Man... how do people afford nice things for themselves?

[TanisHalfElven]

Originally posted by: Jeff7

Originally posted by: JS80
if you're not making six figures in 5-8 years it means you failed in engineering. our engineers out of college make pretty close to six figs so it might just be that you suck.

This is the kind of stuff I like hearing.

<----mechanical engineering technology major.

hey me too. just started college this week,

 

[ColdFusion718]

Originally posted by: homercles337
What are you talking about with "North Bay?" Marin county? This is not a usual bay area term.

Edit, i was in the bay area for 5 years and grew up in tahoe. If youre in Marin, you say "Marin." If youre in Richmond you say Richmond (unlike THE richmond in SF). If youre in Vallejo you say vallejo. If youre in the east bay you say east bay. If youre on the peninsula you say "on the peninsula." IF youre in the city you say "in the city." Where is "north bay?"

Where do the folks in SF get off calling their city "the city?" There are dozens of larger surrounding cities.

 

[Shadowknight]

Payment plans. Something may cost $500 or more at Best Buy, but you have 18 months to pay it off at no interest. so $35 or so a month, and you're good.

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

heh, you definitely don't need a 400$ car payment (even if that includes insurance).

Try saving $250 a month for 20 months then put that money down on something in the $10,000 range.

 

[FoBoT]

your rent is too high for that salary

and while saving $1000/month is admirable, that is your choice vs. the car and stuff

so you have plenty of money, you just don't want to spend it

 

[Anubis]

Originally posted by: fLum0x

Originally posted by: LivinLaVivaPollo

Originally posted by: Jeff7
Wow, nice. $1300 a month left over? Damn, when I worked full time, I was lucky to get that that much just in take-home pay.
But damn, that's insane rent. I guess rent there is like that. For what size place? A 1 bedroom apartment here in Erie can go for as low as $290/month. I'll be moving into one next year, utilities all paid, I pay electric, cable, and phone, for $400/month.

I'll actually have about 900 bucks left over after I pay my living expenses. Again, that's if I don't buy anything else.

1250 gets you a decent one bedroom loft around these parts, about 950 sq. feet. That's with one and a half bathrooms though.

830 here gets you a 1 bedroom, 1 bath, with a den...1100 sq feet. I am in Indianapolis. Given, i make roughly 2/3 of what this guy makes, but i dont bring home that much...

i need to get about 10k more and i will be happy for the time being. I am also an engineer and i started NOWHERE near 60k

lol 1250/mo here could get you a 3000sq foot house

 

[BarneyFife]

Originally posted by: Jeff7

Originally posted by: JS80
if you're not making six figures in 5-8 years it means you failed in engineering. our engineers out of college make pretty close to six figs so it might just be that you suck.

This is the kind of stuff I like hearing.

<----mechanical engineering technology major.

Why didn't you do straight Mechanical engineering?

Anyway, Mechanical engineers make around 50k when they come out of college.

 

[bennylong]

This guy still can't figure out how to live on $60k a year as a single guy?

 

[erub]

Originally posted by: Anubis
lol 1250/mo here could get you a 3000sq foot house

and that's why I had to Google Maps Dansville, NY. It must be great to be 80 miles from the hotspot of Buffalo, NY (a dying city of itself), 125 miles from Syracuse..or 300 miles from the City

 

[AreaCode707]

Reason one is the fiancee, and that's a good investment to be making.

Reason two is living in the North Bay. Making 60k in that area is roughly equal to making 35k in a midwest state, if you factor in living expenses. Just look at real estate - 600k to buy a nice house, versus 100k. Now, real estate is inflated anyway, but that demonstrates the cost of living difference in the most dramatic way.

I'm in Seattle right now and I'd move back to north of the North Bay (Mendocino County, preferably) in a heartbeat.

 

[3NF]

Get a Toyota Corolla for 15K. I can't imagine why people like spending so much money on cars. They are such a poor investment. If I had a 40K car I'd probably never drive it in fear that it would get scratched.

 

[SsupernovaE]

Why not have some roommates? I live off about $1200 per month and only pay about $500 for all expenses. Granted, I live in Richmond Virginia and the expenses are much less, however, my roommates make much more than I do and they still have plenty left over, even after paying for a car, insurance, etc.

 

[Treyshadow]

Well I think his real issue is he is paying 700 a month funding his girlfriend. That is 8K+ that could be allocated differently.

However the major issue I have is that he lives in the Bay Area. That area is too expensive for what you get. Here in Texas, you would have a higher standard of living (IMO). Just the state taxes alone set me off (Texas has no state income tax).

The comment of roommates is the best option, and makes the most sense, but many people care more about their privacy than their need for a nice set of wheels.

 

[GeneralDisarray]

Originally posted by: erub

Originally posted by: Anubis
lol 1250/mo here could get you a 3000sq foot house

and that's why I had to Google Maps Dansville, NY. It must be great to be 80 miles from the hotspot of Buffalo, NY (a dying city of itself), 125 miles from Syracuse..or 300 miles from the City

Ouch. Accuracy hurts sometimes.