Nobody I know in the UK considers £25k "good" salary. That's an entry level salary for most industry and profession. Hell, the legal minimum wage annualizes to

Nobody I know in the UK considers £25k "good" salary. That's an entry level salary for most industry and profession. Hell, the legal minimum wage annualizes to £20k Also you can't compare industry the way you are. There are LOTS of individual plumbers,electricians,... in the UK making £100k-£200k+ ... I know a few of them. It is a running joke how much the trades get paid. I know a window cleaner that makes £500k running a window cleaning business. That's the same everywhere. I'm also sure there are people in New York, NY struggling to afford a tiny one bed apartment ... just like London. I'm not defending the UK, I am attacking your poor reasoning.