To think on £30,000/year I should be able to afford to live on my own in London?

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I earn £30,000, which I know isn't high by any means but I think it's decent. But I still can't afford to rent my own place in London. Lots of my colleagues who must earn around the same amount somehow rent flats in London and I don't get how. The only ones I understand are those who live with partners as there's two incomes to pool together for rent and bills.

I really don't see myself ever getting into a relationship, and feel like because I'm single I'll never be able to give myself the kind of home and lifestyle I want. I never really realised before how much being single negatively impacts you financially.

Inner London still starts at £32k - outer London is just under £30k and Fringe £28k.

I am outer London in my second year so £31k (take home 1.9k/m) but fortunately do not live alone so it is manageable.

I agree that it SHOULD be possible to live alone in London on that salary. But it would be very tricky to do so with rents and bills as they are.

Definitely not a junkie. A few too many cocktails occasionally, perhaps.

Home ownership has traditionally been seen the majority of time as something people do in pairs,therefore dual income. Although there are many people,including myself, wish to live alone. No one wants to live anywhere dummy,particularly if you are grafting all week. You want to have sime comfort. Sadly what we can afford and what we want are not always aligned. Feel for you.

No student debt. No debt at all. Need? Probably not technically, if she led a very frugal life. We want her to enjoy her life, to see hard work brings pleasure and is rewarded.

She wouldn’t have signed up without discussing options with her father. It’s nothing special just a Virgin place. Hardly the Hurlingham. She knows she’s lucky, but many get far more help than her odd little bits. It’s hard to balance the books when you’re just starting out. She doesn’t often ask these days but drops hints occasionally. We would want them to come to us early rather than struggle or get into real difficulties.

She wouldn’t have signed up without discussing options with her father. It’s nothing special just a Virgin place @CaronPoivre

It's madness to spend £120 on a gym you can't afford if it's not even that special!

Don't get me wrong - I also wanted a "nice" gym (pool, steam room, classes etc, rather than just bros on machines in a basment) so splurged a little, but even then it's £75 per month for membership to a fancy chain in central london.

Your posts on this are a tad confusing. Yes it's lovely to help your children have nice things, and yes I'm sure she does deserve to be rewarded for hard work! But the claim that you can't afford life in london on 42k, on the rent she's paying, makes no sense.

We want her to enjoy her life, to see hard work brings pleasure and is rewarded

I don't understand this point? Absolutely no issue with you supporting your dc but hard work in her cause is only getting rewarded because you can subsidise her? Plenty of people work hard but it's not rewarded.

I work hard but had a hefty deposit from family to help me buy in London. Plenty work harder than me & Im not any more deserving because my parents had cash to spare.

If she has no student debt then the claims about struggling on 42k with £850/month rent, and needing financial support are even more baffling to me!

Student loans repayment take out a significant chunk of most people's salaries, and you tend to assume most young adults are still paying them when talking about salaries, renting, and outgoings.

So a couple of grand a month after tax? Rent and travel is expensive - as is going out and you have to eat too.

Id think a flat share would be the only option unless you lived and worked in a quite far out part of the city.

Define London, if you lived in one of the outer boroughs it could be possible.

I don't think I know a single person who lives alone in London now I think about it. Even friends on £50k plus tend to share.

Yes you should. Just about. In your own flat albeit not in Zone 1-2, but not necessarily a grotty one and still with good transport links. Try to get a commute that is tube+bus only, it's more expensive to go in to Waterloo, say, on the train than on the tube from the same or similar starting point. Likewise if you are near a zone boundary then you can save money by getting onto the tube or train at that boundary and starting that journey by walk or bike or bus. You will have to forgo or reduce lots of things that people think are normal such as expensive socialising, Sky/Netflix, gym, endless coffees and 'downgrade' your food shopping (not saying you do do any of that of course but many people do and then lament they can't afford the rent etc), and you are unlikely to get much into savings at the same time. If you want to save, you'd need to go for a house share.

as is going out

It doesn't have to be. Plenty to do, see and eat in London that isn't expensive and if you plan your travel to be economical (and safe) too. Choose where you live based on the transport links you need to get to work and seeing friends and the 'essential' hobbies and social life that you won't consider forgoing.

Hm. I've had a membership at Virgin Active in the past and some of the London ones I visited were very nice, much nicer than most of the other gyms in the vicinity which I'd had on day-passes or had a trial day with. Hence the premium price, which is also based partly on location.

The gyms with pools and yoga classes etc often cost more but if that is what you like to do then obviously you go to that one. I swim so I'm obviously not going to go to one of the many gyms without a pool, personally,

Maybe I need to ask her what her rent is. It’s the one thing I’m not sure about because she pays that herself. Three of them share, but it’s a four-bedroom flat in south London, so not exactly the best area. It’s nice and has a lovely secure communal garden, but only a flat still.

I earn £30,000, which I know isn't high by any means but I think it's decent. But I still can't afford to rent my own place in London.

I’m surprised you are surprised by this! We are in the south east (45 mins train commute to London) and most young people on £30k still live at home. Even if you had a partner on the same salary, It would be difficult as you’d need the deposit. Things are really shit for young people now.

”Hard work” isn’t bringing her rewards though is it…you subsidising her is!

This is the most ridiculous thread I’ve seen on a while. Of course you’re unreasonable to expect to rent alone in London on 30k.

Unfortunately you are expecting to live in the world's 4th most expensive city on a below UK average salary (£38k).
Whilst this is not impossible it is difficult and would require you to share a flat with someone else and not leave much £ for living and experiencing the city.
Why not relocate to somewhere cheaper to rent and live?

As has been said, fancy gyms are always going to be more, but they don't need to be £120

Mine has all the extras for £75/month in central london - that's a saving of £55 on a gym that the PP describes as "not even that special"!

Of course people can spend how they like, and do what they want with their own money, but the posts don't make sense

I always have colleagues asking when I'm moving to London and I just can't afford it.

You can if you house share I'm not sure why you'd assume they mean moving to live on your own.

I found this double bed flat with decent living room in Croydoin for £1k pcm. Most other things around that price range are studios and everything is on the outskirts.

I think I'd prefer to share, or buy with a friend. That's what my brother did. Worked out fine for him for a few years.

Nonsense. She’s seeing her savings accumulate!