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Airics, think about what you just said. The figure of $60K came from Davie saying that "someday" he hopes to have that income and live in Centennial Hills. He has a gf so we know he has hopes of being married someday and I'm sure would like a family. I'm sure he was talking about years from now and as MMofB pointed out, with inflation, that amount will mean less. A complete house payment, using todays interest rates, would take close to $2K of that every month and if his wife didn't contribute income and they had 2-3 kids, it would be very tight.
60K for a family where there is only one income, a modest house payment (150,000 or less), and 2 or three kids is not rolling in the dough. You still will have to budget and won't have much left over. Health insurance, car payments, clothing, food (huge for a family)- will have you counting pennies in no time.
Now, if you are single and making 60K you have more to spend.
60,000= 5,000 mth (-1250) (Subtract about 25 percent for SS/taxes)
3750 (-500) (If you are so lucky to have good health insurance)
3250 (-1250)(Subtract for a house payment/mort insurance/escrow 150,000 at 6 percent/30 yr fixed)
2000 (-800) (For food/TP, this is low btw, for a family of 5)
1200 (-500) ( Car Payment)
700 (-100) (Home Repairs/Car Repairs)
600 (-150) (Car Insurance)
450 (-250) (Gas for one car)
200 (-50) (clothing/shoes)
150 (~300) (gas/power/water/garbage/sewer) Uh...better cut some from the food budget!
*There are many things I have not included like cable, internet, car registration, cell phones....and the 25 percent tax rate may be a tad high but it was a easy number to work with.
Aqualung is doing so well it is looking like he is only going to have to stay at the hospital for 3 or 4 days. His sister and brother and law are going to let him come back to their apartment. As soon as he feels better, he is going to look for work. I do not think this sister and BIL are going to kick him out on the street anymore.
That HORRIBLE sister and brother-in-law??? The one he publicly refers to as a$$hole all the time? He also has not said so nice things about his sister! He should thank his lucky stars for those two...even when it isn't convenient for him to do so.
To some people $60 k is not that great. To me I see $60k people as millionaires. Considering when I was gorwing up my parents NEVER earned a combined total of $25k with BOTH of them working
So I was never accustomed to nice things. So THIS PART of my post ios for LVD. It may have been a good idea to have taken that insurance check and have my car paid off but you dont know what that car means to me. I never had many nice things growing up, except that car and a small handful of other things. I worked SO HARD to get that car and it means SO MUCH to me which is what you dont seem to grasp. When the accident first happened I could not stop crying at how bad the damage was, my beautiful nice car was destroyed in my eyes. All I wanted was to have it fixed and I did. I didnt want the one thing I worked SO HARD for to stay in the condition that it was after the accident, so I had it fixed. The car means to much to me to just let it go like that
Davie, I'm only about a decade older than you, but let me tell you, I had my fair share of strife coming into my own.
Your obsession with materials and a stupid car is going to be your Achilles heel. Nobody judges you by what you drive and if they do, they arent worth knowing. The truth is that your optimism and go gettitiveness is not really yours to control without the confidence that an education will afford you. This is a knowledge-based workforce. Soft skills, like attitude and perseverance, cannot be understated. Standing with them alone, you're a whisker away from real tragedy. It's a facade.
If you get popped for not registering your car, you can kiss your dream of staying here goodbye. I strongly encourage you into looking into a four year stint in the Navy or Air Force. Get the money for college, get the groundwork laid for a career in electronics, computers or healthcare. These fields will continue to see growth. You see the world in a different light. Who knows, it might be something you really enjoy. From what I see in your character, the military would be better off with someone like
yourself.
I can tell you from personal experience that you can stand on your head for four years if you try. It takes a little courage, but I honestly believe it's a good path to the dreams you have in life. DM if you want to talk about it.
60K for a family where there is only one income, a modest house payment (150,000 or less), and 2 or three kids is not rolling in the dough. You still will have to budget and won't have much left over. Health insurance, car payments, clothing, food (huge for a family)- will have you counting pennies in no time.
Now, if you are single and making 60K you have more to spend.
60,000= 5,000 mth (-1250) (Subtract about 25 percent for SS/taxes)
3750 (-500) (If you are so lucky to have good health insurance)
3250 (-1250)(Subtract for a house payment/mort insurance/escrow 150,000 at 6 percent/30 yr fixed)
2000 (-800) (For food/TP, this is low btw, for a family of 5)
1200 (-500) ( Car Payment)
700 (-100) (Home Repairs/Car Repairs)
600 (-150) (Car Insurance)
450 (-250) (Gas for one car)
200 (-50) (clothing/shoes)
150 (~300) (gas/power/water/garbage/sewer) Uh...better cut some from the food budget!
*There are many things I have not included like cable, internet, car registration, cell phones....and the 25 percent tax rate may be a tad high but it was a easy number to work with.
Currently, a single person making 60 large will be taxed at 25% only above 34,000 per year.
A person can mitigate their tax burden by putting 15-20% of their annual income into a 401k. If you are in the 28% tax bracket at 60K and you save 15%, it only costs you 72 cents to save a buck.
And I would stress that savings should be the first thing on people's list of priorities. And if you are going to afford a home, why not do it on a 15 year mortgage as opposed to a 30 year?
Even a dual income household making 120-150K a year, but living with a plan that includes savings, a modest home on a 15 year mortgage, no debt or car payments is not exactly lavish by any stretch of the imagination. It affords simple luxuries without having to go into hawk. God forbid life throws you any curveballs while you are trying to build a little financial insulation from life.
You can't put a price tag on peace of mind and actually being in control of your life.
Davie, you once said that you didn't like the idea of the military because you wouldn't be in control of your life. Ask yourself...and be honest...who is in control now?
Last edited by Spraynard Kruger; 11-17-2010 at 04:53 PM..
also curious how you base 500 for health insurance, maybe if you are self employed... i have insurance (incl. spouse) (doc, dentist, vision, VERY LOW DEDUCTIBLES) and it costs me 120 a month.. soon to be 60 since i am headed to the cosmopolitan... This is another reason why i don't want to be self employed anymore.. i was paying $279 a month, 5000 deductible, no dentist or vision..
house payment = pretty accurate
500 for a car payment? lease for 200.
insurance 150 a month.. no way... 398 full coverage for me
gas 250, must be driving an Escalade.
others fairly accurate...
if you have kids, you will be taxed less also,.. you didn't consider that..
60k isn't bad.. heck i think lvd is getting by on 20...
also curious how you base 500 for health insurance, maybe if you are self employed... i have insurance (incl. spouse) (doc, dentist, vision, VERY LOW DEDUCTIBLES) and it costs me 120 a month.. soon to be 60 since i am headed to the cosmopolitan... This is another reason why i don't want to be self employed anymore.. i was paying $279 a month, 5000 deductible, no dentist or vision..
Then you are very fortunate to have an employer that pays the lion's share of your premium. I have Blue Cross under the federal employees program (which uninformed people believe is a so-called Cadillac program subsidized by taxpayers) and I currently pay $400/month for my wife and me. BTW, in January that is increasing to $431.60/month.
Quote:
Originally Posted by airics
insurance 150 a month.. no way... 398 full coverage for me
$150/month is not unrealistic. And I have no idea what you mean by "full coverage." That is a meaningless term. What are your liability limits? 15k/30k? 30k/60k? 50k/100k? 100k/300k?
How much property damage coverage do you have under your liability? 15k? 25k? 50k?
How much collision coverage do you have? (IOW, how much is your car worth?) 15k? 25k? 50k?
As you can see, saying "I have full coverage" doesn't begin to address all the variables that go into the cost of car insurance. And we haven't even begun to discuss an individual's driving record. I have a ten-year accident-free discount, drive fewer than 7500 miles/year, and my insurance on my Lexus as a 50+ driver (another discount) is over $1200/year.
Then you are very fortunate to have an employer that pays the lion's share of your premium. I have Blue Cross under the federal employees program (which uninformed people believe is a so-called Cadillac program subsidized by taxpayers) and I currently pay $400/month for my wife and me. BTW, in January that is increasing to $431.60/month.
$150/month is not unrealistic. And I have no idea what you mean by "full coverage." That is a meaningless term. What are your liability limits? 15k/30k? 30k/60k? 50k/100k? 100k/300k?
How much property damage coverage do you have under your liability? 15k? 25k? 50k?
How much collision coverage do you have? (IOW, how much is your car worth?) 15k? 25k? 50k?
As you can see, saying "I have full coverage" doesn't begin to address all the variables that go into the cost of car insurance. And we haven't even begun to discuss an individual's driving record. I have a ten-year accident-free discount, drive fewer than 7500 miles/year, and my insurance on my Lexus as a 50+ driver (another discount) is over $1200/year.
100/300 50k property - car is worth about 20k - driving record is good 1 speed 3 yrs ago... imo , you are paying way to much on the lexus.. unless it is a top of the line
as for the car insurance, my quotes were across the spectum... geico was at 398 a half, amica was at 1229. a half... incredible difference for the same coverages and if i could get my lazy butt to do it, i could change to progressive at 312 half.. but darn that gecko is fun to watch!
also curious how you base 500 for health insurance, maybe if you are self employed... i have insurance (incl. spouse) (doc, dentist, vision, VERY LOW DEDUCTIBLES) and it costs me 120 a month.. soon to be 60 since i am headed to the cosmopolitan... This is another reason why i don't want to be self employed anymore.. i was paying $279 a month, 5000 deductible, no dentist or vision..
house payment = pretty accurate
500 for a car payment? lease for 200.
insurance 150 a month.. no way... 398 full coverage for me
gas 250, must be driving an Escalade.
others fairly accurate...
if you have kids, you will be taxed less also,.. you didn't consider that..
60k isn't bad.. heck i think lvd is getting by on 20...
We pay more than 500 a month and we are not self insured. We do have good insurance though. We have the PPO plan where we can see any doctor when we want. My husbands employer pays that much as well. The HMO plan is a little cheaper, I think it was about 100 dollars a week for a family. I have dental, and vision. Plus when you are "child bearing age", or have a wife that is..."you pay". Kind of like a 20 year old male pays for car insurance.
With gas near 3 dollars a gallon it costs about 50 + to fill my tank each week. (18 gallon tank) I don't work so one tank lasts me a week. However if you are commuting/driving back and forth to work I bet one tank is not enough. So 200 will work for me. My husband...he probably puts in about 400 a month in gas. So that estimate was really low.
My cars are paid off. I was just estimating. Okay, maybe the insurance was a little high for one car. But for two, yes. And if you have a teenage male driver? Forget about it!
As for being taxed less, you "can" withhold more on your taxes but then you run the risk of having to pay in April. Honestly...25 percent is a pretty good estimate for that income. Yes you do get a return if you have kids but seriously...it's not that much for a family with kids. At all. If you are retired and have no debt or house payment, then I can see it being great.
Last edited by lyra33; 11-17-2010 at 06:11 PM..
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He should thank his lucky stars for those two...even when it isn't convenient for him to do so.
