3 ms·

80k what? £80k is more than $100k. Or did you mean that the UK average is the GBP equivalent of $80k?

by tome 5y ago

Nextgrid 5y ago
I indeed meant £80k, but my argument is more around the purchasing power and lifestyle the money will give you. The currency doesn't really matter in that context as everything you buy will also be in pounds and the unit prices for most things (except specific industries like healthcare) don't seem that different and property prices are also through the roof. Taxes also seem extremely high. I'm not sure of the situation in the US but 80k£ here already lands you in upper end of the tax brackets despite the rent on a decent 1-bedroom Central London apartment being ~50% of your monthly take home.
- yaseer 5y ago
  If you live in a large city, like London, yes. But for a remote job, you're no longer tied to doing that. There's obviously this phenomenon of high-salaried tech workers moving farther out of high cost of living places like London and San Francisco.
- kragen 5y ago
  You can still retire to Costa Rica if you find a way to save a good percentage of that money. And, like everything else you import from China, a Creality CR-30 3DPrintMill costs the same in London as it does in San Francisco.
- zelos 5y ago
  Not that it makes things better, but 80K doesn't put you in the highest tax bracket: you pay a higher marginal rate over £100k because you start to lose your personal allowance, plus there's a 45% rate at 150k+
  - Nextgrid 5y ago
    Fair enough, I wasn't aware it gets even worse, but the current level of tax at 80k£ already feels extremely unfair when it's barely enough to rent in Central London.
    - arethuza 5y ago
      London is one of the most expensive cities in the world - plenty of much cheaper (and to me much nicer) cities in the UK.
    - iso1631 5y ago
      £2,000 a month after rent and commuting costs (if you live in Central London you presumably walk or bike to work) is hardly "barely enough", as a single person. £80k is $108k. You get a net (before student loan deductions) of £55,092.76, you keep 69%. As a single person on $108k, you'd pay $31,779 in San Franciso in Federal, FICA and State tax, you keep 71% Whether the extra $1847 a year of taxes is "extremely unfair" is anyones guess, but at least you won't go bankrupt from medical costs.
  - iso1631 5y ago
    There's a c.60% marginal rate at 50k-60k too if you have a couple of kids
- iso1631 5y ago
  £80k is £4600 post tax per month, £4200 after student loan, and is higher than about 95% of the country (about about 97.5% in 2019) £2100 will get you far more than a 1 bed flat. https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/119215184 https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/119215184 for example is a 2 bed flat by Elephant and Castle less than a mile from the South Bank for £1733

80k what? £80k is more than $100k. Or did you mean that the UK average is the GBP equivalent of $80k?

by tome 5y ago

80k what? £80k is more than $100k. Or did you mean that the UK average is the GBP equivalent of $80k?

I indeed meant £80k, but my argument is more around the purchasing power and lifestyle the money will give you. The currency doesn't really matter in that context as everything you buy will also be in pounds and the unit prices for most things (except specific industries like healthcare) don't seem that different and property prices are also through the roof. Taxes also seem extremely high. I'm not sure of the situation in the US but 80k£ here already lands you in upper end of the tax brackets despite the rent on a decent 1-bedroom Central London apartment being ~50% of your monthly take home.

yaseer 5y ago
If you live in a large city, like London, yes. But for a remote job, you're no longer tied to doing that. There's obviously this phenomenon of high-salaried tech workers moving farther out of high cost of living places like London and San Francisco.
kragen 5y ago
You can still retire to Costa Rica if you find a way to save a good percentage of that money. And, like everything else you import from China, a Creality CR-30 3DPrintMill costs the same in London as it does in San Francisco.
zelos 5y ago
Not that it makes things better, but 80K doesn't put you in the highest tax bracket: you pay a higher marginal rate over £100k because you start to lose your personal allowance, plus there's a 45% rate at 150k+
- Nextgrid 5y ago
  Fair enough, I wasn't aware it gets even worse, but the current level of tax at 80k£ already feels extremely unfair when it's barely enough to rent in Central London.
  - arethuza 5y ago
    London is one of the most expensive cities in the world - plenty of much cheaper (and to me much nicer) cities in the UK.
  - iso1631 5y ago
    £2,000 a month after rent and commuting costs (if you live in Central London you presumably walk or bike to work) is hardly "barely enough", as a single person. £80k is $108k. You get a net (before student loan deductions) of £55,092.76, you keep 69%. As a single person on $108k, you'd pay $31,779 in San Franciso in Federal, FICA and State tax, you keep 71% Whether the extra $1847 a year of taxes is "extremely unfair" is anyones guess, but at least you won't go bankrupt from medical costs.
- iso1631 5y ago
  There's a c.60% marginal rate at 50k-60k too if you have a couple of kids
iso1631 5y ago
£80k is £4600 post tax per month, £4200 after student loan, and is higher than about 95% of the country (about about 97.5% in 2019) £2100 will get you far more than a 1 bed flat. https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/119215184 https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/119215184 for example is a 2 bed flat by Elephant and Castle less than a mile from the South Bank for £1733