if youre husband made $250.000

saw50st8

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 12:28 pm

amother wrote:

I have no idea what I would spend, but I would still shop discount racks and such. The main differance I think would be that when I need a new pair of shoes, I would buy them when I needed instead of pushing it off until the shoes are pretty much falling apart. Also we would eat more meat. This amount in the OP is 3x what my dh makes. I would feel amazingly rich to have so much.

I wish there wouldn't be so many replies to these types of threads that "250k is not much". I know what you all are trying to say but it really is a lot, and saying it's not can cause someone who has much, much less to feel bad.

Honestly, if I had that much, the first thing I would do is find a family in a tight spot and give them $5,000. It's absolutely amazing how much such a sum can completely turn someone's life around.

My husband doesn't earn that :-) However, people who earn $250k usually pay full tuition. Local schools by me average $15,000 per kid, so for 4 kids that's $60,000 in AFTER TAX money. A mid level mortgage (2000 sf home, not a large property not totally fixed up) is around $3,000. That's $36,000/year. Taxes haven't been deducted from the $250k - between health insurance and other deductions, you net nearly half - lets say $145,000. The tuition and housing deducted leaves you with $49,000. Which sounds like a lot until you factor in food, clothing, car expenses, summer camp, other insurances, utilities etc etc etc. Summer camp in my area is $2-3,000 per kid (some eve more) for day camp and a lot more for sleep away camp.

People making much less usually pay a lot less in tuition. I'm not saying $250k isn't a nice salary (it is), it's just not a whopping fortune at all.

Peanut2

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 12:28 pm

I grew up and now again live in an area where most people are working professionals.

The people who have more than average either come from a wealthy family with a business, or the man has a very very good job and the wife takes care of everything else, or both spouses work crazy jobs. And you know what? Women who are doctors and married to other doctors, or lawyers married to other lawyers, or SAHMs with a husband they never see because he is constantly working - at least where I've lived - are too busy to shop too often.

They dress well, don't have as much time to shop sales, buy really nice dresses for major events, and I still run into them at Target.

(And once all the kids of the SAHMs are in school, or if they have massive help, they wear sneakers and gym clothes all the time. ALL THE TIME. )

amother

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 2:03 pm

I almost think it's unrelated. I have earned a lot and spent very little, and I know someone who earns not too much but saves her entire bonus every year to buy high end luxury goods such as: handbag, shoes, coat that cost a lot. It's kind of like - what is your priority in life - is it travel, financial security for the kids, or looking good, or a combination ...

imaima

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 2:06 pm

amother wrote:

Excuse me!!!!! Ladies can make that much also. I use to make $30,000 a month before I was a SAHM late in life. Anonymous for the obvious reasons.

I buy what I need and want without concern for price. When I was working, I bought a different quality. Now I buy so I don't stand out at either end. I wear nice clothes but nothing ostentatious. I have money set aside for the kids and no mortgage.

I can second the idea that you expressed. I dream about buying a designer something, which I actually can afford, but I wonder where would I wear it to? People at my work are very casual, the simchas in my community are low-key, half of my friends receive state benefits of some sort, or are otherwise very frugal. When I don't work, it means I stay home with the baby and travel from home to the daycare to the supermarket to the park to home. There is nowhere in my life where I would have a chance to flash my labels without being out of place.
So I just don't buy anything designer, but do buy good quality.

imaima

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 2:08 pm

amother wrote:

If she gets a high end bag or coat, it will serve her for many years.

amother

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 2:15 pm

amother wrote:

Was going to post s/t similar. What's up with the title??! I make six figures Baruch Hashem and hubby doesn't (yet)

amother

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 3:38 pm

Whoa! Chill about the title.
OP asked a question that she wants to know the answer of. Is she not allowed to ask a theoretical question regarding your husbands income? Does everything have to be so pc and equal?

Next time I see a thread "What do you make for supper?" I'll make sure to get all up in arms and write "What? do you think only the wife can cook?? My dh cooks supper every night while I give the kids a bath!. Why didn't you write what do you or dh cook for supper?"

rachel91

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 3:49 pm

Haha, if my husband would make this amount in Europe, with the same size of family as we have now, I would spend ALOT!
I mean one month more than the other, another month less, but I would spend and buy expensive clothing, shoes, handbags etc. But not every month.
But I like clothing and fashion etc, so maybe that's a factor.

amother

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 5:03 pm

Our combined pre tax income is about $300K.

After taxes, tuition, mortgage, car payments, health insurance, car and homeowners insurance, utilities etc. We have about 5K left a month. Half goes into savings/money market and the other half is for groceries, household items, cleaning help and clothing.

Some months I spend nothing on clothing but some months I spend a lot. I try my best to shop sales, definitely for myself-why spend $200-300 on an item I could get for less than half on sale? But some things I find aren't worth the wait. One of my DS will only wear one brand of dress pants because of sensory issues. They cost $45. If I wait for a sale I could get them for $18, but they go on sale during secular holiday season and I don't always catch it, so for YT I just got them full price.

DD really wanted a specific dress for YT that was more than I usually would spend, but she looked darling, and it was really only about $20 over "budget" so we bought it.

I'm rambling, but my point is it's not a huge amount of money but also not so little. If you're budget conscious, you end up with some breathing room for any purchase, and if you like designer, you can put aside for a few big purchases a year.

Dawling

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 5:05 pm

Ladies,
Please be careful of creating Ayin Hara and jealousy, which can affect even anonymous posters.
The judgement for this year will only be sealed on YK, so you could be affecting your whole year with these comments.

Having said that, I get a special thrill of buying at bargain. So even if I had that much money, I'd probably be very frugal (some people call it stingy) Smile

Barbara

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 5:35 pm

imaima wrote:

If she gets a high end bag or coat, it will serve her for many years.

Indeed. I have a friend who only buys cheap -- and I don't mean inexpensive -- purses, and in the long run, she spends a lot more than I do, buying one higher end purse (on sale) every couple of years. And I only purchase that often because I like variety.

Raisin

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 5:37 pm

Barbara wrote:

a $50 bag should last you a couple of years at least. Especially if you buy in the sale. I don't buy expensive handbags and I only buy new ones every 2-3 years.

amother

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 5:57 pm

Sorry, but clothes are not my "thing". My purchases are driven by need. I don't see a dress and covet it; it's more a matter of the shoemaker telling me it doesn't pay to resole my shoes because the uppers are shot, so they have to be replaced, or my niece is getting married and I have to get a gown because the one I wore to the last wedding is 25 years out of date. Matter of fact. I once had a pair of dressy sandals that I wore to simchas over a period of 30 years and had the heels changed twice to reflect changing fashions. They went from chunky to slim to chunky and was considering a third remodeling when I realized the straps were cracking and it was time to send them off to that great shoe bin in the sky. So even if I were married to Bill gates I probably wouldn't spend all that much on clothing.

Frumdoc

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 7:25 pm

I buy only what I need, preferably on sale. I certainly don't shop every month, or even every quarter. I usually go to mid range shops, balancing quality with price. With shoes I usually replace like for like. My favorite clothes are several years old, and I never follow fashion, as I don't want my wardrobe to be out of date in a single season.

I'm not really into clothes, or shoes, or handbags or jewellery, or much else like that. I love fresh flowers and plants, and probably spend more on books than any other single type of purchase. I have a complete weakness for books which is hugely facilitated by my kindle, so reducing the need for physical space to store them.

If I had loadsa money, I might pay for a full time housekeeper/ chef/ PA or buy a little cottage in a big green field or forest as a retreat. And a huge luxurious shower with wall jets and maybe a jaccuzi. Such fantasies!

amother

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 8:45 pm

I'm not so into clothing so probably around the same amount. I have a work uniform which helps cut back on the demand for clothing. I don't know how often I shop or how much I spend exactly. What's considered one time shopping? One store or one spree? Occasionally I'll feel like I have no clothing and make several orders online (I hate shopping in general and real shopping is often worse than online) so not sure how many shopping experiences that constitutes. I probably do that 5-6 times a year and they are not big purchases (maybe 6-7 items total and most are returned).

I'm ok having few outfits and mixing and matching or wearing the same things a lot. I prefer wearing more comfortable which usually means long which means less stockings which means less need for lots of shoes/boots. When I was pregnant I bought maybe ten new items and wore old big clothing. I feel like I have tons of shabbos clothing because I had six new outfits for sheva brachos and already had three shabbos outfits before that. I know most would consider my feeling that way laughable because I didn't just get married and they wouldn't even have those clothes in their closets anymore.

Anyway, to answer the question, all together I probably spend significantly less than $1000 a year but my fashion is nothing anyone aspires to.

amother

Thu, Oct 02 2014, 9:14 pm

I don't know, I can't imagine myself really buying much more than I do now (with a husband who makes 65K). I prefer to wear mostly what my friends are wearing. Not in a teenager kind of way, just I like my current life and don't aspire to significant lifestyle changes. So I'd still be wearing my basic work skirts, shells, and tops from places like TJ Maxx, Dress Barn, and Macy's. I would save as much as I could and also travel a bit!