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I don't think it's better to have a low paying job in this country but it's not beneficial to have a 6 figure salary either. I did a paycheck calculator on a single person claiming 1 on their taxes making 50,000 a year and a 100,000 a year. The take home pay for 50,000 year is $710 a week and the single person making 100,000 a year would take home 1,200 a week. The 100,000 earner brings home an extra 490 a week but you look at that the person with the six figure salary has more student loans to get that salary and is probably in more debt from buying a bigger house and a more exspensive car. In reality their lifestyles aren't much different finiancial wise. The 50,000 earner pays 26% in taxes while the 100k Earner pays 35% in taxes. It seems the more you make in this country the more you get screwed over. In my honest opinion a salary of 50,000-70,000 is the sweet spot for what the average individual should make to live comfortably if your single. For a family 80,000 would be a comfortable salary.
I don't think it's better to have a low paying job in this country but it's not beneficial to have a 6 figure salary either. I did a paycheck calculator on a single person claiming 1 on their taxes making 50,000 a year and a 100,000 a year. The take home pay for 50,000 year is $710 a week and the single person making 100,000 a year would take home 1,200 a week. The 100,000 earner brings home an extra 490 a week but you look at that the person with the six figure salary has more student loans to get that salary and is probably in more debt from buying a bigger house and a more exspensive car. In reality their lifestyles aren't much different finiancial wise. The 50,000 earner pays 26% in taxes while the 100k Earner pays 35% in taxes. It seems the more you make in this country the more you get screwed over. In my honest opinion a salary of 50,000-70,000 is the sweet spot for what the average individual should make to live comfortably if your single. For a family 80,000 would be a comfortable salary.
... and the person earning $50K qualifies for subsidized healthcare premiums that the other person does not. Also the PMI for their mortgage if they have one is deductible.
Those of us in the six-figure salary range lose most of the deductions and benefits that should be granted to ALL citizens.
... and the person earning $50K qualifies for subsidized healthcare premiums that the other person does not. Also the PMI for their mortgage if they have one is deductible.
Those of us in the six-figure salary range lose most of the deductions and benefits that should be granted to ALL citizens.
I forgot to mention that. 6 figure earners are forced to pay higher insurance premiums for the same insurance coverage.
I guess the only benefit of making six figures is higher 401k matching.
Not so fast. I am considered a "highly compensated" employee by my employer plan. I cannot contribute more than $7500/year to my 401k. I get a refund check every March for my "excess" contributions.
your cost of living expands as you make more money. People make the mistake of increasing their carrying costs and then they end up struggling the same as when they only made $30k.
I have a friend that started working at the same time as me. 25 years later she had married an audiologist with a successful practice, she had been promoted to a director at a major beverage company. They moved into a million dollar house where the property taxes start at $20k per year and go up. Last time I spoke to her she was complaining about not having money but she takes pretty nice international trips atleast once a year.
I live on 1 salary in a minimalist lifestyle and we also are struggling and complaining about not having money.
I have a friend who chose to live in a lower middle class neighborhood even though his wife makes more than what people in the upper middle class neighborhood earn and you would never guess by looking at how they live that they've got a comfortable life or that their 3 children will never need to work even though they will be expected to earn their own money.
Not so fast. I am considered a "highly compensated" employee by my employer plan. I cannot contribute more than $7500/year to my 401k. I get a refund check every March for my "excess" contributions.
I contribute 18000 to 401k, you sure you aren't putting it in correct place? $18k is the current max so you should be able to put that amount in regardless of them matching or not.
No, making less money sucks and you are always living paycheck to paycheck. The more money you make the more you can save. Having a lot of cash in the bank gives you confidence and more freedom over your decisions. Being broke makes you feel helpless and limits your options.
Husband lost his job, doesn't qualify for unemployment. So, I applied for food stamps. Now, my app was screwed up, in that they asked for 6 weeks of paystubs (I get paid weekly), but then counted all 6 weeks as my average monthly income. We still qualify for CHIP and about $100/mo in food stamps, some help, but we're short a lot more than the approx $500 in benefits monthly that we'll be getting is. Also, my husband just got hired for a low wage job, so we'll lose the food stamps and the CHIP.
I'd much rather he was working his middle class job, so we had money to replace the tires on the car, buy school supplies, eat out once a while, add meat back to the daily menu, eat fresh fruit and produce again(currently can only afford to buy it for the kids)... and the list goes on.
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