Do young people living in NYC save any money or have any free time? (Laurens: buy, quality of life)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I personally like to save a little and spend a little. I'm afraid of not taking advantage of my youth, but I'm equally afraid of blowing all my money and having nothing.
Life is so unpredictable its hard to plan sometimes. You could end up in a wheel chair and never get to do all the things you planned for later in life. At the same time you could enjoy yourself too much and end up never being able to retire and still working as you enter your grave.
I lean towards enjoying your youth. Life's not that fun when you get really old, tired and immobile.
Still save but, come on, you're only young once. If you're young with a good job in NYC, the world is your oyster.
I personally like to save a little and spend a little. I'm afraid of not taking advantage of my youth, but I'm equally afraid of blowing all my money and having nothing.
Life is so unpredictable its hard to plan sometimes. You could end up in a wheel chair and never get to do all the things you planned for later in life. At the same time you could enjoy yourself too much and end up never being able to retire and still working as you enter your grave.
Agreed.. I can understand spending more to do all the things you enjoy but not on getting a super expensive place.. I'd still look to spend 1300-1500 on rent even if I made 200K/yr.
I have a close friend who just moved to NYC, and though I gave him some good suggestions on several neighborhoods (some cheaper), he chose to live in a Williamsburg loft off the Bedford stop, and had to get a second job to make ends meet. But then again, he's got expensive taste and he doesn't mind working his butt off to keep some semblance of that lifestyle...
I think a lot depends on the person and what they really want--I know some people who make around $35,000-40,000, live in decent areas (with roommates) and are happy.
It won't be a glamerous lifestyle, but a single person can easily live fairly comfortably in NYC on 80k. That's about what I make and I have no debt, max out my Roth IRA every year, put 5% into a deferred compenstion plan, and put away a good portion into a regular savings account.
Working lots of hours really helps you save money, as that's time that you're not spending out on the town, and its also a bit of an incentive to get a simple apartment rather than a luxury one since you're not there that much.
Your friend may have crazy student loans or something though, so that can change things of course.
There's a saying, the more you make, the more you spend, and that is probably the case with your friend.
$45,000 in DC is almost the same here, you won't make all that much more here sadly. Even more sadly, let's say you make the same amount here. You manage to find a 1 BR apt for $1200. (They are out there in good areas). After taxes, rent is now half your salary.
If you don't mind having a longer commute to the city, and not going out and eating out all the time you can actually save. Or just get roommates.
What do you suggest? Spend every penny and assume the world will end in 2012?
The happy medium.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
