[AA702]

A Bay Area couple with two kids can't make it on $50,000 a year

Does 50K cut it in Las Vegas? The gap between the "haves" and "have nots" is really widening. That is so true in cities like San Fran, L.A...etc..

[tijlover]

In a state where high rise condos/apt. buildings are viewed as nuclear waste dumps, it's not surprising that the housing costs will always be an issue in California. Can't build here, can't build there. Neighborhood preservationists saying can't build here, not there either. That's the real problem of housing affordability in California. Malibu has 25 miles of coastline, you could put a hundred 30-40 story high rises along that stretch of coastline alone, and you'd see how quickly the house prices would become more affordable. And then there's all that coastline from Malibu to Imperial Beach. Small wonder that Trump ended up building his resort towers in Tijuana. He probably got turned down from one coastal city to another and finally concluded that Tijuana was his only hope for construction. San Francisco could solve their housing problems likewise, telling those self-seeking neighborhood preservationists to take a hike, and let the developers have their freedom to solve the housing problem with more units available. And then there's all that wasted acreage in Beverly Hills. Think of all the high rises or medium density housing that could be built there. California has an enviable system, keep the supply tight and the prices will remain high. Maybe the same system will be incorporated here one day with one out of 3 being former Californians.

[AA702]

If you read the article, their apt only costs $750 a month. I think its the other costs that add up living in SF.

[PinkString]

If they didn't have kids, they could get by. Now if they moved out of state to a less expensive place, say like Missouri, they could live pretty well if they could keep their salaries.

[cjski21]

Keeping the salaries would be the issue though. Most places with low costs of living also have low local salaries.

[RachelKnott]

An interesting report came out today from the California Budget Project. The title? Making Ends Meet: How Much Does It Cost to Raise a Family in California. The website is California Budget Project. No wonder we can't even tread water any more here in California.

[AA702]

I think it might be better sometimes for families with kids just to have 1 bread winner or have one have a part time so they can eliminate the cost of day care. The high cost of day care doesn't help the situation. But its really tough because if they did move to a state like South Carolina or Misouri they probably would'nt make the salaries either but I think it might balance out. The fact that their combined income gross is 50K, I wonder what their take home pay is. I know they are paying up the butt in Medical if they have that kind of coverage because they have 2 kids. Plus state income taxes, groceries, auto insurance ..etc... Yeah, its tough

[cjski21]

Nevermind, I'll start a new topic

[Howest2008]

Originally Posted by AAPoolServiceLV

A Bay Area couple with two kids can't make it on $50,000 a year

Does 50K cut it in Las Vegas? The gap between the "haves" and "have nots" is really widening. That is so true in cities like San Fran, L.A...etc..

$53,000 dolllars a year is a fantastic salary for a couple with two kids living in Las Vegas, that's why so many Californian are talking about moving to Las Vegas and Phoenix and Tucson Arizona.

Sad but true California is becoming a state of only Millionaires and Billionaires and the LOWER INCOME POPULATION. The lower income segment depends on lower income proverty programs to make ends meet.Check out some of my Links Below...

Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed

www.retirmentliving.com/RLtaxes.html (broken link)

California Budget Project

[BUGBULLY]

Originally Posted by AAPoolServiceLV

I think it might be better sometimes for families with kids just to have 1 bread winner or have one have a part time so they can eliminate the cost of day care. The high cost of day care doesn't help the situation. But its really tough because if they did move to a state like South Carolina or Misouri they probably would'nt make the salaries either but I think it might balance out. The fact that their combined income gross is 50K, I wonder what their take home pay is. I know they are paying up the butt in Medical if they have that kind of coverage because they have 2 kids. Plus state income taxes, groceries, auto insurance ..etc... Yeah, its tough

Your right, I have a sitter that does it out of her home. I pay $140.00 a week for Daycare. I have to say that we were thinking of having another baby, but I want to wait till my daughter gets in school, because I could not afford to pay almost $300 a week in daycare. We have just started our own company, and I only take my daughter to the sitters a couple of times a week, which costs me a lot less, but hoping to put her full time again in the summer. But I was actually looking at getting a job a night, that way we would not have to worry about a sitter. But it is actually good for my daughter to go to the sitter for the interaction with other kids. Its hard now a days to be able to make it on one salary. But with two, its hard to be a parent that is needed for the children now, because both parents are tired from working all day long.