Looking for a place to live in Dallas but feeling like I’m being out priced

[Sunbather]

Originally Posted by Tex Luthor

No one wants to make 70k and be forced to live in a sketchy, inconvenient, amenity lacking area because that's all they can realistically afford.

Absolutely no single person in Dallas is making 70k and forced to live in a sketchy, inconvenient, amenity lacking area. I just took my personal budget spreadsheet and adjusted it to the OPs 70k income level. I rent a very nice, quality construction apartment in the M Streets area with good amenities and a great location. My girlfriend and I both live there very comfortably (but I lived there solo before she moved in). I used this apartment for the OP, by themselves, for the rent payment.

I kept my real utility bills (insurance, power, water, internet, netflix, phone etc.) and other monthly expenses the same. I simply scaled down my food/dining/entertainment budget and the investment income to fit the 70k salary.

With a 70k salary, I was still able to budget a 10% contribution to a 401k, max contributions to a Roth IRA, have $1300 a month in food/dining/entertainment expenses, and $3,500 leftover toward an annual budget for vacations/big purchases. All while renting a nice apartment in a prime location. If you have student loans or a car loan, the vacation budget and food/dining/entertainment budget gets pinched or maybe youre not maxing the Roth IRA.

That's a plenty comfortable life in a very non-sketchy area. Any perception that this isn't achievable is based on bad information.

[justsomeguy]

Originally Posted by jamiecta

Absolutely no single person in Dallas is making 70k and forced to live in a sketchy, inconvenient, amenity lacking area. I just took my personal budget spreadsheet and adjusted it to the OPs 70k income level. I rent a very nice, quality construction apartment in the M Streets area with good amenities and a great location. My girlfriend and I both live there very comfortably (but I lived there solo before she moved in). I used this apartment for the OP, by themselves, for the rent payment.

I kept my real utility bills (insurance, power, water, internet, netflix, phone etc.) and other monthly expenses the same. I simply scaled down my food/dining/entertainment budget and the investment income to fit the 70k salary.

With a 70k salary, I was still able to budget a 10% contribution to a 401k, max contributions to a Roth IRA, have $1300 a month in food/dining/entertainment expenses, and $3,500 leftover toward an annual budget for vacations/big purchases. All while renting a nice apartment in a prime location. If you have student loans or a car loan, the vacation budget and food/dining/entertainment budget gets pinched or maybe youre not maxing the Roth IRA.

That's a plenty comfortable life in a very non-sketchy area. Any perception that this isn't achievable is based on bad information.

Just curious, how much is the apartment rent and what is the size/br/ba?

[Sunbather]

$1460 per month. It's my 3rd year here, so that price reflects no promotions as well as a couple minor increases in rent. The space is 830 ft2 1BR/1BA. Unless rent spikes unexpectedly, I plan to renew again.

[BigDGeek]

Originally Posted by jamiecta

$1460 per month. It's my 3rd year here, so that price reflects no promotions as well as a couple minor increases in rent. The space is 830 ft2 1BR/1BA. Unless rent spikes unexpectedly, I plan to renew again.

Good lord!

[Sunbather]

Originally Posted by BigDGeek

Good lord!

It's not cheap, but it's very reasonable to me for new construction in a prime area of a big city. And certainly affordable for an OP making $70k. I'm the first and only tenant in my unit. Quality new appliances, efficient construction and mechanical (summer peak energy bills are like $50 and that includes an electric water heater and cooking dinner most nights), quiet, pool, gym, walkable to the DART that I take every day. For all of that, the price is spot on for Dallas imo. I've looked around each year when my lease is up and can't find anything that matches it for my lifestyle for the cost.

Sure, it's $200 more a month than the mortgage on my 2800 ft2 house in Greenville, SC was. But, it's all relative, so I expected that. It's significantly less $/ft2 than any of the places I looked at in Brooklyn, Chicago, or Seattle before I ultimately took the job here 3 years ago.

But the point of my post was: if I can create a budget that covers this rent plus reasonable savings plus a healthy entertainment and dining budget on $70k, then no one in Dallas should be forced to live in sketchy, amenity-lacking areas on that salary.

PS 830 ft2 is gracious plenty for two people without kids unless they are hoarders. Even more so for a single person. Several of our friends (couples and singles) have moved into the same floor plan we have here and love it. I'm more comfortable living here than I was in the aforementioned house in Greenville. I can't imagine needing more space, even after owning a house nearly 3x this size.