Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Is £85k a good salary in London (family)?

299 replies

SleepDreamThinkHuge · 09/04/2023 11:21

You may have been aware of a recent Twitter post where one guy was saying £85k a year in London for a family means you will still struggle. Other posters were saying it is not comfortable and definitely not rich. Others were also saying that £85k means your income is higher than 95 percent of the population in the UK. And some have mentioned just because you are £85k you do not need to send your child to private school it is a choice or buy a financed car.

Where do you stand? I can see both arguments but as someone who lives in London how I would love to earn £50k+ let alone £85k. Working in the public sector in a job I like means I earn just over £32k. In the near future, could earn closer to £50k in the next 5 years if I train, and take a more team leader/management responsibility. I think I am not the only one. A lot of people assume just because you live in London you are guaranteed to earn over £50k easily. Many professions are earning less than £50k in London (nurses, teachers, some doctors, police, public sector workers, banking staff in branches etc...

OP posts:
Noname77 · 09/04/2023 14:03

Lostinalibrary · 09/04/2023 11:31

Not really because of the tax. I don’t think people understand how much tax people pay. For example, I saw a DLA post the other day (elsewhere) where the claimants were on 7.5k PER MONTH. Others comparing figures saying - it’s what people take home anyway on average. It is actually the equivalent to £150k salary before tax. No idea that £85k isn’t just divided between 12 and no tax free top ups, it doesn’t go that far with a mortgage and childcare.

I find it hard to believe anyone is receiving that on benefits per month. The highest DLA plus mobility is about £150 per week.

MammaTill2Pojkar · 09/04/2023 14:04

85k in London for a family of 4 sounds good to me. We lived in London for a while some time ago, just the two of us, no children yet, and my OH was only earning 17k at the time. We rented a furnished studio flat to ourselves, which was mouldy but had the luxury of a separate kitchen with washing machine, 'heating' and water included in the eye watering rent and even a communal tumble dryer upstairs that we could access and use for a £1 a go, and a small communal patio too. Good location to his work (5 minute walk), and about the same walk to the tube station too. The electric was a prepay meter so we never got any scary bills as we had to live within our means and lowest tax band iirc. I don't have a clue now how we managed on just a couple hundred quid a month after the rent was paid, but somehow we did it (must have used a bit of savings each month too, or something), but I imagine 20-25k between us both would have made for a fairly comfortable living (no cars and no tv licence and we don't really go out or get take aways often, so our outgoing are usually just bills and food for the month, not even any commuting costs).

If we could get by on lets say £22k (assuming we must have used some extra money from somewhere) for 2 of us, then I think 85k for a family of say 4 is doable...

wheresmymojo · 09/04/2023 14:05

MintJulia · 09/04/2023 11:55

£85k would give you access to a £300k mortgage. For a single person, or someone already on the housing ladder it's a good wage.

A couple starting out might struggle as a single income to support 2 adults, a child and a new mortgage.

Can you actually buy anything in London for £300k though?

NewNovember · 09/04/2023 14:05

Lostinalibrary · 09/04/2023 11:31

Not really because of the tax. I don’t think people understand how much tax people pay. For example, I saw a DLA post the other day (elsewhere) where the claimants were on 7.5k PER MONTH. Others comparing figures saying - it’s what people take home anyway on average. It is actually the equivalent to £150k salary before tax. No idea that £85k isn’t just divided between 12 and no tax free top ups, it doesn’t go that far with a mortgage and childcare.

Can you link to this £7.5 k a month.

Lostinalibrary · 09/04/2023 14:06

Dyslexicwonder · 09/04/2023 14:02

Marginal tax rates

Honestly waste of time on here - no logical thinking on here from many. They don’t see how this impacts on productivity and people leaving the workplace.

TedMullins · 09/04/2023 14:07

cadburyegg · 09/04/2023 12:17

A family of 6 living in London on £85k might not have a lot of disposable income, but a single person on that wage in the NE should be quite comfortable.

The more you earn the more choices you have, which aren’t available to those on lower wages. But whatever your outgoings - which as a high earner you should have some control/choice over - it doesn’t take away from the fact that £85k is still a high wage.

I’m bored of privileged people making choices like taking out big mortgages and having expensive cars on finance then complaining their high wage isn’t enough to live on 🥴

I’m a single person in London earning between 50-60k (self employed so it varies) and I live very well. I have a partner but we don’t live together. This year I’ll have been abroad 4 times, including long haul. I own a flat (no I didn’t have any help to buy it) and have 2 dogs. If I earned 85k I’d be living like a king!

If we had one child I think we could still live very comfortably on 85k. Two kids we might start to feel the pinch, but it’s childcare costs that are the real kicker. Once they were school age I can’t imagine that would be as painful - but then again we‘d upgrade to a two bed flat. Nobody NEEDS a three bed semi in a bougie part of London. Other areas are available and plenty of kids grow up in flats.

Albiboba · 09/04/2023 14:07

Botw1 · 09/04/2023 13:58

@Dibblydoodahdah

I havent not factored it in

Full time childcare is a short term expense.

Plus the op didn't specify 1 wage of 85 k (no childcare, unless a single parent) or 2 wages of of 42 each in which case less tax and more top ups.

What top ups do you think you get with 2 wages of 42k??

Spoiler alert, it’s nothing.

Lostinalibrary · 09/04/2023 14:08

Noname77 · 09/04/2023 14:03

I find it hard to believe anyone is receiving that on benefits per month. The highest DLA plus mobility is about £150 per week.

Show quote history

I am just saying what I saw - they deleted it. If I remember correctly they had 4 children on DLA and parents too. Doesn’t really matter, it showed how we’ve been so conditioned to top ups that many people believed this was a “normal family income.” They knew their income was high as they posted anonymously. I don’t really care whether you believe it tbh!

Botw1 · 09/04/2023 14:09

@Albiboba

Child benefit

Heronwatcher · 09/04/2023 14:09

There is no answer to this. Completely depends on whether you’ve got a massive mortgage, how many kids are in the family, whether your house is well insulated etc and how many cars you need to run for work/ how many times you need to travel to the office.

If you’ve got a modest mortgage, sensible house, one child over 5 and mostly work from home, it’s fine. If you’ve got 2/3 kids, with a couple in childcare, a large mortgage and both of you need to travel into London 4/ 5 times a week, plus a leaky/ draughty Victorian terrace then yes you’ll struggle. Childcare costs alone would nearly use all of your income.

TedMullins · 09/04/2023 14:10

Dibblydoodahdah · 09/04/2023 12:39

@Botw1 well you clearly are economically illiterate because some people are struggling through no fault of their own even on what you think to be a big income. The landlord puts the rent up by 20%, childcare increases by 20%, their partner becomes abusive, they find themselves pregnant unexpectedly. Any one or more of these things suddenly tips the scales the other way. Look at @RosesAndHellebores example above. What happens if her daughter/daughter in law suddenly finds out she is pregnant? There is no room in that budget for childcare.

Thankfully we have legal and easy to access abortion in this country. If someone can’t afford to bring up a child they have a choice as to whether to actually have one.

Dibblydoodahdah · 09/04/2023 14:10

@Botw1 but you’re refusing to acknowledge that SOME people are struggling on £85k and then ignoring childcare because it’s a short term expense. Well it may be, but if you’ve got a child and want to carry on working then you don’t have any choice but to pay for it (unless you have family help).

Botw1 · 09/04/2023 14:11

I'm also not sure why people are taking such offence to what I'm saying given that people who actually live in London, with kids, on less are posting saying they don't struggle.

Botw1 · 09/04/2023 14:12

@Dibblydoodahdah

I'm refusing to agree that paying your bills is struggling, yes.

Especially when those bills are largely a choice and will have longer term benefits

Dibblydoodahdah · 09/04/2023 14:13

@TedMullins or they could give up work and claim benefits…what a vile country. Can’t afford to pay for yourself and your child on £85k so have an abortion. Or choose to live off the state. Dreadful!

Dibblydoodahdah · 09/04/2023 14:16

@Botw1 so where is all this choice on cheaper housing and childcare costs?! Tell us! You can’t give one example of low cost housing and childcare in London but keep going on about choices, choices, choices….

And social housing is not an option because loads of people would love to be able to choose it but it’s in very short availability.

Lostinalibrary · 09/04/2023 14:17

TedMullins · 09/04/2023 14:10

Thankfully we have legal and easy to access abortion in this country. If someone can’t afford to bring up a child they have a choice as to whether to actually have one.

Show quote history

That’s horrendous. What about the people who rely on top ups then such as UC and CHB - what should they do? Or is it only the higher earners who should abort to keep working to pay for these tops ups?

AuntieSoap · 09/04/2023 14:19

I'm a single parent living in a commuter town outside London. I earn £85k which I acknowledge is a good salary, and consider myself comfortable but not rich. I don't save a lot, but I have put enough away to support my children through university when the time comes (I'll need to top up their maintenance loans etc). We have nice holidays and I can afford school trips etc. I have a modest house in a nice area where property is expensive so I couldn't afford a bigger house here. Kids go to state schools.

I think it's all relative, depending where you live. I'm from the North and if I moved back there I'd feel much better off. Having said that, we want for nothing and like I said, I consider myself financially secure.

Botw1 · 09/04/2023 14:20

@Dibblydoodahdah

Again, I haven't said cheap childcare is a thing. But full time childcare is a short term cost

Cheaper areas exist in London?

Unless you think everyone who lives in London is either earning 85k and above or on the dole in sh? Nothing in between

People are commenting on the thread saying its fine, they aren't struggling on less.
Do you think they're lying?

Dibblydoodahdah · 09/04/2023 14:20

@Botw1 but having no money left over to buy (second hand) shoes for your child, cover emergency dental care, fix something that is broken in your home, or even buy food…that is struggling! Some people have nothing whatsoever left over, some don’t have enough to even cover their bills anymore. Why can’t you understand that?!

Dibblydoodahdah · 09/04/2023 14:26

@Botw1 I’ve already given examples of why they can survive on less and are not struggling. Not everyone is in the same position. As I said tell us where these cheap rental properties are in London. We’re waiting to hear.

Did I say that everyone on £85k is struggling?!

SuperGinger · 09/04/2023 14:28

I think it is very little if you live in London and have a family but it depends what you want to give your family and if you have other family nearby who can support you with picks and drop offs, ad hoc child care. Child care costs are high, and even when they are in school you need help often.

endingintiers · 09/04/2023 14:30

It's a very good wage! Obviously if a couple with kids a lot depends on your joint income.

But after additional pension deductions we earn less than that as a couple. Three kids (1 at uni we are supporting), 3 bed house in Zone 3 with mortgage payments.

It was tough with two nursery fees but now those days are gone we are I would say very fortunate as we don't have to penny pinch. I know people with a household income £40k+ more than us who are struggling.

For context:

  • we drive a second hand car we usually get 6-7 years out of these
  • we bought in a then unpopular area 14+ years ago and haven't moved since. We overpaid every penny we could from our mortgage before having more kids and fixed at a low rate. We have never increased our mortgage, and have saved for any home improvements.
  • we have cheap holidays like camping or swapping with friends
  • we don't need wraparound care any more as we can WFH / work part time to collect them
  • we built up a surplus of childcare vouchers in the pandemic so holiday care is covered
  • we wear second hand clothes
  • we rarely eat out or order takeaways
  • we have cheap or free days out. You are spoilt for choice in London for these

In case it sounds miserly - none of these things are a hardship for us. We have a rich and enjoyable life full of love, family and friends, travel, culture and fun.

Lostinalibrary · 09/04/2023 14:32

endingintiers · 09/04/2023 14:30

It's a very good wage! Obviously if a couple with kids a lot depends on your joint income.

But after additional pension deductions we earn less than that as a couple. Three kids (1 at uni we are supporting), 3 bed house in Zone 3 with mortgage payments.

It was tough with two nursery fees but now those days are gone we are I would say very fortunate as we don't have to penny pinch. I know people with a household income £40k+ more than us who are struggling.

For context:

  • we drive a second hand car we usually get 6-7 years out of these
  • we bought in a then unpopular area 14+ years ago and haven't moved since. We overpaid every penny we could from our mortgage before having more kids and fixed at a low rate. We have never increased our mortgage, and have saved for any home improvements.
  • we have cheap holidays like camping or swapping with friends
  • we don't need wraparound care any more as we can WFH / work part time to collect them
  • we built up a surplus of childcare vouchers in the pandemic so holiday care is covered
  • we wear second hand clothes
  • we rarely eat out or order takeaways
  • we have cheap or free days out. You are spoilt for choice in London for these

In case it sounds miserly - none of these things are a hardship for us. We have a rich and enjoyable life full of love, family and friends, travel, culture and fun.

The key part there - you bought 14 years ago.

Botw1 · 09/04/2023 14:37

@Dibblydoodahdah

Is there more than 1 of you?

Rightmove will help you with your quest.

Glad you agree that 85 is a good wage that will allow people not to struggle