[flatline]

I am in the top 10% and live quite comfortably in a house I own, provide for two children, and have some disposable income. I would say I live a similar quality of life that my art professor father did, who was making ~$35/yr over most of his career, which was a comfortable but lower middle class income at the time.

Part of the difference may be that none of us have lived in HCOL areas.

[pydry]

The most desperate people ive met in the UK are those that grew up in a HCOL area to lower middle class/poor parents, went to university and did average jobs and paid 60% of their take home on renting a bedroom.

They would tell me that their retirement plan was a bullet.

I'm glad you're doing well though.