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To give context on my other comments, where I live in Scotland, median full time wage is around $55k. You can live a perfectly comfortable life on that; you do

To give context on my other comments, where I live in Scotland, median full time wage is around $55k. You can live a perfectly comfortable life on that; you don't have to worry about bills or medical expenses, and you can afford to get a mortgage and buy a house (probably costing around $300k or so) That's why I'm surprised about people from a richer nation saying they can't afford things.

Pooge 3mo ago
> That's why I'm surprised about people from a richer nation saying they can't afford things If you had the same salary in Switzerland or Luxembourg which, believe it or not, is not impossible, there would be a lot of items that you can't afford. Salary is important but cost of living matters as well. Granted, inside the same country, figures could change drastically but people tend to live where there are lots of job opportunities where it's more expensive.
DontchaKnowit 3mo ago
How can you afford a 300k mortgage at 55k a year. That would be a very large percent of monthly pay right?
- tenuousemphasis 3mo ago
  Mortgages are generally paid over 30 years.
  - ffsm8 3mo ago
    Long mortgages are a really really bad idea with high interest percentages. Unless you've locked in a low percentage from before corona you're going to pay almost as much in interest as you'd be paying for the house... To pay off 300k within 30 years at current mortgage interest of 4% you'll have to pay 1432/month (215k of interest will be necessary) Depending on the amount of taxes you have to pay, thats likely > 50% of netto wage
- onraglanroad 3mo ago
  Yes, houses are expensive, but it's not out of reach. You can afford a mortgage on the average home.
librasteve 3mo ago
The median income in Southern England is comparable, but house prices are 2-3x higher. Not surprising that we moan about tax subsidies getting paid to folk with a better lifestyle.
- onraglanroad 3mo ago
  If it helps, think of it less as Subsidy and more as Tribute!

Pooge 3mo ago

> That's why I'm surprised about people from a richer nation saying they can't afford things If you had the same salary in Switzerland or Luxembourg which, believe it or not, is not impossible, there would be a lot of items that you can't afford. Salary is important but cost of living matters as well. Granted, inside the same country, figures could change drastically but people tend to live where there are lots of job opportunities where it's more expensive.

DontchaKnowit 3mo ago

How can you afford a 300k mortgage at 55k a year. That would be a very large percent of monthly pay right?

tenuousemphasis 3mo ago
Mortgages are generally paid over 30 years.
- ffsm8 3mo ago
  Long mortgages are a really really bad idea with high interest percentages. Unless you've locked in a low percentage from before corona you're going to pay almost as much in interest as you'd be paying for the house... To pay off 300k within 30 years at current mortgage interest of 4% you'll have to pay 1432/month (215k of interest will be necessary) Depending on the amount of taxes you have to pay, thats likely > 50% of netto wage
onraglanroad 3mo ago
Yes, houses are expensive, but it's not out of reach. You can afford a mortgage on the average home.

librasteve 3mo ago

The median income in Southern England is comparable, but house prices are 2-3x higher. Not surprising that we moan about tax subsidies getting paid to folk with a better lifestyle.

onraglanroad 3mo ago
If it helps, think of it less as Subsidy and more as Tribute!