Commute vs salary

Deep_In_Debt

I gave up commuting in to London a few years ago. Yes, took quite a big pay cut but then I wasn't paying out a massive amount in train fares so could afford to take the hit.

I've not regretted it at all. My physical and mental health has improved as has my quality of life.

pinknsparkly

I've done the opposite to you - offered a job at a 30% pay increase with a consequent huge increase in commuting time and turned it down. I'm terrible at working my hours anyway (always end up doing far more than I'm paid for) and with the extra commuting on top I'd have had no time for a life outside work. As others have said too, a much shorter commute may well work out a lot cheaper, reducing the effective cut in pay (sadly that wasn't the case for me)

MatyMoo

I swapped a similar commute for 40% reduction in salary and a 30 minute commute 8 years ago with no regrets. The extra time allowed me time to cook from scratch and batch cook which added to the savings made on the commute. I was also able to shop for bargains and make use of local markets.

Since then I have moved from town to countr, losing the mortgage in the process, and have reduced my salary further by swapping to a 4 day week

engineer_amy

I would go for it if the lower salary was still sufficient for me to enjoy my lifestyle. For me, time is more important. "Dead time" stuck in traffic or on public transport is my idea of hell.


Looking at really quick numbers on an hourly rate basis -
having a 55 hours week (including 3 hour daily commute) of a £40k salary and working 42.5 hour week (inc a 30 min daily commute) on a £30k salary, there is really not much difference in the hourly rate.


One thing to consider - if you still have a mortgage on a deal and will want to change this deal/move to a different product in the future, will the lower salary still be ok in terms of lender affordability calcs?

magic_at_mungos

Having had a fairly short commute (20 minutes by bus) and then 90 minutes door to door in the next job there were different perks to the longer commute - the ability to de stress from work! But it helped that I didn't have to do the tube and because I got a stopper train, it was less crowded.

Pension_Geek

I used to have a 20 minute total commute and now have a 1h40 commute. I am doing this to further my career and its ok. Ideally I would be closer to home, but I dont mind and the extra money and job satisfaction help.

ruperts

At 20 miles I'd probably keep the higher paid job but cycle into work at least a few times per week instead. It'd still take three hours but it would be three hours that made you feel good instead of three hours that makes you feel bad.

lisyloo

You’ve probably considered this but

Can you work from home at all?
Can you change your hours so the commute is better? (Sometimes this also works well for an employer)
Is there any part of your commute that you can use e.g. reading. I find it hard to read on the tube whilst standing/balancing but the train part is useable.

EnterUserName

A 4 day week sounds like a dream, I’m really rethinking ‘wealth’... it’s not a flashy car I don’t need, it’s time to enjoy life.

Comparable hourly rate is a good way of looking at it, thanks.

To answer some of the other posters, I’m a mortgage prisoner anyway as wifey had to give up work to care for dear sproglet.

Cycling to be city - won’t do it, it’s far too dangerous for my liking.

Work from home - even if two days a week were WFH I’ve gone so far down the ‘bin the commute’ journey, I really don’t think would cut the mustard...

I have some conversations going with local employers so hopefully soon... I can be on the road to a shorter working week :j

Thanks for everyone’s input, it’s been helpful in making my decision.

Exodi

As my circumstances are quite specific, I took the higher salary with longer commute (2.5h per day).

This is as I currently live on the east coast of Kent whereas the West (near London) pays 2-3x the salary of local positions.

I also planned on purchasing a house closer to the area with the higher salary taken into consideration (which is should be done and dusted in the next 1-2 months) but you should weigh up the pros and cons. I'd also worry that it would be harder to progress in the future should I be on a lower salary.