can afford with after school clubs - sports and music. Maybe it’s a waste of money - who knows. They do work hard there though because they know how lucky they are to have the opportunity. Also one thing my DS said to me when he first went there age 11 - he said the kids were all sparky and interested in things. That was enough for me to think ‘money well spent’ - that they spend their days around sparky kids who want to do well. A thread to make us all stop and reflect.

Give up my job AT ONCE. I know I’m lucky to have reasonably-paid part-time job I can fit in round childcare, but I hate it. It makes me miserable.

Actually, just writing that has made me realise that I need to do something about it. Thanks, OP!

I would probably do up the house, pay off the mortgage and possibly look into buying the nice house up the road that DH and I have been eyeing up for months

Monthly contributions to kids savings.

If this were normal times I’d book a crazy once in a lifetime holiday - maybe a safari with the kids, or one of those glorious Indian Ocean island honeymoon destination for just DH and I.

My sister needs a hand with the property ladder so that would be nice.

I probably wouldn’t change my lifestyle too much. It would just be nice to live this life without having to wait for tax credits day to buy things for the kids, or for pay day to get myself the shoes I need IYSWIM

I think I'd finish work. As much as I like the actual job I do, I hate all the recording stats, having to pander to management and not being allowed to get on with what I think is best.

I'd then be able to concentrate on bringing my kids up, doing up the house, having quality time to myself. I'm lucky that I have a lot of friends who work part time like me so I have people to go for lunch with, exercise classes and walks, spa days. I don't think my H would give up work but it would be nice for him to have the option if he needed to because of his health.

I'd save a lot for our kids future but I wouldn't tell them so they weren't relying on it.

I don't think we'd move house. We love our house and it's more or less finished but I would like a downstairs toilet and the cellar done out. It isn't a posh house but it's right next to school and the town centre and it's on a quiet cul de sac with a big garden so I don't think we would want to leave it.

We would definitely upgrade the car to something better. Neither of us are really car people but just something a bit more comfortable with a big boot for all the mini breaks we'd be having.

We would travel extensively definitely. That would be a big positive.

Would never have to worry about not being able to eat for 2 weeks out of every month

We aren't in the UK but our monthly outgoings, excluding savings, are 10k (GBP) a month. It doesn't go as far as you might think. It covers rent, 2 cars, a nanny, bills, nursery fees x 1 (school fees are paid directly by my employer) plus all the things like life insurance, car insurance blah blah.

We earn between us the equivalent of just under 8k a month ( tax free). From that we have rent to pay ( we can't own a property here) , school fees , I have a full time cleaner / nanny and I pay for taxis for her to get to me. After we've paid for these, other bits and bobs like internet, phone bills , others debts we are paying off , and savings we are left with about the equivalent of £3.5k. Food is very expensive here. We have a comfortable life (nothing flash). We don't want for anything and are comfortable. Pre covid we travelled every Christmas and summer.

I would stick about £7.5k into savings every month, with the view to use some of it for car/Christmas/holidays - I wouldn't spend anywhere near as much as I would save though!!

The remaining £2.5k would be enough for us to live on each month.

Judging from some Mumsnet threads I think most people on this sort of wage just proliferate boring fixed costs until they feel skint again.
Then they gum up threads about poverty by saying that "it's all relative" and "well off people have higher outgoings" as if this happens inevitably and not as a result of actual choices they made.
I hope that I wouldn't do this but, human nature being what it is, I can't rule it out.
What I'd like to do is go on a lot of fun holidays and weekends away, eat out plenty and take up expensive hobbys like horse riding or scuba diving.
We also own a little bit of woodland and we've been meaning to build a hut there for a while so I'd do that.

When we had that income (after tax), we saved at least 85% of it after paying off the mortgage as we knew it wasn’t forever owing to the nature of the jobs we had. Currently that’s roughly our annual income so glad of the savings.
The mistake is to let your wants increase to the level of an income like that. Where I worked, about half the people saved like I did and half spent every penny on cars, travel, designer clothes, eating out, and have nothing to show for it when the job inevitably came to an end.

I'd put half towards security and the future, and half towards living life very well.

So 5k would go into a combination of paying off the mortgage, topping up our savings and pensions, maybe into buying a house.

And 5k would go to an assortment of staff (I worked out that for 10k a year, you could get a cleaner, housekeeper, PA, gardener and handyman at local PT rates). I'd probably get some sort of place where I could rescue animals, and travel part time. So we'd need to employ someone to care for them when we were away.

And I'd buy delicious food, and tailored clothes.

That life would actually be a bit tight on 5k, but I think that would suit me. I like to be busy, and I don't think it's good for you to be too complacent.

I'd drop a day at work and encourage DH to do the same. We both enjoy our jobs but with two small DC, caring responsibilities and no support, there's very little 'me' or 'us' time.

I'd set up a £2k direct debit for dmil and dsis so they didn't need to worry about money coming in either.

I'd set aside a few hundred per month for random kindnesses. We already do this on a smaller scale and would definitely want to increase it.

The remainder (such as there would be) would go into paying off the mortgage and saving (including towards pension, if DH and I were part time) so we had that security

I retesting that the majority of posters who do earn that a month have mentioned private school fees. I don't think I would do that for DD (personal reasons) but I would use some of it on whatever classes or activities she wanted to do. And we'd have loads of days out at the weekends too to fun places. Would be lovely to just be able to go on a day out rather than having to save up.

I'd also be really indulgent and get a weekly massage. In better times I used to go for one every couple of months to help my back and it'd be wonderful to be pain-free! Mind you, with that amount of money I could probably afford a visit to some fancy chiropractor who could help fix it permanently.

The biggest thing would be saving for a house. Nothing huge, but 3 bedrooms would be amazing. One for us, one for DD, and a boxroom to use as a little office. And a small garden too, just enough for DD to play in. That's my absolute dream, but with us stuck in the rental market the only way it.could happen is if we did get 10k a month!

unlimiteddilutingjuice
Agreed I think it's a life style creep , earning that sort of money you will surrounded by others earning huge sums so it doesn't seem much. When a lot say " we are doing okay , it's comfortable but not rich " By most people's metrics in this country and across the world it is indeed rich. Having cleaners nannys gardeners kids in private school is somewhat better than doing okay. 3k a month in mortgage will get something nicer and bigger than most. Its not a dig a such but aware of the circles people move in and what becomes normal.

I think about this a lot! Dh and I would both give up our jobs. I'd probably do some part time studying and volunteering. We'd pay a little into a private pension that would start paying in 30 years time when the income stopped and some into ds's savings account. I'd put some into my ISA every month.We'd overpay on the mortgage and pay off the car loan. We'd contribute more to charity. We wouldn't want to move house or change our lifestyle massively- just have a few more holidays and nice days out/weekends away (once this is more allowed!)

I'd do up our house and sell it in a few years for a detached place. Save 1k a month for each child so they will be set up when they come of age. Then I'd just live a comfortable, stable life. Volunteer at a special needs school to fill my days. Make lots of anonymous donations to charity's. Eat takeaways once a week. It would be amazing.

10k/month sounds a lot but doesn’t go as far as people might think.

A rough budget might be:

4.5k mortgage/food/car/household bills in an expensive area
1.5 discretionary (cleaner, extracurriculars, clothes, home improvement, gifts, days out, etc)
1k giving
1k holidays
2k savings (500 pension top-up, 1000 split amongst 3 children’s savings accts, 500 rainy day savings)

There are lifestyle perks like nicer/more holidays and security from savings, but it’s not an insane amount; you couldn’t pay school fees for three children without making lifestyle sacrifices, for example.

OP if you bought family members a new car and a holiday, depending on how many family members you have, you wouldn’t have any money yourself for a year or so!

I’d buy a property by the sea with an annex of sorts that I could run a holiday let from.

Long-haul holidays - as you say, OP, there’s no Covid in our fantasy world! DH and I used to travel a lot when we were young, often by working abroad. We can’t afford that now, and I do miss the excitement of new places.

Other than that - loads more money for the crowdfunders and charities we support. I’d like to contact Ann Sinnott, Allison Bailey and all the women taking legal action for women’s rights, and casually mention that they won’t need Crowdjustice any more. Could fund several a year on £10k a month.

A car for a disabled relative.
Big get-togethers for friends and for family.
First-class rail journeys for short breaks in glorious countryside or fascinating cities.

I’m realising how Covid-restricted most of these are. In the real world, at least I can still put £20 into a crowdfunder ...

So, assuming DH was happy in his job, I would initially save the money and put it against our mortgage, making the biggest overpayments allowed. At the end of the current term, I’d pay of a chunk from the saved. I would then start planning to move DSs to a particular private school we like when they finish primary school. Once the mortgage is paid off, aims be donating some to charity, having holiday and setting the children up for the future.

Oh DH and I often fantasise about this - we would both retire (not that far off in the scheme of things). We would sit on it for a few months then would pay off my son's mortgage and buy a place for youngest son. Then travel. Lots. This country, then abroad after Covid. It's good to dream...

I think you would very rapidly get used to £10k a month and would gradually adjust your lifestyle to suit. Bigger house, private schools, Waitrose shopping, expensive car etc by which time you will be amazed at how quickly that money disappears and think that £10k a month just isn’t enough. You’d be fantasising about an extra £10k a month.

I know I would anyway. Whenever I’ve had a huge payrise in the past (not on £10k a month scale but still sizeable) I’ve adjusted and that has pushed me on to look for a role that pays even more.

Maybe I am just greedy

I would open my business I would carry on working but ask DH to stop as it affects his health. SIL has a chronic disease I would look into how I can help her. I also have a chronic disease and would seek out some medication that’s cheap in Europe possibly a European probably German doctor who will give me it (although I do have a sympathetic consultant in the NHs now who would consider it in special circumstances).

I would donate to our local school.

I would ask my mum to retire but I know she wouldn’t.

I would invest now in some property for the children.

Definitely there on the random acts of kindness - like shopping- coffee etc

I will set up or work with charities supporting children from areas where children are achieving their full potential and use my professional skills and money to volunteer/contribute where I can.