1. Chat

How Much Money is Too Much Money?

Ask a Question

Yesterday, some of us had a good chat about how we would spend a million. Which raises a whole new question. How much money is too much money?

kfe202
over a year ago
What do you think of this?+20 points
Advertisement
lornaae

Billionaires for sure, so many people have more money than they could possibly spend in a lifetime - or many lifetimes even. How does it make sense that some can have that when millions/billions of people live in poverty

Like
Reply2
kfe202

lornaae That's a good point. I wonder how much money is the maximum someone could spend in a lifetime. Any thoughts?

Like
Reply
lornaae

kfe202 there's an interesting read on it here with some good responses https://www.quora.com/What-amount-of-wealth-is-considered-more-than-one-person-can-spend-in-a-lifetime

There's one that says if you had £1 billion, you would essentially have £40 million to live on each year, which is more than enough even for a very extravagant lifestyle. Begs the question as to why there is a need for people to hoard billions.

Like
Reply3
kfe202

lornaae Thank you so much for doing this research! What an interesting Quora thread. You're so right. It really does beg the question why there is a need for people to hoard billions. Maybe it comes down to the difference between need and want?

Like
Reply
lornaae

kfe202 no problem! It's something I find quite interesting. I think you're right, it's definitely more of a want as no one needs that amount of money. A lot to do with competition and greed too.

Like
Reply2
kfe202

lornaae You're so right! There's so much conversation to be had about competition and greed. What would you do about competition and greed if you had the chance?

Like
Reply1
lornaae

kfe202 I'm not sure, it's definitely a difficult one. I personally think a cap on the amount of money someone could have would be a reasonable concept, eg £1 billion. What do you think?

Like
Reply1
kfe202

lornaae What an interesting idea to have a cap on the total amount of money someone could have! The main problem with this might be that people would just find a way around the cap. Kind of similar to how some people duck out of paying taxes. One solution could be to require everyone with more than a certain amount of money to give 10% of their income to good causes. Yes, some people would still probably dodge giving 10%. However, that would be a lot more money going to good causes from the people who did follow the rule. And the rich people would still have a free choice about which charity to choose. Could something like this work do you think?

Like
Reply2
lornaae

kfe202 Yeah that's a good point, many probably would work out a way around it. I think your idea is good, it's similar to taxes though in that rich people tend to not think it's fair that they have to give a certain amount of it away and dodge it where possible.

Like
Reply1
kfe202

lornaae That's a good point. What can be done to encourage people to pay their taxes and not dodge these? Should we just rid of tax and then there would be nothing to dodge?

Like
Reply
lornaae

kfe202 Not sure, I think it's more of a mindset/systemic change that is needed to steer people away from greed especially when it comes to money

Like
Reply1
kfe202

lornaae Education, education, education?

Like
Reply1
lornaae

kfe202 Yes! Teach people that there is more to life and success and happiness than money

Like
Reply1
kfe202

lornaae You're so right, there is more to life than and success than money. What do you think would be the most effective way to teach that, though? In school probably no because who really listens to their teachers?

Like
Reply
lornaae

kfe202 I think on multiple levels, in school definitely to get that message across from an early age. But also in society, stop judging people on how much money they make and how expensive of a house/car they have. Teach businesses/company owners that they could spend their money better rather than hoarding it.

Like
Reply1
kfe202

lornaae You're so right. It hurts so much when people judge others on external things like the price of their car. I totally agree with you that society should stop judging people on their jobs, houses, cars, vacations ... Some of the best things in life are free anyway.

Like
Reply1
lornaae

kfe202 yes exactly! And so many people without those fancy things are happier than those with huge houses and expensive cars etc

Like
Reply1
Imnotcheap

I think people with money would say you can never have enough

I think I would have to say if you think it's ok to spend more on something you don't need than the average family spend on groceries in a month for example hair cuts costing hundreds

Like
Reply2
kfe202

You're so right about the haircuts!

Like
Reply1
tunisianangel

Anything over 25 million is to much in my opinion

Like
Reply1
Mick82

Too much money is a problem I would not want a lot to be said for a simple life.

Like
Reply1
kfe202

I tend to agree with you. What's the one thing you would be willing to spend on?

Like
Reply
Lynibis

No one has yet come up with one of the main reasons that people hoard money and it is not merely freedom and competition. It is POWER.

When you have excessive amounts of money it doesn't just buy material possessions and services, it buys you superiority over other human beings.

It doesn't take long for a newly rich person to become arrogant, rude and authoritative. Other less influential people are deemed to be there only to serve your every need. You can buy love, buy your way out of difficult situations, buy freedom, buy a shield that can shelter you from anything the world can throw at you, even good health to a certain extent.

It is then not long before the need for more and more becomes an obsession as you cannot bear anyone to have more power than you.

You have only to look at history to see how siblings killed each other and their parents in order to seize power, plus every dictator that ever lived, power is like an addictive drug.

Like
Reply3
kfe202

You make some interesting points. Do the rich people really have power, though? Because if the little people stop obeying the orders, the big people at the top fall down. I wonder if the power lies with the little people and the little people just don't realise it?

Like
Reply1
Lynibis

kfe202 very occasionally there are rebels in war situations. But have you ever known the little people to disobey, their livelihoods depend on obeying and kowtowing to the 'mighty ones'. I have never heard of a minion sticking two fingers up at those in power over them. The likes of divas like Mariah Carey keeping someone waiting for 8 hours just because they can and regard their time as more important than yours or mine. Very few rich people are caring and altruistic.

Power is also in the form of simple things like showing up at a posh restaurant and getting the best table even when it is full, we haven't the power to do that.

Like
Reply1
Sarahvwomble

Not sure,in the olden days you got interest on money maybe a million would be plenty ,no idea now, it's crazy the price of property etc...soon gone

Like
Reply1
Lynibis

1 million is 25k a year for 40 years. Many folk would be happy with that.

Like
Reply2
Sarahvwomble

Lynibis yes good maths that would be excellent and see me out nicely with a fair bit for charity

Like
Reply2
Lynibis

Sarahvwomble well if it started now it wouldn't be much in 40 years after inflation, but for those mid life or older it should see them out along with pensions etc.

Like
Reply2
Sarahvwomble

Lynibis no pension etc but could enjoy self on that money as long as house doesn't fall down...which it might...

Like
Reply2
kfe202

Lynibis You're so right about the impact of inflation. Maybe 3 or 4 million would be better to allow for that?

Like
Reply
laraquinn

Jeff Bezos has too much money.

Like
Reply1
hspexy

There’s no such thing as too much. Usually when you’re rich, you just get richer as you have all sorts going on that makes you money. It’s the people who squander it all that baffles me - how much can go wrong in life for it all to disappear, like those who win the lottery and waste it all away

Like
Reply
One of the UK's largest deal hunting communities

Join for free to get genuine deals, money saving advice and help from our friendly community

Tom Church
Co-Founder &
Chief Bargain Hunter
Tom Church, Co-Founder
Want deals & discounts automatically?
+100 bonus points!
Latest Deals Browser Extension
Latest Deals Mobile App
  • Download our app
  • 1,000+ new deals every day
  • Earn free Amazon vouchers
  • Daily deal alerts - never miss the best offers!
  • Download the Latest Deals iOS AppDownload the Latest Deals Android App
Latest Deals
Disclaimer

The content on Latest Deals is a combination of information submitted by members of the public and the Latest Deals team. Whilst we make every effort to try and ensure genuine, accurate content we cannot guarantee it. Please always carry out your own due diligence and double check the details of an offer on the retailer's own website.

How this site works
  • To cover the site's running costs, Latest Deals uses affiliate links.
  • If you click on a link to an external website and make a purchase, Latest Deals may earn a commission.
  • We allow deals to be shared on Latest Deals irrelevant of whether or not they generate us money. Our #1 concern is helping you save money.
  • If you have any questions about how the site works, drop us a message. We're always happy to help.
Copyright © 2024 Latest Deals Limited
Registered in England and Wales. Company number 10286141. WeWork 6th Floor, International House, 1 St Katherine's Way, E1W 1UN
We value your privacy

We use cookies to help give you the best experience on our website with improved customisation, analytics & advertising (inc. personalisation). You can read our full cookie policy. Please either , or .