DINKS living the highlife?

[GoingPostalTallyHo]

I found this article online (it's behind a paywall, but you can read it for free if you switch to reader mode on your phone/browser). The story tells of a "dual income no kids" (DINK) couple living the highlife - for example, last week she was in Amsterdam on holiday, the week before that at the Grand Prix, two weeks before that in Mexico on holiday.

AIBU to think that most DINKs aren't really living the highlife like that?? Yes, maybe a couple more holidays, brunches and clothes compared to the average family with kids. But these people sound like millionaires! Surely the average DINK just lives a similar life to the average 'parent' before kids came along? Or are most DINKs loaded?

I know in the 80s/90s DINKs was a thing and it had a YUPPIE-type richness connotations. Most DINKs I know are trying to pay rent, and save for a deposit with a little fun on the side. Maybe as childfree people get older then life turns into a holiday every month?? 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️

OK, I've said DINK too much now, and used too many exclamation points and question marks. Over and out.

https://inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/we-love-our-dual-income-no-kids-life-why-would-we-give-up-being-dinks-2500526

It's really tiresome when some parents suggest that childfree people all live a life of fast cars and fabulous holidays and endless lie-ins. Most of us have bills to pay and cleaning to do and boring old responsibilities like everyone else. DP and I have a lovely life but a night out is likely to be something like what we did last night - pub for a couple of beers and then went for pizza. We probably have more disposable income than most but we're far from millionaires!

we are ‘dink’s’. Except we don’t have holidays, go out anywhere or even have the time to do so. I have two jobs, totalling over 50 hours a week over 7 days, and Dh works even more insane hours. Granted we have no debt, but only covering a basic lifestyle. Very thankful for an inheritance which has paid the mortgage. Not exactly living the high life here!

I'm a DINK living a carefree life in terms of not having the commitment of kiddos but I haven't been abroad since pre-covid and we're not jet setting, high end cocktailing all the day long. Bills still need paying and there's little in the way of state help for a couple like us. We manage but we're not rolling in dollars like a gangsta video.

This narrative does my head in. Granted I’m a SINK (is that a thing? 😂) but I’ve had arguments with people on here who refused to believe that I am not rich because I have no kids. And every post about envying CF people reads like a bingo card of holidays, handbags, expensive cars etc.

In my reality the wealthiest people I know are dual (high) income with 3-4 kids!

Rant over, sorry!!!

@fitzwilliamdarcy it's the same for me, my family assume I'm minted because of the lack of kids and can't understand why I can't drop £2500 on a holiday with less than 2 months notice. "Where does all your money go?" Is a common question to me - erm my insanely high mortgage, bills, and battered up ford fiesta.

I remember being a DINK (early/mid 1980s) but even then we weren't disappearing off on hols every five minutes because of that pesky thing called work and holiday entitlement not being open ended (although ex did have a classic sports car).

This just feeds into the stupid rhetoric that all couples/people without children are mindless hedonists with too much money. Don't I wish. (Can't remember the last time I bought a handbag, either).

I lead a very quiet life - I wouldn't go jet setting even if I could afford it!

When people at work discuss finances, it seems to be people younger than I am - those in their 20s and 30s - who struggle due to housing costs. I was able, purely by virtue of my age, to 'get on the ladder' before prices went wild. Childcare is another one they talk about, so I suppose we SINKS and DINKS are spared that drain on finances!

Both my DDs made it into their first choice universities today, these things are priceless!

Congratulations to them - especially as I gather it's been a tough year for A-Levels with grade 'deflation'.

Wrong thread?

We can definitely go for more meals out, the occasional extra weekend break etc, but this is because we spend our money on ourselves and have no responsibilities other than our house, out pets and ourselves. We definitely aren't high earners, even with 2 salaries!

Like all of these things, I imagine it's entirely down to the household income and expenditure. We're DINKS and definitely not living the high life. We have a good standard of living, but not millionaires or anything. Joint net income of around £5,000 per month, but our mortgage is £2,000 per month (our choice to overpay), plus bills etc. We go abroad a few times a year, but only European city breaks. A big holiday abroad requires us to save up and we only stay in budget accommodation. We certainly cannot spend, spend, spend.

We are friendly with two other DINK couples and they have a lifestyle similar to ours. The wealthiest people I know are a family of four, with one high income and one SAHM. They live in a multi-million pound house and travel business class. It's definitely a step (or two!) up from where we're at.

We are comfortably off (though not wealthy). We do like to make the most of having no caring responsibilities (for a long time we had onerous elderly parent caring responsibilities) and have weekend breaks and nice holidays.

My BIL seems to think we are jetting off places every week, with no regard to the fact we both work full time Mon-Fri and have the normal AL allowance, so we can't (nor could we afford it!).

We do eat out a lot though, so often when he calls DH, we are out somewhere. He referred to us a couple of times as "how the other half live"

I have said to him before that he made his choices and I made mine, so 🤷

Pretending to be jovial about it. Really I was just tired of hearing him mention it.

We're DINKS but work and other commitments (plus a lack of desire to fly more than necessary) means we're not jetting off all over the place. Maybe in a few years - we end up saving a lot of our income so things may change if that means we can retire early (but even then we'd probably opt for a lower key lifestyle to increase the number of years we can do it for!)

Or worthless, depending on their degrees, the job market when they qualify, and the overall economy.

That's such a stereotype, isn't it? I do manage to probably save a bit more than a couple on an equivalent income who have the additional expense of children, but you make your choices. We certainly don't live some 5-star high life, I hate wasting money.

To be fair, if you look at that girl's Instagram and Tik Tok they don't really reflect the article - looks like she spends most of her time making house-related content (DIY/cleaning) and has had a city break, a two week holiday, and gone to Silverstone this summer. It does say she has a corporate job in the city so she'll be on good money, but I don't think she's rolling in it the way the article suggests. We're DINKODs (dual income, no kids, one dog 😂) and try to manage an abroad city break, a holiday, plus one other (could be UK or abroad) trip a year, maybe she's just squeezed hers into the summer period. It does look like poor journalism.

I'm surprised we can peel ourselves out of the bath long enough to have a luxury holiday or go shopping.

Eh I don't mind because I love being a SINK and if I had kids, I'd be jealous of me too. I'm not rolling in cash but I have enough to buy everything I need and want (I'm low maintenance) and go to 5* hotels in the sun. If I had children I would have to go without a lot of things that enrich my life.

Well, in theory we are DINKS but as I work for the civil service and he's a vet we didn't get the fast cars and exotic holidays memo 🤣

Maybe as childfree people get older then life turns into a holiday every month?? 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️

Nah, we just continue paying more bills but include a mortgage in that!

Shower! Knees can’t cope getting me out of a bath….

DINK: £90k combined income (split: £48:£42). Rent. Both 35. Longing to buy, but can’t find a decent place to live where we both have secure jobs.

Foreign Holidays: maybe 2-3 weeks per year. Probably spending £4-5k per year on average for the last 5 years.

Not sure if that qualifies as the high life.

I think as DINKs we are not living the highlife as of money is no object, but money does have less restrictions on it.

I.e. I'm not paying for nursery, or nappies, or new shoes as they out grew them etc.

We get a lot of comments from family who have kids about "new clothes again?" Or "another holiday?" Etc. But they dropped 90quid on new trainers for their kid or £500 on a residential trip etc.

My money is my money once the bills are paid. Parents have more bills so naturally have less disposable income.