So....just how much money is 'enough' ?

johanne

i earn £8099 a year (in theory) and thats for a full time job! :eek: Rubbish minimum wage of £4.45 an hour cos im 21..... I have £17 a month left after all essential bills are paid... and thats IF i dont go over my budget on food/phone calls/utilities/travel.

"Luckily" i now live rent-free in a house my dad inherited last year when my nan died. Otherwise id be homeless as when me and exOH broke up i couldnt afford anywhere else alone.... mum and dad have said while im on this rubbish wage they wont charge me rent! Which is fab for me obviously but on the other hand makes me feel guilty as they are losing out on about £500 a month rent.. :rolleyes:

i used to earn £13,000 a year and was really comfy! Id like £100/£200 a month left over to be happy.

TheAble

For me, money has always been a two-pronged fork. On one side is your income (which you only have limited control over) and on the other side is what you spend. I earn a modest wage (25K), but by keeping the utmost control over my outgoings, I am probably better off than those earning 50K or even 60K. Earning 50K plus comes with a lot of stresses, those kind of salaries come with high pressured jobs, and doing them is a pointless exercise if you are shelling out way more than you need to on cars, interest, food, insurance, holidays etc.

After my mortgage and bills (£500) and payments towards investments (£500), I still have an excess of £500 p/m, and for me, this is just nice.

raq

When we where both working it was £28k with one child and never had a penny left. I was always broke by going to work. Now we have 3 children and given up work until the little one is in nursery we are better off. My husband also changed jobs so this is a help and thankfully we are nowing paying more towards our debts. Our weekly food bill for 5 of us is between £55.00 and £70.00 a week,can't be bad as there is baby food and nappies in with that.

I also agree doesn't matter what you are bringing home it's never enough

nickm122

I used to earn £18500 which is when I got into my debt because my outgoings never left me any space!!

Now I earn £21500 which gives me a little bit extra (but still tight) so I think my enough would be £24000.

Tahiti

I tend to find you live to your means (or beyond them unfortunately). It's life's little luxuries that means enough is never really enough

I could survive on less than I earn IF I could control my temptations fully.

Softstuff

My husband and I between us just about have enough. That's providing I budget meticulously with the food, only ever shop in charity shops or car boot sales and never buy anything non essential :rotfl: But to tell the truth, I'm OK with that. I get days where I wish I could have more, when I wish I could win the lotto, but then when I used to earn silly money, and was with my ex husband, I was miserable... I guess I did get a chance to see money really can't buy happiness, which means that now I'm happy with a whole lot less.

Taadaa

I agree that really whatever we earn, we will always want a bit more. I am lucky enough to get an annual payrise, but after a few months of having it I always start to wonder how much more we will get next year, will I get a bonus, etc.

I used to really struggle; I can remember when I first started working, I cleared £675 a month, that was ten years ago. Now I clear £1600, and £493 of that is debt repayment - two ccs and that's just the min. It's disgusting really. I have £300 a month left. It would be nice if it was £400 but that's my own silly fault. Having said that, anything spare I have left at the end of the month goes towards paying the debt, so really I only want £100 more so I can pay the debt quicker!!

pippo

Wow, some of you guys manage so well that I am quite ashamed to be earning £32K and still be in debt, but as has been said it is all relative!
We got used to my good money & DH very reasonable wage, but 4 years ago he had a nervous breakdown and packed in his job. I continued spending as we had done when there were two salaries coming in and even bought extras to make life good for him. Kept telling him not to worry - we (I) can afford it!

WE are still quite comfortable, but with alot of debt on ccs. I can afford the payments, but if/when I clear these we will be able to really enjoy life.
I have also just completed the giving up money for Lent challenge and that has really shown me how much I was spending unnecessarily.
DH is now a self employed handyman and although the money is neither great nor regular he is much happier and I often have my dinner made for me when I come home - and he does the ironing:j

Bambywamby

I think learnt human behaviour controls the way we control our finances and no matter what we earn it will never seem enough and we will always manage to spend what we have UNLESS we become more self aware.

Unfortunately self esteem relies too heavily on what we do and do not have in the material sense rather than the important things like health, love, companionship, joy and happiness.

I am pleased to say after years of been in debt and deluded about the importance of material goods, I now gain more pleasure from saving than spending.

I love picnics in the sun rather than nights out in the pub and a takeaway afterwards.
I would much rather read a book (free from the library of course ) than go to the cinema.
I get real pleasure from baking a fat chocolate cake for the family to eat rather than buying an additive riddled one from the shops.

And in the past when I have looked after people who are terminally ill, too weak to get out of bed or even drink unaided...and all they want to do is be outside and feel the sun on their face...when I open my eyes in a morning and climb out of bed ready for another exciting day, I realise how rich I really am.

I do strive for more but never to the cost of my mental/physical health, my family and loved ones and the quality of my life.

joeblack066

I worked out last week that when I take my housing (rent) costs off my income, I am only at 59% of the national average..............and the govt have just announced that if a household is below 60% of the national average then that is below the poverty line. This cheeses me off because I work in residential care with young people, do all kinds of unsociable hours, and am having to take on 2 extra jobs because at the moment I have absolutely NO spare income every month, which is soul destroying over time. My debts are as the result of 2 x failed marriages (1 ran off with my friend, 1 was a DV issue) and my last relationship where he stole money from me before and after we split up. HOWEVER......in my 'poverty', I have sky tv (basic package), broadband and keep a car on the road. The MSE ways that I have adopted from here have kept my head above water for the last 5 months! Thanks, all you good people on MSE!!