To say there’s always a high earner thread? Tell me about your income vs expenditure if you are of the opinion that you are broke/not well off?

[Moneymadness]

Just that really. Every other money thread ends up taken over by those with large incomes and low expenses, or just large incomes tbh. If you want to. Post your numbers if you are bloody broke and just getting to the end of the month(or not)…a safe space that cannot be taken over by the higher earners maybe?

Surely a number is only half the story?
If I lived in let's say Bath I would be much worse off on £50,000 than in let's say Carlisle? So in some parts of the country it would be fairly comfortable other parts not.
My fixed expenditure is approximately 75% of my income on a hard month.

Yeah, that's very true.

I lived in London on a 35k salary 🤷‍♀️. I worked in a hospital and most of the nurses and other staff would not be on anywhere 80k.

that 80k quote is based on living alone in a flat. So a bit misleading.

Most single people on average salaries live in shared housing, many couples do as well.

so again, yes 100k is nice if you want your own flat in a central location. If you don’t earn that London is still affordable, you just might have to compromise a bit and get a shared house at the end of a tube line somewhere. You cut your cloth and all that.

If you are having to make "decisions" on matters such as holidays, extra curricular activities, days and nights out, you are not broke. Being broke is about having little or no money.....you have run out of money. I have been there and it is hard. It can happen to anyone.

Well, DH was recently made redundant and I can't work because I care for our disabled son so right now we are just living on UC, Child Benefit & DLA.

It's incredibly stressful. Hopefully DH can find something soon.

Can I ask where you live? Just in general terms.

I earn 35 gross, DH earns nothing after his freelance industry dried up - but he always earned less than me anyway. We live in London. Things are tight but just about doable. However, I’m going to be made redundant and I suspect I’ll never work again. I’m 60 and am very worried.

Single, 28k (FT, 40hrs a week) and it’s tight paying a mortgage

I’ve been there too, mine was my five year olds birthday and I had no money to buy sweets to take into school let alone a birthday present, my 12 year old sister secretly borrowed me the £10 she had in her money box and I managed to buy him a Thunderbirds toy from Argos in the clearance section, you never forget those days do you?

I was a single parent - very young, with no support at all, Literally no money for anything, not even enough to pay the bills, bailiff letters turning up daily - which I was too scared to open and the threat of eviction. The worse time of my life and I was genuinely suicidal, thought about it so many times, the worst part is that I was working full time and still couldn’t make ends meet, I’d walk to work because I couldn’t afford the bus, and my sons packed lunch would always be jam sandwiches because a jar was cheap and lasted ages, there were no food banks then. I honestly wouldn’t wish those struggles on my worst enemy.

I guess everyone’s definition of broke is relative to their own circumstances, but until you’ve been right on the breadline and experienced genuine poverty you just won’t understand.

Now that’s a tough wage to be on.

I do think it depends on where in the country you live, size of your mortgage/cost of your rent and whether you are single or not.

I think the reason I have never felt broke even when I was , is because I always had family I can turn to - family to live with, to pay for some shopping , bail me out basically - and that makes a huge difference

Single, HA property. earning not much more than NMW, zero savings, around £100 to last two weeks 🤞🏻, I scrape by yet again. 🙄. Doesn’t look like I’ll get a holiday again this year.

Similar situation as you

But years ago food was affordable, now it seems like a luxury!

I can see how this would help a lot, at least you know you can feed your family, sadly many of us just don’t have this support, back when I was truly skint my mum wouldn’t even give me dinner, I can remember hanging around at hers as long as possible in the hope she’d offer, but she never did, she’d actually tell me to leave as she was starting tea. My mind boggles at that as I can’t imagine begrudging my own child/grandchild a plate of pasta or something similar. But there you go. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Op there’s no need to police the thread, there’s people who have been up and down, surely you should be saying well done for getting out of the shit!!!

I’ll tell you I don’t have enough money end of, it’s not something we all need to chat about it just brings you down, I’d rather get inspiration from the rich threads tbh!!

And I’m 45 with kids and my mum just gave me money for a coat and I’m going to lie and say I bought one but live with what I have and instead put the money into a bank account because I have zero savings and the other day I was turned down for a one thousand euro loan to fix a load of crap!!! I collect up cents and put them together to treat myself to or squirrel it away then end up spending it. I am course and job hunting to get out of it and I believe in the mn things people don’t, I think people should try to clean/ take in ironing/ rent out a room because some people can’t re skill/ upskill/ get out of their situation.

I have an income of 769 a month. My partner has £27000 a year.

East London, bordering Essex.

Sooo this.

100%

I think that’s a completely normal wage to be on. My DD earns that in London, also with a mortgage to pay on her own.

DP and I are firmly middle of the road. We earn the average salary, we have equally average outgoing. I’d consider us comfortable - we’re not having to worry about bills, we enjoy occasional events/meals out/takeaway. We have a weekend away and a summer holiday each year.

TBH I avoid most threads that are focused on lifestyles as I don’t connect with those that save crazy amounts each month or someone who is struggling. There must surely be far more people
in my situation than these boards suggest!

I don’t think that’s a normal wage to be on particularly in London.

Thank you. I’m in Scotland. I think that’s a good salary.

It’s barely above the living wage. Astounding you consider this “normal.”