Do you live below your means?

MoneySeeker1

Admits to feeling envious at anyone being in the position to live "under their means", as that implies being on a good income and/or half of a couple. As someone that has always been single and always low income I've always had to live right up to my means (and always have a list of needs/strong wants for when I can manage to find the money for them - and do feel pessimistic as to whether I'll ever have everything on that very modest list - ie just finishing off a modest 2 bedroom house and having enough savings).

thorsoak

I live below my means ...only just!   My income consists of my state pension and a small private pension and I know that I cannot afford a credit card any more, so I have to ensure that I have an emergency fund for house maintenance/vet bills etc.   My dogs and cats are now of an age when I could not afford their insurance (was quoted £96 per month for my 10 year old - very healthy- lab and £87 for the 9 year old lab).    As one's income decreases, so do one's savings - but hey - that's what savings are for.

Pollycat

Jonathan_Powell said:

Just curious...
I purchased my home 5 years ago. At the time, my wife and I were earning £30,000 each. Because of bonuses however, we were able to borrow an amount more akin to an £85,000 joint salary but decided against it and opted for a smaller home (which has its downsides in hindsight). When it came to remortgaging, we kept our high payments and took off 6 years off the term. I still drive my first car and we don't go abroad at all. We now jointly earn around £95,000 and everything is pretty much the same, mainly because all that salary increase has been sucked up by maternity leave and nursery fees.  In our position, we could be in a much bigger house, drive a fancier car and be on holiday abroad at least twice a year but that would mean more debt on the house. 

The main reason we live below our means is for some security in case something goes wrong (I am not in stable work and the last thing I want to worry about when not working is a car payment) as worst case scenario, the mortgage can be covered on one salary. I know others (and I am definitely not criticising)  who earn less than us but have a far bigger and better house, car etc. but it works for them as they have stable work and it will take something drastic for that to change. We pretty much live like we're on the same salary as 5 years ago and it's a very conscious decision. I wonder if it's the same for others?

We have always "lived within our means".

Even when we were working and our contemporaries were driving BMW, Mercs & even Porsches, we had a little car. A new one and top of the range but not flashy.

When they were holidaying in 5* spa resorts, we were holidaying in smaller places - usually much closer to 'the action' instead of being stuck in the middle of nowhere.

We saved & invested, but still enjoyed ourselves.

In fact, those people who holidayed in the 5* resorts asked us how we could afford 3 holidays a year.

And when we retired age 50, those people asked how we could afford to do it (a good occupational pension helped).

We've even been 'accused' of winning the lottery and not saying anything. LOL

We don't have the newest iPhone or iPad - because we are content with what we've got.

Re the bit in bold - those people who earn less than you but have a bigger, better house and car may be up to their ears in debt and living hand to mouth from one month to the next.

But for you specifically - if your job is not stable, I would think you were bonkers not to live within your means.

pollypenny

Absolutely.  When we needed to move for the kids to escape a lousy school, we had a bank manager friend telling us to mortgage up to our necks. Thankfully we ignored that. 

A year after we moved OH had promotion, but stopped working shifts and lost the allowance. Then, of course, with the wonderful Margaret Thatcher the interest rate went up and up, peaking at 17.5% for mortgages. 

30 years later, we are still in the smaller place we bought because we could afford it and it's just right for us. 

pickledonionspaceraider

elsien said:

pickledonionspaceraider said:

Not surprising you live under your means .. seeing as you have just remortgaged and not long after, walked out of a job.  

You might not be criticising others, but you are judging.

What are you hoping to get from this thread? @Jonathan_Powell

I always find these types of threads to smack of 

self-righteousness 

I'm finding the idea of self riotousness rather appealing, myself.

Haha, thanks for pointing out my typo, now corrected

I think these type of threads are informative -  they may help someone (If people were honest about their circumstances)

flanker6

I suppose I live below my means.
I spend what is left after saving . . . rather than save what is left after spending!
I need to save though so that I can meet future retirement plans. But I still think we live well, enjoy weekends away, a summer holiday and drive a reliable car. 

strawb_shortcake

MoneySeeker1 said:

Admits to feeling envious at anyone being in the position to live "under their means", as that implies being on a good income and/or half of a couple. As someone that has always been single and always low income I've always had to live right up to my means (and always have a list of needs/strong wants for when I can manage to find the money for them - and do feel pessimistic as to whether I'll ever have everything on that very modest list - ie just finishing off a modest 2 bedroom house and having enough savings).

As I posted earlier, I'm certainly not a high earner and I am.the only earner in a family of 5 but we manage to live below our means. Partly as we just aren't that material, but predominantly because I'm very much like my Dad that goes beyond frugal and verges on tight fisted. For myself I find it a bit of hindrance,
 I would like to not worry so much about money and be more frivolous but I just can't do it, it does cause friction in the family but ultimately it's me that has responsibility for ensuring all the bills are paid, we can eat I can get to work etc. 
We had two weekends away last month and I ended the month with £8 in my current account and I felt very uncomfortable about it.

MovingForwards

MoneySeeker1 said:

Admits to feeling envious at anyone being in the position to live "under their means", as that implies being on a good income and/or half of a couple. As someone that has always been single and always low income I've always had to live right up to my means (and always have a list of needs/strong wants for when I can manage to find the money for them - and do feel pessimistic as to whether I'll ever have everything on that very modest list - ie just finishing off a modest 2 bedroom house and having enough savings).

Sole FTB here, under £21k income, I carefully budget a year in advance, I save over half my wages each month, currently in a shared rental etc

Prior to this I was part of a couple for about 20 years, financially it wasn't fun and I've spent the last 3.5 years digging myself out of that hole, saving, started over and am cautious with money as I've walked a path I never want to do again.

SandC

I've always lived within my means but by no means a high earner.  Always lived alone and the main saving has been that I didn't borrow any further money on my mortgage using my equity.  My priority was to see the mortgage as what it was - a loan that needed paying off.  I have basically always been prudent and have happily gone without decorating the house and all that kind of stuff over the years.  I also drove second hand, cash bought cars until they ended up at the scrapyard right up until I was more comfortable financially.  If you are single you tend to be either naturally cautious with cash or like some I know - completely the opposite - no in between!
I'm reaping the benefits after 25 years of living like this (and being in an area of the country where house prices are low) and my lifestyle looks from the outside to be one of someone earning far more than I do.  But nothing except my car is bought using loans or finance or equity from my house. 

EmmyLou30

I've always lived below my means as the alternative is being in debt! When single it was a much harder thing to achieve on less than £20k a year and trying to pay a mortgage alone and do the place up etc on one wage. So no new anything unless necessary and no holidays.

Things got a lot easier when I met my now husband. We bought a house borrowing a third of what the banks would have given us but that got us the house we needed. We both treat ourselves to the odd nice thing, go on 1 holiday a year most years and drive nice cars (though nothing super flash, just new and reliable and definitely not on finance). We shop round for insurance, buy certain things only when it's on offer, buy in bulk, don't get new phones etc for the sake of it, don't drink, don't smoke, don't go out loads and always look for vouchers for restaurants. My husband would happily be a bit more of a spender probably but between us we live very well under our means.

We have friends who don't understand how we can earn less than them yet seemingly have savings, a smaller mortgage and that sort of thing. They go on lots of holidays, drink, go out more and spend right up to their means. They are happy like that, we're happy having a big safety net. Each to their own I guess.