How did you make your money?

[raisinglittlepeople12]

For those who are financially comfortable, how are you making your money and what is your biggest tip for people wanting to do the same?

I think a lot of it is buying a house at the right time. I'm a high earner (well relatively, 80k) in mid forties but bought late as no deposit or family help and living in London, and we never clawed back the massive housing profits our friends made from buying just a year or two earlier. High income (180k between us) bet we are paying 3k a month mortgage on an average house. And after that and fees for childcare etc not much over to build wealth.

@WhitegreeNcandle

Was fairly picky with husband choice. I didn’t let relationships carry on where the other half had no ambition.

This is a real biggie! I did the same. First serious boyfriend was a "taker" in lots of ways rather than a grafter. Always wanted the lazy/easy life. Couldn't be bothered to learn to drive so no drive to go anywhere other than his local pubs for our dates. A "meal" for us would be him phoning for a takeaway pizza! He'd left school with some mediocre O levels and had no interest at all in going to college or doing any further studying/qualifications. No drive at all to have days out or go/do anything different. Crap job so never had any money and no impetus to get another job or train for anything different. Always moaning about having no money and very jealous of others who were getting on with life - always blaming everyone else, nothing was ever his fault. God it was tedious and boring after the initial excitement of someone new!

I got to know him through his mother with whom I worked at the time and we'd become friends. I kept in touch with her occasionally after I ditched him, and as the years passed, she kept me up to date with what he was doing, and literally nothing changed year after year. One crap job after another, still living at home even in his 40's!, still hadn't even learned to drive, a succession of short term girlfriends, 3 of whom he'd got pregnant but was an absent parent with little involvement. Thankfully a very lucky escape, but realistically, I simply couldn't be with someone like that with no ambition nor drive.

This is a good point but it’s a fine line between that and marrying for money! My criteria was always they had a professional job…

By being old and buying a house in the late 1980s; we are also both professionals who earn well.
It’s much harder for young people now though.

I would agree re being careful with who you marry. Life is much easier if you marry someone smart with a good work ethic.

Invested in a start up tech company in late 90s. Sold in the dot com boom before the crash in March 2000.

I kind of understand your point, but I don't really think it's a "fine line". I'd say it's polarised extremes really as there's a massive difference from one extreme of marrying only for money and the other extreme of marrying someone with no drive nor ambition. I'd say 80% fall into the middle at varying degrees with only 10% at each extreme. I think most people will partner up somewhere in the middle of the scale rather than the extremes. Partnering up has to be a mix of different aspects, not just money, not just sex appeal, not just work ethic etc and I'm pretty sure the majority will weigh up all aspects. (Well I'd hope so anyway!).

I did marry another professional, but I'd have been happy with anyone who was a hard worker, even if that was retail, hospitality, tradesmen, etc., as it's the work ethic that I admire rather than them being a professional. But saying that, I'd not go with a bar worker who had no ambition and was happy to stay as a bar worker, or a tradesmen who was happy being a labourer with no ambition to start their own business etc. I'd want ambition and vision.

Always saved since I got pocket money first just for clothes later for my first car, inherited nothing apart from £250 from my Nan
got a decent job NHS dentist
kept saving 5% house deposit then emergency fund
always paid cash for everything except the house
started by pension aged 22
once had my house saved 10% long term in unit truts stock market trackers and
10% in Cash ISA for holidays next car etc
never spent all my money if I couldn't pay cash I didn't have it

advice

1. save right from the start of life even if only a few pounds encourage your children to do the same and teach them as they grow, tell them what can and what can't be afforded
2. sign up for a pension at first job even if only there 12 months
3. live on a budget, spend less than you make every single month
4. understand compound interest
5. set realistic goals,
6. contrary to some peoples advice don't buy too small a home so you will need to sell in 3 years neither stretch yourselves too far and buy too big
7. bad stuff will happen, things will break at worse possible time you will sometimes be sick you may occasionally be out of work plan for lives curve balls ( emergency funds are for emergencies so use it if you need it but never use it for wants)
8. buy term life insurance if someone is dependent on your income
9. don't marry a lazy person or a spendthrift you need to be aligned on finances depending on yout goals ambition may or may not be important
10. decide what comfortable means for you it might mean a million(s) in net worth it might mean living relatively frugally but having lots of options to work less because you have a big enough and to spare financial cushion
11. get rich quick schemes fail almost all of the time; money saved on a monthly basis just growsand outrides any temporaryy dips but don't keep everything in savings accounts paying the rate of inflation at best learn about investing and dont put all your eggs in one basket
12. do not save for your child in their name at the expense of your own financial stability i would always suggest saving in your own name but earmarking it for uni house deposit etc so if not responsible at 18 it is not in their name so they don't get it until you decide

if you put £150 a month ( increasing by inflation each year) into a FTSE 100 tracker for 40 years you will have over 500.000 of which approx 21% is your money and 79% is compound interest FTSE average growth 7% per year,
if same money invested in USA S & P 500 for which average growth is 10% the same 150 a month would be worth over a million

Totally agree with this. I’m late 40s but managed to buy in my early 20s.

I also totally agree about living with your means and not upping your spending/lifestyle just because you get a payrise/promotion.

Good advice @Cottagecheeseisnotcheese

Of course you need to choose a spouse who is not a loser/lazy/spendthrift. My XH showed no signs of such idiocy when I married him - that crept out of the woodwork as time went on and he slowly failed in life. So you need to be ever watchful for threats to your financial security, as they may be horribly close to you - spouse, family, employer, employee, friend. And if you pick up on such threats, take action to protect yourself. Be selfish.