Household income and horse ownership

[Wagtail]

Just being nosey here and don't want any personal details as the poll is anonymous. With all the threads about money struggles and horse ownership, I was wondering what the trend was regarding income and owning a horse. Even though I have ridden and worked with horses all my life, I was never 'well off enough' to own/loan a horse until my mid twenties. I had a share and managed a riding school before that, but made myself wait until we had a relatively good joint income before I actually took the plunge and bought a horse. Now although on the face of it we would be very well of, owning 18 acres, a larege house, stables and arena, plus running a livery yard, we are stretched to the limits and I sacrifice holidays, nice cars and clothes to live this way. Our children are always moaning that they don't get anywhere near as much as their friends who can afford trendy new clothes, proper hair cuts, and even parents that buy them cars! But they live in tiny houses with tiny gardens and of course, do not own horses. But they have fancy cars and several holidays a year, plus money in the bank. I guess it is a lifestyle choice.

 

[indiat]

Is there meant to be a poll with this?

 

[measles]

No poll available that I can see but we have made similar choices to you. Others think we are nuts or wish they could do the same!

 

[Jesstickle]

There isn't a poll?

Anyway, we earn between us pretty much 60K a year. We are broke, don't own a house and rent a one bed flat. We have one small car between the two of us. I have two horses on DIY. Never go on holiday, don't drink, don't smoke.

I don't think income is the end of the story. Where you live, what you did after leaving school (ie I have a big student debt which costs a lot per month as does OH) etc are more relevant than over all income!

 

[Wagtail]

There isn't a poll?

Anyway, we earn between us pretty much 60K a year. We are broke, don't own a house and rent a one bed flat. We have one small car between the two of us. I have two horses on DIY. Never go on holiday, don't drink, don't smoke.

I don't think income is the end of the story. Where you live, what you did after leaving school (ie I have a big student debt which costs a lot per month as does OH) etc are more relevant than over all income!

Thanks. Yes, you are right. A lot more comes into it than income. However, I have been amazed by how many people manage to successfully keep horses and even compete etc with very little income. That must take some real sacrifices and alsoit's extremely brave. I wanted my own horse for many years before I dared take the plunge. I was so worried about running up too many debts (which I managed to do in any case without the horses.)

 

[YasandCrystal]

I don't think income is the end of the story. Where you live, what you did after leaving school (ie I have a big student debt which costs a lot per month as does OH) etc are more relevant than over all income!

Very true. Also do you have children? Any other dependants? Keep the horses on your own land or maybe full livery. There are so many variables as Jesstinsel says - income actually means very little. I could be earning £30K living in a sharehouse or £100k with a £250k mortgage and have far more disposable income in the former situation.
I also have friends who keep their horses on a shoestring so regular checks go by the by, yet I have teeth, backs, vaccs physio done regularly. So we have different care levels, similarly with feeding I feed adlib forage, but many of my friends don't so their feed bills are far lower than mine.

 

[BorgRae]

I didn't buy my own horse until I was mid 20's also. I waited until it was financially viable.

I earn £22k a year (and now have a part time job on top of that)...

I have just bought my first house (4 months ago) at the grand age of 30, and had to get the second job to help pay for the house (there are LOTS of home improvements that need doing!)... It didn't even enter my head to sell my boy for more income?!?!

So I struggle, work all the hours god sends and am knackered!! But it's worth it!!

ETA - I have no kids, am single so only have my income, and live in the NW, cheaper than the South. However, I do live with my sister, her husband and their kids. We bought the house together so share bills. I get my own floor though (it's a 3 story house) so it's all good!!! x

 

[*hic*]

Total income, or per horse? THe answers are drastically different!

We moved to a really run-down place to afford to live, let alone have horses. First horse (including tack and rugs) was "justified" as being cheaper to buy than a 22 in telly and less to run per month than a Sky subscription. We now have a 22 in telly (inherited from mother) and still haven't afforded a Sky subscription.

I can free up capital but try to buy tack/equipment/vehicles etc carefully and usually secondhand so that in extremis I could get most, if not all, of my money back.

We don't "do" holidays, new clothes (other than very cut price from ebay!), haircuts, cosmetics, nights out. I do spend an awful lot on the horses' running costs. I aim to buy horses that I can improve to some extent, sometimes I miss but the three I have passed on have covered their costs other than day to day running.

 

[little_critter]

Between us we earn approx £50-55k per year. We've never gone on flash holidays or been ones for having new TV's etc so were able to pay off our mortgage before I bought my first horse this year.
(we were lucky in that we got on the property ladder before it got silly, we've not moved house in 11 years and are still in our 1.5 bed house)
We don't have to worry about money but I'm keeping an eye on it since the balance took a bashing when I bought horse, landrover and trailer in quick sucession.

ETA - we have no kids

 

[noodle_]

im a student - (lsat year = )

I pay for my horse, car, outings etc.... I work part time (20hours+)

 

[fidleyspromise]

I bought my first horse when I still stayed with parents, ran a car, was earning 10K a year and this was just manageable but when I broke said car and had to fork out for another, I wasn't sensible with money and the horse had to go

I'm now on not much more (but live with OH, run 2 cars, 2 ponies on Grass Livery - bought in my early - mid 20s, - no dependants) and so we don't get holidays, new clothes etc but we are living comfortably I would say and once we get rid of debts will be able to take said holidays etc.

 

[Ranyhyn]

Judging by the poll our household income is high average, we are lucky that we own our farm and house outright - no mortgage. There's not much here (25 acres with just one stable and a small "yard") However, yes we too sacrifice lots of holidays and new clothes etc - we don't even really have to do that but we enjoy putting our money into the animals here and feel very well off because we're happy and comfortable - not physically rich!!

 

[ace87]

Me + OH = £53.5k PA.

OH does well on his £23.5k saves £600 a month, always has money left over. He has a company car so never has to pay for fuel, tax, insurance etc. His hobby is music production so he buys equipment as and when he needs it. Always has money for new hair cuts, clothes, going out etc.

Me? Pfft. I STRUGGLE on £30k. My train fare to commute to work is £450 per month, I have a student loan and over draft to pay off which is £200 per month, I have a smallish car but it still costs me £200 per month minimum. I have one horse on Part Livery and a sharer and I compete once or twice a month at most with a lesson once or twice a month. I don't go out very often, i rarely buy myself clothes etc. I have opted into my company's pension scheme which means I lose £150-200 per month straight away but it's worth while. I save £100 per month in an isa and i'm ALWAYS out of money at the end of the month.

Oh and we BOTH still live at home paying minimal rent to our parents....... we just CANNOT afford a mortgage and deposit in the Home Counties even though we're not stupid with money.
Working in London in the Architectural world is expensive. We are constantly expected to go to Architects for Health events and trips, RIBA events etc etc. The senior architects obviously all have company credit cards but us small fries dont. The industry is so poor at the moment that I work in Putney South London even though I live in Milton Keynes... I spend the majority of my time on trains (approminately 4hours per day on top of a 8-10 hour working day)and barely get to see my horse or my other half but it's a job at the end of the day. Even thought I'd be better off temping back home as my DIY livery is very reasonable... But I have to pay for endless assisted livery with my crazy working hours

Wow rant over sorry I hadn't realised how sorry for myself I was feeling.

 

[Magicmillbrook]

No poll available that I can see but we have made similar choices to you. Others think we are nuts or wish they could do the same!

Another one here - havent had a holiday for 10 years, children wear hand me downs, have serviceable well maintained vehicles but nothing new or flash.

Christmas is a fairly frugal affair present wise this year - good food but homemade, but I dont mind because Father Christmas has already brough our present - helped out by some serious saving and partners productivity bonus - a brand new arena - so exited - first ride on it this weekend!

 

[Ranyhyn]

What a lovely present from "santa" enjoy MM! x

 

[Magicmillbrook]

What a lovely present from "santa" enjoy MM! x

We will, unfortunately the edge has been taken off it a bit by the death of our young horse 3 weeks ago - we had plans to get down to some serious flat work lessons over the winter. My girl is semi retired and a bit arthritic so hopefully she will enjoy a nice stable surface to work on, though she has probably forgotten what schooling is!

 

[NativePonyLover]

I am 22 and earning 22,000 a year.

I live at home and pay rent and for food, run a car, own a horse and keep him on assisted livery close to home and manage weekends away nights out on a regular basis.

Horse has all the extras - lessons, physio, tack, teeth etc as and when necessary. Having said that, I specifically wanted a native as wanted something hardier than my last TB! I am looking to start competing next year too.

Having said that, I work locally and keep horse locally - some of my friends earn far more than me but spend much more time and money on commuting. Also, my clothes come from high street rather than designer as although I love fashion, I love riding more than I want a chloe handbag... mostly!!

I also save money every month - so I may not have a new car or a chloe handbag, but am better off than a lot of people and i don't have debts or even a credit card than some people who earn more as I live entirely in my means.

Obviously, not having children or any dependants other than the horse is a massive help

 

[Orangehorse]

We don't earn that much, but we don't have huge outgoings for the house as it is not mortgaged and I keep my horses at home so there is no livery. I have "free" hay and straw and don't have to pay for a separate towing vehicle. I earn about £3,000 a year from a part time job and admit that just about all of that goes on the horse, or horse related things.

 

[stencilface]

My poll answer up there reflects more my OHs salary than mine sadly - I earn considerably less than I should (imho - haa ha!). I do ok, and manage holidays through help with the OH, he doesn't contribute to the horse though

 

[ihatework]

I have been at some point or other in every single catagory (bar parents supporting the horse and the top earning bracket!) since leaving university with student debt and purchasing my first horse.

You manage with whatever disposable income you have if you want it enough.

As a 16/17yo I had a horse on full loan - kept him with my £10pw pocket money, the money I earnt from working in a pub kitchen and from doing jobs for YO. Obviously I was fully supported in my living expenses by my parents.

On graduation from Uni I immediately purchased a horse with some of my student loan I had been saving. Pretty daft really, but there you go. My first job paid 16K, in order to afford the horse I lived in a shared house of 4 people, and kept on cheap DIY and went without any personal extras such as clothes/hair/holiday etc.

Over time my wage has increased significantly, but I still choose to live in a modest 3 bed terrace, run a hatchback and older horsebox etc to allow disposable income to support my ever expanding horse habit. It is lovely to have enough money to train and compete and buy expensive rugs I still scrimp on hairdressers, although have started going on nice holidays!

 

[biggingerpony]

At the moment i pay £175 per month for retirement livery for Rosie, that includes everything, shoes worming, feed, hay and full livery. But when she comes up to stay with me in Jan I'm budgeting at around £110-140 a month for Rosie. Cheap livery buy hay in bulk so it kind of spreads the cost! I'm a student so have my student loan (no grant) of about 3k a year plus a work very part time and get about 150 from that a month!

 

[noblesteed]

Is that gross income or after deductions? That would change where we fit in! I think a lot is relative to out-goings.

We do well at the moment salary-wise but we do have a big mortgage, bills and 2 cars to run so we can get to work. We both work full time. I pay half of everything and all my car and my horse. I couldn't afford to buy a horse and keep him until I was 30 - I currently put aside £250 a month for him on DIY livery. I can't afford a trailer/4x4 because we often have to pay to have things done to the house, and we like to have a holiday every year if we can, so I have to have some savings.
I am going to work part time - 3 days a week - next autumn after my baby is born so I get to spend time with him, and we can just afford to keep my horse so long as baby is looked after by grandparents while I go to work. HOWEVER if we had to pay for childcare I would have to sell my horse to pay for this.

I really don't know how younger people must manage, at least we made some money on my old house before prices shot up, this allowed us to have a small deposit on our current family house.

 

[Wagtail]

Me + OH = £53.5k PA.

OH does well on his £23.5k saves £600 a month, always has money left over. He has a company car so never has to pay for fuel, tax, insurance etc. His hobby is music production so he buys equipment as and when he needs it. Always has money for new hair cuts, clothes, going out etc.

Me? Pfft. I STRUGGLE on £30k. My train fare to commute to work is £450 per month, I have a student loan and over draft to pay off which is £200 per month, I have a smallish car but it still costs me £200 per month minimum. I have one horse on Part Livery and a sharer and I compete once or twice a month at most with a lesson once or twice a month. I don't go out very often, i rarely buy myself clothes etc. I have opted into my company's pension scheme which means I lose £150-200 per month straight away but it's worth while. I save £100 per month in an isa and i'm ALWAYS out of money at the end of the month.

Oh and we BOTH still live at home paying minimal rent to our parents....... we just CANNOT afford a mortgage and deposit in the Home Counties even though we're not stupid with money.
Working in London in the Architectural world is expensive. We are constantly expected to go to Architects for Health events and trips, RIBA events etc etc. The senior architects obviously all have company credit cards but us small fries dont. The industry is so poor at the moment that I work in Putney South London even though I live in Milton Keynes... I spend the majority of my time on trains (approminately 4hours per day on top of a 8-10 hour working day)and barely get to see my horse or my other half but it's a job at the end of the day. Even thought I'd be better off temping back home as my DIY livery is very reasonable... But I have to pay for endless assisted livery with my crazy working hours

Wow rant over sorry I hadn't realised how sorry for myself I was feeling.

Crikey! I don't know how you do it. You must be exhausted.

 

[Sarah1]

We're in the £50-£69k bracket (I think that's right - it's the one with an upper limit of £69k anyway!). We have a small daughter who we pay childcare for 2 mornings a week totalling almost £200.00 per month which doesn't seem a lot but for just 2 mornings I think it's quite a lot TBH.
We have a big house with a mortgage to match and run 2 cars.
My hubby is very understanding as we do sacrifice expensive holidays every year to pay for the horse.
I never seem to buy myself anything new but then again our Daughter has something new to wear almost every week

 

[bliss87]

I dont earn anywhere near what the "average" graduate does but manage to get buy each month bu I dont pay rent or anything I just pay for up keep of horse, car, lorry Ive just finished paying of vets bill and only one payment left on lorry loan which will free up some more money =), I pay £20 a maximum student loan back a month so some people on here must earn bloody loads to be paying back £100s a month

 

[Toffee44]

I earn 21k bring home £1400-£1500 (after the dreaded NHS pension, tax and student loan) a month depending on unsocial hour pay. Out of that I pay £700 rent, £120/month horse (im including livery, hay, feed in this), £250 a month in fuel. £50/ month paying of a student credit card, then at lease £150 on bills (car insurance, horse + dog insurance etc). I do the monthly freezer shop (we fill up a chest freezer that we use alot £70ish)

OH is roughly on 16k now as they have had massive cuts at his work. He pays utility bills, dog food, our food, his own fuel and insurance. He has the cash left at the end of the month not me and if we dare go out for a pint with a few friends he pays for it. Boom and its all gone.

 

[Wagtail]

It's amazing how non horsey people assume we are rolling in it because we have horses. But from the answers so far that seems far from the case (but I guess we all knew that - horses inhale money).

 

[Sarah1]

It's amazing how non horsey people assume we are rolling in it because we have horses. But from the answers so far that seems far from the case (but I guess we all knew that - horses inhale money).

Anyone that knows anything about horses knows that if you have them you must have no money!

 

[Toffee44]

It's amazing how non horsey people assume we are rolling in it because we have horses. But from the answers so far that seems far from the case (but I guess we all knew that - horses inhale money).

They do but the money we spend on horses many spend on new clothes, hair cuts, beauty treatments and going out something most of us seem to sacrifice. I think its just a sign of the times everywhere, everyone is struggling, everyone is paying more for essentials, fuel/ transport, food and a roof over our heads.

I just realised I misses £200 council tax in my bit sometimes I am not even sure how we pay it.

 

[JFTDWS]

hmm, complicated. I earn just under 30k at the moment, and keep 3 horses, but I live with my parents, and don't pay rent. Household income is nearer 140k (ish) but they dont' contribute to the horses - other than indirectly.

That said I spend almost as much in diesel commuting as I would on rent... In Essex / Herts so cost of living isn't cheap, land is expensive etc. Don't have the horses on livery, just a small private mini-yard as I couldn't afford 3 sets of livery easily. Also have a reasonable student debt which doesn't help.