Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Assuming take home income, I think you would be pushing it but it's possible. As a single person with maybe no or company paid health insurance. If you are not sharing rent then it becomes a lot more difficult. You would not be saving much money if at all.
$40 a week for food is a lot to me. I typically spend no more than $20, unless there is some essential item that on sale and worth stocking up on. In fact, I live independently and quite comfortably on roughly $1500-1600 in total costs a month in northern NJ and there are still ways I could cut that down even more. However, I cannot possibly say yes or no to the OP as he/she has provided too little detail.
It is possible but it would take some very good budgeting. Getting a small place with low rent would be key. Little Ferry, Ridgefield Park and Hasbrouck Heights all have apartment complexes with rents under $1000.
There are some listings on Craigslist that can give you an idea of what you will get for under $1000. $900/1BR/1BA - Landlord pays HALF of brokers fee!
$850 / 1br - STUDIO APT AVAILABLE! GREAT DEAL! CALL TODAY! (MONTCLAIR, NJ)
890 / 1br - 1-Bedroom Studio/Utilities Incl--North Bergen/Near Jersey City Heights (North Bergen)
I would have to say no. It's just too unrealistic. And I would say the same for most other US States too.
Guys come on!!! Have you ever had to be resourceful in your lives? Coming from a somewhat privileged upbringing I can tell you first hand that living on this is not easy and I wouldn't want to do it forever but it is entirely doable. As I said earlier in the thread, my first job in Manhattan paid $24K/yr. My paycheck every 2 weeks was less than $800 after taxes. I received no outside help, aside from a couple nice dress shirts from Brooks Brothers on my birthday. Guess where I lived? Newark? The Bronx? Greenville-Jersey City? NO! 91st and Madison. I paid $650/month rent for a room in a beautiful 2 BR apartment( I found on craigslist, which was relatively new at the time). In exchange for reduced rent I did some cooking, cleaned and walked the apartment owner's dog. I wasn't starving and I wasn't living off Ramen. I was $10K in credit card debt when I moved here at a whopping 24% APR (That was awesome) and had 0 savings. I was also 24 years old and partied a fair amount. I'd hit the bars during happy hour, sneak pre-bought booze in for later. Ate out a couple times a week, not at Alaine Ducasse(this was way pre Per Se) but not Grays Papya either. Wasted nothing. During 8 months at that salary I had a great time and even paid down my credit card debt a little. If I wasn't interested in having such a good time I could have even saved more. The point is if I can do it Manhattan then it certainly can be done in Northern NJ.
hey tdstyles! what's wrong with Grays Papaya?!!?!?!!
lol, nothing, recession special definitely came in handy on many occasions. It was a sad day when they shut the one down across the street from my office and replaced it with a cohen optical!
Guys come on!!! Have you ever had to be resourceful in your lives? Coming from a somewhat privileged upbringing I can tell you first hand that living on this is not easy and I wouldn't want to do it forever but it is entirely doable. As I said earlier in the thread, my first job in Manhattan paid $24K/yr. My paycheck every 2 weeks was less than $800 after taxes. I received no outside help, aside from a couple nice dress shirts from Brooks Brothers on my birthday. Guess where I lived? Newark? The Bronx? Greenville-Jersey City? NO! 91st and Madison. I paid $650/month rent for a room in a beautiful 2 BR apartment( I found on craigslist, which was relatively new at the time). In exchange for reduced rent I did some cooking, cleaned and walked the apartment owner's dog. I wasn't starving and I wasn't living off Ramen. I was $10K in credit card debt when I moved here at a whopping 24% APR (That was awesome) and had 0 savings. I was also 24 years old and partied a fair amount. I'd hit the bars during happy hour, sneak pre-bought booze in for later. Ate out a couple times a week, not at Alaine Ducasse(this was way pre Per Se) but not Grays Papya either. Wasted nothing. During 8 months at that salary I had a great time and even paid down my credit card debt a little. If I wasn't interested in having such a good time I could have even saved more. The point is if I can do it Manhattan then it certainly can be done in Northern NJ.
Today, that same room would cost you triple - $1900+ a month, the apartment would rent for $3500 at a minimum. Spending $150 a month is not unheard of if you like staying healthy - fresh fruit and vegetables cost, meat costs, chicken costs, pork costs, turkey is like a luxury. If you haven't done the shopping recently, even chop meat is going for close to $4 a pound. I assume you like to practice being sanitary - have you seen the price of toiletries these days - even the no-name stuff is expensive. Do you groom? A razor costs $5 and no, contrary to popular belief, the blades are not good for a year.
Hey, don't knock Greenville, it's up and coming - in about 20 years, development is heading towards the marshes of Jersey City.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.