What does 60k a year salary feel like? (Mid 20s, Single males)

It would be very easy to outspend 60k. You could probably have a 200k mortgage, which would get you a modest townhouse in my area with a 20% down payment, plus a modest car to go with it. With property taxes and insurances those two will consume more than 3k per month. Add in utilities, maintenance and gas, and you're looking at another 1.2k. If you avoid restaurants, you could do groceries for .4k. Misc stuff (yard maintenance, furnishings) is good for .5k. Just the above sums to 5.1k or 61k of after tax money. No savings. No vacations. No big bar bills. No extravagant gifts...

If you married a woman with similar earnings, you would be at about the minimum level for being able to enjoy some finer things and still save. Although I've seen plenty of couples with 6 figure incomes who went into debt because if frivolous spending.

As us evident from lottery winners, no matter how much you have, if you run your finances like a child, you will end up broke.

It feels great until you get divorced. Now my $65,000 is about $700 a month after child support FOR ONE CHILD. Stay single!

Fat Boy wrote:

It feels great until you get divorced. Now my $65,000 is about $700 a month after child support FOR ONE CHILD. Stay single!

True. The only thing keeping me married is the cost of divorce.

. . . wrote:

not baller or poor.

Neither baller nor poor

you obviously don't live in manhattan. if you do, you will know that most young professionals split apartments to cut down the cost. like the other guy in the thread, i also pay 1500 but only because i split the apartment with a roommate. the building is a high rise with a doorman.

Fat Boy wrote:

It feels great until you get divorced. Now my $65,000 is about $700 a month after child support FOR ONE CHILD. Stay single!

You can still have child support if you are single.

Do you regret the birth of your child?

Depends on where you live. In some sections of the country, you can live very nicely on $60K per year. In others, not so much.

That feels like a 75% pay cut!

WeedandSwag wrote:

Do you just have so much disposable income that you are constantly buying random stuff? It's gotta be amazing.

Feels pretty good. Buy new gear/clothes when I want to. The key is to keep saving and live by a budget that still allows for buying fun stuff.

oatmeal + water wrote:

you obviously don't live in manhattan. if you do, you will know that most young professionals split apartments to cut down the cost. like the other guy in the thread, i also pay 1500 but only because i split the apartment with a roommate. the building is a high rise with a doorman.

Oh, I never said I was living alone. My rent is 1388 + utilities. It's a 1 bedroom split thats ~$3,000 overall. I live in midtown west.

women are needy. that is why many straight men choose to be gay.

fall--start working

spring--I have 20k in my checking account and I hate my job. Going to the mountains for 6 months, peace

oatmeal + water wrote:

you obviously don't live in manhattan. if you do, you will know that most young professionals split apartments to cut down the cost. like the other guy in the thread, i also pay 1500 but only because i split the apartment with a roommate. the building is a high rise with a doorman.

Oatmeal + Water appears to be living my exact life. What club do you run for?

I agree with the Manhattan mention.

How does it feel? I feel poor.

I make just under 70k a year and am 28. It has its benefits. I don't ever feel stressed for money. I have some nice toys. ( street bike. newer vehicle and own my own house.) it really depends on where you live. I live in upstate NY just an hr or so from the city in a nice town. im sure once children enter the picture my " no stress for money" will completely change. but overall. it is definitely comfortable.

I make just under 70k a year and am 28. It has its benefits. I don't ever feel stressed for money. I have some nice toys. ( street bike. newer vehicle and own my own house.) it really depends on where you live. I live in upstate NY just an hr or so from the city in a nice town. im sure once children enter the picture my " no stress for money" will completely change. but overall. it is definitely comfortable.

Sucks being so poor that you need food stamps. $600K/yr is a livable wage.

It's a great starting salary, but ~33% of it goes to Uncle Sam so it's really about 40k. Your expenses will be very manageable as long as you didn't blow over 60k for tuition or buy a new car. You should be able to max out your Roth IRA and contribute if not max out your 401k easily. Rent a reasonable apartment with roommates (under $500/person including utilities) and you'll be able to save $10k+ per year liquid easily. If you want to buy a house, you'll have to live like this for 4+ years to save up a down payment. A lot of young people blow most of their disposable income and don't save for the future. I was laid off after the recession at age 27, but I was fine because I had 80k in the bank. Went back to grad school and doubled my salary.

Hey thanks for that advice, I'm going to college now for civil engineering and glad to hear ill make it out there since my cost of living as well is SUPER low.