Is $37,000 a nice salary for a single person in Indianapolis? (Carmel: student loans, hotels) - (IN) - Page 6 - City-Data Forum

wh15395 · 05-05-2015, 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ColdAilment

Why did you have to bring racism into this? The NFL is not made up of ALL black players.

I'm just calling it what it is. I'm not calling anyone a racist.

ColdAilment · 05-05-2015, 10:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wh15395

I'm just calling it what it is. I'm not calling anyone a racist.

Calling what it is according to who? You? Racism was not a part of this discussion at all, and now you're ushering it in...attempting to derail the thread.

To keep things on topic, $37,000 a year is a manageable income in Indy, it's been rated as the most affordable large metro in the country several times before. You'll live a quaint life in a 1-2 bedroom apartment with a modest vehicle, you won't struggle if you budget your money, but you won't be taking many vacations either.

wh15395 · 05-05-2015, 11:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ColdAilment

Calling what it is according to who? You? Racism was not a part of this discussion at all, and now you're ushering it in...attempting to derail the thread.

To keep things on topic, $37,000 a year is a manageable income in Indy, it's been rated as the most affordable large metro in the country several times before. You'll live a quaint life in a 1-2 bedroom apartment with a modest vehicle, you won't struggle if you budget your money, but you won't be taking many vacations either.

It has been derailed for pages already. It should be closed.

Humboldt1 · 05-06-2015, 04:19 PM

I agree that you can get by on $37K per year in Indy, especially if single. With a family and kids it would be much tougher but I have known people who have done it.

Housing cost is very affordable in Indy compared with some other metros. Other costs (food, gas), but housing costs (rent, taxes) are much less.

Not sure why some people are always wanting to have threads closed down.

It is reasonable to discuss what is nice salary for both single, married, and family within this thread and what people define as living comfortably.

mysticaltyger · 11-28-2015, 07:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dyadic

That's a myth. The National Bureau of Economic Research concluded that 16.9% of retired NFL players go bankrupt after retirement. Similarly, ESPN's Five Thirty Eight notes that the overall bankruptcy rate for NFL players is nearly the same as the rate for all American in the same age bracket (25-34).

Sorry for the exaggeration...but it's still a pretty sorry statistic. These folks make more in their short careers than many Americans will their whole lives, yet they go bankrupt at the same rate as the populace at large.

Katisu · 12-19-2015, 02:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Humboldt1

37000 will allow you to pay your bills assuming you don't have a car note or school loans. I made 32800 13 years ago in Indy and lived at home with mom and dad. I had no debt and my only major luxury was buying lunch everyday (6 to 10 dollars back then).

I would recommend getting a roommate to count down on costs and possibly bringing your lunch when possible. Be smart and don't go out and buy a new car. You can make it work but y will need to be frugal.

A "nice" salary for a single person starting out in even a cheaper city like Indy would be over 50k.

I would respectfully disagree with most of this. My first job out of college (8 years ago) was $22k. My second was $24k. Granted all of my jobs have been government, but anything over $30k for a person without kids is more than doable in Indy, as long as you're not extravagant.

Serious Conversation · 12-20-2015, 08:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Katisu

I would respectfully disagree with most of this. My first job out of college (8 years ago) was $22k. My second was $24k. Granted all of my jobs have been government, but anything over $30k for a person without kids is more than doable in Indy, as long as you're not extravagant.

You're assuming virtually zero debt, living in the slums or outside the metro (where rents are cheaper), and a complete no-frills lifestyle. Could you do it? Yes, but it would suck.

Humboldt1 · 12-22-2015, 08:44 AM

On 37k it will be difficult to live without a roommate. I personally like eating out for lunch (if nothing else to et out of the office) everyday though some of my coworkers did bring their lunch when I was first starting out. These were newer new hires with student loans and secretaries. Also, some senior employees would but these were people on a diet who would bring in their diet frozen food. Now, most of my lunches are client lunches and on the company dime.

My is sister makes 63k, is single with no kids and no student debt. She has a decent house just north of Meridian Hills and drives a basic car (10 year old Honda fit). She has a roommate who pays 500 per month in rent.

She lives decent but does not live extravagantly.

I think a single person in Indy would need at least 50k to live decent.

Serious Conversation · 12-22-2015, 09:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Humboldt1

On 37k it will be difficult to live without a roommate. I personally like eating out for lunch (if nothing else to et out of the office) everyday though some of my coworkers did bring their lunch when I was first starting out. These were newer new hires with student loans and secretaries. Also, some senior employees would but these were people on a diet who would bring in their diet frozen food. Now, most of my lunches are client lunches and on the company dime.

My is sister makes 63k, is single with no kids and no student debt. She has a decent house just north of Meridian Hills and drives a basic car (10 year old Honda fit). She has a roommate who pays 500 per month in rent.

She lives decent but does not live extravagantly.

I think a single person in Indy would need at least 50k to live decent.

$50k is not required to live decently in Indy.

I live in Carmel and pay under $1000 in rent and all utilities, including cable/internet. I eat out a couple of times a week, and usually go to a bar once a week. I've taken two trips to Florida in the past year, and take a couple of weekend trips throughout the Midwest a quarter - I've probably been in hotels for at least a week this year through the Midwest alone. All the while, I've improved my financial standing considerably from where I was back home in Tennessee. I'll make $57k this year.

If a person had no debt at all, I think $40k would be perfectly sufficient, assuming they don't have an extravagant lifestyle.

Northwest Indiana · 12-23-2015, 05:23 AM

I think the most doable salary for a single person with no kids in Indy to live with only basic stresses would be somewhere around $45,000. On this salary, you should be able to afford to live almost anywhere in the metro (without a roommate), still put money towards some savings, take a vacation or mini-vacation once a year, pay down student loans (assuming it is not an astronomical amount from a private school or something), still be able to go out on weekends, and if needed, purchase a car if one is not already owned. You may be able to purchase nicer clothing or accessories every now and then and also have money to give to charity, if you wanted to. To me, a "nice salary" is one where you do not feel like you have to sacrifice the basics and you can also have some reasonable extras. A salary where you cannot even meet your basic needs without serious compromises and sacrifices is not a "nice salary". $37,000 is doable but would add more stress. If this person were to live with their parents or have a roommate or two, it would save a ton of money and put them more in line with someone making $45,000.