Reply to HHI is around $120k -- are we the only ones on here?

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Reply to "HHI is around $120k -- are we the only ones on here?"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Our HHI is 167k on one salary (I SAH) and to me, we have an amazing life. I can't understand people complaining and claiming "poor" (not really poor, but complaining of money woes on 250K + or even 400K as I saw the other day).

We live in a good house in a nice suburb - very middle class: no one here is going on international vacations every year or even every other year. The kids are all in ps, cars are normal japanese/some other asian brand and the like. Yard service and cleaning service is common, as in one or 2 weeks at the beach per year.

I guess that the more people have, the more they spend so it kind of always feels like you "are middle class" as you can't have the next big thing. [/quote]

I guess I'm one of those people you can't understand. Honestly I can't really understand it either, but my HHI is $180K, we're DINKS and I still feel like we're a paycheck or two away from disaster. I couldn't even imagine being able to afford a kid.

We've got a modest house (bought for $440K) in a marginal area. (EOTR)  I come close to maxing out my TSP but I'm not fully maxing, so I feel like I'm not even on track there. After taxes and paying the mortgage, bills, FERS, union dues, TSP, insurance, and modest cash savings of $200 a pay period, I net about $740 a paycheck. It's certainly enough to live on and even splurge on a night out but anything that's left over at the end of the pay period inevitably gets wiped out by a vet bill, or car repair, or medical bill, or something before it can accumulate to a comfortable level. I see posts like yours and I literally don't know how you do it with less money and kids.  [/quote]

I think a lot of it is preferences combined with perspective about what needs are. We make less and could make more if I didn't choose to work part time, but I prefer free time over money or vacations or a bigger house or anything fancy or new cars or luxury cars. Our "big" vacation was spending 6 nights in a hotel near relatives. The hotel was $550, then one expensive museum, one cheap museum, a day at the beach, some local parks, hotel pool, movies, few days hanging out with relatives. We don't want any more than that. If we go somewhere not near relatives, we spend 2 or 3 nights. Our cars are 7 and 13 years old. One has almost 200k miles. Splurging on a night out for us would be $65 at our favorite restaurant (we don't drink), and we probably go 3 times a year. Also if you're used to spending less now, you don't need as much in retirement, so maxing could be overkill, depending on match, etc.[/quote]

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