How much money do you have to a make to have comfortable living

The only difference I saw was that Austin house prices may be a bit higher. Given that the current mortgage rates are still low, this should not that big of deal.

 

My idea of comfort is if you get to a point where you can pay all of your bills with one paycheck (if you get paid twice a month), and the second check is for whatever you want to do with it.

 

According to this Cost of Living Calculator

If you move from Houston TX to Austin TX...

Groceries will cost: 5.996% more
Housing will cost: 20.205% more
Utilities will cost: 1.981% less
Transportation will cost: 0.152% less
Healthcare will cost: 6.812% more

 

The more you make, the more you spend. About a year ago I took a new job that was about a 30k raise over what I was previously making. But of course now I go out a lot more, bought a new car, and spend more money on things I don't really need but want. Add to that the fact that I got divorced recently and have had to learn to live on single income...I don't really feel like I'm making that much more.

 

Reminds me of the show Wall Street Warriors...FU money...

For me, I guess it would be $10 - $20 million...One is never enough...

Now if we're talking salary, then maybe another $50K would do...

 

wow, ask a question, get some answers...and then a lot of people criticize. (not me specifically, but just general criticism it seemed like)

I know we're richer than the rest of the world generally. I do feel lucky, and I realize I'm living at a higher income level than the average.

But all that doesn't prevent me from feeling like making a little bit more is where I'd feel comfortable. Sure, if my first job had been making 30k and living in a place where I could get a place for 300/month or something, then I'd have different standards. All our standards are made from our experiences.. so we're going to have vastly different points of views.

So congrats if you can live on less than others. And it's cool if you need a lot more. As long as you're finding a way to stay happy--hopefully not solely based on income.

 

I think Madmax hit the nail on the head. Its not about living comfortably here in the US, as even the poorest live better than most in the world.

Its the NEEDS that we now feel that we MUST have and that we are entitled to whether we can afford it or not.

Everyone now Needs a:

Cellphone
Bottled Water
Newer Car
Rockets Tickets
Computer
Internet
Cable

Etc.

Those are all just wants. What upsets me is a few times during Thanksgiving and Christmas we (With Rotary) were delivering food to families in 'need'.

When I'm carrying the food inside I realize they have a bigger television in their living room than I do, an X-Box, cell-phones and brand name Nike shoes and apparrel that is not cheap at all.

If people would prioritize their lifestyle and focus on needs instead of wants, then life could be comfortable for many people without needing handouts from the government.

 

Couldn't agree more with that.

 

This country runs on greed and materialism is our true religion. It is the foundation of our society. We can't have it both ways.

 

As long as I can lay my head to sleep at night with peace and a clear conscience, I'm good.

 

as long as i'm debt-free, can eat 3x a day, watch rocekts game....

feed my family...

that's life..

 

It's not how much money you make, it's what you do with the money you make.

I don't make a lot of money, but I save as much as I can afford to without going hungry. I contribute 10% of my salary to my 401K, put all my band money in a savings account (about to switch to ING with that nice interest rate!), and don't buy anything I don't need. I pay my CC bills IN FULL every month, no questions asked.

Too many people are spending too much money on too many things they don't need so they can come across as being better off financially than they really are. I don't give a crap about stuff like that.

 

Well, to tell you the truth, I'm not real comfortable divuldging my yearly salary on an internet message board. Just one of those little hangups I have.

But like you said, there are too many variables. Where you live, size of your family, age, not to mention "comfortable" can mean many different things to many different people. I would probably fall on the lesser end of the spectrum as far as how much I need to be comfortable.

Translation: I'm a tightwad.

 

Everyone has their own standards for what constitutes a comfortable living.

But I know what makes me uncomfortable:
Not saving any money every month I would feel uncomfortable.
Living paycheck to paycheck
Renting

I also live in San Francisco and the cost of living is ridiculous out here. Pulled from money.cnn.com site.

Salary in Houston TX: $50,000
Comparable salary in San Francisco CA: $98,188.28

If you move from Houston TX to San Francisco CA...

Groceries will cost: 62.7% more
Housing will cost: 296.384% more
Utilities will cost: 2.69% more
Transportation will cost: 27.331% more
Healthcare will cost: 25.201% more

To live and own a home here you need a combined income of well over $100K

For me to feel comfortable I would like to have all my debts paid off and save 15% every month.

 

If I still had a house payment and debt then I would say $100k at least to be comfortable. Otherwise I would say $70k would be sufficient. Now that's comfortable as in I could live my life the way I want without being too severely limited by resources. So I could go out to eat at restaurants without worrying myself grey over it.
But I would need to make more than that if I want to prepare for retirement and save the way I really want. I want to retire with at least $5-6mil (inflation adjusted). And living off of $70k would not allow me to do that.

 

I love Faisal D. Khan's received wisdom and lectures when delivered from on high.

The extra bit of momentum gathered on the way down really drives his point home.

 

LOL, nice find

 

I agree. That's pretty funny.
But I still agree with F.D. Khan's post. If you're getting Christmas or Thanksgiving handouts and you have a 40" TV and Xbox games, then maybe you need to spend your extra money on something else.