Percent of Liars on this forum: what’s your guess?

[Anonymous]

- I lie enough to mask identity.
- Also lie to annoy obnoxious posters.
- Don't lie about net worth, age, income, status, race, etc. Exception: See second bullet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I lie about identifiers, like sometimes I post about my 4 children, sometimes 3 children, sometimes 2 children, I mix up their genders, my husband/spouse/partner, my location in CC, Bethesda, Potomac, but not about anything else

+1. I do the same but never intentionally lie on the core discussion topic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think that people live in their own bubbles and find it difficult to understand that other income levels exist, so while I think some people lie, I think in many cases it’s just that others react in disbelief. I’ve posted my stats before and has them questioned but I’m honest.

Ha ha ! me too, met with disbelief when I posted my 600K -700K HHI in Texas. I assure you all that it is very real we are two techies in remote jobs. BTW a significant part is tech stocks so the same HHI is looking more around $500K now

[Anonymous]

Not so much lying as I don't think everyone tracks like OP. People guesstimate, eyeball, and think they know what is going on....especially if you don't have to worry about $ at the end of the month.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I tend to think people never have any reason to lie on DCUM, but they can:

1. Make mistakes in their assessments. Unlike you, OP, many people have only the vaguest idea of what they're spending. People tend to exaggerate a little when they want to make a point as well, but the gist is true enough.

2. Make jokes. Like when I replied to the "how many cars in your family" thread with "2 cars per driver, one casual, one dressy". Clearly those responses are made in jest.

A lot of people haven't been exposed to a lot, and don't realize people's situations can be so different from theirs. PARTICULARLY in this area, where there are so many transplants from elsewhere in the US and the world. The cultural differences and financial situations are incredibly varied! Like for the thread about how rude it is to bring a sibling to a birthday party - I've known perfectly decent people who were used to bringing siblings because they come from a circle where it's socially acceptable, being called rude because now they're bringing a sibling to a venue that strictly caps the number of guests - except they didn't know.

As an international family with atypical finances, what I notice MOST is how posters reflexively disbelieve or disparage experiences that are far out of their norm, without taking the time to consider it from the other person's point of view.

Yes, to all of this. There was a post a few days ago where people were talking about credit card limits. There was a person who thought that only Bill Gates has a $30,000 credit limit on a credit card.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think that people who are rich are prone to post about their wealth. Also, that people who are thin are prone to post about their weight and virtuous diet and exercise habits. That people who spend a lot on extracurriculars for their kids post a lot about the benefits. That people who travel a lot post a lot about that.

I’m willing to post our HHI on this board (double biglaw!) but if there’s a post asking what my weight and dress size is, or how many international trips I took last year, I won’t comment.

Why? Because you didn't take any/many international trips and don't have anything to contribute, or because of embarrassment? But it's anonymous? I'm genuinely curious. I post or answer all sorts of questions here, truthfully, because as someone pointed out it's anonymous so no reason not to.

Our domestic trip next month just got canceled because DH has an oral argument. My travel life is depressing. So I mostly just scroll past travel threads. But a thread on what backsplash tile you’d pick if your HHI is over $Xk, well, I am replacing my tile and also don’t mind posting HHI/NW.

[Anonymous]

This is the only place I’m honest about how much money my DH has. (Trust fund) No one I know in real life, including my family, has a clue.

[Anonymous]

I change détails (age of kids, my own age, historical details etc …) that are not relevant to the points I am making or info I am sharing but I never lie about the numbers. My memory may be off sometime but if so it is not by a lot and never intentional.

The biggest « fib » I have ever made on that forum was to present the situation under the angle of the other party, so that I would get answers more likely to help me understand the reasoning or the advice the other party would get (for ex. My parents, my MIl, my employee, my DH, my future adult children etc…). But in those cases I still don’t lie about the facts and present the intentions as best as I can

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is the only place I’m honest about how much money my DH has. (Trust fund) No one I know in real life, including my family, has a clue.

How much money does he have?

[Anonymous]

I believe most of it because I see the prices of real estate (new builds for $3 million) and know the number of schools around here that charge $50k per student.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t understand the post. First you say how you’re very informed about your financials. Then you accuse many of lying. Are you saying folks aren’t familiar with their own financials so they posting inaccuracy information?

No, I guess I was just stating in a long winded way that I am very familiar with mine, and I always provide very accurate information but don’t think that many others do.

[Anonymous]

38%.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think that people who are rich are prone to post about their wealth. Also, that people who are thin are prone to post about their weight and virtuous diet and exercise habits. That people who spend a lot on extracurriculars for their kids post a lot about the benefits. That people who travel a lot post a lot about that.

I’m willing to post our HHI on this board (double biglaw!) but if there’s a post asking what my weight and dress size is, or how many international trips I took last year, I won’t comment.

This. I really think this is a lot of what makes it seem skewed. It’s not that everyone is lying about how rich or thin or smart they are, some might be, but mostly ot is just self selection bias.

[Anonymous]

I think there are a lot of people that over estimate their HHI or home value. I am more intrigued by those that have their net worth down to the penny. I may be in the ball park by 250k or so but that is as close as I will get on any given day.
There are also many different philosophies on how to calculate net worth or salary - I have seen many who include stock options in those values or home values in the net worth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think there are a lot of people that over estimate their HHI or home value. I am more intrigued by those that have their net worth down to the penny. I may be in the ball park by 250k or so but that is as close as I will get on any given day.
There are also many different philosophies on how to calculate net worth or salary - I have seen many who include stock options in those values or home values in the net worth.

I’m the OP. It’s actually really easy to track your net worth to the penny. I use the Personal Capital app. All you do is link your various accounts to it (checking account, credit cards, mortgage, brokerage, etc) and it updates and categories everything for you in real time. So all you need to do is click on an app and know exactly where you stand financially and where your money is going. It’s especially useful come tax time when you are itemizing deductions. It’s also helpful when you have rental properties, like I do, because with a click of a button you know what your expenses are to write off against your rental income.