Well crap. By that argument, a consultant's rates are dependent on rents and car insurance rates. There is no such correlation. Consultant rates are determined

Well crap. By that argument, a consultant's rates are dependent on rents and car insurance rates. There is no such correlation. Consultant rates are determined by their perceived value of themselves and their perceived value to whoever hires them, in some form of negotiation. Obviously this has to cover all the listed costs, since it's not worth it to said consultant otherwise, but that's not what determines the price. This article makes it sound like justification, in the "Oh look at poor old me and all my costs, I need to pay all these things and therefore I am so expensive" sense. Nobody hires a consultant because said consultant cannot make rent otherwise (nepotism and such excluded). They are hired because of some perceived value to whoever hires them.