[se15679875]

What's reasonable to spend on a luxury watch?

<1%
1-5%
5-10%
>10%

There are all sorts of rules of thumb for house (~2X annual salary) or car purchases (10% monthly income). What's the rule of thumb for a luxury watch?

I've heard people say anything from 1% (which sounds a little too conservative) to 100% (which sounds hilariously obscene).

[JuuS]

I assume you are not financing a watch so comparing it to monthly car payments vs. the percentage of your income is irrelevent. Buy the nicest watch you can afford or save up for it. A good watch should last you a lifetime.

[bobblehead]

timex is all I need

[F32]

Da fuq?! Anyone who asks this question is in no position to buy something more expensive than a Fossil.

And we wonder why so many people are financially retarded.

[se15679875]

Originally Posted by F32

Da fuq?!

Anyone who asks this question is in no position to buy something more expensive than a Fossil.

Not necessarily true. I'm 99.9% certain my net worth is several times greater than yours (for example) and you've got some pretty nice watches.

Granted, my money comes from a trust fund so it's not really that impressive, but still.

[se15679875]

Originally Posted by JuuS

I assume you are not financing a watch so comparing it to monthly car payments vs. the percentage of your income is irrelevent. Buy the nicest watch you can afford or save up for it. A good watch should last you a lifetime.

Oh of course not. I'm talking about a one time payment, paid in full. Who the hell finances a watch

[jan31]

Originally Posted by F32

Da fuq?! Anyone who asks this question is in no position to buy something more expensive than a Fossil.

And we wonder why so many people are financially retarded.

+1

[F32]

Originally Posted by se15679875

Not necessarily true. I'm 99.9% certain my net worth is several times greater than yours (for example) and you've got some pretty nice watches.

Granted, my money comes from a trust fund so it's not really that impressive, but still.

C'mon now, buddy...you drive a Z4. Just being humble?

[F32]

Originally Posted by se15679875

Oh of course not. I'm talking about a one time payment, paid in full. Who the hell finances a watch

The same person who has to think about how much of their annual income they can spend on a watch.

BTW, those other "rules of thumb" you mentioned are retarded.

[JuuS]

Originally Posted by se15679875

Not necessarily true. I'm 99.9% certain my net worth is several times greater than yours (for example) and you've got some pretty nice watches.

Granted, my money comes from a trust fund so it's not really that impressive, but still.

Actually the trust fund is VERY impressive. It's just you who is not.

[se15679875]

Looks like <1% is the leading vote getter so far (with 6 votes!). There's a single vote for 1-5% as well.

1-5% seems reasonable.

[Racer-X / 6'er]

Originally Posted by F32

Da fuq?! Anyone who asks this question is in no position to buy something more expensive than a Fossil.

And we wonder why so many people are financially retarded.

+1
If you have to "budget" for a toy, you have misplaced priorities. Not being rude, if you want a fine piece of jewelry, by all means get it. The fact that you have to ask this question implies that you are shopping outside of your means.

[se15679875]

Originally Posted by Racer-X / 6'er

+1
If you have to "budget" for a toy, you have misplaced priorities. Not being rude, if you want a fine piece of jewelry, by all means get it. The fact that you have to ask this question implies that you are shopping outside of your means.

I think you're looking at this the wrong way. It's not so much about physically having the means to pay for a luxury good.

The real underlying question is at what point is it tacky (for lack of a better word) to wear a piece of jewelry that is essentially not commensurate with one's net worth or income?

For example, if someone making $300,000/year was wearing a $30,000 watch, that seems rather tacky. The watch costs nearly 100% of one month's income.

I'd expect someone wearing a $30,000 watch to make at least $5M or $10M/year (EVPs of Fortune 500 companies, or high income wall street guys, etc.)

[Devious21]

Less than 1% monthly income? Meaning you'd need to pull down 100k a month to justify buying a $1,000 watch? That means pulling in a half a million a month to buy a 5k Rolex?

Christ, how much f*king money are you guys making?

[B-1Pilot]

Originally Posted by se15679875

Not necessarily true. I'm 99.9% certain my net worth is several times greater than yours (for example) and you've got some pretty nice watches.

Granted, my money comes from a trust fund so it's not really that impressive, but still.

But you asked about income... to be clear, a trust fund don't give you an income, it gives you an allotment.

My opinion is you blow the whole thing early so buy the most expensive watches and cars you can.. put theta money back in the system as fast as possible so real earners can make the most of it.

[se15679875]

Originally Posted by Devious21

Less than 1% monthly income? Meaning you'd need to pull down 100k a month to justify buying a $1,000 watch? That means pulling in a half a million a month to buy a 5k Rolex?

Christ, how much f*king money are you guys making?

1% seems a little low, I agree.

To be honest I think 10% is probably a reasonable figure. As much as it pains me to say this (because it kills me to see the middle class overextend themselves and thus mitigate any possibility of achieving financial freedom) I can conceivably see someone making $100k or $120k buckling down and dropping $1000 on a lower end luxury watch as a one time thing.

$5000 watches are reserved for the ~$500k/year range, which also seems reasonable to me.

And so on and so forth.

10% is a good number, imho.

[se15679875]

Originally Posted by B-1 Pilot

But you asked about income... to be clear, a trust fund don't give you an income, it gives you an allotment.

My opinion is you blow the whole thing early so buy the most expensive watches and cars you can.. put theta money back in the system as fast as possible so real earners can make the most of it.

Where did you get this idea that I don't work or that I'm not a "real earner"

[1MOREMOD]

how many watches are we talking here? does anyone who appreciated a nice watch just own one? there is no freeking way you need to make 500k to own a low end rolex. i vote for 10 percent every month. and the rest on race cars and strippers.

[B-1Pilot]

Originally Posted by se15679875

Where did you get this idea that I don't work or that I'm not a "real earner"

by your own words "my money comes from a trust fund"

if you have that but also earn, then respect the gift you were given and don't even mention it here... why would you other than to taunt or flaunt?
Don't look to diminish what has been given to you while asking us advice on what to spend.. live within the means of what YOU earn.

again, you stated this thread... A watch merely tells time.. these days you can buy a product that serves this function for 5 cents. above and beyond that it is a matter of function, precision, art, and hubris (and I've got my share of expensive watches -- price was never the primary issue... their look and function was)

[se15679875]

Originally Posted by B-1 Pilot

by your own words "my money comes from a trust fund"

if you have that but also earn, then respect the gift you were given and don't even mention it here... why would you other than to taunt or flaunt?
Don't look to diminish what has been given to you while asking us advice on what to spend.. live within the means of what YOU earn.

again, you stated this thread... A watch merely tells time.. these days you can buy a product that serves this function for 5 cents. above and beyond that it is a matter of function, precision, art, and hubris (and I've got my share of expensive watches -- price was never the primary issue... their look and function was)

Oh, my apologies if this thread was a little deceiving. I have absolutely no intention of buying any sort of watch myself. It would be tacky of me to use unearned money to wear a symbol of wealth when I did not earn that wealth myself. FWIW I wear a dorky $50 calculator watch.

I made the thread out of curiosity after seeing what I perceived to be an overabundance of $10,000+ watches floating around these forums, so I was merely curious to see what people thought.

[metrickid]

So if someone's dream is to own a Rolex and saves for it for years you would call that tacky? I would call it dedication!

Stupidest thing I've heard this week! You wear a watch because you like watches and that model. Not to impress someone else or show off your "wealth".

[chris s]

Originally Posted by 1MOREMOD

how many watches are we talking here? does anyone who appreciated a nice watch just own one? there is no freeking way you need to make 500k to own a low end rolex. i vote for 10 percent every month. and the rest on race cars and strippers.

Originally Posted by Rossifumi

So if someone's dream is to own a Rolex and saves for it for years you would call that tacky? I would call it dedication!

Stupidest thing I've heard this week! You wear a watch because you like watches and that model. Not to impress someone else or show off your "wealth".

These guys get it!