How comfortably can I live off of $32,000/year???

I do get a pay raise with my masters, which I will hopefully begin working on in the next few years. I am not sure if like the area or not. It is in southern Missouri, and there is really nothing around except some good rivers for canoeing and trout fishing. I think Mark Twain National Forrest is nearby too. I am hoping one of the nearby national parks has some decent bike trails because I love cycling. I love the outdoors so hopefully it will be good.

You'll be fine as far as money goes then. Do you have any other options? Whats the worst that will happen? You teach there for a year and want out? Just say you want to go work on your masters full time and leave.

I probably have other options. This was the first job I applied for, and I accepted it just so I could have some assurance for next year. I figure with a little experience, I will have an easier time getting a job elsewhere if this one does not work out for me.

I think you'll be fine, as long as you don't break the bank with the car. Assuming your relationship with your girlfriend is good, don't be afraid to get married if that's where you are heading. You can live amazingly well with two incomes and no kids, I can attest to that.

Wow, my starting salary out of college was $33K, but that was 16 years ago and after 6 months I got a bump to $38K.

Of course, I wasn't a teacher. Hope you like it, you are screwed if you don't.

darkness wrote:

You can eat on $6.66 a day?

Ha, I'm in college and I think I might average about $120-$140 a month on groceries, and that is eating about 3000-3500 calories a day. Just don't go out to eat, don't eat steak or lobster (often). I'll have a bowl of cereal or two pieces of toast w/ pb for breakfast, usually some pasta or rice type lunch, a burger or chicken breast for dinner with some potatoes maybe. Add in a few snacks and you're good to go.

quenton wrote:

darkness wrote:

You can eat on $6.66 a day?

Ha, I'm in college and I think I might average about $120-$140 a month on groceries, and that is eating about 3000-3500 calories a day. Just don't go out to eat, don't eat steak or lobster (often). I'll have a bowl of cereal or two pieces of toast w/ pb for breakfast, usually some pasta or rice type lunch, a burger or chicken breast for dinner with some potatoes maybe. Add in a few snacks and you're good to go.

I will take your word for it if you say so, but what are you eating that costs just $3.87 a day?

Even oatmeal plus spaghetti every day costs more than that, and that has nearly zero protein in it. If you ate three meals a day and ate 3500 Kcal like you say ... I just can't see it.

Pasta is 88 cents a pound. Thats something like 900 calories. Chicken breast is $3 a pound. You can wait until its buy one get one and stock up. Ground beef is $2.50 or so a pound. Its really not hard to make that go far.The only trouble I ever had was with fresh fruit. That gets expensive. But to have toast for breakfast, a sandwich for lunch, and spaghetti and chicken for dinner, its real easy to get by on a few bucks a day.

darkness wrote:

quenton wrote:

Ha, I'm in college and I think I might average about $120-$140 a month on groceries, and that is eating about 3000-3500 calories a day. Just don't go out to eat, don't eat steak or lobster (often). I'll have a bowl of cereal or two pieces of toast w/ pb for breakfast, usually some pasta or rice type lunch, a burger or chicken breast for dinner with some potatoes maybe. Add in a few snacks and you're good to go.

I will take your word for it if you say so, but what are you eating that costs just $3.87 a day?

Even oatmeal plus spaghetti every day costs more than that, and that has nearly zero protein in it. If you ate three meals a day and ate 3500 Kcal like you say ... I just can't see it.

I think alot of people run into trouble with drinking their money. I don't mean alcohol, though that is probably the easiest way to blow alot of cash. Soda and juice adds up to alot of money though. Stick to water for the most part and you can save alot of money.

32k is plenty in a rural area. You sound smart enough to figure it out on your own. I have always lived in a rural area and love it. The big city is a nice place to visit but.....

Go live in a cheap place - rural India would be good. You could live like a king on that kind of income.

you wouldn't happen to be the guy coaching in Salem, MO would you? 32k down there will go far.

I think you will like living down there if you are. There are some great outdoor activities to enjoy in that part of the country.

disagree wrote:

you wouldn't happen to be the guy coaching in Salem, MO would you? 32k down there will go far.

I think you will like living down there if you are. There are some great outdoor activities to enjoy in that part of the country.

Yeah, I am that guy. I am from a small rural town, and I love the outdoors, so I think it will be great for me. Plus the school and the staff there seemed great, the athletic director seemed nice, and I think it will be somewhere I will really enjoy. Thanks for all the good advice everyone, letsrun can be very helpful for this kind of thing.

"Just graduated college" in middle of the worst economic Depression in our personal history on Earth and u are complaining about $32,000??? U live on another planet from what real struggle is. 2009 was a horrible year-- as was 2005-2018. The economy was horrible in my area from '05 to '18. A huge chunk of my retirement income.