For my husband to earn £65,000 per annum and we still can't afford to live in this bloody country!!

[winegoddess]

Mortgage has gone up, electric has gone up, 5 mouths to feed, 3 children to clothe etc etc and month after month is a bloody struggle. Am fed up with straping money together when my husband earns a good wage and we should be able to get by! I now need to search for a way of 'me' bringing in some money but with a young baby at home and 2 others at school i am at a loss as to how! Please give me some job ideas or ways to make money!!

"what is the average wage in Uk?Is OP in London because that would skew £65K.in scotland £65K a fortune"

In London it depends when you got on the housing ladder. In 1996 a 2 bedroom flat in Kew would have cost about £90K, now a similary flat would cost about £300K. Salaries have not increased accordingly.

On the other hand, I know that property is much cheaper in some other major cities (e.g. Cardiff). I thought that one of the advantages of being a doctor was that you weren't tied to the South East if you wanted to find work. Obviously doctors specialise, and I don't know what kind of work the OP's partner does. I also thought that it was a more recession proof job than others.

I definitely agree with suey 2 re: 'dinky' lifestyles. In the past decade the lifestyle of the average 20/30 year old graduate might include regular drinks after work/weekends abroad/long haul holidays/their own car/own flat/regular ipod and mobile updates/own laptop etc. etc. etc. This is not a normal lifestyle either ecologically or economically.

dh and I are public sector workers, I work .8 over 5 days to do school run in the mornings, we have a nice house, a decent car and a crap load lugger car, live in the bargain basement NEast and are no better off than we were when we were earning half what we do now, mainly because we're older, our expectations have changed, our mortgage is massive, we think we should be able to afford holidays, clothes etc at the age of 37/38 and earning a joint income of £80k so I do sympathise with the OP, although I hadn't expected to when I opened the thread!

Wow atm we (family of 5) are living off £12000 a year. If I had 65k to play with I'd be living it up.

And then you'd have no money lol

I didnt marry another teacher - you rite that would have been a disaster - no my DH worked for HMRC then went to private sector. Whilst away making my toad in the hole with beans (total cost £2.00) inc rice pudding for afters I rung Uni about a course to sdtart in Feb i meant it wen I said I want out.

what course are you planning to study

stop bloody moaning and cut down on something!!!

We are a family of 5 and manage on less than half what you are getting. Its not easy either, I rarely buy clothes for myself, our holidays are always camping in this country, or staying in youth hostels and paying with tescos vouchers but we have a nice house, loads of fun, eat well and try and make sure that the kids never miss out on anything they want to do.

I think it is quite ignorant actually, to moan about being on that amount of money. plenty of people would feel like they had won the lottery in your situation.

the OP isn't moaning, she's asking for ideas!

I've come to the conclusion that it doesn't matter how much you earn, you will always feel broke.

Here I am at the (over)ripe old age of 41, having worked since the age of 23. I earn exactly 12 times what I did when I started work in 1990. And I still feel broke.

It's not the feeling broke aspect of the OP that I am sniffy about - we can all empathise with that - it's the entitlement not to work thing which I struggle with

BSC in Food Marketing - two years part time and its funded (free free free) - I am just hoping I can fit it round my p/t hours - I know I am lucky that I can afford to do this and still look after DS.

how exciting a new challenge!good luck

ooooo, this thread's almost deid.

thanks i did say burn this thread bye

dinae blether aboot religion/money/fitba an aw that an there will be nae fechtin

Just like to say, how random is this???!!!!!

I hope she's not actually at the checkout holding up the que ;-)

I think it is the online checkout!

It is always esaier to earn more than cut back. If I can earn X I am sure you can too if you put your mind to it. £60k of income wouldn't even pay the school/university fees bill.

As for what is too much state benefits are a king's ransom if you're a starving African trying to survive a drought etc. It's all just relative.

The answer is never mind what the husband earns. Women should earn their money and if money matters to them then go out and earn a lot. Look at the lady who brokered the Middle East deal - the investment in Barclays. She's done pretty well. Go forth and emulate her. She gave up a university degree mid way and worked in a local restaurant (profile in today's FT).

Am bound to get flamed but just wanted to offer some support to winegoddess.

Our household income is higher than yours but we struggle so can totally understand.

We are about to buy a very average semi on a slightly questionable road in probably the cheapest area of London and it is still going to cost us a fortune. On top of that both DH and I are still carrying heavy student debts. I think debt repayments probably eat up well over half of our income.

We are by no means broke and our standard of living is good but with city bonuses probably a thing of the past we are feeling the pinch.

"It is always esaier to earn more than cut back."

No it isn't. That has to be one of the most bonkers statements I have ever heard!

OOh Bozza, spooky, you have described my life! Except we do pay a certain amount of childcare

Good that Xenia has joined the thread - it will probably have 1000 more posts now!

'It is always esaier to earn more than cut back. If I can earn X I am sure you can too if you put your mind to it. '

hahahahahahaha, join the real world.

Thus the Euro hols are out!
(But Devon is lovely)

camping is cheap.