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You can live a very comfortable life in much of the US for $44,000 a year. We spent 30K last year for a family of six, not including taxes, giving, and health

You can live a very comfortable life in much of the US for $44,000 a year. We spent 30K last year for a family of six, not including taxes, giving, and health insurance. And that includes materials for homeschooling, and upgrading to a minivan.

hackuser 10y ago
I don't agree that it applies to "most of the U.S." or even very widely. Also, you are talking after taxes; the document says income is measured before taxes. Also, recall that most poor are in cities.
- danielvf 10y ago
  Graduated income tax and child tax credit starts making a big difference in taxes for below median incomes. $48,000 before taxes with four kids is around $5,500 in taxes before any other deductions or credits. With things like EIC and a normal set of deductions and credits, I'd expect actual income tax to be between none and $2,500. Families pay proportionally way less taxes than single people do.
  - hackuser 10y ago
    You're only talking about income tax. Social Security, FICA, etc. are regressive taxes that make the working class pay higher rates overall than many people who are wealthier.
lovich 10y ago
Rent in boston for a family of six would be over 30k after taxes and that's with living in ghetto. I live in a 600 sq ft home and its 21600 a year. Your budget definitely doesn't apply across the country
- danielvf 10y ago
  Yeah. I'm not saying that's a comfortable income accross the county - it certainly is not - but there are plenty of places where $44,000 a year is all you need, and some extra. -- For a housing comparison with you in Boston, our 1,800 square foot house in a good neighborhood, 30 minutes from downtown Charlotte, NC is $8,100 per year, including insurance and taxes. This may be why the whole northeast appears to be trying to move to Charlotte.
- flubert 10y ago
  You might be interested in moving to a lower cost of living location. 2960 sq. ft., $39,400, $229/mo: http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/454-Steam-Engine-Dr-Northfork-WV-24868/2098555364_zpid/ http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/454-Steam-Engine-Dr-Northf... 2,114 sq. ft., $35,000, $259/mo: http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/63-Forest-St-Rutland-VT-05701/92019775_zpid/ http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/63-Forest-St-Rutland-VT-05... 2,965 sq. ft., $47,500, $303/mo: http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/102-N-Main-St-Plainview-NE-68769/108937163_zpid/ http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/102-N-Main-St-Plainview-NE... 2,858 sq. ft., $39,900, $264/mo: http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/12-Spring-St-Northumberland-NH-03582/86747520_zpid/ http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/12-Spring-St-Northumberlan...
  - eli_gottlieb 10y ago
    While those houses in Vermont and New Hampshire are well-appreciated, most people living in and around Boston probably have fairly specific reasons (ie: job, family, life history) for not moving to Nebraska or West Virginia. "Just abandon your livelihood to go find cheaper land" is not a solution unless your livelihood is in real-estate speculation.
    - flubert 10y ago
      Like the other article on HN today: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11737232 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11737232 ...I sometimes wonder if some people on HN aren't able to visualize the option of lower-cost lifestyles because they aren't given that menu option. How many articles are there per week about real-estate prices and rent control in big cities, and angst about basic income, etc.. My gift to them, small as it may be, is a window into a separate, but not so far away world.
      - cylinder 10y ago
        What do you expect people to do for a living in the middle of WV?
        10y ago

hackuser 10y ago

I don't agree that it applies to "most of the U.S." or even very widely. Also, you are talking after taxes; the document says income is measured before taxes. Also, recall that most poor are in cities.

danielvf 10y ago
Graduated income tax and child tax credit starts making a big difference in taxes for below median incomes. $48,000 before taxes with four kids is around $5,500 in taxes before any other deductions or credits. With things like EIC and a normal set of deductions and credits, I'd expect actual income tax to be between none and $2,500. Families pay proportionally way less taxes than single people do.
- hackuser 10y ago
  You're only talking about income tax. Social Security, FICA, etc. are regressive taxes that make the working class pay higher rates overall than many people who are wealthier.

lovich 10y ago

Rent in boston for a family of six would be over 30k after taxes and that's with living in ghetto. I live in a 600 sq ft home and its 21600 a year. Your budget definitely doesn't apply across the country

danielvf 10y ago
Yeah. I'm not saying that's a comfortable income accross the county - it certainly is not - but there are plenty of places where $44,000 a year is all you need, and some extra. -- For a housing comparison with you in Boston, our 1,800 square foot house in a good neighborhood, 30 minutes from downtown Charlotte, NC is $8,100 per year, including insurance and taxes. This may be why the whole northeast appears to be trying to move to Charlotte.
flubert 10y ago
You might be interested in moving to a lower cost of living location. 2960 sq. ft., $39,400, $229/mo: http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/454-Steam-Engine-Dr-Northfork-WV-24868/2098555364_zpid/ http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/454-Steam-Engine-Dr-Northf... 2,114 sq. ft., $35,000, $259/mo: http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/63-Forest-St-Rutland-VT-05701/92019775_zpid/ http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/63-Forest-St-Rutland-VT-05... 2,965 sq. ft., $47,500, $303/mo: http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/102-N-Main-St-Plainview-NE-68769/108937163_zpid/ http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/102-N-Main-St-Plainview-NE... 2,858 sq. ft., $39,900, $264/mo: http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/12-Spring-St-Northumberland-NH-03582/86747520_zpid/ http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/12-Spring-St-Northumberlan...
- eli_gottlieb 10y ago
  While those houses in Vermont and New Hampshire are well-appreciated, most people living in and around Boston probably have fairly specific reasons (ie: job, family, life history) for not moving to Nebraska or West Virginia. "Just abandon your livelihood to go find cheaper land" is not a solution unless your livelihood is in real-estate speculation.
  - flubert 10y ago
    Like the other article on HN today: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11737232 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11737232 ...I sometimes wonder if some people on HN aren't able to visualize the option of lower-cost lifestyles because they aren't given that menu option. How many articles are there per week about real-estate prices and rent control in big cities, and angst about basic income, etc.. My gift to them, small as it may be, is a window into a separate, but not so far away world.
    - cylinder 10y ago
      What do you expect people to do for a living in the middle of WV?
      - 10y ago