To have expected more in life from working to reach this salary?

[grethrow]

I’m early forties and earn 75k. I know this isn’t huge money but it’s well above average salaries in the uk. I worked hard to get to this point (I’m not saying people who earn less don’t work hard).

I guess along the way I always thought I would be able to have a really comfortable life on this salary. I have one ds who is 11 but his costs don’t really factor in much as his dad pays for most stuff (ds lives with me so dad pays a decent amount).

I assumed going on holiday would be easy but renting a cottage in Devon in a nice area for a week is around 1,500, then there’s travel costs and food etc when you’re there! Going abroad long haul is extortionate. I guess these things are just about doable for me but it’s not easy.

I am having a privileged whinge. I know that. But I do feel sometimes like maybe at 18 I shouldn’t have bothered. My parents had a similar income (taking into account inflation) and me and my brother both went to independent schools, grew up in a large home and parents had very nice cars. It wouldn’t be possible for me to go and buy a nice car outright. I know people have it much worse but I still feel cheated and like it is a slog for very little, fair of me to feel this? Do others feel this?

You've really given very little indication of what you are spending all of your salary on. It should be entirely possible to have a comfortable life given the circumstances that you have mentioned, but you have one child whom you seem to agree is being mostly financially supported by his father.

The difference, presumably, between your situation and your parents is that you are a single-adult household and they were a two-adult household. That does make a difference to lifestyle affordability.

Housing costs have increased massively in comparison to wage inflation over the last 50 years so I think that will be the biggest factor.

However, I bet if you head over to Money Matters and break down your expenditure the eagle-eyed MNers over there will tell you if you are making the most of your money.

I don't know what you are spending your income on, and that's the key as everyone is different and has different outgoings. I don't think it's enough for private school necessarily, but holidays wouldn't be a stretch, but you may be more cautious in your spending and saving than I am.

At the same income level that covered me as family of 4 paying for long haul one a year and other trips, pretty average mortgage and outgoings, but I prioritise holidays others do not

I wish it was a wind up, but I think the rich simply don't get it. They think all the luxurious things they do are just normal.

I have never earned what you earn, OP. I earned 50-60k for a couple of glorious years. I also saved so much during that time that I am now living on less than 12k.

Before that, I was on part time NHS level wages. Went to CenterParcs for a short break each year and for me and my son it was the height of luxury - and under £350 at the time.

But if it had cost over £1500 for a holiday, I'd have saved and it would have been within my reach (on way less than half your salary).

So where is your money going? I'm assuming a rent/mortgage of less than £1500 per month, otherwise why be so shocked at the cost of a week in Devon? If your rent/mortgage is more, it ony makes the weekly holiday rent more reasonable in comparison.

And presumably you can work out that if you 'hadn't bothered' you'd have less money? But maybe less privileged expectations. Which ultimately have not stood you in good stead.

I completely agree

I have a degree, work somewhat hard but still have to watch the money

We need to do house renovations and need a new car

I sometimes wish I'd have done things differently

He's a high earner in that he earns over £100,000 a year. I'm not putting my financial details online for everyone to see, my point was, as I said at the end of my post, is that the bill for our simpler life is a lot higher than it was 10 years ago and getting higher, thanks to the COL. Everyone is being squeezed and I can understand people feeling fed up, on every salary.

They think all the luxurious things they do are just normal

i suppose it's impulse buying. meals out, things like theatre tickets possibly? A bygone age for many.

It is a very nice income, but it's not mega bucks. It's (patently) not a six-figure salary. Plenty of people (albeit a very small proportion of the population) earn multiples of £75K which I imagine is what the OP was alluding to.

In the uk we consider anything above 30k to be a good salary. It’s really not, especially in London. Earlier we had a lady on here whose husband is a doctor and they can’t afford any luxuries. Suggestions included leaving London (good idea, let’s encourage doctors to leave)

The wages here are dire when you consider housing, bills, taxes etc

The problem is that 75k is not what it once was so you need to readjust the dial of what is actually a comfortable salary.

I ran 75k today through the Bank of England inflation calculator and that is the equivalent of 42k in 2004. So you’ve basically been working towards something that’s been moving further and further away every step you take.

If you are earning over 100k and feeling the pinch….then you are not living a simple life

Try being properly on the breadline.

@GinForBreakfast my mum didnt work!

Plus we just expect far more as ‘normal’ these days. Thirty years ago your parents weren’t paying mobile phone bills, Netflix, whatever. I’m not saying you shouldn’t have those things, but that we never compare like for like when we look to the past.

I’m not saying it’s not a good salary. My point is that it IS considered a good salary and how depressing that even a good salary in the uk doesn’t lead to a comfortable lifestyle

people are missing the OPs point that she didn’t expect to have to carefully budget on that salary

Are you sure you don’t have a comfortable lifestyle?

Or people have unrealistic expectations about what is a 'comfortable lifestyle'.

This looks a lot like one of those threads where people think they're not comfortable because their income doesn't allow them to spend on expensive things without thinking all the time.

I actually used to eat out far more ten years ago on much less income. I used to be able to afford the theatre or cinema without a second thought. Ok yes the cinema would be doable now but if I wanted to go out for the night for dinner and theatre and park car or get a taxi you’re looking at minimum 100 quid, likely much more

How much do you spend on your mortgage a month? What part of the UK do you live in?

Everyone feels like they are running the rat race just to be able enjoy the nice things in life. Inflation is bad globally.

That's why I just married a rich man and let him do it for me lol

@Bjorkdidit i don’t think going to a gig or the theatre or even a decent meal with friends should be out of reach on 75k which is way above average income

@pumpkinpillow I never said it was hard. In fact I said in my post that we're comfortable. I was making the point that even on higher salaries there has to be budgeting. I can put £10K aside for holidays because I food shop on a budget, own one older car, buy kids clothes on Vinted, never have take-always. Salaries come in and every £ is accounted for.

@Willowtree6 my mortgage is 1,200. Cheshire.

Yeah I swear some people are on another planet. Well there we have it - people on 150k are hard up due to cozzie livs