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Old 06-08-2018, 05:04 PM
 
37 posts, read 52,812 times
Reputation: 23

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Quote:
Originally Posted by pittsflyer View Post
From what my friend told me, you will be living out of a van or in a real crap hole on 60k. Either that or you will have to live in a commune style life with tons of roomates all lingering around.

60k is almost poverty wages in most of the USA. I am not sure what the deal is with so many americans minimizing the effects of sky rocketing house prices. A house is probably the single biggest investment most people will make and when the price tags start rising by 6 figures I dont know how people can trivialize that in their minds, its such a monumental issue that it should be getting way more national attention.

House prices are most likely going to start drasticly effecting GDP because thats all people will have the money for ... is their house payment.
Well dang.
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Old 06-08-2018, 08:39 PM
 
7 posts, read 8,929 times
Reputation: 27
Quote:
Originally Posted by jaxtigers View Post
Wow interesting. How is Denver in comparison to Tampa for you? Also, can you elaborate on my prospects being better in Denver?
Summer time here in Denver is something to be enjoyed not endured like Tampa. You just meet people who are generally more open minded and pleasant than that part of FL. I find a greater sense of neighborhood identity and community purpose than the fragmented nature of Tampa. Mind you Tampa has some qualities similar to Denver, and having lived in several FL locales, it’s the closest place you could find to this there. There is simply greater investment going on here to support a career in Civil. The only caveat is the community of professionals in that space feels smaller than FL as you can move between cities in FL, Orlando, Ft Lauderdale, etc whereas Denver metro is mostly isolated
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Old 06-09-2018, 06:40 PM
 
21 posts, read 17,720 times
Reputation: 33
I moved to Denver earlier in the year without a job. I worked the gig economy and made enough money to cover $1,400 rent and save without a problem. With that said I think housing is extremely overvalued, value is poor in Denver. If I were to do it all over again I'd look at Salt Lake City, a location that is more in the midst of the mountains and closer to ski resorts. There are large parts of Denver/Aurora that look like Kansas.
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Old 06-10-2018, 05:09 AM
 
Location: Denver
1,175 posts, read 1,278,243 times
Reputation: 1483
With 1 withholding, you'll have $3767 monthly after taxes.
If you also contribute to 401k, that'll be even less.
To save $1500 monthly, your expenses should well under 2k.
Rent is around $1400, car insurance and gas maybe $2-300 depending upon how far you drive to work.
That leaves you around $300 for groceries and eating out/drinks etc...
That is with the goal of saving $1.5k otherwise you have enough.
Basically, your salary is almost half with $1.5k savings after tax.
"Is $30,000 enough?" should be the title.

Deduction Type Amount
Federal Income Tax $617.71
Social Security $310.00
Medicare $72.50
Colorado $232.00
Total Deductions $1,232.21

This Check (Take Home) $3,767.79
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Old 06-10-2018, 07:14 AM
 
14,376 posts, read 18,308,011 times
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$60K is enough to live on in Denver. Rent/housing is fairly outrageous here, but you can get roommates and maybe live in a less desirable area. Please note: The less desirable areas are really not that bad. Plus, there's a ton of fun to be had at very low costs around Denver.

You're a 23 year old dude - this place is kind of made for you, imo. You can enjoy the heck out of this place at your age. It's basically Pleasure Island. You've also got a decent job that will likely give you regular raises/promotions.

If you're ok with having some pretty schizoid weather, you should be fine.
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Old 06-11-2018, 08:47 PM
 
Location: Taos NM
5,342 posts, read 5,076,400 times
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I make exactly 60K and am 24 years old. I'm basically the OP

I have no auto or student debt. After a 12 % retirement contribution plus other contributions and post tax, I take home about $1450 every 2 weeks.

Rent is $1400. I really enjoy my newest place and I feel like $1300-1400 gets you a decent place without over spending. I spend about $1000-1200 a month in all other expenses. I'm not that frugal or extravagant.

My savings are about 400-600 a month + retirement contributions. Saving $1500 would difficult. If I got a raise to 70K, I don't think I'd spend much more. You'd need upward career movement to really stack away savings.

The only thing with Denver is forget buying a house. The housing market is stupid and will likely remain that way for a while. It's a huge financial risk at the moment for a first time buyer. The rental market is decent.

I have quite a bit of fun where I'm at now, but I feel there's not really a path to settle down here.
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Old 06-15-2018, 08:11 AM
 
Location: The analog world
17,077 posts, read 13,299,192 times
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It will be more comfortable for you if you live with a roommate.
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Old 06-17-2018, 02:44 PM
 
1,849 posts, read 1,798,277 times
Reputation: 1277
Quote:
Originally Posted by Namegoeshere111 View Post
Summer time here in Denver is something to be enjoyed not endured like Tampa. You just meet people who are generally more open minded and pleasant than that part of FL. I find a greater sense of neighborhood identity and community purpose than the fragmented nature of Tampa. Mind you Tampa has some qualities similar to Denver, and having lived in several FL locales, it’s the closest place you could find to this there. There is simply greater investment going on here to support a career in Civil. The only caveat is the community of professionals in that space feels smaller than FL as you can move between cities in FL, Orlando, Ft Lauderdale, etc whereas Denver metro is mostly isolated
Actually Tampa is probably the most pleasant place to be in the state of FL during the summer. It's slightly cooler, on a bay, windier etc.

Opened minded in Denver? Only some to me, not sure how Tampa measures up.
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Old 06-17-2018, 03:04 PM
 
3,205 posts, read 2,326,152 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Namegoeshere111 View Post
Left Tampa for Denver Metro a year ago working in Transportation field. Try and keep a longer term view in perspective. The job market here is bigger and more competitive but your prospects will be better here to get to where you want to be, whatever that is. Tampa’s problems with traffic, climate, poor planning are legacy issues that there is no will to try and solve. Great to visit, average at best quality of life. Denver excels in quality of life and your salary is adequate to get you going here.
Why is the job market bigger in Denver than Tampa? Denver estimated MSA for 2017 was 2.9 million. Tampa MSA was just over 3 million residents. Now if you are saying for his specialty, maybe its larger but overall, its not.
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Old 06-17-2018, 04:43 PM
 
3,205 posts, read 2,326,152 times
Reputation: 2727
I live in D/FW, visiting Denver several times and turned down an offer at $72K last year because frankly it was cheap-... offer knowing that housing costs were a minimum 20% higher than metro Dallas (and confirmed by an apartment manager I know who transferred to Colorado) plus state income tax. I'm 40+. If the move helps build your resume', with you lack of baggage, you can make it there but I would consider a market with broader engineering opportunities. If you stay out west of the Mississippi, then you are talking Texas the biggest engineering market in the U.S. California or Washington State..


Per capita GDP is good, ranking #19 vs. #40 for Florida so from that perspective, where are going has more potential.
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