Are you rich?

[wibble cb]

52 just gone, no debts (other than 7% LTV left on mortgage), net assets worth circa 450k double that if you include equity in the house , but I don’t feel rich, nor feel able to retire, am I doing this right?

[The Gauge]

Ken_Code said:

I’ve not criticised you.

So you wouldn't have spent any of it on plastering your bare brick living room walls or covering your bare floorboards with carpets? I don't believe you.

Edited by The Gauge on Friday 7th June 00:10

[Ken_Code]

The Gauge said:

So you wouldn't have spent any of it on plastering your bare brick living room walls or covering your bare floorboards with carpets? I don't believe you.

I don’t really care what you believe or not, and still, I haven’t criticised you.

[The Gauge]

Ken_Code said:

I don’t really care what you believe or not, and still, I haven’t criticised you.

I'd say this was a fairly critical thing to say..

Ken_Code said:

I can imagine seeing everything you worked for for a lifetime spent on a new sofa and a week in Cyprus for someone else wouldn’t feel uplifting.

It wasn't as though we had nice furnishings and decided to just replace them, we simply didn't have those things in the first place.

[jdw100]

The Gauge said:

Ken_Code said:

I’ve not criticised you.

So you wouldn't have spent any of it on plastering your bare brick living room walls or covering your bare floorboards with carpets? I don't believe you.

Edited by The Gauge on Friday 7th June 00:10

Did you buy the house in a bad state and thought you’d be in a position to fix it up?

I’d have had a go at learning to plaster. I’ve friend’s that have done exactly that when doing up houses to sell. Taken them ages but since they had the time…. Lot of sanding down required.

Also must have been some sale on for carpets - or are we talking a huge place? Did you buy a dilapidated castle in Scotland and now living like landed gentry? Open it to the public?

Joking aside, taking your son to competition in USA seems like a lovely thing to do.

[Tim the pool man]

GliderRider said:

Perhaps the mode shows the true picture better than either the mean or median?

You'd have to specify a range for the mode, or else you'd just end up with a weird result, as it just might happen that 3 people had a net worth of £7,352,468.72 and that would be the mode! Actually it's more likely that the mode would be a negative number...

[Jimjimhim]

So what's the UKs Mode average wage?

[Mobile Chicane]

Yes.

[GT03ROB]

Zolvaro said:

GT03ROB said:

Shnozz said:

Zolvaro said:

He said it would be nice if she gave him some now the way her parents did for her., that isn't the same as wanting a handout.

I must be going insane then as that to me reads exactly as wanting a handout. In fact I cannot see how, “it would be nice if you gave me a slice of what you have” is not desiring a handout.

I’m very much with Shnozz & ken_code on this, There’s some posts here that are exactly about getting a handout.

The guy even says any inheritance he gets will be a bonus and he's not expecting it, poor choice of words with bonus, but it hardly reeks of somebody wanting\demanding a handout

I think we may all be referring to different people "The Gauge" did say this however this is most definitely begging for the handout,,,,,

ThingsBehindTheSun said:

My partners father is 75, owns two fully paid for properties and has (at a complete guess) around £1 million in shares and pension.

We have (half) jokingly suggested he give my partner some of her inheritance early as he doesn't really need it and it would make a massive difference to our lives right now. On the one hand I can understand that it is his money and why should he, but on the other hand he must realise that my partner is going to get it eventually and it means much more right now than in 10/15/20 years time.

We live in a crazy world where the elderly are hording money they don't need and the young are signing themselves up to massive mortgages and debt because they have no other option.

[GT03ROB]

Chicken Chaser said:

GT03ROB said:

So what do you think constitutes rich?

Rich suggests to me people who dine in the finest restaurants, have Yachts, drive supercars, are invited by other rich people to private member clubs and mix in certain social circles. They're either old money rich through estates or they're new money through business ownership.

Yes globally, there are lots in the UK who are PAYE rich if you want to put it like that but to be rich in the UK, I don't even think a couple of people on £100k salaries are necessarily rich, just well off.

Well I'd tend to agree... it certainly isn't 120k!

[Zolvaro]

GT03ROB said:

Zolvaro said:

GT03ROB said:

Shnozz said:

Zolvaro said:

He said it would be nice if she gave him some now the way her parents did for her., that isn't the same as wanting a handout.

I must be going insane then as that to me reads exactly as wanting a handout. In fact I cannot see how, “it would be nice if you gave me a slice of what you have” is not desiring a handout.

I’m very much with Shnozz & ken_code on this, There’s some posts here that are exactly about getting a handout.

The guy even says any inheritance he gets will be a bonus and he's not expecting it, poor choice of words with bonus, but it hardly reeks of somebody wanting\demanding a handout

I think we may all be referring to different people "The Gauge" did say this however this is most definitely begging for the handout,,,,,

ThingsBehindTheSun said:

My partners father is 75, owns two fully paid for properties and has (at a complete guess) around £1 million in shares and pension.

We have (half) jokingly suggested he give my partner some of her inheritance early as he doesn't really need it and it would make a massive difference to our lives right now. On the one hand I can understand that it is his money and why should he, but on the other hand he must realise that my partner is going to get it eventually and it means much more right now than in 10/15/20 years time.

We live in a crazy world where the elderly are hording money they don't need and the young are signing themselves up to massive mortgages and debt because they have no other option.

I agree that guy would like a handout, ken_code and shnozz weren't having a pop at him though, it was the_gauge they had in their sights, he has very nicely put them back in their box though

[okgo]

The more interesting stats are the disparity between earnings and wealth in the UK. £120k in no way is rich, obviously.

I’d bet many on here are top 1% earners at £1-200k income or whatever it is. But the figure required to be in the same percentile of wealth is getting on for £4m net worth. Sadly much of the tax burden falls in the former of course.

Including housing equity in net worth is very Reddit FIRE forum behaviour - suspect they all plan to live in a car when they stop work, or to move to Hull.

Edited by okgo on Friday 7th June 06:53

[JagLover]

Zetec-S said:

This sort of thread always reveals those PHer's who are a little detached from reality, if they think £120k isn't that much.
.

Depends on age more than if they are in touch with reality or not. The average net worth of someone in the fifties in the UK is much more than £120K and, if they have that amount or less, then they are in for a grim retirement.

[jdw100]

okgo said:

The more interesting stats are the disparity between earnings and wealth in the UK. £120k in no way is rich, obviously.

I’d bet many on here are top 1% earners at £1-200k income or whatever it is. But the figure required to be in the same percentile of wealth is getting on for £4m net worth. Sadly much of the tax burden falls in the former of course.

Including housing equity in net worth is very Reddit FIRE forum behaviour - suspect they all plan to live in a car when they stop work, or to move to Hull.

Edited by okgo on Friday 7th June 06:53

That’s not really a choice though, is it?

No one would choose Hull over living in a car.

[lizardbrain]

okgo said:

Including housing equity in net worth is very Reddit FIRE forum behaviour - suspect they all plan to live in a car when they stop work, or to move to Hull.

Edited by okgo on Friday 7th June 06:53

Also very ONS behaviour.

Downsizing is always an option to release equity. Or to pay for care. Or live on cruise ships.

Or perhaps you consider wealth in terms of a household including inheritance for the kids.

[Tango13]

jdw100 said:

okgo said:

The more interesting stats are the disparity between earnings and wealth in the UK. £120k in no way is rich, obviously.

I’d bet many on here are top 1% earners at £1-200k income or whatever it is. But the figure required to be in the same percentile of wealth is getting on for £4m net worth. Sadly much of the tax burden falls in the former of course.

Including housing equity in net worth is very Reddit FIRE forum behaviour - suspect they all plan to live in a car when they stop work, or to move to Hull.

Edited by okgo on Friday 7th June 06:53

That’s not really a choice though, is it?

No one would choose Hull over living in a car.

If you wanted to be south of the river you could pick up a house in Grimsby for £5k a few years back, problems being the house would need a bit of work and once it's done you're still in Grimsby...

[Steve H]

JagLover said:

Zetec-S said:

This sort of thread always reveals those PHer's who are a little detached from reality, if they think £120k isn't that much.
.

Depends on age more than if they are in touch with reality or not. The average net worth of someone in the fifties in the UK is much more than £120K and, if they have that amount or less, then they are in for a grim retirement.

Or an extremely delayed one.

I share the feelings of some that have posted to say that having some savings is a great reassurance, I like the security it brings and would find the alternative pretty stressful.

Everyone’s circumstances will vary but I think some people just don’t feel that particular stress because I can’t see how most working couples are unable to put money away in savings if they decide that it should be a priority. I’m a mechanic married to a teacher, so not PH Director level of earnings and now in my mid-50s we are paid up on the house and with enough savings to start zooming in on retirement plans.

[Wildcat45]

£120k seems very low.

By that measure I’m one of the super rich.

Assets don’t mean much day to day. I’m in my early 50s and if you put it all together, I guess I’m worth about £1.2M, but II don’t live life like a millionaire.

It’s theoretical wealth. What I’m worth dead , not cash in the bank.

It’s how you quantify wealth. I’ve health, I’m married to the love of my life, I have a little girl in my life (Niece ) who I have the privilege of watching and helping her grow up, I live in a place I yearned to live for years, I’ve got some fantastic friends .

That’s being rich.

[caminator11]

Wife and I are 39. Combined income PA is 410k, both PAYE so tax burden is significant. London flat is valued at 950k and is paid off. We have no debts and 220k in ETFs. Pension pot is approx 150k in similar funds.

I don’t feel rich (comparison is the theft of joy, I know that objectively we’re doing alright) Aware that as millennials we’re outliers and in a very strong position compared to peers having both had a lot of good fortune career wise. Cannot emphasise enough the despair and empathy I feel for people in my generation and younger with “normal” jobs. Almost zero point in trying to get your own home for many as the housing ladder does not work without the extraordinary growth earlier generations enjoyed. The sums don’t add up.

[Jimjimhim]

This thread is getting cringe!!