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Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
44,585 posts, read 81,206,701 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by riaelise
I still stand by my assertion that a family of 4 can make it on $100K just about everywhere. Not extravagantly, but still can live a decent lifestyle. I've seen it.
True, but in high cost areas it is not enough to be considered "a high income" as was the OP's question.
6 figures isn't what it was back in the 1980s and it isn't even what I thought it would be when I was working for 30k coming out of college. Good people who are worth working for usually don't care what car you drive or that you live in the nice suburb, provided you can get your kids into a decent public school.
I will agree that anyone who is crappy at personal finance will struggle at whatever income they make. You have to have a plan. I mentioned this to DW today when she complained about not saving for the kids. We continually blow budgets so it doesn't surprise me that we aren't saving but she's shocked. She can't seem to stay out of the mall.
I know, these are generalizations and hopefully no one gets stuck with all of them...the field you are in, region and when you started your career will also influence these things.
Somewhere, not too many years back I read a study that indicated that a 60K single income blue collar family (husband, wife, 2 kiddos) had a greater happiness contentment ratio than a white collar 250K double income family (same structure).
Huh? Is all I have to say. Obviously you're pretty passionate judging by all the ALL CAPS, but please. Match my post with your passion since obviously little of your response lines up with what I wrote.
Listen, dude, not once did I mention that people "should" relocate to better states for education. Where exactly did I say that? In fact, the word should was never typed. I said that I "urged" people to relocate to lower COL states and the reason that I gave is that if you are struggling to survive on $100K as a household salary, then perhaps it would be better for you to live in states that have lower COLs put still match up to your needs. Guess what, it's possible. I live in such a city. What I suggested wasn't "ass backwards" at all, but actually pretty sound. If you can't move or don't want to move, then that's great. I'm just throwing options out there. I've lived in very high COL cities and while I moved due to marriage, knowing what I know now, I'd definitely be amenable to it.
Nothing wrong with what I said. I still stand by my assertion that a family of 4 can make it on $100K just about everywhere. Not extravagantly, but still can live a decent lifestyle. I've seen it.
You do realize, don't you, that most people can't take their job with them if they move? In areas with lower COL, wages and salaries tend to be correspondingly lower. If you're struggling on $100k in San Francisco and you move to Cleveland because the COL in Cleveland is lower, you have to be aware that you will likely have to take a pay cut that may well leave you still struggling, only in a different place. The same job that pays $100k in San Francisco may well pay only $60k in Cleveland.
We can have 100's of people post here that $100k is not enough in certain areas and there will always be the small minded person that assumes that all of them simply can't manage money.
The same that likes to reduce the complexities of everyones' situation to a single notion that moving is as simple as packing up a suite case and booking a trip as if its some sort of panacea.
I grew up, lived, and worked in a very lower COL area as well as the last 14 years in a high COL area. I'm telling you, it may be the case for some that they can't manage money but that's not generalization that's worth anything in a discussion. Its a population that is just like any other population that exists anywhere else. There is a percentage of people who are good with money and a percentage that is not. If 100k HH income is common in an area that is still considered middle (or even lower middle) class, then are we to assume that its a hot bed of the financially stupid? Its stupid logic.... to think so. Could it be possible that cost of living is high enough to impact consumer purchasing ability of a family... possibly? After all, perceived wealth is often felt via ones' personal consumer power.
Here a luxury apartment is over $3,000/month, and Seattle is not the highest COL cpmpared to San Francisco and New York, and much of southern CA where an older 1 bedroom is that much.. Whether 100k is high income or not really does depend on where you live.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Veyron
So just for rent not ownership your looking at 36,000$ a year. All of sudden 70K even 100k doesn't seem like alot.
No, it's not, if you are renting $3,000/month luxury apartments. So you move into a nice apartment that is not a $3,000/ month "luxury".
$36,000 a year is more than a lot of people make and the thought of spending it on "rent" is ridiculous and somewhat disgusting.
Just one more example of how Americans can get themselves into avoidable debt.
$2300 is the average in 27 zip codes before it drops below $2000
In NJ link I posted it starts at an average of $2700 and well over 100 zip codes are listed above $2000.
One data point doesn't indicate a trend.
[EDIT. correction... I mean zip codes not counties]
Last edited by usayit; 12-20-2013 at 02:04 PM..
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