Our income ranges from $350-$550k. We don’t make any luxury purchases. None. We can’t afford it. Our normal expenses are too high, and college about to hit, plus retirement. I don’t even have a house cleaner.

^trading. But tearing works too, as in my eyes are tearing when DH pours good money into his Subaru.

Anonymous wrote:Just today I was in a shop and a beautiful blouse was $550. We have a very high net worth but I just don’t have the desire to spend money like that. But the two of us went out to dinner tonight and it was $200. I drive a Subaru SUV, but we fly first class. I’m sure a shrink could define my behavior.

NP. DH loves Subarus. He pours a lot of money into repairing them to keep them going before tearing in. I tell him you really have to be a millionaire to drive a Subaru. I prefer Volvos.

Just today I was in a shop and a beautiful blouse was $550. We have a very high net worth but I just don’t have the desire to spend money like that. But the two of us went out to dinner tonight and it was $200. I drive a Subaru SUV, but we fly first class. I’m sure a shrink could define my behavior.

Anonymous wrote:Similar HHI. Recent splurges included Dyson hair dryer (well worth it for me because I blow dry my hair every night), leather jacket, so around $400. Shop at Costco for everything and no fancy cars. I am pretty willing to splurge on travel especially luxury hotels though.

Are we the same person?

No debt except for mortgage at 2.6% which we are keeping vs paying off. HHI $450K, net worth $4M (real estate investment properties, cash and stocks). Spent $3K on a designer bag and about $10K on jewelry in 2023, found a necklace for DH to buy me Christmas/B-day gift and had 2 pieces made that I designed. Car is luxury level but old with low miles, paid cash for it a long time ago. We take expensive vacations but offset part of the expense with airline miles aquired through business travel and airline credit cards. I wear expensive outerwear coats and buy high end workout gear. DH is not a spender but doesn't balk or complain if I want to spend money. I talk to him about it before I buy expensive things like bags or jewelry. I go through spurts on when I spend money on myself. I don't make big purchases all the time but it does add up over time.

Why would you feel anxious? Our HHI is 1/2 of your and I don't think twice about spending $1K but its about lifestyle choices and we don't live lavishly.

I don't spend on jewelry - that mostly gets passed down in my family and DH's. Not a big fan of designer bags or clothes - I don't really want anyone to look at my clothes and be able to know what brand they are. We spend whatever we need to get a car that works for our family size and lifestyle. I don't care about impressing anyone with my car. We go on very nice vacations, because to us, vacations are meant to be relaxing. DH and I differentiate between "vacations" and "trips." Trips are traveling to see friends or family, and we know they won't be as indulgent as vacations, but we will spend whatever is needed to make our trips as comfortable as possible. The only thing we won't do is fly private, simply because it's so bad for the environment and neither of us feel comfortable contributing to the climate crisis in that way.

My horse gets $400 shoes every six weeks and also expensive injections.

I have a hole in my wellies.

None of that stuff. 2 cars, not luxury, and we drive them until they die. Last pair of cars lasted 20 years. We also are not even slightly stylish. Classic clothes haven't changed much in 70 years and always are appropriate. We wear those for years also.

HHI of about $350k. Travel and now home reno is my vice but I don’t care about jewelry, designer bags or clothes.

My husband laughed the other day that his younger self would be horrified that he buys his clothes at Costco now.

Similar I make around 350K HHI 500K.
I don't buy any if that stuff. Just isn't something I care about. We have 2012, 2015 and 2022 cars but not luxury vehicles.

Similar HHI. Recent splurges included Dyson hair dryer (well worth it for me because I blow dry my hair every night), leather jacket, so around $400. Shop at Costco for everything and no fancy cars. I am pretty willing to splurge on travel especially luxury hotels though.

Jewelry $0
Designer clothing $0
Handbags $0 (using one from my deceased mother’s closet. She died in 2014.)
Cars $40k last year for a 2023 Prius to replace a 2010 Lexus SUV I sold to a family member who needed a car
Vacations $8k/year on average.

HHI $275k

Curious about how much folks spend on things like jewelry, designer clothing, bags, cars and the like. If you want throw in travel, too. Curious in relation to your own personal income as well as HHI.

Realize everyone’s priorities are different, but I’m very curious about how much folks who, say, spend $10K on a piece of non-engagement jewelry are making.

Personally I make $280K, with a HHI around $400 and I still feel anxious about a $1K purchase let alone more than that!