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My idea of middle class may be different than your idea of middle class.
In the 1980's middle class to me was two earners well over 100K, a really nice car would set you back $12,000.
At the time I was a kid earning 75K two years out of school. My dad was earning 50K a decade earlier.
Inflation adjusted I was raised middle class on Long Island and I earned enough to be middle class on Long Island.
I know kids today who are earning $150K out of school. Half of the kids I know are earning NO MORE than you could have earned in the 1980's. I know kids who earn $120 together and the are SOL given the cost structure of today..
"$100,000 in 1985 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $239,040.89 in 2020, a difference of $139,040.89 over 35 years. The 1985 inflation rate was 3.56%."
"$50,000 in 1975 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $233,485.13 in 2018, a difference of $183,485.13 over 43 years. The 1975 inflation rate was 9.13%."
IMHO If you are earning under $250K on LI All your thinking is going to be in terms of payments, your primary savings vehicle is going to be a house, and you are NEVER going to save the 5M you need to retire (or more adjusted for inflation). As of today you need about 3M per couple to live a middle class life style in retirement and that won't cut it in NY.
Last edited by Oldandtireddad; 01-13-2020 at 07:12 PM..
My idea of middle class may be different than your idea of middle class.
In the 1980's middle class to me was two earners well over 100K, a really nice car would set you back $12,000.
At the time I was a kid earning 75K two years out of school. My dad was earning 50K a decade earlier.
Inflation adjusted I was raised middle class on Long Island and I earned enough to be middle class on Long Island.
I know kids today who are earning $150K out of school. Half of the kids I know are earning NO MORE than you could have earned in the 1980's.
"$100,000 in 1985 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $239,040.89 in 2020, a difference of $139,040.89 over 35 years. The 1985 inflation rate was 3.56%."
"$50,000 in 1975 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $233,485.13 in 2018, a difference of $183,485.13 over 43 years. The 1975 inflation rate was 9.13%."
IMHO If you are earning under $250K on LI All your thinking is going to be in terms of payments, your primary savings vehicle is going to be a house, and you are NEVER going to save the 5M you need to retire (or more adjusted for inflation). As of today you need about 3M per couple to live a middle class life style in retirement and that won't cut it in NY.
"a house" ? why not 10 houses? Rates are much lower, obligations are longer.
Yes people make it on $100k but we are talking about today. Not when you purchased a home 10 years ago or your grand parents who purchased in the 50s. If someone were to buy a home at today’s prices, $100k is not enough. Unless you’re giving an extremely large down payment, for an average $400-$500k home in Nassau, your mortgage with taxes will be $3000 plus. $100k salary is not going to cut it and that’s the truth. It’s unfortunate but NYS is expensive.
I’m at about100k and our 400k house that we bought in Farmingdale results in $2900/ mortgage. I bring home over 6k. It is not a lot of money but I am doing just fine. No struggling. No sacrificing. I am not sure where everyone gets their numbers from but I was doing it on $60k a year in a $2200/ mo rental and now on $100k with a $3k mortgage. My kids are 9 and 11. Daughter is in dance school. Son takes piano and drum lessons. Those things barely make a dent in the budget.
OP, I am living proof that you can EASILY do Farmingdale on 100k. Forget the college funds and dance competition others are throwing into the mix. Those are purely optional and you can do without it or worry about it later when your wife gets a job.
I'm not exactly sure how it works, but I believe she needs to be certified to even teach in NYS before anyone will hire her … correct me if I'm wrong.
So she should look into what that entails … she might be unemployed for a while if she isn't legally certified to teach in NY yet.
My wife was an elementary school teacher. She does need to be certified and I believe you need a masters degree these days. And if she wants to teach Elementary school, forget it. She will get a job teaching much faster in secondary school. Pick a specialty like my wife did (special ed) and it will be even easier.
My idea of middle class may be different than your idea of middle class.
In the 1980's middle class to me was two earners well over 100K, a really nice car would set you back $12,000.
At the time I was a kid earning 75K two years out of school. My dad was earning 50K a decade earlier.
Inflation adjusted I was raised middle class on Long Island and I earned enough to be middle class on Long Island.
I know kids today who are earning $150K out of school. Half of the kids I know are earning NO MORE than you could have earned in the 1980's. I know kids who earn $120 together and the are SOL given the cost structure of today..
"$100,000 in 1985 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $239,040.89 in 2020, a difference of $139,040.89 over 35 years. The 1985 inflation rate was 3.56%."
"$50,000 in 1975 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $233,485.13 in 2018, a difference of $183,485.13 over 43 years. The 1975 inflation rate was 9.13%."
IMHO If you are earning under $250K on LI All your thinking is going to be in terms of payments, your primary savings vehicle is going to be a house, and you are NEVER going to save the 5M you need to retire (or more adjusted for inflation). As of today you need about 3M per couple to live a middle class life style in retirement and that won't cut it in NY.
Nearly no one has close to 1M at retirement let alone 5M. Most people I know have nothing but SsI. They’ll live.
My wife was an elementary school teacher. She does need to be certified and I believe you need a masters degree these days. And if she wants to teach Elementary school, forget it. She will get a job teaching much faster in secondary school. Pick a specialty like my wife did (special ed) and it will be even easier.
jaysus, you need to be certified to teach anywhere. She can probably take the NY exam where she is. My sister took the NC exam while she was in NY.
The Praxis is an exam used in many different states, including NC. You can take it at various testing centers located throughout the US. NY does not use the Praxis at all. Currently, the Edtpa is the state exam after the "basic" skills exam is passed. The former involves a serious of video submissions. It is not a fast nor an easy test. You can't submit your videos and applications any old time that you want and it takes several months to receive your result because it has to be reviewed by a committee. You also have to be in a classroom to make those videos.
If the OP has a PhD in education, it is unlikely that she desires a public school teaching job. Few people are hired with PhD degrees to be a classroom teacher, as they would have to receive the highest salary for a new teacher. Either she would be interested in an administrative position (completely different certification process) or more likely, a college professorship in education in either research or teacher training. Most administrators these days have an EdD, not a PhD in education, to get the SBL certification. The EdD degree involves knowing more about school budgets and public policies. The PhD degree is a research based degree.
Private schools are more likely to hire someone with a PhD degree and you do not have to be state certified to work in a private school.
My idea of middle class may be different than your idea of middle class.
In the 1980's middle class to me was two earners well over 100K, a really nice car would set you back $12,000.
At the time I was a kid earning 75K two years out of school. My dad was earning 50K a decade earlier.
Inflation adjusted I was raised middle class on Long Island and I earned enough to be middle class on Long Island.
I know kids today who are earning $150K out of school. Half of the kids I know are earning NO MORE than you could have earned in the 1980's. I know kids who earn $120 together and the are SOL given the cost structure of today..
"$100,000 in 1985 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $239,040.89 in 2020, a difference of $139,040.89 over 35 years. The 1985 inflation rate was 3.56%."
"$50,000 in 1975 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $233,485.13 in 2018, a difference of $183,485.13 over 43 years. The 1975 inflation rate was 9.13%."
IMHO If you are earning under $250K on LI All your thinking is going to be in terms of payments, your primary savings vehicle is going to be a house, and you are NEVER going to save the 5M you need to retire (or more adjusted for inflation). As of today you need about 3M per couple to live a middle class life style in retirement and that won't cut it in NY.
So your idea of middle class in the 80’s is pretty much two who make 500k combined today. According to the US census statistics only 5% of households in NYC (one of the most expensive cities in the world) make over 500k. Nationwide only 3% of households make over 500k. So your idea of middle class is not only out of whack it’s just not even in line with reality. Same with saying you need 5M to retire (LOL the median wealth of retirees is 200k not to say 5M wouldn’t be great but it’s also not in line with reality for the vast majority) And who says you have to stay in NY after retirement?
If you are making over 250k and your only savings vehicle is home equity then you are either the worst budgeter on the planet or simply just living above your means which can be done at almost any standard income level.
Last edited by peconic117; 01-14-2020 at 05:38 AM..
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