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If he makes USD 10,000 working, will he get good life style? You know with house, car, good food, entertainment ...
Or should I put it this way, is USD10,000/month consider a lot of money for people staying in the big cities?
Ann
So I can conclude that if a people is US making $10,000 per month, that would means he is very rich?
Anyone can give me an idea of what people are making in a variety of common jobs? say, as a
1. waiter
2. factory workers
3. engineers
And if someone makes $2,000/month, is that good income? Or he can hardly survive?
Just get by, depending on where you are of course.
Remember, if you are coming from any other western country you are used to universal health care. In the US you will have to pay for health insurance and all other health costs out of pocket. Can be a big problem if you have any health issues.
San Franciso is also very expensive, almost as bad as NYC.
Here in the San Francisco Bay area, a family of four needs at least $77,000 just to survive (per a recent report), so $120,000 here would make for a comfortable living wherein you could travel and eat well.... but by no means would you be rich.
Chris Rock once said that if Bill Gates woke up with Oprah Winfreys money one day he would freak out about how poor he was.... now THAT is rich.....
Usually as a waiter, shop workers, factory workers that are on hourly rate. How many hours do they work in a day normally? And how many days a week do they work normally?
Need those to calculate average monthly income.
Ann
When I came over to the USA from the UK, I thought pay scales were fairly low. But the cost of living is equally lower.
I can get 200 cigarettes for around the equivalent of 20GBP (even with the recent $7 a carton tax-hike here in Ohio), gasoline, even at today's prices is still less than half of what it would be in Europe.
Cars, household appliances, electrical/electronic goods are all cheaper than in Europe.
And with the health care issue - it's only free at the point of use in the UK (and presumably in other countries with a national health service). You pay for it through your wages whether you use it or not. At least in the USA you have the choice - you can take out insurance, or pay for healthcare as you need it.
I find that property prices are about the same, but you get a lot more land included with a house of comparable value than you do in the UK.
And with the health care issue - it's only free at the point of use in the UK (and presumably in other countries with a national health service). You pay for it through your wages whether you use it or not. At least in the USA you have the choice - you can take out insurance, or pay for healthcare as you need it.
That's a big thing. I have the freedom to have insurance of my choice, or no insurance at all (which is the logical choice for a person of my age and health). At the moment, I'm part of a very effective "medical needs sharing ministry" as an alternative to insurance, which besides being extremely low cost, also works very well.
There are websites to help you compare cost of living in various parts of the country. For instance, if I made $40,000 in Central Illinois, which is on the lower end of "well off" around here, I would need to make $60-70,000 per year to have the same standard of living in most populated areas in the Rocky Mountains.
Where were you thinking of coming? It's a big country, with a very wide spectrum of income levels and standards of living.
Everything is based on supply and demand.
In Arizona right now, there is a greater demand for homes than supply. In Springfield, there is a greater supply of homes.
My dream home that will cost 500k in IL would be 1.5-2.0 million in Arizona.
Some people are doing it... ;)
That same house in So Cal, from LA to San Diego, would be even more.
Someone making $85,000 in Phoenix, Arizona would have to make at least $120,000 in San Diego to have the same standard of living.
Someone making $85,000 in Phoenix, Arizona would have to make at least $120,000 in San Diego to have the same standard of living.
... and even much more in NYC, were the average price for just a studio is $429,000, and a one-bedroom is $687,000. Want something a little more roomy and luxurious... plan to spend around $3.1 - $3.8 Million.
[money.cnn.com...]
pay off your mortgage first. Then $10K per month is a tidy sum no matter where you live.
Good advice. My wife and I paid off our mortgage, which means I can afford to work for peanuts for an NGO, and still have a pretty decent lifestyle.
Though I have to admit, unless I start making real money again, I'm going to have to push my "Freedom 40" plan back to "Freedom 45," or maybe even (*gasp*) have to keep working until I'm 50.
