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Reading a thread on another site had me realize how much my income has changed since the end of 2013. This has all been due to job changes with each new position earning an increase in salary. From November 2013 to present my income has gone up about $18,000 while living in the same area while having better hours, benefits, responsibilities etc. If my plans go accordingly I will double my 2013 income in the next 4 to 5 years. I live comfortably, but it's shocking how I made it work making so much less a few years ago than I do now. I consider myself extremely lucky. Conversely, I'm sure there are countless others who due to cutbacks or whatnot have seen their incomes decrease over the last several years.
Big changes for my wife and I (combined income):
2013: 19k
2014: 65k
2015: 100k
2016: 132k
2017: Will be ~175k barring one of us losing a job. Should level off here though, aside from an annual 1-2%. Likely at least 5 or so years before either of us could get a meaningful bump.
In 2013 I was a grad student, she had just moved here and wasn't working. Two cross-country moves later (one from a moderate COL area to a high COL area for one year training, then back to a different moderate COL city) and life is very different. Grad school was a wonderful thing for us. Careers we love with flexible hours, fabulous benefits, good security and solid pay.
Middle range civil servant here. My gross income doubled between the beginning of my career (1980) and today. Today I make 40k. But what changed everything in my financial situation (but not my lifestyle) is that I inherited 400k from my old man last year when he croaked. Add to that my flat (no mortgage) that I own (worth 200k), I believe I will be able to retire soon.
For me, it's the same job at 3% increase per year since 2005, inflation that effects me, seems like 5% per year. So I actually made less money than I did 10 years ago.
Last six years have been pretty flat except for a few wild months last summer/fall at a (much) higher income when we mistakingly believed we had found that magic elevator ride of social mobility. We were handed the fine print (literally.. the day before my husband left to work in China for a Chinese corporation that is a weakly veiled front for the Chinese government) where one is expected to exchange personal freedoms and identity for wads of cash and first class indenturing.
We're only just beginning to find a sense of humor in it now.
For me, it's the same job at 3% increase per year since 2005, inflation that effects me, seems like 5% per year. So I actually made less money than I did 10 years ago.
That's where people get confused.
If you made 10k 10 years ago but now make 20k you actually make more. However what you are trying to say is your buying power has decreased
I mean, I literally doubled my income I started with in 2013 by end of year 2014. I'm trying for a more stable route nowadays as I'm comfortable with my income but want to travel more.
Between my wife and I in the last 4-5 years or so our total income is up 60%+/-
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