Parents

No. I don't think so.
I think it's to do with personality

My retired parents had "enough" but not a lot and weren't interested in it.
They spent it happily.

My mother-in-law has more and if her husband had been alive, quite a bit more between them...
They have both always talked money!
They were much less likely to splash out on small treats and enjoy what they had.

Could it be that they didn’t have a lot of money previously.

Interesting, as I took a considerable amount of cash to the Bank to pay into my parents account before he passed away, he also would carry about £500 in his wallet.
On saying to the lady, it was found in my dad's odds and end draw, she said happens a lot they just don't spend it.
My MiL when she passed away we found thousands in a draw as well.
Both not wealthy but my folks were comfortable, MiL just never spent any money.

My parents only had the State pension, didn't own a house. Dad worked hard all his life - nothing to show for it except us 4.

Perhaps they're letting you know that you don't have to worry about helping them pay for a care home if they ever need one.

Back to the OP’s question and I wonder if that is all they have to talk about? Do they go out, holiday, see friends or do activities that they/you could converse about?
DH was always keen to tell the DDs to invest as much as they could in pensions, even if we had to subsidize the shortfall.
He had a good financial head, as a trustee of his Company's fund, but it certainly wasn’t his sole topic of conversation.

I must admit that when I meet friends for coffee, the talk often turns to income and expenditure, but without going into too much detail.

I come from a large family that very rarely talks about money. My mum lived to be 90 and also rarely discussed it except in practical terms.

Likewise with my friends we rarely talk about it.

I think this is probably because none of us have any!

Only people who have it talk about it- glad I'm not so boring...

There are people of all ages with comfortable incomes who whinge constantly about paying taxes.

Isn't all the current political furore about the need to raise taxes based on most people's expectations to have a Scandinavian style social security system at US tax rates?

As it is people of all ages. It will incude some old people, 2 of them are the OP's parents.

No it is not normal at all, they are both miserable gits who are comfortably off. Why is a woman of 82 still working, not enough money for some I guess? Why doesn't she try to enjoy the years she has left. I, aged 84 widow live on a very modest pension and am quite content. I have a roof over my head, food in my belly, clothes, pay all the bills and run a four year old Toyota Aygo all on £14,000.00 a year.

Georgesgran

Back to the OP’s question and I wonder if that is all they have to talk about? Do they go out, holiday, see friends or do activities that they/you could converse about?
DH was always keen to tell the DDs to invest as much as they could in pensions, even if we had to subsidize the shortfall.
He had a good financial head, as a trustee of his Company's fund, but it certainly wasn’t his sole topic of conversation.

I must admit that when I meet friends for coffee, the talk often turns to income and expenditure, but without going into too much detail.

Thank you.

No they don’t go on holiday, see friends or do any activities.

So, yes, there isn’t much else to talk about, when I do visit.

Quite sad 🥺

Elowen33

Could it be that they didn’t have a lot of money previously.

Thank you.

You could be right.
My Dad certainly didn’t have much when he was growing up.

Also my Dad has to have money in his wallet.

He takes money out, every week, regardless ‘just in case’.

Doesn’t go anywhere or do anything to spend it.

Maybe it is because he didn’t have much when he was growing up?

OPs last post says it all. They do nothing and have nothing else to talk about. I suspect that that is the story of their lives.

Look on the bright side, if they go into care you will be able to make sure they are in a care home of their choice because they will be self funding. When they finally die, providing they have left their money to their children, you will be able to have the comfortable retirement that they had the means to have, but chose npt to have.

My DMIL used to worry DH and I as she constantly talked about being a pensioner and the cost of things. We even approached her to tell us if she was struggling and we’d help out where we could. She never asked for help, but we were shocked at how much money she had in the bank.

Maybe mine were the outliers then!

yes, I think it's normal. For my mum and dad it was a fear of running out of money, they never would but I think it is age. At their age they went through a lot of unstable finances run away inflation etc. (when I bought my first house interest rate was 17% this was 1976).

When you've gone through life with very little money, always having to scrimp and save, you just get into the habit of not spending when you have it. As you get older there's not much that you want or need and usually it's too late, the extra money would have been useful when you had a mortgage, children etc. This is probably why money is found tucked away.

Never had much money & still dont have much but think I’m probably happier than a lot of people who moan about how much they have to pay out of an income 3 times mine!

Hubby 72 and I 68 while not rolling in it are more comfortably off than we have ever been. We can treat ourselves now and again if we want to, but we don't go on about it to our children.

well at least this won't be an issue in the future, the last generations of wealthy retired will end because the current generation do not have any spare funds to plough into personal pensions, what comes in goes out each month, and no more final salary pensions means that future retirees will not be rolling in it, but living basic lifestyle on government pensions, if they don't die first, because they keep raising the age of retirement, so kids today will be 90 before they can retire on minimum wage pension

I do talk about money with my son nowadays. My late DH always managed that side of things so I've had to learn a lot and worry about rolling over ISA'a etc because I don't want to make a mistake with money my dh worked so hard for. I've always worked too but earned much less.

Like some of the comments here, we are better off now than we ever were. Other half’ s parents didn’t make 70 so he inherited from them. I was lucky my parents lived into their 80s and both owned their homes, never complained about money, ( mum didn’t have too much) paid their way and had fulfilling lives.
We are doing the same so far but we have been able to help our children through money/ mortgage/ divorce/ emigration costs. If they have it now we know how it has been spent plus they need it to alleviate issues.
We don’t complain about paying tax as we know we benefit from it. Maybe the OP could point this out to said couple! 👍

Mell, are your parents in the lives of their children or get just a visit. I ask you that because my d estranged me, so i haven't seen her or my gc, my son visits for an hour max every few weeks and I don’t know what to talk to him about, if i ask about the family, the reply is, I don’t know they are grown up its their business, I take that as, don't pry, but I don't say that, .he doesn't want to hear about my friends etc as
he says he does not know them, .I invite him and dil for meals, but its also no to that. In my heart I know I am just a duty so i twitter to fill the silence. I would love to go to a garden centre with them, anything or be invited over for a cuppa, I don’t feel a part of a family any more. I wonder if your parents don't know what to talk about, just tell them you are not interested in
knowing about their money but want to know where and what they have been doing. Could they consider a holiday maybe, something to look forward too. It is important to occasionally do things together.
I do agree with Maggieane about some elderly and their wealth. .
I do really envy people who have lovely close relationships with their parents.

In life generally, in work and in retirement we have had good fiancial times and bad. But I cannot say we have ever felt the need to constantly talk money.

We have told our children at all ages when money is tight and living cost have to be moderated and when, we have received money - as in inheritances - we have told them that as well and shared it.

But talk endlessly about money? No, never - and neither did our parent, and my father lived to be 92.