Overall Taxes and Living Expenses in Chicago for a single person (sales, to rent)

[beautifullmind]

hello,

just want to know abt if a person having 65k salry/anum or 5416/month in chicago...

1.) what will be the overall tax deduction? i.e. take home salry /month.
2.) how much minimul money is required for house rent, monthly grocery and utility bills, travel fares, misc expenses etc..
3.) what are the chances of odd jobs over the weekends?


thanks in advance.

Beautifullmind

[Drover]

1) Illinois state income tax is 3%. There are no municipal/county income taxes. Where they get you is sales tax -- up to 11% in the central business district and 10.25% elsewhere in the city.

2) Depends on your lifestyle. Some can get by on $25K/yr, some can burn through $100K a year. To rent a habitable 1-bedroom in a decent neighborhood, count on spending at least $700/mo. Throw in another $150/mo on average for heat/electric, another $75 for phone/cable/internet. CTA monthly pass is $90. Groceries are pretty expensive in the city unless you shop at Aldi -- bet on $250/mo.

3) Beats me.

[beautifullmind]

THank you Drover. so nice of you for your guidance.

[coldwine]

I support that which Drover said.

One tiny disclaimer-- like everyone else in Chicago, you'll learn to shop somewhere else for your needs if you have the time on the weekends, you cam stock up and avoid that horrific sales tax.

[beautifullmind]

means, that if the salry is 5416, then 3 percent will be deducted from it. and when i go shoping for my needs, on every item i will pay 11 % tax right? or 15% tax deducted once from my salry? can you plz eloborate a little further....

thanks

[chitown85]

I think they take 3% per paycheck for state tax. Federal depends on bracket and deductions. Medicare tax around 1.6% and Social Security about 6.2%.

There might be a few grocery items exempt from taxes, but most are charged that amount. Rent for a 1 bedroom in a decent area I think will be more than $700, but you can find plenty for under $1000. If you want to live in an "in" area, it could be higher.

For odd jobs, Chicago is a huge city. There are always opportunities, but you have to seek them out. Bartending is a very competitive in the better neighborhoods for example. Same with retail jobs.

[ajolotl]

You need a very basic tax lesson (independent of Chicago-specific issues).

[beautifullmind]

yes you are right ajolotl....thats why i am here..

[MannheimMadman]

Or you could always use this: PaycheckCity.com | Web-Based Paycheck Calculators

I rent a 1 BR with heat included for $685. I shop for groceries at Aldi. My electric is roughly $26 per month. Everything else is a luxury, I suppose.

[beautifullmind]

thank you very very much MannheimMadman.....this site has cleared many things for me.......thanks a million...

have a nice day.