[andthentherewere3]

Originally Posted by sticknshoot

Just for the record that 100% false. You can live VERY comfortably allover Ct EXCEPT for a couple of small pockets on 105k.

Define "VERY comfortably". Try buying a home and raising a family on that amount in Fairfield County. Even outside FFC, in many areas of Ct. that income will likely get you a small home that needs updating. Maybe you are thinking of a single person renting.

[FutureTown]

^Define where in FFC. Of course that's a joke in a place like Darien, but, Bethel will work fine with that amount. You're actually above the median income for a family, if I recall the numbers correctly. That number will also work in Danbury, Sherman, Stratford, BPT, and Shelton to pick a few places. 105k is 10k short for towns like Brookfield, New Fairfield, Newtown, Monroe, and Trumbull, but can easily buy a nice, cozy home with that amount. That's a good chunk of FFC I've already listed.

Regarding other areas of Connecticut. If you pick out affluent places like Avon, Glastonbury, Farmington, you're still in line. I can't speak for Madison/Guilford. Not familiar with 'em, but, I don't think they're more expensive than Newtown (could be wrong and lazy to confirm. Someone correct me if so!), and Newtown is within reach with 105k

He's working on Virginia's salary. If he and his wife had similar type of jobs in CT, I imagine his income would boost enough to compensate. There are other factors that go into cost of living. What comes to mind is the debt he's swimming in, if any. That's probably the biggest hindrance.

[EricS39]

Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey not gonna sugar coat it, these states have high cost of living challenges and have sufferered and continue to suffer economically.

But unlike Ohio and Michigan:

1) There remains a wealthy median income population that is still here in part because of wealth brought in from NYC metro area. Ohio and Michigan you won't find the well off communities that are in the mix here despite the losses...Maybe Ann Arbor Michigan is an exception.

2) More university campuses which brings in people for education and learning: UConn, Yale, Princeton, Rutgers, USCU, Fairfield U, UHart, Trinity College, all the colleges in NY (too many to name).... University towns are more stable in recession economies than others.

3) The beach access and cuisine (tracks transient tourism)

[Sigequinox]

Originally Posted by andthentherewere3

Define "VERY comfortably". Try buying a home and raising a family on that amount in Fairfield County. Even outside FFC, in many areas of Ct. that income will likely get you a small home that needs updating. Maybe you are thinking of a single person renting.

Wife and I bring in about 130k, do not live in FFC, and do not feel comfortable starting a family yet. Our expenses are simply too high, especially in winter. Oh and our 325k house still needs updating.


"Oh but we make it by on so much less" or "you can easily do it on that much" they will say. Well, that's fine for you I guess, but I also want to save for retirement, college tuition for the kids, vacation etc.

[andthentherewere3]

Originally Posted by FutureTown

^Define where in FFC. Of course that's a joke in a place like Darien, but, Bethel will work fine with that amount. You're actually above the median income for a family, if I recall the numbers correctly. That number will also work in Danbury, Sherman, Stratford, BPT, and Shelton to pick a few places. 105k is 10k short for towns like Brookfield, New Fairfield, Newtown, Monroe, and Trumbull, but can easily buy a nice, cozy home with that amount. That's a good chunk of FFC I've already listed.

Regarding other areas of Connecticut. If you pick out affluent places like Avon, Glastonbury, Farmington, you're still in line. I can't speak for Madison/Guilford. Not familiar with 'em, but, I don't think they're more expensive than Newtown (could be wrong and lazy to confirm. Someone correct me if so!), and Newtown is within reach with 105k

He's working on Virginia's salary. If he and his wife had similar type of jobs in CT, I imagine his income would boost enough to compensate. There are other factors that go into cost of living. What comes to mind is the debt he's swimming in, if any. That's probably the biggest hindrance.

Exactly, "within reach" you'll be getting a "cozy" home with that amount, which translates to a smallish home needing updates. You will also need a decent down payment. Paying for the typical home updates, renovations and repairs, taxes, saving for college, retirement, and the general high cost of raising a family, that just doesn't add up to "VERY comfortably" on that salary as previously stated. I know only too well how much it costs to raise a family in that area.

[AnonChick]

Originally Posted by sticknshoot

Just for the record that 100% false. You can live VERY comfortably allover Ct EXCEPT for a couple of small pockets on 105k.

Heh if we were living on 105k/year, we wouldn't have had to put the patio in by hand, ourselves. We'd have hired professionals to kill the ants that are killing our front lawn instead of me having to figure out that a 4.5 on my rotary spreader is not the same 4.5 on the spreader the pesticide package recommends.

At 105k/year, we'd have that dead tree down in our back yard already instead of just staring wistfully at it and hoping the wind blows it down AWAY from our house some day very soon. Our fence would have been replaced 2 years ago. I would totally have paid someone to paint our walls instead of wondering when that project will ever get finished.

My husband would not be driving around with a 2001 pickup truck that he bought used in 2003. I would -definitely- not have replaced the Jaguar that needed a new transmission, with a Scion XD.

We're living comfortably now, but "just barely" on the comfortable side of comfortably. And we're doing that, in a very lovely suburban neighborhood with trees and a neighborhood park and sidewalks and people who walk around and say good morning to each other and no violent crime other than a few domestic disputes which you'd expect anywhere. We're doing that on less than 80k/year, right in New Haven County.

Yeah at 105k/year we'd be doing a whole lot better than "just this side of comfortable."

[andthentherewere3]

Just pointing out again, please note I was quoting sticknshoot above, who'd posted, "Just for the record that 100% false. You can live VERY comfortably allover Ct EXCEPT for a couple of small pockets on 105k". I was pointing out that it's not "a couple of small pockets", that is a sweeping generalization, especially if you have a family as I noted. People without children have no clue how expensive it is to raise a family and pay for college in Ct.

[FutureTown]

Out of all the towns I mentioned, Newtown is the most affluent/expensive one. Why not pick on the other ones not in reach? At the top of my head, after Newtown, would be Redding, Easton, then Ridgefield. At that point, 105k is tough. So, you're in quite a good crowd with 105k. It's not like you have to live in East BPT with 105k.

My family makes way less than the average Newtowner and we're doing fine. I hope you're not sending your kids to Fordham University or something. You have to be practical and make sacrifices somewhere. Even with people making 200k, sacrifices are made somewhere. You get what you pay for as JayCT states. Connecticut is better than practically any Southern state for your children's education on average whether that's public schools or proximity to top colleges, public and private. You're also in driving distance to Boston, NYC, and Philly. If I live in Nashville or Houston...what's the closest city to me? New Orleans? Memphis? They don't even compare. Great thing about CT is that going from Upper FFC to Hartford or White Plains is roughly 45 mins without traffic. The same time it takes for me to almost get from one side of Houston to the other. I'm in the same damn city while I can cross several counties here, and I like that aspect. There's a feeling of freedom (double meaning, lol) here. I don't feel trapped in one city.

Also, in several of these places, there isn't much rural charm. Especially the Southwest. When going from one city to another (Let's say Dallas to OKC), you'll run into alot of open, flat land with boring on both sides of the road. As much as I hate the traffic here in CT, I love driving on I-84, especially during the Summer with its greenery. There's so many little things like these that just pile up.

[andthentherewere3]

Originally Posted by FutureTown

Out of all the towns I mentioned, Newtown is the most affluent/expensive one. Why not pick on the other ones not in reach?

I did when I quoted your "cozy" in reference to the other towns. $105k will indeed get you a "cozy" home in those other FFC towns. A family could live comfortably there on $105k with sacrifices, but not "VERY comfortably". But I agree that I would not want to leave CT in search of greener pastures. I'm sick of all the sacrificing, but the high cost of living here is worth it.

[Sigequinox]

Originally Posted by AnonChick

Heh if we were living on 105k/year, we wouldn't have had to put the patio in by hand, ourselves. We'd have hired professionals to kill the ants that are killing our front lawn instead of me having to figure out that a 4.5 on my rotary spreader is not the same 4.5 on the spreader the pesticide package recommends.

At 105k/year, we'd have that dead tree down in our back yard already instead of just staring wistfully at it and hoping the wind blows it down AWAY from our house some day very soon. Our fence would have been replaced 2 years ago. I would totally have paid someone to paint our walls instead of wondering when that project will ever get finished.

My husband would not be driving around with a 2001 pickup truck that he bought used in 2003. I would -definitely- not have replaced the Jaguar that needed a new transmission, with a Scion XD.

We're living comfortably now, but "just barely" on the comfortable side of comfortably. And we're doing that, in a very lovely suburban neighborhood with trees and a neighborhood park and sidewalks and people who walk around and say good morning to each other and no violent crime other than a few domestic disputes which you'd expect anywhere. We're doing that on less than 80k/year, right in New Haven County.

Yeah at 105k/year we'd be doing a whole lot better than "just this side of comfortable."

I can tell you right now that if you made over 105k you would still be doing all that yourself. I just treated my lawn. I redid my kitchen myself (I'm not a contractor, but have an ambitious DIY attitude)--stone backsplash, sand and repaint cabinets, install new appliances, countertop refinish, paint. Mow my own lawn, cut down my own trees, installed the electric fense, etc etc etc.

The "sweet spot" for objective comfort in CT is definitely not 105, it's not even 130. I would put it at around 200k. Sure, some people making 200k have problems too. If they went out and bought an 800k home and have every project done by professionals too while going on expensive vacations twice a year it will definitely hurt, but I would say the vast majority of the state would be able to "very comfortably" live on that annual income.