Please lets restrict this to passive incomes only. No cheating by throwing in salaries now!

Sorry, but isn't this a stupid question?

If I have a million in the bank and I'm getting 1% (£10k) am I doing better than someone with £10k in an investment doubling their money each year?

Wouldn't a percentage be more useful?

And should we include our own theoretical capital gains (on the back of what the bloke in the pub told me my investments are now worth) or just concrete money in the bank type earnings?

If you have 1m in the bank & are getting 1% then you're an idiot (talking to anyone who's listening there).

What makes this poll useful is understanding that a certain level of passive income is needed to sustain a normal existence. 10k off a million means you're eating your capital to survive or can't quit your job. So no, I don't think a percentage is relevant. You may earn 50% this year, but no good if it was at the races & it' worth £50 for the year.

You can include past cap gains averaged, but future gains are hypothetical as is keeping your job or getting a salary raise. So please restrict your answer to known numbers.

Strange and there was me thinking this was a forum about the rise or possible collapse of house prices ... seems i have wandered into a thread for high flying investors.

Does this have any relevance other than for you to go nah nah na nah nah - I earn more than u hu?

Are you confused Who Knows? This is a poll about how much your investments earn. I don't earn anything, my investments do though...

That's one of the nasty set backs to salaries, they can't be inherited (at least not for most anyway).

So far it seems from the results that we have several dillusional HPC'ers amoungst us!

Who knows, there are some members who have never posted since registration, could they be just canny investors who come here for advice.

Sorry that was me just messing with you again

Not confused and frankly couldn't give a monkeys how much your investments earn you. I read this forum to gain a better idea of the state of the UK housing market not to see how much your investments (or any one elses make).

I'd agree on your first part (that was my point - you might have a good passive income but it doesn't mean you are not an idiot - I'm talking to anyone listening too rather than to you personally ).

Your second sentence also gets straight to my point. I think a lot of BTL landlords ARE (although they might not know it and probably won't accept it) eating into their capital to survive. For example, if you are getting a positive income of £80k from a portfolio of BTL property but you are losing £90k on the capital value then I'd say you are not doing nearly as well as you think you are if you ignore the capital position (or just get an estate agent to give you a higher valuation every year).

Again, this is not aimed at you personally .

I'd also argue that including past average capital gains is just fooling yourself (especially if these gains were never crystallised) - given the question is about what your investments DO earn.

Ive no idea what my investments earn. My business pays my income. My investments are purely there to build a capital fund for the future. Ill worry about yield once I stop working.

The reason I began selling my UK B2Ls in May2004 was in view of my belief that capital growth going forward, looked pretty remote. My hunch was that I would increase my capital more in other arena's.

Can always re - enter UK B2L in the future.

I've got a Marantz CD player which is a classic piece of sound engineering.

My collection of WWII radio equipment is probably worth a few quid. A few issues of 2000AD monthly. Signed photo of Adam Woodyatt.

Being able to have a good laugh at BTL muppets - priceless.

the idea that over 30% of this forum from the poll earn over 80k a year from there investment is quite frankly bull shit

If being a Landlord is a job then dosnt the rental money you recieve get ruled out? You can count capital apreciation so long as you have sold the properties.

Of course if you dont put in any effort yourself i.e you dont go and fix anything and you employ someone to manage it all for you (out of your rental incomes) then yes you can count the left over rental yield as an unearnt income.

If you are hands on in anyway it just means you have a well paid job and your capital appreciation is a matter of opinion

Check out the salaries poll!!!!

(I took the liberty of correcting your spelling)

I trade full time. That isn't passive either.

We have had some truly silly polls on HPC, but at least the authors of these previous polls were trying to be funny!

TTRTR however can't be raising too many laughs with this little lot (other than @ his own exopense). First of all he wants absolute returns rather than rates of return. Then he compunds the stupidity by asking for passive returns only.

What TTRTR fails to understand is that folks construct investments portfolios in differeing ways so as to suit their investment style and risk profile. Some folks may wish to invest purely in gilts and hold them to expiry, or stick it in the bank. Only this is truly "passive". As Chuz points out, BTL needs management and maintenance (after all, you are always telling us how lazy we are for not investing in BTL TTRTR. Whay do you mean if the investment is truly passive, HMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM????????). Others may wish to reduce their risk by holding alarge amount of cash whilst trading aggressively, presumably a non-passive excercise. Others may hold high income stocks that need monitoring just a little. Som emay use fund managers, others advisory services, all entailing differeing costs and degrees of involvement. You really expect of poll to reveal the advantages and disadvantages of all these options?

I'ms sorry old boy, but there is only one word for this pole: meaningless.


Hang on, the penny has just dropped. This isn't a poll @ all.

Sigh: okay TTRTR, let's get it over with. I'll save your blushes and help you overcome your (false) modesty. Here goes:

"Why Mr big, strong, TTRTR, that sure is an impressive bulge of property you have in your portfolio. I'm sure we'd all love to know how much income it returned lasyt year. If only you'd please tell us. Pretty please......"

I just had another look @ the poll results and may I say how disappointed I am with the members of HPC. Poor old TTRTR with his £80,000.01 income from "passive" investments (believe me, if he made a penny more the limit would be higher) was sure nobody else would dare tick the >80k box. Clearly some of you think it funny either to :

a ) receive a larger "passive" investment income than him and tell the truth, or
b ) receive a smaller "passive" investment income than him and lie.
c ) believe his definition of "passive" income is stupid and just tick the biggest number there.

Look @ how you've got his knickers in a twist:



If you want to see him really pissed off just keep ticking that >80k box. Don't say I didn't warn you!

For your benefit Sledgehead as you seem a little slow today, this poll was a dig at the salaries poll & I copied the income choices.

Ah, so it is in fact completely pointless instead of (as I first surmised) almost completely pointless.

Thanks for clearing that up.

It's a shame but some on the forum are unconcerned by the social and economic ramifications of high HP, rather bitter, that they missed the HPI boat. It's almost becoming a forum for self loathing, with opportunities for ego stimulation by lying in polls.

Ah, I feel better now. The answer to my first response is apparently YES, this is a stupid question. Please excuse me for not noticing (I didn't look at the salaries thread).

Imagine someone being so unconcerned about what HPCers earn that they failed to spot that!

Gosh I am a silly sausage, aren't I?

Isn't it amusing that this poll has been moved, yet the salary and education polls were pinned as if they're relevant and this one isn't.





You'll never be rich HPC'ers if you can't see the importance and relavance of investments.....

The reason it was moved to the Investment in general forum with a link left on the main housing forum.

Well, call me stupid, but when the salary survey came up I foolishly thought "somebody is trying to assess what the lending multiple might feasibly be for HPC FTBs."

Little did I know they were trying to find out just how well off they were by comparison with other posters. Still, you are obviously right, and I was obviously deluded....

As for objecting to the thread being moved to "investment in general", you ought to be glad they didn't move the thread to "considerably richer than yow (in general)"

Do you differentiate between passive and active investments, i.e. trades per year, time spent analysing trades, determining amount of investment, or what ?
I 'invest' in horse racing, is the return salary or investment ?
A wooly question methinks

It would be more interesting to ask what percentage returns one was achieving over say 5 to 10 years. If you have 20000 earning 20% per annum consistently, you are better off than someone with 100000 earning 5%.

No you arn't .

"No I arn't (sic)" what?

After 10 years you'd still be better off with the £100k @ 5%.
I'd prefer the £100k anyway as I can't think further ahead than 12 months.

Anyway, wrt the original question, the banding should have been:
< 100, to 250, to 500, to 1000, to 2500, to 5000, to 10000, to 25000, to 50000, above 100000.

That would have produced more useful results.

Meant to be an example, not literal. Point being, when talking about investments, its yields not absolutes that matter.

And tax evasion efficiency.

Naturally. I prefer avoidance.