To think there must be dodgy financial activity going on with this couple?

[TurkeyTeethLookAwful]

A couple that we know (but are not friends with as such) both seem to have a very extravagant lifestyle that is totally at odds with the jobs that they do.

The husband works as an assistant manager at a shop; not a superstore or anything like that, just a small branch of a chain store in the local town. The wife works two days a week as a hairdresser. They have four children aged between 16 and 2.

In the past five years they have:

Totally renovated their semi detached house to a very high standard. They have an instagram account about their home (not many followers, less than 200 so are not earning from that) and have tagged many high end products and tradesmen, such as a bespoke bed and 2k chandelier type light for the bedroom.

Taken multiple luxury foreign holidays per year; not budget holidays but five star holidays. And regular weekends away at Disney Paris, too.

They, and the kids always have very high end designer clothes; the woman wears dresses that cost £400+ when she goes on nights out, and on the holiday they are currently on she has posted on social media that she and her two daughters are all wearing matching swimsuits that cost £100+ each.

The woman has hair extensions, brow lamination, lash extensions, botox, fillers, nail extensions, and probably loads more stuff on a regular basis. All done at high end salons.

They have very regular expensive family days out and weekends away, such as travelling on the train first class to London to see a musical and then staying overnight in an expensive hotel.

In the past, I've known of a few other couples who live that kind of lifestyle and it's turned out that they are earning money drug dealing. This couple both absolutely do not have rich families; both of their families live in council housing. I feel like they probably have not had a lottery win as I feel that if they did, they'd buy a massive house, seeing as they like extravagance. I can't imagine a mortgage could be obtained or a house bought on drug money...

And yes, I know it's none of my business, but I'm curious.

AIBU to think they must surely be doing something illegal to have this lifestyle?

Lots of things people do privately that make a lot of money and aren’t illegal. Cam work for example. LOTS of money to be made there and far more likely that . If it’s not something illegal then fair play!

It is possible to fake some of this stuff, checking into 5 star hotels on Facebook but staying elsewhere and going there for a meal for photos, checking into posh restaurants and not even going in or borrowing other people’s photos.

If she works in hair dressing she will be able to swap skills with other people FOC.

I know one chap who you would have queries how he made his money as he could he drive around in a flash car with a nice house and dreadful designer clothes but he had a trust fund from his grandparents and was also in a band that whilst no one in the UK had heard of, they were huge in some Eastern European countries and he made a mint touring.

There are some people who make a lot through YouTube videos, there was a couple on rip off Britain who gave up jobs to review products or something like that and a couple who have a large following for air frier cooking and god knows what else. Not everyone who makes a lot of money on social media is on Only Fans or recognisable. Maybe they have some viral cat videos? Or won the ITV competition for thousands?

My friends family were very wealthy because he patented something to do with currency printing or something in America.

It might be something criminal or more interesting might they might have done something very dull to get a regular income. Or even a one off windfall that cleared their mortgage.

BTW I have bespoke handmade furniture, some we made ourselves (DH is very talented) and our very lovely handmade table from a well respected craftsman was £200 on eBay after a divorce fallout

The thing with hair is that if your overheads are pretty low, like your chair rental and cost of product and the services you offer are expensive vs the amount of time they take to do as well as having enough clients that keeps you fully booked both days you can easily take in loads of money. I know many people that work 2 days a week in the industry and can make 1.5/2k per week easily (this is London though). They are obviously paying their own tax, but it's their responsibility to declare their earnings so she could be bringing in 6k a month and then just not declaring the majority of it.

I knew a couple like this, very 'normal'. Brand new cars every year and a holiday home in La Manga. Found out years later he had a cannabis farm and they both ended up in jail.

I'm defending their right not to be bitched about by strangers on the Internet, who know nothing about them other than the say so of one obsessed woman, who is garnering validation from unpleasant suggestions.

If it happened to you, you'd hate it, vulnerable or not. It's horrible behaviour. Nobody knows what is going on with their finances, nobody will find answers here, it's therefore just slanderous speculation.

This is very true.

My DD today, for milling round the house is wearing a £260 MonnaLisa outfit, and £126 sparkly JC shoes (horrendous tbh but she loves them)

Except she's not, she's wearing a £17 outfit and £10 shoes, because I bought them second hand...the outfit worn once, and immaculate (it's not now DDs been wearing it lol, hence it's just a round the house thing now) and the shoes were brand new in the box. That's the same, or less, as it's costs to tog her out from Next.

"How is that child wearing £300-400 outfits??"

That's how.

Similarly, because I can't resist a bargain, we redid our ensuite, all Neptune and Porcelanosa. Around £15k. But I got everything for £1950, brand new on, just unwanted on eBay.

And the savings there, is how we pay someone else to come in and repaint the house as well. Even adding that on, it's still under a third of what the ensuite costs on paper. So people might look at the ensuite and think, "God that's £15k, then they've just had the whole house painted. Our bathroom only cost £6k and I can't afford a painter as well." Except I've done the lot for £5k and they've spent £6k.

DH does really well. But we're saving hard for the dream house. So whilst he covers the household running costs and will splurge on a holiday for example, the rest of what we have at the moment, treat wise, is not because of his income.

'Right'? Last time I checked, nobody had a right to not be talked about. Again, you've pointedly ignored the fact that they post on social media. If they didn't want to be talked about then don't post.

I'd hate if this happened to me. But then I'm very private, don't post online and nobody knows my business. If I make it all public then I'm very aware that I can't control what people say about it.

You do come across as slightly unhinged in how emotional you are about this...

• don't post on social media it should say. Not online. This is obviously online

Could be in debt.
Could be burning through an inheritance.
Could be given handouts regularly by parents.
Or could be doing something illegal.

Loads of possibilities

Only fans!

Probably prentending he doesn’t live there and claiming benefits with 4 kids that would be quite lucrative. I know someone that is jail breaking Amazon fire sticks and is making loads of money on the side so could be something like that.

Probably prentending he doesn’t live there and claiming benefits with 4 kids that would be quite lucrative. I know someone that is jail breaking Amazon fire sticks and is making loads of money on the side so could be something like that.

People probably say the same about us. The reality is very boring.

People who are really rich, especially those who earn it, are actually usually quite mean. Dress in old jeans, shop in Lidl, buy discounted stuff at supermarkets.

These people sound the opposite. I suspect drugs, but without proof you cannot tell.

I know a couple like this and the man deals cocaine.

Do you tell them all about your flash lifestyle and post on social media regularly? just wondering

My cousin genuinely got lucky with crypto - invested very early as a student and then forgot about it. Completely legal but not easy to prove a paper trail.

They're likely dealing.

We know who the drug dealing families are in our area as well, all with business fronts for money laundering, too.

Every day we all wonder about our neighbours, it's human nature. But there's lots of imagining, thinking and supposition in your posts OP....🤔 Something to do on a Sunday I guess, but to this one random person you sound a little overinvested in somebody else's life and seeking validation by asking the internet for answers. Any chance you can get invited for coffee then you can just ask her to explain herself and the family circumstances to you...? 😆

@bugboard that's lovely

Drugs seems most likely, there's a lot of those types near me. But I also wouldn't rule out benefit fraud. Maybe she's claiming as a single parent and getting her part time wage topped up with Universal Credit.

You're right, no point me getting upset about it. Accuse away, they have a nice life, they've done well for themselves = they probably deserve this.

I know two families like this.

One is DH’s ex boss. DH left as quickly as he could after he took over the company. He was into drug dealing and loan sharking (the boss!). DH’s place of work was a vanity project for him - lots of cash thrown in but absolutely no idea how to run the business properly. It was a nightmare.

The others had parents who won the lottery. He had a run of the mill public service job, she was a SAHM. They bought a large house for about £750k, had it pretty much rebuilt, always had massive Range Rovers etc on the driveway, we’re always on holiday…

If you believe that their lifestyle is funded through nefarious activities you could always report it to your local police force or anonymously to crimestoppers.

I have a friend and me (and one of our mutual friends) have been wondering how the fudge they can afford their lifestyle. Haven't figured it out yet and proppablt never will (can't really ask). So I totally relate to the whole none of your business but still so damn curious 😅