Appropriate salary to buy a Supercar

[Kent Border Kenny]

StevieBee said:

There may be a few.

Don't forget that we're talking 'salary' or 'wages'... regular payments of earnings from which all tax has been deducted. But a salary is a very inefficient way to be paid which for most of us mere mortals is not a big issue but when you start earning big, there's more efficient ways to get your money - dividends being amongst the most efficient.

But in a lot of businesses, this just isn't an option.

Despite what it seems many people think, money in banking is paid via PAYE, with all the tax due taken at source. There are no clever tricks such as being paid in gold, or wine, to get around it.

We do tend to get a chunk of the money in stocks, but this is far worse than just getting cash, so is the opposite of a tax dodge.

[Jimmy No Hands]

Everything is attainable with the old never-never. Some people prioritise a car very highly in the hierarchy of their life. 7 years ago I worked for a Ferrari main dealer, then subsequently on to sell used Porsche for a few years. You'd be surprised at what you can put on the drive for £800-£1,500 a month if you really want. Did some of these people have money? Sure. Did some live at home and didn't mind dropping a wedge each month? Some did.

[Xaero]

Difficult to answer the question with a straight logical answer.

My salary has tripled over the past 15 years, but I have much less to spend at the end of the month because I'm paying for a house and family now, whereas before I lived with parents, so expenses were very low.

[phumy]

Zetec-S said:

kingston12 said:

It's an interesting question. As someone else as already mentioned, salary is far from the be all and end all these days. It's more about the other financial make-up.

I'd say that someone on £100k in their 50s with house fully paid off and good chunks of inheritance and investment income could afford a supercar relatively easily, someone on the same salary in their 30s with a mortgage and kids not so much.

Exactly. Why are a lot of supercars driven by middle-aged men? It's not some mid-life crisis, if they could have had one 20 years ago they would, but it's only now they can afford it having paid off the mortgage and kids now fending for themselves.

Ha, this is me, a little over middle aged but no mortgage now, kids all married and moved out, i have a couple of half decent-ish pensions, not massive but ok. I bought an Audi RS2 about 5 years ago i got from my tax free lump off of one of the pensions and last year i bought an Aston Martin V12Vantage S last year for cash that i had saved. Sonow have to lovely cars to plod around in and my out-goings on those two are quite easily covered by my pensions. I dont even have the Govmt OA pension yet, that comes next year, happy days.

[sutoka]

Countdown said:

How long is a piece of string?

I know 2 lads - one runs an M3 when he earns £20k a year, one runs a Continental GT and earns £25k a year. Equally I know somebody on £80k running a 3 year old A6 Avant.

I do hope this doesn't turn into another willy waving thread.................

It just depends how much 'keeping up with the Jones' matters.

I know people on £50k-£80k that are happy driving around in 10-15 year Volvo estates, they aren't interested in impressing anyone.

Then I know people who either don't work or are on minimum wage and are driving around in £40k Audi 4x4 on finance, of course they are always claiming to be skint.

I used to work with a guy who had an M3 and every single penny he earned was spent on it. He lived with his parents and kept saying he couldn't afford to rent anywhere.

[Kent Border Kenny]

For a long time I ran only one car, and tried to stick to a rule of never spending more than 10% of my wage on one.

As I’ve got a bit older that rule’s slipped, but I do feel a sense of relief at having decided to drop down now to only having two, and so reducing the expenses.

I won’t go back to only one, as I do want a family car and a sports car, and as per my posts in the McLaren forum, I’ve just decided that at £90k a low mileage 650s may not be a complete financial disaster.

[g3org3y]

Countdown said:

I know 2 lads - one runs an M3 when he earns £20k a year, one runs a Continental GT and earns £25k a year. .

Do they live independently or are they still shacked up with their parents out of interest?

[RSbandit]

Kent Border Kenny said:

For a long time I ran only one car, and tried to stick to a rule of never spending more than 10% of my wage on one.

As I’ve got a bit older that rule’s slipped, but I do feel a sense of relief at having decided to drop down now to only having two, and so reducing the expenses.

I won’t go back to only one, as I do want a family car and a sports car, and as per my posts in the McLaren forum, I’ve just decided that at £90k a low mileage 650s may not be a complete financial disaster.

I'm not sure how people run 5-10 cars between having them serviced, motd and generally looked after. Good look with the 650s hard to argue with them at that price they were prob £225-250k new!

[gangzoom]

Kent Border Kenny said:

but are there people buying them on £100k per year

Unless you have no sense of money a salary of £100k is no where near enough to give you a disposal income to waste on a super car post tax/living costs.

As others have said I highly doubt anyone without an account who is very good at tax efficiency strategies is even considering let alone own a super car.

I suspect even most additional rate tax payers will not be wasting their hard earned cash on a super car. If you are an employee you have to work for your salary, and the higher your salary the harder you have to work for each £ due to increasing tax rates, which means when it comes to spending that extra money which you worked for it needs to be really worthwhile.

Edited by gangzoom on Thursday 22 October 05:00

[gangzoom]

Darth Paul said:

Depends really. 100k gives you what, 5.5k take home?

Here are some sums you have to take away, pensions/investments - saving for your retirement isn't cheap (£500-1k), so down to £5k.

Mortgage, you work hard so you want some where nice to live, most detached 4/5 beds in a nice area is easily £500k+ even outside property hot spots. Say 80% LTV, even at current interest rates its £1.5k a month, down to £3.5k.

Child care, you will need this as your working full time for your £100k. Our nursery fees were £1k/month, if you want private school that's the same, if you have additional sproglings that's x2. So 2 kids at £1k a month each, you are down to £1.5k.

£1.5k left to cover food, bills, holidays, cars, all other spending etc.....You're be lucky to rent a Mondeo with what's left let alone a £200k+ Supercar.

Oh and if interest rates go up to 3% on the mortgage your income left to go spend on food, bills, drops to £1k instantly. £100 gone on electric/gas, £50 on water, £200 on council tax, £50 on house insurance.....and very soon you will be counting where every £1 and barely be able to afford one of these .

Edited by gangzoom on Thursday 22 October 05:40

[romeodelta]

gangzoom said:

Here are some sums you have to take away, pensions/investments - saving for your retirement isn't cheap (£500-1k), so down to £5k.

Mortgage, you work hard so you want some where nice to live, most detached 4/5 beds in a nice area is easily £500k+ even outside property hot spots. Say 80% LTV, even at current interest rates its £1.5k a month, down to £3.5k.

Child care, you will need this as your working full time for your £100k. Our nursery fees were £1k/month, if you want private school that's the same, if you have additional sproglings that's x2. So 2 kids at £1k a month each, you are down to £1.5k.

£1.5k left to cover food, bills, holidays, cars, all other spending etc.....You're be lucky to rent a Mondeo with what's left let alone a £200k+ Supercar.

Oh and if interest rates go up to 3% on the mortgage your income left to go spend on food, bills, drops to £1k instantly. £100 gone on electric/gas, £50 on water, £200 on council tax, £50 on house insurance.....and very soon you will be counting where every £1 and barely be able to afford one of these .

[Img]https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcQ6swbfTd8bxlcwI7pjRLZ-FNK3pMRUfLGBrw&usqp=CAU[/thumb]

Edited by gangzoom on Thursday 22 October 05:40

But it's all about priorities.

If you choose to forgo the big house, pension contributions, kids, private school, expensive holidays and all the rest, it can easily be done.

[jontysafe]

Impossible question. I've never earned so much but been so relatively tight at month end. Doesn't help when our water and leccy bill for one month in Aug was circa £1900. Life in the desert for you. Pay no tax they said......

[likesachange]

As other have said depends on your priorities other than a decent salary.

Some people like myself arguably spend too much of there income on cars...

But if I took the advice of the more mature members of my family I would never have had cars like the Ariel Atom, TVR Tuscan, Zenos, AMG etc etc I’d just like I wouldn’t have been Racking up credit cards raving in Ibiza in my 20’s. All things if a Financial advisor would advice against am sure.
But I can sit here in my early 40’s look back and see what adventures and great cars I have had and feel very lucky to have done. Even though I’ve barely ever earned more than 35k a year!

Saving for when I’m 65 to be able to afford luxuries doesn't actually interest me. I feel like I’d be quite content living in a cosy little bungalow or even a local caravan park which in on the coast with residents and a good social club, in my retirement if of course I make it...

I’m sure it’s the “wrong” attitude by many many people but that’s my choice and certainly no regrets so far.

Your only here for one lap remember! The finishing line could be tomorrow

[rix]

Interesting. In the world of housebuying and mortgages, it's largely about salary multipliers, and widely recognised that as salary increases, all other lifestyle expenses generally increase at a similar rate - more expensive holidays etc. With car buying/loans etc I don't think people look at it in the same way. Of a chunk of disposable income, people will prioritise/split it in all manner of directions - I'm sure there are many who pump out spends on socialising to the extent of a supercar monthly payment, and likewise some supercar owners with no need for a beer-fund!

In early working days I wouldn't have batted an eyelid of 'buying' a car to the value of 1x salary, but since then it has always been a much lower multiplier in reality, out of some degree of caution!

[T1547]

gangzoom said:

Here are some sums you have to take away, pensions/investments - saving for your retirement isn't cheap (£500-1k), so down to £5k.

Mortgage, you work hard so you want some where nice to live, most detached 4/5 beds in a nice area is easily £500k+ even outside property hot spots. Say 80% LTV, even at current interest rates its £1.5k a month, down to £3.5k.

Child care, you will need this as your working full time for your £100k. Our nursery fees were £1k/month, if you want private school that's the same, if you have additional sproglings that's x2. So 2 kids at £1k a month each, you are down to £1.5k.

£1.5k left to cover food, bills, holidays, cars, all other spending etc.....You're be lucky to rent a Mondeo with what's left let alone a £200k+ Supercar.

Oh and if interest rates go up to 3% on the mortgage your income left to go spend on food, bills, drops to £1k instantly. £100 gone on electric/gas, £50 on water, £200 on council tax, £50 on house insurance.....and very soon you will be counting where every £1 and barely be able to afford one of these .

[Img]https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcQ6swbfTd8bxlcwI7pjRLZ-FNK3pMRUfLGBrw&usqp=CAU[/thumb]

Edited by gangzoom on Thursday 22 October 05:40

Was fine up to the kids care bit @£2k p/m.

So basically if you have a partner that doesn’t work so don’t need the day care, don’t send the kids to private school, or don’t have kids at all - circumstances that wouldn’t be that uncommon - you have up to £2k to spend on a supercar (if so inclined).

[bennno]

rix said:

Interesting. In the world of housebuying and mortgages, it's largely about salary multipliers, and widely recognised that as salary increases, all other lifestyle expenses generally increase at a similar rate - more expensive holidays etc. With car buying/loans etc I don't think people look at it in the same way. Of a chunk of disposable income, people will prioritise/split it in all manner of directions - I'm sure there are many who pump out spends on socialising to the extent of a supercar monthly payment, and likewise some supercar owners with no need for a beer-fund!

In early working days I wouldn't have batted an eyelid of 'buying' a car to the value of 1x salary, but since then it has always been a much lower multiplier in reality, out of some degree of caution!

This is all partially driven by house price inflation, I can remember my md driving around in a jaguar xjr worth more than my original flat. Now that same pokey flat would be worth an equivalent of four xjr’s in today’s money.

Inflation both gives equity for many to cheaply release and spend, or it makes cars look relatively cheap by comparison.

[Chubbyross]

likesachange said:

As other have said depends on your priorities other than a decent salary.

Some people like myself arguably spend too much of there income on cars...

But if I took the advice of the more mature members of my family I would never have had cars like the Ariel Atom, TVR Tuscan, Zenos, AMG etc etc I’d just like I wouldn’t have been Racking up credit cards raving in Ibiza in my 20’s. All things if a Financial advisor would advice against am sure.
But I can sit here in my early 40’s look back and see what adventures and great cars I have had and feel very lucky to have done. Even though I’ve barely ever earned more than 35k a year!

Saving for when I’m 65 to be able to afford luxuries doesn't actually interest me. I feel like I’d be quite content living in a cosy little bungalow or even a local caravan park which in on the coast with residents and a good social club, in my retirement if of course I make it...

I’m sure it’s the “wrong” attitude by many many people but that’s my choice and certainly no regrets so far.

Your only here for one lap remember! The finishing line could be tomorrow

In my opinion you have it absolutely right. Research suggests that the key to a happier life is not by acquiring ’stuff’ but acquiring memorable experiences. It could be argued that you need stuff to do this for motoring memories but you certainly don’t need supercars.

[hotchy]

likesachange said:

As other have said depends on your priorities other than a decent salary.

Some people like myself arguably spend too much of there income on cars...

But if I took the advice of the more mature members of my family I would never have had cars like the Ariel Atom, TVR Tuscan, Zenos, AMG etc etc I’d just like I wouldn’t have been Racking up credit cards raving in Ibiza in my 20’s. All things if a Financial advisor would advice against am sure.
But I can sit here in my early 40’s look back and see what adventures and great cars I have had and feel very lucky to have done. Even though I’ve barely ever earned more than 35k a year!

Saving for when I’m 65 to be able to afford luxuries doesn't actually interest me. I feel like I’d be quite content living in a cosy little bungalow or even a local caravan park which in on the coast with residents and a good social club, in my retirement if of course I make it...

I’m sure it’s the “wrong” attitude by many many people but that’s my choice and certainly no regrets so far.

Your only here for one lap remember! The finishing line could be tomorrow

I watch that benidorm program where they all have static caravans that look like houses in a big community and actually think that would be great. Good weather, cheap everything, stuff to do, a cracking social life, pool to swim and your own we place with hot tub for nights. You dont need loads of money for that, but I suspect it's a better life than some have working 100 hours a week for a 5 bed house etc.

[likesachange]

hotchy said:

I watch that benidorm program where they all have static caravans that look like houses in a big community and actually think that would be great. Good weather, cheap everything, stuff to do, a cracking social life, pool to swim and your own we place with hot tub for nights. You dont need loads of money for that, but I suspect it's a better life than some have working 100 hours a week for a 5 bed house etc.

At least you will be in a social environment with many like minded folk talking of all your life adventures. Instead of having a large empty house to impress your neighbours and talk about how much you have saved and invested over the years ZZZzzzzzzzz?!

Theres no right or wrong imo. Do what you want!

[StevieBee]

Countdown said:

I know 2 lads - one runs an M3 when he earns £20k a year, one runs a Continental GT and earns £25k a year.

You can currently grab a 2005 Continental GT from the Pistonheads classifieds for as little as £18k. That's entirely financeable on a £25k salary. And things are rarely as they seem anyway - bit of inheritance from granny? Work bonus? Drug dealer?

Either way, the discussion is really about supercars - £150k min.