[Mag3.14]

I guess this is a question for people who already live in Vegas - is $50,000 enough of a household income to live comfortably out there? is it enough to purchase a home in a safe area and afford a car etc

I know it will depend on how expensive your taste is etc but lets just say for 2 people & 1 child, 2 cars and a 3 bed house...

[Cyborgt800]

...yes.

[ft_chief]

Originally Posted by ian6479

I guess this is a question for people who already live in Vegas - is $50,000 enough of a household income to live comfortably out there? is it enough to purchase a home in a safe area and afford a car etc

I know it will depend on how expensive your taste is etc but lets just say for 2 people & 1 child, 2 cars and a 3 bed house...

Just keep your house under $150K and you should be fine.

[logline]

Yes

[Nolan05]

Together my wife and I make 62,000...live in a 1295/month rental with 4 br and 3 bath...We had a van we just bought and another suv that we pay full coverage on, all the normal bills( water, elec, gas, cable, a camper and storage payment in Ohio and 3 cc payments) and have a kid at Hend International which is one of the more expensive private schools out here. My wife does teach there but we do not get that much of a discount. All 3 of our kids are involved in sports and we still are able to go out and have fun...Our bills are much cheaper than when we were in Ohio if you can believe that.....

[Robustus]

Originally Posted by ft_chief

Just keep your house under $150K and you should be fine.

I'd stay under $120k for two people with a kid and a total income of $50k. That's $4166/mo pre-tax. Figure 25% tax-rate, that's $3175/mo.

Typical expenses:
$750/mo -- Mortgage, Property Taxes, Homeowners Insurance
$50 -- HOA
$30 -- Trash and Sewer
$100 -- Electric (year-round avg)
$30 -- Gas
$20 -- Water
$60 -- Cox (one of the cheap packages)
$100 -- Car insurance, registration
$400 -- Food
$85 -- Gas
$150 -- Health Insurance
$100 -- Cell phones

That's $1875/mo in expenses (I used numbers that I think would apply to a typical 3/2 SFR in Vegas).

Factor in:
- Any student loans
- Any credit card debt
- Any car payments
- Miscellaneous expenses (car repairs, gifts, medical copays, whatever)

And you're likely getting close to $3175/mo.

Doable, yes. But hopefully you don't have any debt, fully own your car, don't eat out much, and can do your own car repair.

[MadManofBethesda]

nm

[MadManofBethesda]

Originally Posted by Robustus

I'd stay under $120k for two people with a kid and a total income of $50k. That's $4166/mo pre-tax. Figure 25% tax-rate, that's $3175/mo.

FWIW, their effective tax rate won't be anywhere close to 25%. In fact, it will be closer to 7%, or less than $300/mo.

[Bps401]

Originally Posted by Nolan05

Together my wife and I make 62,000...live in a 1295/month rental with 4 br and 3 bath...We had a van we just bought and another suv that we pay full coverage on, all the normal bills( water, elec, gas, cable, a camper and storage payment in Ohio and 3 cc payments) and have a kid at Hend International which is one of the more expensive private schools out here. My wife does teach there but we do not get that much of a discount. All 3 of our kids are involved in sports and we still are able to go out and have fun...Our bills are much cheaper than when we were in Ohio if you can believe that.....

That's pretty sweet. Appreciate the breakdown on these expenses.

[ScoopLV]

Originally Posted by Robustus

I'd stay under $120k for two people with a kid and a total income of $50k. That's $4166/mo pre-tax. Figure 25% tax-rate, that's $3175/mo.

Typical expenses:
$750/mo -- Mortgage, Property Taxes, Homeowners Insurance
$100 -- Electric (year-round avg)
$30 -- Gas
$20 -- Water
$60 -- Cox (one of the cheap packages)
$100 -- Car insurance, registration
$400 -- Food
$85 -- Gas
$150 -- Health Insurance
$100 -- Cell phones

As mentioned earlier, people who make 50K do not pay 25% in taxes. This is the United States, not Sweden.

I also think the above items that I didn't delete are off. I know that I'm nickle and diming a few of these, but every little bit helps. Monthly expenses are the bugbear of wealth creation.

Mortgage, property taxes, insurance -- higher than $750 a month unless OP has a good chunk saved for a down payment.

Electric can be whittled down to an average of $70. But that requires spending a couple thousand in energy efficiency upgrades up front.

Our gas bill in the winter is $25/mo, and in the summer it's more like $9/mo

Our water bill most months is in the $15/range

I get internet and TV through centurylink for about $60 per month. So that's one less expense to worry about. When you get down to it, cable can be replaced by internet, if you don't mind downloading stuff instead of watching it live.

We bundle insurance through our mutual insurance company, so car expenses aren't $100/mo. More like $80.

I can feed a family of three WELL for around $50/week, so $200 per month. It's all about hitting the right markets at the right times, and not buying any pre-packaged crap, soda, and similar. For instance, a 10 lb. sack of russet potatoes costs $1.00 at the Mexican markets and lasts two weeks. Buying local, buying what's in season, and doing all your own cooking makes ALL the difference.

Gas: This will vary based on commuting distance and mpg. Ours is about $40 per month.

Health insurance: Depends on the employer. Both my wife and I don't pay a dime for insurance. Our employers pick up 100% of the tab. It's good to be in a union.

Cell phones. This one irks me. I've got friends who don't have a pot to piddle in, yet they're watching streaming video at work (against company policy) on their phones. They pay around $100/month. I pay $30 per month for dumbphone service for three people. Use the internet at home, WORK at work. You'll be employee of the month and get raises and promotions.


So for my list, we've got:

Housing (mortgage, insurance, etc): $1,500
HOA: $50
Trash: $30
Electric: $70
Gas: $15
Water: $15
Satellite/Internet: $60
Car insurance/reg: $80
Food (and lets add some beer and splurge occasionally): $300
Gasoline (let's split the difference): $60
Health insurance: $0-$150
Cell phone: $30

And add:

Security system: $10
Home/car maintenance: $100

$2,310 per month, with a bigger house and less of a down payment. Of course the big variable is "child expenses" when can be "not much" to "every single penny," depending on a lot of things.

But I agree -- having a zero balance on the credit cards, no outstanding loans, a decent credit score and a little cush in the bank make a BIG difference.