Do you consider a $93k salary a good salary in Chicago? (Lincoln: rent, insurance)

[frimpter928]

Someone who is single, no children or dependents, little credit card debt, but significant amount of student loan debt. Someone who goes out but not a ton either. Someone who wants to live in a neighborhood like Logan Square or Lincoln Square (perhaps even Avondale or Irving Park). Curious to hear what people think of this salary in Chicago.

[Logic87]

Yep plenty of people live well making much less in the Chicago area.

[Chicago60614]

Yes, you'll do just fine in Chicago on $93K. When you say a lot of student debt what do you pay each month? That would certainly have an impact. $300 a month or $1,200 a month...

[frimpter928]

Originally Posted by Chicago60614

Yes, you'll do just fine in Chicago on $93K. When you say a lot of student debt what do you pay each month? That would certainly have an impact. $300 a month or $1,200 a month...

Like $1000 per month. Rent $1500. Outside of that no other debt other than $2k in credit card which it totally manageable and I will pay off with one payment with my holiday bonus (I anticipate a bonus of $8k) but as of now just paying $100 per month for that credit card (minimum is technically $25 per month). No car debt, car is paid off and only pay liability but never use the car since work is in downtown. I don't pay for cell phone, company pays for that.

Also, 3% to 5% salary increase every year. Last year it was 5% increase, this year I am not sure yet (I think it will be 3%). So come January salary will be closer to $96k.

[via chicago]

the average HOUSEHOLD income in Chicago is 55k. what do you think?

[flamadiddle]

Doable, I'd also factor in $1,500 per month to max out your 401K. Not sure of your age, but if you start now, you will thank yourself big time when you hit 60 and have a 7 figure retirement nest egg staring you in the face.

[OyCrumbler]

Originally Posted by frimpter928

Like $1000 per month. Rent $1500. Outside of that no other debt other than $2k in credit card which it totally manageable and I will pay off with one payment with my holiday bonus (I anticipate a bonus of $8k) but as of now just paying $100 per month for that credit card (minimum is technically $25 per month). No car debt, car is paid off and only pay liability but never use the car since work is in downtown. I don't pay for cell phone, company pays for that.

Also, 3% to 5% salary increase every year. Last year it was 5% increase, this year I am not sure yet (I think it will be 3%). So come January salary will be closer to $96k.

Well, how much of never use the car is never use the car? Your 93k salary is fine, but you can also sell the car and put the money towards your debts / steak dinners.

[MSchemist80]

Yes that is more than sufficient. You could even afford to buy a condo or SFH in some decent neighborhoods and still have plenty leftover for savings. Though I live in the suburbs, I own my own SFH and still manage to save 30% of my gross income.

[emathias]

The general answer is yes, it is more than enough to live a fine life in Chicago.

The longer answer is, like most financial answers, "It depends."

It depends on what you want to do while living in Chicago. Do you want to pick up expensive hobbies? Like getting a pilot's license or collecting expensive wines or building extravagant model rockets? Do you think you might develop a taste for the theater or the symphony and drop four figures on subscriptions?

It depends on whether you're satisfied with what $1,500/month in rent gets you. Do you find yourself being pulled more and more toward wanting to have a spacious condo downtown in an amenities building? Do you really feel like you need a single family home in a neighborhood that's still lively and walkable with a short commute? Or rent in one of those cool new buildings along Milwaukee Ave or downtown?

It depends on all those little decisions that, together, add up to substantial extra expense. Just as one example, you say your company pays for your mobile service. Personally, I would NEVER not have my own, personal mobile phone. Who knows what your company will do with all the personal data that can collect on and from a mobile phone. It's their phone, so do they want to know where you slept last night? Do they want to see if you were at the bar until 2am yesterday? Do they want to pull down your mobile browser search history? Maybe it's innocent. Maybe it's not. Maybe it's innocent while you're at the office, but is it at 11pm on a Saturday after getting ditched by your friends? So maybe you decide to get your own, personal mobile service eventually. Little things like that can add up.

It depends on whether you moved here from somewhere and suddenly start getting home sick and flying home every weekend. Or you've always lived in Chicago and decide you need to see the world, so fly to some new city every weekend.

It depends on whether your dating life starts to get expensive. Does dating a certain person make you want to take them out to fancier places to participate in the "seen" part of the "see and be seen" scene? Are you prone to grand gestures when you're in the smitten, puppy-dog phase of dating? Do you really want to be able to show your special someone Paris in the springtime, summer in Greece, Christmas in London and the Italian Lake Country in autumn?

Basically, if you are reasonably frugal and don't have ambitious spending plans it'll be plenty of money. But the more you decide that, since you live in a great city like Chicago, you may as well start to take advantage of some of the big city benefits Chicago can provide, the smaller a $96,000/yr salary will start to feel.

[frimpter928]

Originally Posted by OyCrumbler

Well, how much of never use the car is never use the car? Your 93k salary is fine, but you can also sell the car and put the money towards your debts / steak dinners.

I use the car maybe once a week. The thing is it's paid off, and my insurance is 150 every 6 months. Gas is negligible since I barely use it. But it is nice to use in the winter though. While in the summer I walk to the grocery store, in the winter, I rarely do. So around now I will probably use the care maybe 2-5 times a week (please note times not days), most likely on the weekends.