What would you define as being 'rich'?

[star-warrior]

I was reading someone's post about him being comfortable, but not rich. By this sort of relative comparison, I was wondering, what do you consider as being "rich" in the sense of being wealthy?

As a thought, if you live in an inherited house in a suburb of, say, London, which is worth over a million quid on the market, but as a dwelling you are not aiming to move out, and you have only a small four or low five digit bank balance and having to work your butt off to afford to live comfortably.

Is there a threshold you would consider as being 'rich'? For example if someone had a six or maybe 7 figure bank balance?

 

[HoodedRat]

I have always had a place to live, decent food to eat, clean water on tap, reliable safe energy supplies, free health care, access to education, etc ... in global terms I am am 'rich' beyond many people's wildest dreams. Rich in wealth terms is a bit different as I honestly do not know what I would do with the excess if I had more money than I really needed. Give it away? and then I wouldn't be rich anymore.

 

[Cormac135]

Around the 5 million pound mark.

For me it'd be enough that i never had to worry about any bills coming in or house repairs.

 

[star-warrior]

Around the 5 million pound mark.

For me it'd be enough that i never had to worry about any bills coming in or house repairs.

So being rich is when your bills are negligible compared to your monetary wealth....? That would make being a 'millionaire' less what it used to be. You have to be a multi-millionaire to feel rich!

 

[star-warrior]

I have always had a place to live, decent food to eat, clean water on tap, reliable safe energy supplies, free health care, access to education, etc ... in global terms I am am 'rich' beyond many people's wildest dreams. Rich in wealth terms is a bit different as I honestly do not know what I would do with the excess if I had more money than I really needed. Give it away? and then I wouldn't be rich anymore.

Yes, it is all relative I think. Being a home owner, rather than a mortgage payer certainly means there is less pressure on the money coming in. My folks used to say, so long as you're healthy, being poor is the least of your worries.

 

[Telstra]

Not a millionaire but
have a good living and can buy most things you want.

 

[ElmosToe]

When you have enough money to no longer need to work, everything is paid for and you have more than enough, even for well into your retirement years. Where money is no object, even after purchasing a mansion with cash.

If I were rich, neither myself or anyone in my circle of friends and family would ever have a need to work again, unless they wanted to merely for the joy of working.

 

[Willie Boy]

If one is so named one is Rich. Otherwise he's likely Fred, or Steve, or Scott or some other name.

 

[GhostHustler]

I live within a comfortable bubble of economic prosperity within my demographic and social status. It could at any moment burst, however, and it would definitely set me back so I am not really totally comfortable. If I don't work I would be in some sort of trouble so I wouldn't say I'm rich - rich in spirit maybe. I just want to not have to work an hourly job and generate income passively somehow. I'm still looking at various ways, and hopefully within the next 5 years I can depend on just passive income, and at that point I will say I'm comfortable. The day I can just focus on my interests without worrying about monetary matters then I would say I'm rich.

 

[SLOPPYSECONDS]

well
-an so on-
tinku

 

[tarallucci]

One can be sufficiently wealthy without being rich. Rich people are those who can afford a luxurious lifestyle like maintaining a spacious mansion, a big car, eating expensive food...

In one word: Vannie

 

[Benvolio]

The minimum to be rich it to have enough wealth to live well from the income from investments without spending capital. For instance a millionaire used to be rich by definition. But it is difficult today to recieve a safe 5%. Even so 50, 000 might leave 40,000 after federal and state income and other taxes. You can live on $40,000, and many do, but without much luxury.

 

[Aron9000]

I'd say if you can afford to send your kids to private school, then to an ivy leauge college, live in a house that is worth what the top 25% of homes are worth in your area, go on lavish vacations overseas at least once a year, and retire by age 60 while leaving your kids a good 7 or 8 figure inheritance, then you are rich.

It can take decades of hard work and sacrifice to live that sort of lifestyle, one of my best friends growing up had a dad who was never home, was VP of sales or something for a publisher, spend probably 15-20 days a month in England. He retired like a king and made stupid money, eventually becoming CEO of that company, but man I kind of wonder if it was worth it, not seeing your kids grow up.

 

[Kyanimal]

A dollar in my pocket with 99 cents in bills.

 

[TickTockMan]

I honestly can’t answer. There was a time I wanted for nothing, but I never considered myself rich. Just good with money. I lived well below my means to be able to afford treating my crew to a meal or to pop off to Vegas for a while.


Interesting question. I look forward to how others answer.

 

[kallipolis]

Good health is ones greatest asset, and sufficient to ensure that ones good fortune can be built upon through hard work, endurance, and the patience to keep trying to improve ones life, until ones death day...when it ceases to matter.

 

[kallipolis]

My experience with the very (money) wealthy over the years has been their fear of losing their money, property, and status among their friends, and acquaintances. Fear of losing their fortunes often drives the filthy rich to spend more on "appearances" to maintain the appearance of being wealthy...even when they have lost much of their wealth the result of their failing business, or investments gone sour.

There is nothing more depressing than a wealthy man, or woman crying into a glass of flat champagne dreaming of by gone days, when they were the toast of the town.

 

[Kabluey]

Being rich requires being able to live the lifestyle you want and being able to accommodate any new circumstances without compromise and without needing to work to pay for it.

 

[SLOPPYSECONDS]

how a globees rich define a bees a rich
_ans a extra extra extra large rich_
ans stuff wot no change

ueeeeew weeeeeee
"nose peg"
tinku

anway

tinku

wonda worlds supa pubwix figa
_teys noses?_
ha

 

[TickTockMan]

Being rich requires being able to live the lifestyle you want and being able to accommodate any new circumstances without compromise and without needing to work to pay for it.

In that case I was "rich".