What's it like having and earning loads of money??

vixx_123

robatwork said:

It may surprise you what to you looks a vast salary brings home. Look at this:

Net Salary Calculator UK 2020: Income Tax Calculator, Take Home Pay Calculator, Wage Calculator

45k gross takes home £2853. If you have student loans then it's less.  
Most people earning this amount will have a mortgage and other expenses - bills, food, children, and this will barely cover even a typical £1,000pcm mortgage and bills.

So all depends on the circumstances. If you're living (rent free) with parents and all of it is liquid cash then it's a totally different situation to the above.

I earn £45k and take home less than what this postee said as I have a student loan. I have a joint mortgage on an average 3bed semi in SE, which is £1200pm plus life assurance to cover it at £100. We drive one car; a modest ford focus. I buy from Aldi and charity shops 🤷 

Dakta

for me it's like a goldfish bowl, the more you earn, the more you seem to spend, yet quality of life seems a constant.

I've been on a bit of a rollercoaster and experienced both ends of the stick - 2 years ago i worked in a steel factory, just above NMW (think officially I was on about 15k?) i could barely make ends meet on this so i topped it up with a little business i started up, that made about 5k. 

Managed to get a similar job elsewhere that paid a bout more - around 20k iirc, then i took a gamble at the beginning of last year and self funded myself on a course and this was a lucky break and I ended up as an technology contractor for 9 months on a project for what, relatively speaking was a whopping almost six figure annual salary equivalent. It was short project and I'' probably never repeat it but it was a welcome change from days gone by!

I've now settled as a permie on not far off what the op has quoted, despite it being a reasonable wage IMHO, and despite not living a luxury lifestyle (ex-council house, 10 year old car, no annual holiday and so forth) we somehow seem to spend most of what we earn.

So IMHO 45k is definitely not rich, but you can live off it. I think the difference maker would be is if you're a dual income family or still live with parents (which neither apply to me) in which case you probably can let the hair down a bit. I wouldn't look at anyone in this bracket who didn't have the dual income or home ownership/living with parents with particularly envy because i know full well they'l spend most of it just surviving.

74jax

pjcox2005 said:

I always find it interesting that people don't do more extreme things with earning more money. For most it gives security and other luxuries like a nicer car, house, private school for kids, but how many (me included) do you see really doing much different like a sabbatical or impacting society around them? You almost get used to that expenditure and work pressure and continue to want to strive for more rather than perhaps taking stock of what you have or could do.

Didn't read my reply then....., 😂 🙈 

Totally agree though, I'm loving it but don't feel many people take advantage. 

eamon

Nothing much left to add and it has been briefly mentioned. Housing costs!. Some years ago I considered moving to the SE, some sums later I realised that I would need to double my salary just to stay still. Didn't move.

pjcox2005

74jax said:

pjcox2005 said:

I always find it interesting that people don't do more extreme things with earning more money. For most it gives security and other luxuries like a nicer car, house, private school for kids, but how many (me included) do you see really doing much different like a sabbatical or impacting society around them? You almost get used to that expenditure and work pressure and continue to want to strive for more rather than perhaps taking stock of what you have or could do.

Didn't read my reply then....., 😂 🙈 

Totally agree though, I'm loving it but don't feel many people take advantage. 

I did miss your post. I'm always impressed with someone who takes the plunge to do something different whether career break, working/living abroad etc. 

ratechaser

Overrated. Maslow was right. And particularly dispiriting back in the days of 52% tax under labour - losing more than half of some of your pay to tax?? I'm sure others older than me will remember even higher rates than that pre-Lawson.

That said, it's a means to an end. All joking aside about what my dear wife will allow me to do, the reality is that I can retire in my 40s very comfortably. There is a lot to be said for financial security...

Savvy_Sue

Bear in mind that £45K in London isn't going to go nearly as far as £45K in some areas of the UK. And although it's considerably more than I and most of my colleagues are earning, I wouldn't be shouting about that as a high salary. (Mind you I wouldn't be shouting anywhere about what I was earning.)

One of my sons has what I consider a very good salary. I was impressed when one of his first acts was to join the pension plan (in the days before Auto Enrolment) and start paying a good percentage. Plus he's taken advantage of private health insurance when it's been available through his employer. He saves too. He has those choices, which he wouldn't have on NMW. 

So for me the question isn't so much "what's it like having and earning loads of money?" It's "what's it like to have sufficient money that you can make meaningful choices about how you spend your money, where you haven't got to count every penny and stretch each one further than you know how?" Although it generally needs hare work to get into either situation. 

Iamdebtfree

Money is the root of all evil. I'd give anything to live in a money-less world. A commune. Huts, chickens, grass (of the inhaleable kind), long hair, Led Zep, Purple, Motley Cru and Steel Panther and vodka. Eh. 

Money buys you a tiny bit of peace, a tiny bit of semi-security, a few things you need. Rent, bills, food, booze. A few things you want.  Nicotine patches for smokers. Red hair dye.

Otherwise..I'd like to exchange a few choice words with whomever decided life had to be about having bits of paper to trade for being alive.

amandacat

I’ve been earning close to 45k for the last 18 months and certainly haven’t been well off but I’ve been very financially comfortable.  
Benefits- I cleared my loan and am now debt free bar my mortgage. I’ve managed to save money each month. 
I don’t have to worry if a big bill comes in eg car repair bill. 
A lot of people on larger salaries get a bigger house or car or extras expenses such as a cleaner. My sister earns over double me but has many more outgoings as people tend to live to their means. 
Am I happier on this salary? No I am not, my promotion gave me more spare cash but also a lot more stress and has affected my mental health. I’m taking a demotion and pay cut to 31k, I earned this up until 18 months ago, was still perfectly comfortable and was happy. The extra money hasn’t been worth it for me. I used to earn 21k and still managed fine and actually that was the happiest time for me as I had no management responsibility. 
If someone can get a job on 40k plus and be happy and mentally stable then happy days!  

Iamdebtfree

'Am I happier on this salary? No I am not, my promotion gave me more spare cash but also a lot more stress and has affected my mental health. I’m taking a demotion and pay cut to 31k, I earned this up until 18 months ago, was still perfectly comfortable and was happy. The extra money hasn’t been worth it for me. I used to earn 21k and still managed fine and actually that was the happiest time for me as I had no management responsibility. 

If someone can get a job on 40k plus and be happy and mentally stable then happy days!'

👍