[bigboihill]

Hi everyone! I was thinking about applying for a position in Ingham County that would pay about a 70K-80K salary. Would this be sufficient to sustain a family of 4 until my wife was able to find a job? We would be moving from South Carolina. Thanks for any input!!

[unclejake21]

As long as you live within your means... then yes. 70-80k is decent.

[dragon_fly_12]

All depends on how much you have going out and where you plan on living. If you're supporting a $500,000 house, a few Audi's and some expensive credit card habits, you won't be doing so great on that income.

[chh]

You might want to rent an apartment until your wife gets a job, because it'll be easier financially and you can wait till you have a feel for the area before you buy a house

[bigboihill]

Originally Posted by dragon_fly_12

All depends on how much you have going out and where you plan on living. If you're supporting a $500,000 house, a few Audi's and some expensive credit card habits, you won't be doing so great on that income.

I definitely don't have a few Audi's and any expensive credit card habits. Try a Honda Ridgeline and a Toyota Camry . I have a 12 year old daughter and a 7 year old son. So, most of our money goes to their extra-curricular activities (sports etc..). How is the school system in the area? Also, my wife currently works for one of the flagship Universities here in South Carolina, so I would assume that she would be able to find a job at a local university.

[bigboihill]

Originally Posted by chh

You might want to rent an apartment until your wife gets a job, because it'll be easier financially and you can wait till you have a feel for the area before you buy a house

Yes, this would be the plan. I really don't want to sell our current home, which we have lived in for almost 3 years now but I don't know that renting it out is such a feasible plan.

[ckhthankgod]

Perhaps look into Holt or parts of East Lansing, as you should find something at least solid in both places. This can give you an idea of median household income in parts of the metro: East Lansing, MI - USA.comâ„¢

Holt, MI - USA.comâ„¢

You can use the map to view information by different census divisions.

[bigboihill]

Originally Posted by ckhthankgod

Perhaps look into Holt or parts of East Lansing, as you should find something at least solid in both places. This can give you an idea of median household income in parts of the metro: East Lansing, MI - USA.comâ„¢

Holt, MI - USA.comâ„¢

You can use the map to view information by different census divisions.

Great resource! Thanks!!

[teachbeach]

Haslett, East Lansing and Okemos are the best rated school districts. Holt, Mason and Grand Ledge are good districts as well. Lansing has the issues of many urban districts, so test scores are dismal, but there are students who manage to do very well in the school system. Your salary would support you and your family..besides Michigan State University, there are a number of regional campuses for other state universities and a community college, law school and a few for profit colleges. Depending on what your wife does, she should be able to find something in either the university setting or even for the State of Michigan. You'd have no trouble finding a decent place to rent in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, Holt or Mason. Holt and Mason are more rural, where the other three are more densely populated.

The population/income (mentioned above) of the area is misleading, because when the students arrive, the population of East Lansing almost doubles, and since most students have minimal income, or only work part time jobs, the income average is skewed as well.

PM me if you want more specific information about the area.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by teachbeach

Haslett, East Lansing and Okemos are the best rated school districts. Holt, Mason and Grand Ledge are good districts as well. Lansing has the issues of many urban districts, so test scores are dismal, but there are students who manage to do very well in the school system. Your salary would support you and your family..besides Michigan State University, there are a number of regional campuses for other state universities and a community college, law school and a few for profit colleges. Depending on what your wife does, she should be able to find something in either the university setting or even for the State of Michigan. You'd have no trouble finding a decent place to rent in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, Holt or Mason. Holt and Mason are more rural, where the other three are more densely populated.

The population/income (mentioned above) of the area is misleading, because when the students arrive, the population of East Lansing almost doubles, and since most students have minimal income, or only work part time jobs, the income average is skewed as well.

PM me if you want more specific information about the area.

Thank you for mentioning that about East Lansing, as I was going to mention how income and poverty rates for college towns/neighborhoods are skewed. I found out that off campus students are counted in the median income and poverty rates. That is why I suggest that the OP look at the census tracts and census block groups, as those divisions are essentially neighborhoods and/or sections of a community.

Also, Waverly seems to be so-so in terms of academic stats, but may still work. Grand Ledge may be another option. Both are in Eaton County west of Lansing.

Something that I liked about the Lansing area is that quite a few suburban school districts have notable to decent degree of cultural diversity. So, it is possible to live in a diverse community with at least solid to very good schools in the area.