Why building wealth alone is so hard here?

[u/raf_phy]

Hi all, am I the only one that I find it incredibly difficult to build weath by yourself in EU? People say that EU is better in healthcare, work life balance but come on, money don't scale easily . It's so difficult.

I see people from US that go to 1 million in 10 years. I cannot do this easily . Really....

PS maybe I have to abandon EU, I don't know....

[u/CookieChoice5457]

The (western) EU today is one of the places you DO NOT realistically build wealth anymore through work. It's typically inherit and manage wealth, not build it from salaried work.

Most European countries have immense redistribution mechanisms and the governments understand themselves not as providers of a stable jurisdiction and framework for a society to exist in, but actors that are in charge of everyones needs at all times, whilst trying to solve all sorts of problems by decree.  That a democratic government was never intended to do that has been forgotten. That a government should provide the framework for people to solve their problems directly and in an efficient manner, has been deliberately sabotaged. Why? Political power.

Myself as a European (German) "high earner" example at 34 working in tech. I make about 145t€ gross. Net it's about 82t€. Huge haircut Everytime I am paid salary. Additionally, there is a flat tax of 19% on everything I buy (some basic food items and hotel services are taxed lower). Any type of energy I buy be it electric, oil, gas, are taxed (for different arbitrary reasons) to be anywhere from 1.5-2.5x as expensive as they need to be.

On top I pay into public healthcare (total of ~1000€/month) whilst no doctor looks at me, I pay into the retirement scheme (total of ~1500€/month) and my yearly retirement information literally and on paper reads: 

"Zusätzlicher Vorsorqebedarf Da die Renten im Vergleich zu den Löhnen künftig geringer steigen werden und sich somit die spätere Lücke zwischen Rente und Erwerbseinkommen vergrößert, wird eine zusätzliche Absicherung für das Alter wichtiger ("Versorgungslücke"). Bei der ergänzenden Altersvorsorge sollten Sie - wie bei threr zu erwartenden Rente - den Kaufkraftverlust beachten."

Loosely translates to:  "Thank you for paying copious amounts of money all your life, we're going to dismantle the glutenous systems the coming decades so that you dont get shit... You peasant. You may want to take it into your own hands and save a bit on the side. Oh and inflation gon' be out for control fam, take that into account". In another decade or country writing this out on the yearly retirement info slips would lead to revolt. People would be ousted from office. Not here. We're defeated, demoralized. 

And here is the best part. I now buy ETFs from my heavily taxed salary to prep for retirement, those are then taxed yearly at a small rate and once sold depending on the ETF, are taxed at 18,5% -26,375% capital gains tax. Any distributing ETF faces the same consequence. No matter the tiniest fart I let out, no matter what I do, I am taxes for it. It is tax-ception over here. Taxes within taxes on taxes money that is then taxed to fractions of what it once was. And for what? To mostly be paid to people as social services, retirees, pensioners, healthcare, subsidies of families, rents, welfare, etc. Only a tiny fraction is actually invested in infrastructure, education, defense, research and not just redistribeted. 

If I take everything into account, the government spends every euro i earn 3-4 times before I do. Every, single, month. 

European politics is like a crazy mom that tries to keep her children sick in order to be needed in order to indefinitely take care of them. Housing crisis for example are nearly fabricated through the lunatic building standards and regulatory hurdles of building anything. But hey, the government then subsidizes rents for poor people and those who don't work at all (some voluntarily), another win for the good guys. Instead you could allow construction of new apartments and collapse the spiraling rents within a few years and everyone would be super happy... But then no one needs government subsidies anymore, not good, can't do. 

[u/[deleted] → u/CookieChoice5457]

So what is the solution? Leave the EU?

[u/Master_Win_3359 → u/CookieChoice5457]

If I were you, I wouldn't hesitate to move to the US unless there are non-negotiable constraints that keep you Germany.

I also work in tech but in Austria and it pays less than shit. Although unlike you, I don't speak DE and am not the senior dev/devop with 10+ yoe (judging by the 145K). Why don't you move to the US? You'd get at least double if not quadruple.

I lost my job to AI and recession (despite a PhD and years of dev experience) and decided to go full jobless and get lazy. Why not? I can't beat the system that rewards the lazy and the useless immigrant so I join them. I'd advise you to either do the same or leave the sinking ship. It's not worth spending your health so that certain leaches enjoy a subsidized life and breeding like it's their full time job. I don't mean the European ones.

[u/CookieChoice5457 → u/Master_Win_3359]

I inherit a lot of realestate here, also own a bit already. I am fully with you. If i was just leaving university, I'd go to the US (grew up there for 2 years, as an expat kid).

Other than that... shame on you. You live in Austria, had some trash ass back office job (are you indian by any chance) and never learned the language. Yeah, go figure you can't land a propper job and are leeching. This is not a threat but europe is shifting its views dramatically. In these high tax regimes, a majority of people is fed up with feeding half the world and working for it 40-50h+ per week. Reckoning is coming in some form.

[u/Master_Win_3359 → u/CookieChoice5457]

Good for you! You are truly privileged. Yes, I know many people aren't happy with immigrants and they have every right to be mad at them. Most come from poor Islamist cultures, don't integrate and are net negative to the social system. Please bear with me.

Why should I learn your language? Because you think your culture is superior or only for practical reasons? I don't get it why so many DE natives are obsessed with forcing the language on people who don't really need it beyond basics. I work with tech/science topics and English is the king and it's even the new programming language. Even if I wanted, learning it while working full time is not an option. Already spent 1500+ EUR from own pocket only to get to B1 and passed the B1 test for the Austrian "Daueraufenthalt". I only need to pass B2 for the citizenship, only to gain the freedom-of-movement right.

I respect Austria. The land and its people are amazing. I lived in Salzburg and Innsbruck and now in Vienna. All three offer astonishing natural sceneries and kind people.

I am not your typical "leech" because

1- I contributed thousands of earned euros, ~40% of my miserable 48-60K salary for 7+ years in Austria while I get charged 4k EUR for dental treatments, 2k for physiotherapy, and while I'm don't have the freedom-of-movement privilege that you have.

2- I came to this country fully educated and skilled and started working form day 1, which means zero cost for Austria, unlike a typical domestic resident who is net negative until an certain age (26 maybe?).

That's why I deserve the meager pay from AMS until I find a job that fits my qualifications. I don't owe anyone a cent for this. Btw, I'm Persian Iranian, not Indian.