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Either way, a single person making 60k would put them in the middle class should they have a spouse making the same amount. The real median wage is a little mor

Either way, a single person making 60k would put them in the middle class should they have a spouse making the same amount. The real median wage is a little more than half of that.

omegaworks 8y ago
Not at all. Let's run the numbers. The average cost of a 1 bedroom[1] apartment in the city nets out at $43k for the year, that's an entire spouse's net salary [2]. Average cost of childcare is anywhere from $15k-30k annually[3]. This is just baseline needs for two working parents. 1. https://www.rentjungle.com/average-rent-in-new-york-rent-trends/ https://www.rentjungle.com/average-rent-in-new-york-rent-tre... 2. https://neuvoo.com/tax-calculator/?iam=&salary=60000&from=year&region=New+York https://neuvoo.com/tax-calculator/?iam=&salary=60000&from=ye... 3. https://www.nyu.edu/employees/life-wellness/family-care/child-care/young-children/child-care-centers.html https://www.nyu.edu/employees/life-wellness/family-care/chil...
- zjaffee 8y ago
  NYC has tons of people who are living in rent regulated housing, but ignoring that, the average price is still shifted upwards by tons of apartments in manhattan that cost far more than the median. So assuming everyone is paying market rates, it's still not difficult to find an apartment that costs less than 2000/month, just look at zillow. Additionally, childcare costs fall dramatically once your child is 3/4 years old as NYC has universal pre K with later cutoffs than other parts of the country. There would also be additional tax savings if you were married. Add on the fact that you likely have far lower transportation costs than households in other parts of the country, and it makes more sense. Couples with a child who make 120k a year in NYC would not be precariat like members of the working class, they'd be able to save money and likely buy a home someday. Just because they might be better off somewhere else in the country, doesn't mean they're not middle class. The middle class still struggles with more limited options around finances, what I will say is that the amount you need to earn to be in the upper class in NYC is far higher than in other cities.

Either way, a single person making 60k would put them in the middle class should they have a spouse making the same amount. The real median wage is a little more than half of that.

omegaworks 8y ago

Not at all. Let's run the numbers. The average cost of a 1 bedroom[1] apartment in the city nets out at $43k for the year, that's an entire spouse's net salary [2]. Average cost of childcare is anywhere from $15k-30k annually[3]. This is just baseline needs for two working parents. 1. https://www.rentjungle.com/average-rent-in-new-york-rent-trends/ https://www.rentjungle.com/average-rent-in-new-york-rent-tre... 2. https://neuvoo.com/tax-calculator/?iam=&salary=60000&from=year&region=New+York https://neuvoo.com/tax-calculator/?iam=&salary=60000&from=ye... 3. https://www.nyu.edu/employees/life-wellness/family-care/child-care/young-children/child-care-centers.html https://www.nyu.edu/employees/life-wellness/family-care/chil...

zjaffee 8y ago
NYC has tons of people who are living in rent regulated housing, but ignoring that, the average price is still shifted upwards by tons of apartments in manhattan that cost far more than the median. So assuming everyone is paying market rates, it's still not difficult to find an apartment that costs less than 2000/month, just look at zillow. Additionally, childcare costs fall dramatically once your child is 3/4 years old as NYC has universal pre K with later cutoffs than other parts of the country. There would also be additional tax savings if you were married. Add on the fact that you likely have far lower transportation costs than households in other parts of the country, and it makes more sense. Couples with a child who make 120k a year in NYC would not be precariat like members of the working class, they'd be able to save money and likely buy a home someday. Just because they might be better off somewhere else in the country, doesn't mean they're not middle class. The middle class still struggles with more limited options around finances, what I will say is that the amount you need to earn to be in the upper class in NYC is far higher than in other cities.