How much does the average swinger make per year?

[Livin24nic8 15]

I think it would be interesting to find this out... This is on an individual basis, not household... If only one spouse works, then post that number. If both works, please pick the higher one of the two and use that number.

[WesternSwing 504]

I think it's interesting, but then again I'm a facts and figures kind of guy... Six Sigma all the way. We already know from other surveys that the average swinger has at least two years of college and is solidly in the middle class. Besides, you don't have to make a post to respond to the poll.

 

Mr. WS

[meandher2go 17]

I voted but it is hard to generalize. People in the NJ/NY area have a much higher cost of living compared to Tenn or Mississippi I'd think and therefore might be better off than someone making more up here.

 

and not to mention only thing that matters is how much ya have left over AFTER paying bills and taxes.

[WesternSwing 504]

and not to mention only thing that matters is how much ya have left over AFTER paying bills and taxes.

In marketing we call that EBI, or Effective Buying Income. It is how most market surveys are done because it is the true indicator, equalized for all areas and cost of living, of what a family has left over to buy food, utilities, and consumer goods with. The average EBI in Utah is around $37,000/year per household.

 

Mr. WS

[C & J Ohio 15]

According to the poll, two-thirds of swingers make over $70,000. This proves one thing: there is a direct correlation between higher incomes and liklihood in answering the poll.

[kandr2000 15]

I am home disabled, returning to work soon and my husband is a cook. I'm educated as far as Medical Assistant, Administrators License for group homes, web design, computer work, etc. Plan on trying to publish a book soon of short stories and poetry. My husband is a supervisor/Cook/Kitchen manager. We are HARD working individuals. We feel very out of our league with some people, because we don't make a lot of money, or own a home. We have a lot of nice things and are nowhere near "low income". But it just isn't fair sometimes. Soon we will be moving to Northern California to work for my mom and her multi-million dollar business. So we have put off buying a house until then. Nothing irritates us more than people looking down their nose at us. It happens even though we just purchased a new car, lol. We have a lot of prejudice towards us do to us being a mixed couple, I'm white he is Hispanic, a very large intimidating Hispanic. LOL.

 

This goes back to the groupie high school "bullshit" thing.

[intuition897 2,177]

I dunno, folks. I voted. It's not a public poll; no one knows what your vote was, so what's the big deal? I find it interesting, too, WS. It really has nothing to do with elitism from what I can see. It's just a simple question. Well, except for those living in other countries. We make pretty good money, but it's not doing anything that's going to set the world on fire, that's for sure. Neither of us has a university degree (yet), and even though I'm sure I have the smarts to do whatever I want, so far all I've got is a 1 year college diploma. That, and not money, is my sore spot. I hate the idea that someone thinks that a 4-year bachelor's degree is the equivalent of greater wisdom.

 

So, KandR, you're in good company. We might make pretty good money, but "pretty good" is a relative term. I mean that we can pay our bills, keep the kids dressed in the must-have labels that they apparently "need" to be cool, and splurge on such things as one of those 16 foot swimming pools with the inflatable ring at the top. Just bought a new BBQ, too, and although I was drooling over the $800 cast-iron and stainless steel monster with the infrared warming zone, know what we bought? The $130 gas BBQ that more resembles a roast pan on wheels. But I don't give a damn. This, to me, is good livin'. I've heard this horror story from a friend, about her vacation to [an undisclosed island in tropical waters]. Apparently, she and her husband lost the last day of their vacation because it was a civic holiday, which meant the hotel they were staying at was invaded by pushy (literally pushy) rude, noisy, mean-spirited locals, whose kids were spoiled little brats and who treated everyone they considered "beneath them" like dirt. And it was because they were considered wealthy. I don't know about anyone else out there, but if it were me needing to respond to their behaviour I'd only have one thing to say:

 

"Money obviously doesn't buy class."

[kandr2000 15]

Intuition I have always thought you as being one of the most CLASSY people on these boards.

 

My kids go without nothing. They are all involved in sports and cheerleading. My son (10) and two step sons (14,16) are all starting quarterbacks this year for football. We have 6 kids in all, my two (10, 12), his two (14, 16), and our two  (2 1/2, 4). We have a lot compared to a lot of people. We are very happy. But we are considered lower middle class.

 

BTW.....my pool with the inflatable ring is my most favorite thing in the world. I'm a swimmer (even though you cannot swim in these pools, lol) We lounge in it under the stars, when the kids are sleeping and have great sex in it. LOL. My husband works graveyards so we only have a couple nights a week in there, but look forward to every moment. Where we live if our porch light is off we have a beautiful outlook of the stars. It's amazing, we see so many things in the sky from shooting stars, to satellites, to UFOs (meaning flashes of light that we have no idea what they are, lol)

 

It's the little things in life that make you happy. He makes me happy. Poor or rich no difference.....as long as I can provide for my kids, we don't need much. We may not be rich but we eat frequently at the best place in town, because of their salad, fresh bread, and great steaks and go to the movies once a week, sometimes just us sometimes all of us. We are taking all of them minus the two year old to the midnight showing of superman. ON Tuesday WHOOOHOOO!!!

[fun4Ds 1,097]

aahhh what the hell, we are somewhere between the 50,000 to 100,000, depends on the weather. There, I was honest. We have had sex with richer people and poorer who cares? We are people people, if things click between everyone, that's what matters.

[Malachista 170]

Not enough for my own like, that is for sure

[Sunnyexbrit 1]

Well I really don't think how much you make determines whether you're more likely to swing or not. It's just that money gives you options--the more you have--the more options you have. For example, the more affluent a couple is there is a likelihood that they have greater leeway in regard to scheduling time to actually swing i.e. access to more available child care so they can go out, or the resources to attend resorts on a more regular basis.

 

I would go out on a limb here and say a natural open mindedness (or experiences that have led to greater open mindedness--don't have to be sexual experiences) perhaps coupled with a higher level of education and/or self-education along with some emotional maturity are probably greater factors. And of course, above everything, at least decent communication with your partner regarding the lifestyle in general and most importantly, while not the complete absence of jealousy (because you can't always predict how a situation will pan out and some jealousy is normal after all), but the absence of the destructive kind that makes some persons "flip out." Boy have I heard some stories about people who have had a knee jerk reaction in a situation and not been able to control themselves. Fortunately we have not been on the receiving end of that kind of jealousy, but we have seen it from a safe distance !

[Coupleerotic22 1,417]

I am the nerdy type that likes statistics. And this is just another demographic statistic.

 

I think the more interesting question is the causality. IN general I have seen studies that show that swingers come from backgrounds that (based on national average) have higher educations, make more money and are conservative and religious. Personally, I have also noticed a higher proportion of entrepreneurs in swinging. Take the studies for what they are worth, but it is interesting to people like me.

 

In the light of this poll, do people that make more money tend to want to swing or is it an question of more money makes it easier to swing?

 

On the one hand, generally speaking, higher incomes go to those who are in highly specialized fields, and/or take more risk and are more aggressive in business. So are there more of those people in swinging because of those traits? Or are there just more people with with those traits in swinging because of higher incomes and more disposable income? It is not cheap to swing, though there are those that certainly make it work without having a good deal of disposable income to work with after paying uncle and the bills.

 

To me this poll is less about how much one makes but what are the drivers of swinging.

[Fundamental Law 2,817]

I am the nerdy type that likes statistics. And this is just another demographic statistic.

 

I think the more interesting question is the causality. IN general I have seen studies that show that swingers come from backgrounds that (based on national average) have higher educations, make more money and are conservative and religious. Personally, I have also noticed a higher proportion of entrepreneurs in swinging. Take the studies for what they are worth, but it is interesting to people like me.

 

In the light of this poll, do people that make more money tend to want to swing or is it an question of more money makes it easier to swing?

 

You are correct, association does not allow inference of causality.

 

Your last question admits only two options, A->B or B-> A . There is a third, namely that AB, in other words that there is (are) different unspecified trait(s) that influences both financial success and predilection to swing. Both seem to involve risk-tolerance and personal satisfaction.

[Fours Company 169]

I think the more interesting question is the causality. IN general I have seen studies that show that swingers come from backgrounds that (based on national average) have higher educations, make more money and are conservative and religious. Personally, I have also noticed a higher proportion of entrepreneurs in swinging. Take the studies for what they are worth, but it is interesting to people like me.

 

In the light of this poll, do people that make more money tend to want to swing or is it an question of more money makes it easier to swing?

 

On the one hand, generally speaking, higher incomes go to those who are in highly specialized fields, and/or take more risk and are more aggressive in business. So are there more of those people in swinging because of those traits? Or are there just more people with with those traits in swinging because of higher incomes and more disposable income? It is not cheap to swing, though there are those that certainly make it work without having a good deal of disposable income to work with after paying uncle and the bills.

 

While there does seem to be a high percentage of swingers who fit into those statistics, I think it has led to a false perception that fails to encompass the whole diversity of the LS. As a couple we would be almost the antithesis of these statistics and though I initially perceived the whole poll question as too personal and somewhat elitist, but...yes as blue-collar, we would fall towards the lower end of the answers.

 

I think having more disposable income does make it easier to swing and in our case a more limited source does not change our desire just our opportunities.

So yes, the more money one has the less of a issue such as the cost of going out, club "donations", paid memberships to online sites as well as any other expenses steady swinging entails as well as availability seeing how most white-collar so-called "professional" work means weekends free.

 

As far as risk goes, if one is only speaking of intellectual and monetary risks, then yes those are usually the ones who are more successful finance-wise as that is what our society seems to value most as opposed to actually physical risks that are sadly at the lower scale of rewards.

[Coupleerotic22 1,417]

While there does seem to be a high percentage of swingers who fit into those statistics, I think it has led to a false perception that fails to encompass the whole diversity of the LS. As a couple we would be almost the antithesis of these statistics and though I initially perceived the whole poll question as too personal and somewhat elitist, but...yes as blue-collar, we would fall towards the lower end of the answers.

 

I think having more disposable income does make it easier to swing and in our case a more limited source does not change our desire just our opportunities.

So yes, the more money one has the less of a issue such as the cost of going out, club "donations", paid memberships to online sites as well as any other expenses steady swinging entails as well as availability seeing how most white-collar so-called "professional" work means weekends free.

 

As far as risk goes, if one is only speaking of intellectual and monetary risks, then yes those are usually the ones who are more successful finance-wise as that is what our society seems to value most as opposed to actually physical risks that are sadly at the lower scale of rewards.

 

I don't associate level of income as much with traditional definitions of blue/white collar anymore. There are plenty of white collar workers making wages on the lower end of the scale and certainly a decent amount of blue collar on upper end as well. Particularly when you consider entrepreneurship. I was simply looking at the scale of wages, regardless of work classification.

 

And yes, I meant take risk from intellectual or entrepreneurial standpoint. As paradoxical as it seems, those that I have known in high risk (injury or life threatening), are some of the most risk adverse people I know. Even though the jobs they do are, at their core, very high risk the people doing them are risk adverse and, generally, do not see themselves as risk takers. I guess that really makes sense when you think about it. DO you really want risk takers in high risk jobs like high steel, mining, law enforcement? Take too many risk in those areas and you will likely have a short career.

 

That said we have known people from virtually every walk of life in the LS, teachers, doctors, miners, lawyers, judges, media personalities, butchers, landscapers, accountants, electricians, politicians - and many many more.

 

That brings me back to causality. What are the driving factors cause people to move from having no desire to participate in or have nothing to do with the LS, to having a desire to ultimately engaging the in the LS. Are there any causal factors having anything do with demographics or are those factors completely external. Do the demographics reflect anything at all or is it just random. My brain tells me nothing is random, but with the privacy concerns in the LS, it makes it difficult to divine much from the statistics.

[Chicup 38]

I think trying to find any single factor that brings people to swinging will ultimately fail.

 

We started swinging when we were quite poor. I used to think that higher education leads to swinging, and it seems to, except for when it doesn't.

 

So while for me, swinging came from a libertarian/intellectual ideal, if I were go to into SLS chat right now, just about no one there would know what a libertarian actually is, and calling them, as a group, intellectual would be a bit of a stretch. While we always seem to hit it off with couples who approach swinging from that same angle, that I think is a case of "like attracts like", not "this is who swingers are".

 

Now I've seen studies that say swingers are somewhat more educated and more wealthy than average, but the average swinger seems to be later middle age white couples. So unless those studies are more focused than I think they are, thats a result that should be expected based on the demographics.

[Fours Company 169]

And yes, I meant take risk from intellectual or entrepreneurial standpoint. As paradoxical as it seems, those that I have known in high risk (injury or life threatening), are some of the most risk adverse people I know. Even though the jobs they do are, at their core, very high risk the people doing them are risk adverse and, generally, do not see themselves as risk takers. I guess that really makes sense when you think about it. DO you really want risk takers in high risk jobs like high steel, mining, law enforcement? Take too many risk in those areas and you will likely have a short career.

 

That brings me back to causality. What are the driving factors cause people to move from having no desire to participate in or have nothing to do with the LS, to having a desire to ultimately engaging the in the LS. Are there any causal factors having anything do with demographics or are those factors completely external. Do the demographics reflect anything at all or is it just random. My brain tells me nothing is random, but with the privacy concerns in the LS, it makes it difficult to divine much from the statistics.

 

I do believe there might be a ring of truth to such a paradox. I can only speak in my case, but I am the least thrill-seeking, most play-it-safe person I know (I don't even care for amusement park rides) and yet I work in a job that while not by choice, but necessity, that most people would simply not consider when one weighs the high possibility of assault or death vs. earnings. I was simply making the comparison of discrepancies in the different types of risk-taking (as well as jobs hard of mind vs. hard of body) and which ones we as a society seem to admire the most and reward more.

 

As far as a causality responsible for swinging I don't think one can find a common thread at least demographically speaking. While each person has their individual reasons, I think an unconventional attitude towards sex/monogamy as well as better communication skills and being less jealousy prone than the average vanilla couple would be more a predictor than income, politics or education levels. As a working-class, politically liberal couple with only two years of college for me and high school for her, we would go against the convention of any dominate statistics and our only commonality with studies would be as Chicup mentioned, is in us being middle-aged and white.

 

While I'd like to believe in an orderly nature of the universe subject to predictable physical processes, I do think there is a certain randomness to life that causes one person to make a decision such as swinging that they might not if one little factor is removed or changed. After all it would have only took one change to any of a half a dozen random factors that led to my wife and I meeting and marrying and I might not be writing about swinging since I could have ended up with someone else who had no interest in the LS one day.

[DigginIt 1,132]

Interesting but like others, I believe having money facilitates swinging but it is not related to any underlying cause. Fundamental Law, I think had a point that maybe the same traits that make you successful could be related but I don't think I would ever believe results based on polls. The results are only as good as the data put in which I always look at with skepticism.