Income brackets: PERCEPTIONS of low and high?

BillJones

ukcarper wrote: »

If you asked me what salary I though you needed to live and work in London and have a reasonable standard of living I would give you a lot higher figure than I would for what I would for a middle salary.

If you are a professional in their mid-30s in London, someone who's towards the top end of achievement in finance, law, or specialised medicine (e.g. consultant orthopedic surgeon who takes on private work), then £200k is not going to take you above "comfortable". It's not going to buy you one of the nicer flats, let alone a nice house, in town, for one thing.

Among my college friends, some earn about £100k, and have had to leave London once they have family. Some earned a couple of million a year, and have retired, and a couple earn £10m+, and still work.

I knnow that these numbers are rarefied, and not "normal", but for these people, it makes no sense at all to say that £80k is "plentiful".

ukcarper

BillJones wrote: »

If you are a professional in their mid-30s in London, someone who's towards the top end of achievement in finance, law, or specialised medicine (e.g. consultant orthopedic surgeon who takes on private work), then £200k is not going to take you above "comfortable". It's not going to buy you one of the nicer flats, let alone a nice house, in town, for one thing.

Among my college friends, some earn about £100k, and have had to leave London once they have family. Some earned a couple of million a year, and have retired, and a couple earn £10m+, and still work.

I knnow that these numbers are rarefied, and not "normal", but for these people, it makes no sense at all to say that £80k is "plentiful".

Has that not always been the case and that kind of salary will get you a nice house in Surrey even the more expensive parts.
If you read my post you will see I said that to live and work in London you would need to be earning a lot more than a middle salary but that doesn't alter the fact that £80k is a high salary more than 90% of the population earn.

lostinrates

BillJones wrote: »

If you are a professional in their mid-30s in London, someone who's towards the top end of achievement in finance, law, or specialised medicine (e.g. consultant orthopedic surgeon who takes on private work), then £200k is not going to take you above "comfortable". It's not going to buy you one of the nicer flats, let alone a nice house, in town, for one thing.

Among my college friends, some earn about £100k, and have had to leave London once they have family. Some earned a couple of million a year, and have retired, and a couple earn £10m+, and still work.

I knnow that these numbers are rarefied, and not "normal", but for these people, it makes no sense at all to say that £80k is "plentiful".

Ukcarper is absolutly entitled to use words like plentiful in his description of his perception of wealth IMO. (He's not been personal, directed nor offensive and I think his views are probably majority views)


I'm interested in your ideas about 'top end of achievement' relating to comfort and incomes and What Impacts top end of achievement has on 'comfort' and income level.

lostinrates

SingleSue wrote: »

I was a stay at home parent for a couple of years when I was married mainly due to the difficulties the boys have. I didn't need to return to work as hubby was earning enough for me not to but I was bored silly. His salary was decent but not high, however, we were very careful with our money, didn't take out finance for cars, kitchens etc, take expensive holidays etc, so our money went further than most.

I took on a part time job, working opposite hours to my husband so the need to pay out for childcare was negated...blooming good thing too as no chilcare provider would take them on anyway! Anyway, long story slightly shorter, that part time job turned into quite a well paying job, albeit still part time and still no childcare to pay.

Sue, I want to be really clear I have no judgement for sahp. ( or working ones). As someone who isn't one it would be a cheek but as part of society I think a sahp producing results ( school attendance, law abiding, and even achievement is a valuable investment in our futures, any form of child care that produces content, productive, healthy people with aspiration is good for all of us in the country). I'm simply playing with figures for the idea of 'income' and perception and reality. As it is my lack of knowledge sees me hit a wall, as I don't know reasonable figures for childcare for example, and to make up unreasonable ones defeats the point of the exercise:D

chucknorris

BillJones wrote: »

If you are a professional in their mid-30s in London, someone who's towards the top end of achievement in finance, law, or specialised medicine (e.g. consultant orthopedic surgeon who takes on private work), then £200k is not going to take you above "comfortable". It's not going to buy you one of the nicer flats, let alone a nice house, in town, for one thing.

Aren't you just stating the obvious, if you haven't got a large amount of cash (or equity) of course earning £200k isn't going to take you above 'comfortable' (in a nice part of London compared to other parts of the country). But of course it also depends upon what your own individual interpretation of being 'comfortable' is of course, I consider that we are comfortable, others might think otherwise. My definition of comfortable is a very good position to be in.

ukcarper

ukcarper wrote: »

Has that not always been the case and that kind of salary will get you a nice house in Surrey even the more expensive parts.
If you read my post you will see I said that to live and work in London you would need to be earning a lot more than a middle salary but that doesn't alter the fact that £80k is a high salary more than 90% of the population earn.

£200k will give you £9723 a month and a £800k mortgage at 4% will cost £4267 leaving almost £5.5k a month comfortable by any standards I would have thought.






http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-28348734.html

ukcarper

Things become harder with £80k but £4,446 a month £320,000 mortgage will cost £1,707 leaving £2,739 a month not to bad considering the average person on £32k gets £2,048 before the mortgage.






http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-41664448.html

lostinrates

ukcarper wrote: »

Things become harder with £80k but £4,446 a month £320,000 mortgage will cost £1,707 leaving £2,739 a month not to bad considering the average person on £32k gets £2,048 before the mortgage.






http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-41664448.html

Again, we're back to perceptions of income being purely salary.

Ukcarper, I'm not sure you can convince me personally on this until I see some figures and play with some numbers you see, because my perception is that salary is to the OnlY factor at play here both in income and in how far salary stretches.

Generali

ukcarper wrote: »

£200k will give you £9723 a month and a £800k mortgage at 4% will cost £4267 leaving almost £5.5k a month comfortable by any standards I would have thought.






http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-28348734.html

A couple of kids at private school at perhaps £4,000 a term each will eat into that disposable income. That reduces the disposable income to £3,500 a month. Upkeep on a house like that would be another grand a month at least (1.5% of the value of the house) so we're down to £2,500.

ukcarper

lostinrates wrote: »

Again, we're back to perceptions of income being purely salary.

Ukcarper, I'm not sure you can convince me personally on this until I see some figures and play with some numbers you see, because my perception is that salary is to the OnlY factor at play here both in income and in how far salary stretches.

Of coarse salary is not the only factor but the figures are correct without benefits I've just run £32k 2 kids through entitled to and if buying they would get another £37.38 a week child benefit and children tax credit.