To ask you honestly what are your first thoughts on seeing this?

[gemful]

NC’d for this

A couple. 2 dc (no childcare)
A brand new, new build house. Mortgaged.
Two brand new cars.
They don’t dress designer but the present well.
She has a few designer handbags.
gadgets are always good brands, latest I phones, shark hairdryers, robot hoover.
very organised and tidy home, both work full time in good jobs.
They do family outings every few weekends but not every weekend.
Honesty, what are your first thoughts?!

It’s in the thread 😂😂😬😬

Clearly. By my definition, saving over 20 percent of your take home pay every month while also overpaying on the mortgage, raising kids, and paying pensions is doing very well.

In response to your original Q:

• Honestly, I think the set up is nothing remarkable on paper, it sounds "average", however many working people struggle to afford these things so I get why people might be curious.

• I wouldn't think a lottery win, I would think either large income or family help. My DH would say "credit cards".

• My point of reference would be myself: I have a good income but don't think I could afford your lifestyle.

Reading your updates: Good for you. You've clearly worked and saved hard. Bought a house at the right time. Enjoy it.

Well paid at the time…for his age. He has never been interested in management etc. he took a sort of side step I suppose. Look it really doesn’t matter, both of us are happy with where we work, the flexibility and work/life balance is worth its weight in gold for us.

If you were that happy, op, you wouldn’t be on here looking for validation / applause, or whatever it is you wanted from this thread 🤷🏻‍♀️
What exactly did you want, I still can’t work it out?

Good! Being happy with your work is the most important thing. As I say upthread, I think you’re doing well. Own house, good pension, savings, bounced back from a teen pregnancy, husband & kids, holidays etc. Ignore your sister / neighbour, they seem really uninformed anyway.

yeah with a v ample income for not the SE living in a new build seems very odd. Always seems a bit how would you say ... umm .. common (?) to have a house with no character and a new car...

I think was checking if it’s reasonable for her neighbours and family members to make snide comments about the nice things she has. Which it isn’t!

Yeah I don’t like the old character houses…maybe I am common 😂 but i suppose new builds are there for those of us who don’t. Wouldn’t it be boring if we all liked the same things?!

My thoughts are how on earth do you know so much about this family? ( or is it yours) Who knows what hairdryer someone owns? I probably wouldn’t notice someone had a brand new car unless they told me! I don’t really value expensive possessions. I do have a designer purse, but only because it was £30 ish in a sale.

Why go on to explain her finances in such forensic detail, then?
The neighbours don’t know about them and nobody on here cares.

For someone who tries to not talk about money you are doing amazingly well talking about your money😂

Look I get it OP, everyone needs a bit of validation they are doing alright in life but you do come across a bit Hyecinth Bucket ifynwim.
You shouldn't care what other people think or how your household looks/ comes across to other people.
To start a thread basically asking what random strangers think of your income/lifestyle is a bit strange to me.

In what world is saving 2k a month not ample?

I think she was being sarcastic

I would say normal mid class family! I’m really intrigued on how you afford to save £2k a month! I have similar house price, similar house hold earnings (+£35k more p/a) and we can barley save £1k a month, own my car outright (7 years old) and partners company car x

my first thoughts:
just another normal family

what are we meant to think??

Whats the question ? How others live isn't my concern tbh some people have more than me and I have alot more than others 🤷‍♀️

Did you notice everyone was "just normal people", "lucky them" etc, until they knew it was you. Then it was " ew, new build", " you don't save enough", " you don't earn much", " bad things are round the corner". Welcome to mumsnet 🤣

🤣🤣🤣

.

Just ignore, stay happy!

Well I wouldn't make bitchy comments to someone about their new car, I'd say how much I like the colour, and then get on with watering my roses.

But, @gemful it sounds like you only have yourself to blame, everyone see's the low key outer appearance and assumes you aren't as loaded as you are. You need to bling it up, third car, head to toe Gucci and Versace for the whole family, loud designer labels and motifs. Hot-tub with gold fittings etc etc

I would wonder how there is no childcare needed? Or are they teenagers?

Same. I feel like the math isn’t mathing. You owe what, £350k on the house? We owe about that but not UK so very low interest rate and our monthly payments are about £1600 so yours must be closer to £2k. You say you’re saving £2k, is that all in the pension? It can’t be or you wouldn’t have saved £50k for the 2 cars (2 years of all your savings combined or 4 years of half is going in the pension? Is the 17% pension on top?

At first glance, I would think you had a lot of debt.

What do you consider substantial savings?

I’m just seeing a list of things/objects and wondering what real life is being lived underneath all of that. Made me want to ask what gigs do these people go to, what creative endeavours they have, what books/films do they enjoy? I’m not so interested in surface stuff.

The presented list is of normal things, nothing fancy but also enough to be extremely grateful.