To think if you are a family of 4 and struggling on £100k…

[LetMeSpeak]

That it is purely down to mismanagement.

I saw a debate on social media and I also know a few people on 6 figure salaries, have extremely nice houses and cars. Yet complain that they are stuggling the same way others with less money. Aibu to think if you are really struggling even in this economy, a lot of it is due to mismanagement with your money?

I think 100k take home monthly pay is 5 and half grand so I can see how people who survive on a fraction of this would find it difficult to comprehend or sympathise with people who say they are struggling on such a high salary. However, as PP’s have been saying, it’s all relative. Large house, large mortgage, cars on finance, childcare costs all add up and any increase will affect their overall disposable income.

Having said that, I doubt many people would feel much sympathy for millionaires who complain about their financial struggles (and I’m sure they do have them!) so I suppose it’s all about your audience really. If you earn £100k and are struggling maybe only complain to your 100k earner friends and not your 30k earner friends would be my best advice.

I know a family with two children and I assume six digit income, they have committed to private school fees, expensive mortgage, and nice cars on lease. They are struggling at the moment. It is due to the fact they've always spent every penny, much on the drip, and keep running out if money before payday.

We're a decent income, notnsix digit, and always lived within our means. Been saving for a new bathroom for ages now, and making very little progress.

Are you me?

This is exactly my view of it... I have never used credit and never had a pennies debt in my life, if I cant afford to pay in cash I simply cant afford it and dont have it.

Poor on paper but never in debt (actually have savings).

We earn a bit over 100k, do have a high mortgage but luckily not much childcare as dc in school. Do have some equity in property & decent savings but I would say that's because of when we got on the ladder as opposed to people younger than me on similar mismanaging.

Me - I like to keep more of my earnings. I don't care who is running it as long as the policies further my cause. Sorry it's selfish but this world is selfish. I worked through covid, but one of us lost a job, we suffered, nearly ended up homeless - the government did not help us. I know now I have to look after my own.

Of course they will struggle with a large mortgage, 2 x private school kids on top of other bills with 100k household income.

100k income is around 6k per month after tax, school fees and mortgage already eat up most of their monthly wages.

Their priorities just different to some.

You can always downsize your life to have more money. The more you earn the more you spend

But you won't get to keep more of your earnings

Firstly inflation will eat your cash

Then You will end up with a tiny state so you will end up paying more for health , education , car repairs ( no road repairs ) and any country that has gone the whole private route ends up with a few rich people with everything and the
Majority struggling to get basics like insulin for diabetes or a tooth pulled

Years ago I had a 2k mortgage, 1.6k nursery fees, 500 a month train fare, 400 a month for a loan to replace the single glazed 100 year old windows. All fixed costs. We weren't anywhere particularly swanky, we were in the south east in a 400k house. I had a 100kish income, partner had 20k and she also had travel costs too. You lose freechild care over £100k so we were stuffed and counting the pennies. We didn't have a holiday for almost 3 years.

@Nidan2Sandan But presumably your DH's pension contributions are optional. Many people on lower incomes have no pension provision at all. Your post seems rather tone deaf to me

No it isn't relative. If you're struggling on 100k it's because you don't know how to manage your money.

How is that different to now? I have been waiting months for NHS appointments - thank God for private healthcare through my work. Most Schools aren't great unless private / catholic/cofe/ in affluent areas. Everything else is broken - I would rather keep my own hard earned cash.

I would only consider to move abroad and continue working remotely. Better house, better quality of life, free private school and university etc. I was planning on doing this but if I can have more of my earnings then we will stay.

This is an excellent comment

If its only 1 person working the take home after paying into a pension is about 60k, which isn't that much (our take home is around this) we don't pay childcare, live in the North and have a pretty small mortgage with only 1 car. If we had 2 cars and a bigger mortgage and paid for things like sky (we don't bother as we don't have much time) I can totally see how a family would be struggling.

If you're struggling on 100k it's because you don't know how to manage your money.

I don't think this is the case for us. 2 children in full-time childcare, costing almost £3k a month (it was over £3k a month!) is a huge financial burden. I don't think that's not managing money. At one point I was literally paying to go to work as childcare cost more than I earned. I suppose I could have quit my job but that would have long term pension and career repercussions.

@notanothertakeaway well it won't be optional as how much he can pay in. If you want to pay into the scheme it will be X amount & some public sector ones require quite chunky contributions (although I recognise they are good schemes). I'm not sure how good it is for aspirations to tell a doctor who may be struggling "well just don't pay into your pension then, as others can't afford them".

Is there a particular benchmark where someone earning a good salary is legitimately allowed to say they are struggling? once they've downsized & stopped the pension contributions can they do it then?

Think one thing the older generations sometimes are wither unaware of or do not want to accept is just how eye-watering housing costs are in lots of parts of the UK, especially SE.

I guess £100k is not what it used to be

or how much wages have stagnated.

take home pay on 100K after tax and national insurance is 65,600 ( it would be more if 2 x 50K) this is £5467 per month

it is very very hard for people managing on 2000K (about 35% of the above) a month to comprehend this is struggling; the benefit cap in London is 23K per year this includes housing benefit

You've not idea what people's backgrounds are.

Our combined income is around £100k and will hopefully go up further, but years of training and working our way to a liveable wage means we've probably got at least another 5 years of debt to pay off.

£100k household income is worth a lot less than it was 2 years ago. Struggling is the wrong word but ‘feeling the pinch’ is probably better.

• energy bills have gone from £90pcm to over £200pcm
• mortgage has gone up by £70 as rates have increased.
• public transport has gone up
• food bills increased
• insurance has increased

So yes £100k is a lot, but it’s stretching less and you can’t easily or quickly downsize, or just stop commuting.

@lannistunut - definitely. A relative bangs on about the high interest rates of the 90s and how it was a struggle for her and it’s easier for young people now on our high salaries. She bought a house in London for £15k in the 70s, it’s worth £600k now. She was a secretary (and her parents helped). She now has a final salary pension and her income is probably about £30k a year. She has no money worries and has no fucking idea.

@ChilliBandit I agree. As a couple we pay over 500 a month in student loans. People we work with who are only a few years older don’t have to pay that

It’s not a race to the bottom.

Someone on a higher salary is likely to struggle precisely because they’ve never had to.

When you’re on a lower income you are more likely to watch what you’re spending, and so when we end up in a situation like now they have already learned to live on less.

Someone on a larger income may either have higher outgoings, such as a bigger mortgage, bigger car etc, but equally they have likely not had to watch what they’ve been spending so closely and so when they have to they find themselves struggling as they’re living to their means and it’s not as easy to cut back.

So a person living in a 4 bed house is likely to incur higher energy costs than someone living in a 3 bed or a flat.

Someone living in a 4 bed is going to have a bigger mortgage, and no, it really isn’t as straightforward to just sell the house and move to a smaller one. After all, who are they going to sell it to if all these people living in big houses need to sell them, and that’s before you get to conveyencing costs, estate agents fees, stamp duty, the average cost of moving house is £15000.

Equally second hand cars have little value so you’re telling someone to spend more money on a new car…

it is so so tone deaf all these people saying 100k is not much in London or the Southeast when it is more than double the average fulltime salary in london and the south east and they are in the richest 10% in their area,