To be surprised that some people find high levels of saving hard to believe?

[BeMauveMentor]

The thing that surprises me most about money threads on here is that some people seem to find it unbelievable that others can, and do, save quite a lot of money. I’m not sure if it’s because people assume everyone spends roughly in line with their salary, so there isn’t much left over regardless of income or whether it’s just not always obvious how much others might be earning. I suppose if your own circle isn’t very varied in terms of careers and income levels, it’s easy to assume most people are in a similar position.

AIBU to be surprised by that? I really don’t think it’s a normal way to think.

To be fair, OP dropped their judgement then fucked off.

I disagree that it "clearly" means they are "objectively hard to achieve".

It could equally just mean savings aren't a priority. Or we are a nation of spenders not savers. Or the economy is such that saving isn't financially wise (because lower interest rates mean inflation eats away at cash). Or people put money into different things (home ownership, pension). Different welfare systems are also probably an influence, as is inheritance tax and laws around that/elderly care etc.

It's too simplistic to say "well people in the UK cant save" when most other countries in the EU do manage to save significantly more than us. It doesnt really explain why average UK savings is less than half (percentage of income) compared to somewhere like Hungary, where cost of living might be lower but so are wages- or the Nordic countries where tax is much higher and so are a lot of cost of living things like food/drink.

According to this, the average UK adult has £16,067 in savings. Londoners specifically have an average of £29,000.

https://www.money.co.uk/savings-accounts/savings-statistics

https://www.money.co.uk/savings-accounts/savings-statistics/uk-savings-market-trends

The figure is skewed by the people with very high savings. More so in the London figures, for obvious reasons.

That’s why I posted the map, to show regional variation. The region with the lowest average is the East Midlands, at £6.5k.

If having more than a month’s salary in savings is what you consider having a high amount of savings, then it’s actually quite common. Common enough that it doesn’t constitute ‘surprising’.

No, an average isn't the same as being common. If in a street of 10 houses, one person had £100k in savings and everyone else had nothing, the average savings for the street would be £10k. But £10k would not be common in that street. Country wide those with very high savings (the richest 10% hold 50% of the wealth) pull up the overall average so we can have a £16k average AND 70% of people with less than a month's salary both at the same time.

I agree with your logic, but I don’t think either situation (having savings or none) is so rare that anyone should be surprised.

I don’t know where your 77% stat is from, but ONS wealth data suggests the median household savings is £15,000, the 75th percentile is £62,600, and the 25th is £2,800.

MN probably skews younger than that picture but also more educated.

So I don’t think either low or high savings should really be a surprise to people who’ve done what you suggest and Googled.

(my stats from here which is based on ONS: https://www.nimblefins.co.uk/savings-accounts/average-household-savings-uk#nogo )

I said ‘common enough’.

I believe I’ve found where you got the 77% figure from, and that refers to the amounts held in current accounts, not savings accounts.

www.wearepay.uk/new-research-reveals-one-in-four-have-less-than-250-in-their-current-account/

Of those survey respondents, 33% have less than £1000 in savings.

So again, common enough to not be surprising.

Finance a surprisingly emotive subject. I have a good friend who is very careful with her money, was possibly the last person on the planet to get a credit card and even then only uses it super rarely to get the payment protection. But she has zero interest in her pension and says there's no point because you may well not live to need it. I find it a bit mental but her mum died young and I think it's a psychological block rather than being about finance itself. Mind you, she works for civil service so she's got a great pension deal so she'll be fine. But honestly I think I know more about her pension provision than she does! Meanwhile I'm completely obsessive about piling money into my pension(s), actively managing my plans, getting that money to grow while simultaneously neglecting day-to-day saving. What can I say, people are weird!

I also can’t believe it (mainly as I suspect there’s some inflation added or massive inheritances (that people are claiming as savings rather than inheritances).

average people - earning average salaries do not have 50k of savings, 20k in premium bonds and multiple ISA’s. Not through ‘hard work and saving’ alone. Catch yourselves on.

Depends. Time and timing plays a big role.

Someone who invested 5% of a median income every year (£1,900ish) for the past 24 years and got the average UK stock return now has c £100k.

We earn 50k and 70k. We have approximately 120k between savings accounts. We save at least 2k per month into long term savings. 500quid per month into our holiday fund. We sold a property and made a profit. So we did have an extra 90k but we paid 60k off our mortgage (already paid 100k deposit) and I bought a new car from some of my savings. No inheritance here. We have always saved a good chunk tbf.

I agree with you completely. Why should anyone be surprised by someone else’s financial situation whether that is better or worse off than your own.

everyone earns different, everyone spends different. My and my DP have always been savers so we do at the age of 31 & 34 have a good savings pot behind us already. No we don’t earn crazy amounts, but my DP is a hard working builder who has created a great business and reputation, but we both work hard and always have done and we don’t just spend money freely. We bought our first house at 19 & 23 and people automatically assumed we must have had help from parents, we didn’t, we are just good with money.

But I must say I find that a lot of people on MN find it difficult to look past their own situations and believe that anyone may be different.

I always remember one post on here someone said "if you're earning 6 figures you won't be living in a 2 bed terrace in a working town" in thr context of lifestyle creep. I found that funny because that's almost DH and I - our hh income is just under 6 figs combined and we do live in a 2 bed terrace in a working town. We made that decision because we knew we didn't want a huge mortgage and to be trapped with higher expenses.

Just found it funny that someone saw that as completely crazy but actually probably many people are doing just that. Not everyone has or wants the 4 bed detached in SE England!

We do though. My partner and I earn around €100k combined. We've had no inheritance or windfalls of any kind. We do have 50k in the credit union and 30k in prize bonds/savings of different types.
All from our own work and saving.

This..I am not convinced all these stealth wealth posts are real... there are just too many and if all these people are so rich have they nothing better to be doing than scrolling on mumnset ?

I’m always amazed by the people who seem utterly oblivious to the fact that other people might have more money by them. Who think that because there’s a cost of living crisis, everyone is totally skint and barely surviving. All the, AIBU to not understand why the pub is so full when there’s a cost of living crisis type threads.

Some people are also completely shit with money.

so because someone has ample savings and is well off the shouldn’t be on mumsnet? Why? I mean do you think I should be out doing things all the time and spending it?

Almost everyone i know has suffered lifestyle creep - as they've earned more they've added costs in, expensive cars, masses of beauty treatments, gym memberships, holidays, cleaners and gardeners, to a point where they have told themselves these are normal/basic costs.

DH and I are both very high earners (combined over 300k not including bonuses). I dont spend anything much on hair/beauty, we drive old inexpensive brand cars (one is 19 yr old, the other nearly 10), we have no cleaner, we go camping.

We buy inexpensive food & cook a lot at home, don't have loads of expensive subscriptions, don't buy expensive clothes ir phones etc.

Exactly. I’m not on tik tok, but I’m on here.

Im sure a few people lie, but I think the vast majority are true. It’s anonymous, what’s in it for them?

That’s how you stay rich - by not spending money!

I mean if I spent all my time spending it then i wouldn’t have it…

This!

Mumsnet was created by, and predominantly catered to, middle/upper middle class/ wealthy women.

A higher proportion of users from that demographic is to be expected. Although I’m sure there are fantasists, because obviously it’s the internet, I doubt it’s the degree that many seem to think it is (or rather, want to believe it is).

To be fair if you are working in the kind of job that pays that amount, it’s rare to have enough time to do eg the cleaning and the gardening yourself. I outsource a lot more than my lower earning friends because I simply couldn’t do my job if I didn’t (or rather, I could do my job, but I’d live in a dump).