Tech Salary Negotiation when relocating to SV (San Jose: calculator, high income)

[aramax666]

http://siliconvalleyindicators.org/p...ty-2015-06.pdf

250K is lower limit of top 5% Household income ( average income earners is close to 2). With a personal income of 250K, you are doing well.

However, note that the average for the top 5% is 500K. Likely heavily skewed by the top 1%. 5% median is likely closer to 300k.

Rest assured if you alone make 250-300K, you are doing splendidly. Now just go marry someone like yourself

[NewbieHere]

I was referred to household income, not personal income.

[aramax666]

Yup, if 5% is at 250K, top 1% is easily 600K. But by the same token, 250K should be pretty close to the top for personal income.
When it comes to buying houses, only your HHI matters.

[SportyandMisty]

Originally Posted by aramax666

http://siliconvalleyindicators.org/p...ty-2015-06.pdf

250K is lower limit of top 5% Household income ( average income earners is close to 2). With a personal income of 250K, you are doing well.

However, note that the average for the top 5% is 500K. Likely heavily skewed by the top 1%. 5% median is likely closer to 300k.

Rest assured if you alone make 250-300K, you are doing splendidly. Now just go marry someone like yourself

Income figures do not include unrecognized income from stock options. When you go to buy a house, you exercise a bunch of options to generate cash for your down payment -- or to just buy the house for cash. Of course, you'll also likely end up in the Alternative Minimum Tax schedule, and pay AMT taxes through the nose.

[aramax666]

Originally Posted by SportyandMisty

Income figures do not include unrecognized income from stock options. When you go to buy a house, you exercise a bunch of options to generate cash for your down payment -- or to just buy the house for cash. Of course, you'll also likely end up in the Alternative Minimum Tax schedule, and pay AMT taxes through the nose.

Good point.

[MediocreButArrogant]

Just having a moderately high income and paying $30k or so in state income tax (and then deducting it) has been enough to trigger AMT in the past. I've had RSUs grants instead of ISOs for over a decade, and I think I always still end up paying AMT.

[aramax666]

Do you mind sharing ballpark of what your gross was when you triggered AMT?

Originally Posted by MediocreButArrogant

Just having a moderately high income and paying $30k or so in state income tax (and then deducting it) has been enough to trigger AMT in the past. I've had RSUs grants instead of ISOs for over a decade, and I think I always still end up paying AMT.

[MediocreButArrogant]

I'm pretty sure I've paid it every year since 2001, and back then I was making about $350k annually.

[blauskies]

Originally Posted by MediocreButArrogant

It's not worth the high COL to live here unless you have high income potential. To put your offer in perspective, $120k is what we pay kids two years out of school with a BSCS.

There is a big disparity in salaries between software and hardware engineering in he Valley, so much so $120K would be considered a great salary for a Mechanical Engineer with a BS or MS, with 10 to 15 years experience at Tesla, Apple or Google, those poor sods at Tesla working the sweatshop open office plan with the aroma of BO and Curry, looking forward to go home and sharing that room with another Engineer, but then realize it's only 5pm and there is still 3 more hours to go and Saturday is a workday. Let's not forget even with the great pay, a lot of people are not working 40 hour weeks on average.

Hardware is so devalued that I would not even recommend anyone not in upper level management to even bother making a go of it due to the average salaries.

[aramax666]

wow. thats quite shocking.

Originally Posted by blauskies

There is a big disparity in salaries between software and hardware engineering in he Valley, so much so $120K would be considered a great salary for a Mechanical Engineer with a BS or MS, with 10 to 15 years experience at Tesla, Apple or Google, those poor sods at Tesla working the sweatshop open office plan with the aroma of BO and Curry, looking forward to go home and sharing that room with another Engineer, but then realize it's only 5pm and there is still 3 more hours to go and Saturday is a workday. Let's not forget even with the great pay, a lot of people are not working 40 hour weeks on average.

Hardware is so devalued that I would not even recommend anyone not in upper level management to even bother making a go of it due to the average salaries.