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I think most people here are richer than they think.
You could define rich as being able to afford debt.
I think this is very true. And we have discussed and suggested this many times on many threads.
And STW is a wealthy bubble of people.
And STW is a wealthy bubble of people.
Wealthy yes, but rich? I think the dividing line is probably when you start to employ full-time staff - like housekeepers, estate workers, chauffeurs, yacht crews.
Never said I was poor, I said I was skint, I.e no cash but my point was I'm not rich. I will be one day, just not now.
If you took a person with a business start up that was costing them money but had good prospects you wouldn't call them rich until the prospects were realised
This is giving the same vibe as Donald Trump pointing to a homeless man and pointing out how much more money he has than him.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brainstorm/200905/donald-trump-failure
You could define rich as being able to afford debt.
I'd agree, on the basis that the poorest don't have access to debt. But being poor and in debt is definitely also possible.
I would say I felt financially "rich" when I had both significant savings (i.e. I could realistically buy a car, kitchen etc, not inaccessible stuff like my pension) as well as debt. OTOH one car in our house is 20 years old and was delivered back to the house one a tow truck this afternoon after breaking down, the other is even older and didn't start at all 😂. So I'm probably not rich, I just have my car sat in my ISA rather than my driveway.
and most importantly remember that lots of essential jobs will pay less than that figure - so contributing to society in ways other than driving a spreadsheet and paying tax is probably more useful
This is the critical bit of that point though. Even if you're lucky enough to be in that top ~25% that actually get to be a net financial contributor, your ability to do that job and even your entire existence is reliant on the entire economic pyramid supporting you, both public and private. I'm imagining it like a bow tie, on the one side you've got all the things I rely on to get me to work so I can actually do my job and pay taxes, everything from public healthcare, education, transport to the builder who built my house and the factory worker that made my bike. Then on the other side there's all the people that give my work value turning all my drawings and calculations into something that actually has some value. Without that entire system around me my work has no value and why capitalism and the free market is an awful way to determine the value of labour.
And that is TINAS guide to Das Kapital Chapter I.
I have a weak/average credit rating at present. Why? I only have a mortgage (small), I have no debt on credit card and do not 'utilise' my credit enough, I have no overdraft, I have no odd credit accounts with stores, I have paid off any loan on the car and so appear to be a 'poor' credit customer as I have a lack of credit debt and appetite for debt.
Between mrs_oab and I we nearly own an expensive house, we have significant savings, we have no issues with cashflow or significant financial worries. I earn a metric shed-load more than the average person, and have no dependents.
IMO, credit ratings are purely a marketing tool to sell you debt.
TBH, anyone that is 'rich', just want's to get 'richer'.
I can pay the bills, I am looking at retirement, MrsF isn't working/early retirement.. That will do me. I have me van.
Hmmm TINAS, maybe you're right, instead of doing all this holiday let shit, I should just leverage the billions of dollars woth of New York real estate I haven't inherited.
@ley_line - I explained my wealth earlier in the thread. I'm bike and boat rich. 😎
🤣 Would have thought the context would have made it clear that he's a long way from South Lanarkshire. Not least of which, i doubt anyone would be able to live on a yacht anywhere round there... Though on the plus side, there would be bugger all risk of him coming unstuck in the Bermuda Triangle...Now lives in Hamilton, or on his yacht, or his apartment in Manhattan.To be fair, South Lanarkshire has a lot to offer...
Sure, but your humble brag is my definition of rich. Basically never having to worry about money or utilising credit of any kind. Sounds like you also have all the toys to go along with it.
I think it's pretty ignorant to claim a person with a big wage and big mortgage is not rich. 1) They've made that choice themselves, other choices are available. 2) At some point that mortgage is going to be paid off and they will have an enormous asset.
That is wildly different to a person on a lower wage, less outgoings but the same spare cash each month as the high earner - they have no assets in the long run, and they have no choice to take on a huge mortgage to get those assets.
If you asked me if I'm rich, I'm not sure I'd just purely relate that question to how much money I have. I know people with lots of money, who I wouldn't think of as having rich fulfilling lives. Being happy, healthy, surrounded by family and having easy access to to greenery and fresh air, never wanting for food or warmth is what I relate being rich to. Money can help with this, but then I could earn a lot more money if I had moved to London early in my career, but I'd be a lot poorer as a result of my own values of what rich is.
2) At some point that mortgage is going to be paid off and they will have an enormous asset.
and if they fall on hard times before the mortgage is paid, they'll be able to sell that asset, likely for much more than they paid for it
Paying off your student loan in full before the age of thirty! Not waiting until you reach 65 and it gets written off.
Paying off your student loan in full before the age of thirty!
That, given the current average student debt of £53k and the current interest rate of 6.2%, would require you to earn an average of around £110,000 between the ages of 21 and 30.
EDIT - that was under the old scheme. On the new plan 5, interest rates are capped at RPI so it would be more like an average of £100k. So you don't have to be quite as rich...