5 ms·

$115k/yr is $9600/mo. You can spend $5k/mo on a rental with all of those properties, and have $4600/mo for food, utilities, bi-annual trips to europe, the paym

$115k/yr is $9600/mo. You can spend $5k/mo on a rental with all of those properties, and have $4600/mo for food, utilities, bi-annual trips to europe, the payment for your porsche, and a housekeeper, all whilst saving half of your income to buy a house in the most expensive region of the US in 2-3 years. You can literally have all of those things.

cdkee 7y ago
After taxes 115k is more like 5-6k a month, depending on how much you’re putting into retirement accounts, healthcare, etc.
- borski 7y ago
  Parent was already talking about net, after taxes.
bradlys 7y ago
Where is this $5k/month house with AC within 40 minutes drive of SF and 20 minutes drive of work? (Menlo Park to Mountain View generally being work area) It basically limits you to San Mateo to Mountain View. I haven't seen anything for $5k/month with AC there. If you find it, let me know. I'm in the market - lol. I have seen one show up here and there but it's almost unequivocally in a terrible neighborhood and/or near the train tracks. Both are dealbreakers. I ain't listening to trains go by at midnight or blast horns at every intersection. Lived that life - done with it.
- borski 7y ago
  I spent 3 minutes searching: https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/36746960/3-bedroom-2-bath-apartment-at-3925-nelson-dr-palo-alto-ca-94306 https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/36746960/3-bedroom-2-ba... https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/13951431/3-bedroom-2-bath-apartment-at-2062-rialto-ct-mountain-view-ca-94043 https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/13951431/3-bedroom-2-ba... Point is: the trope of “nobody can live in the Bay Area on 125k net” is total bullshit, tired, and flat-out untrue. Is it harder than living on 125k elsewhere? Absolutely. Are you “poor” and unable to afford a great house? No, not at all. There are plenty of great places.
  - bradlys 7y ago
    > https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/36746960/3-bedroom-2-ba.. https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/36746960/3-bedroom-2-ba.... > https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/13951431/3-bedroom-2-ba.. https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/13951431/3-bedroom-2-ba.... These are apartments - not single family homes.
    - borski 7y ago
      I mean, I’m not actually a realtor, but here’s a home for you: https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/35506914/3-bedroom-2-bath-apartment-at-251-chiquita-ave-mountain-view-ca-94041 https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/35506914/3-bedroom-2-ba... My search space was Mountain View, so expand and you’ll find more. Point is there are plenty of options, you just have to look for them. And, to be fair, I only searched PadMapper, which is an apartment rental website, so my results weren’t even focused on SFH.
      - bradlys 7y ago
        > https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/35506914/3-bedroom-2-ba.. https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/35506914/3-bedroom-2-ba.... Doesn't have AC. Looks like a pretty depressing home - tbh. HDR'd to hell but a brick yard and a BYO washer/dryer that's literally underneath the sun and skies isn't exactly where I'd like to put my expensive appliances. You can check Craigslist and you won't have much better results. Adding AC | Air Conditioning to your search criteria makes it narrow. Go figure - homes with it are in high demand. God forbid they say, "Air conditioning" but really mean just central air and there's no actual air conditioning. Went to more than one showing that advertised that falsity. :( Either way, this is beyond the point. Spending over 50% of your net income on rent alone isn't a great move. Which is what you'd be doing at $115k net income.
        borski 7y ago
        I think your standards may be too high. That looks like a gorgeous home to me. To be fair, I will agree with you that most places in the Bay Area don't seem to have A/C, but that's also because it's not generally needed here except for a couple weeks a year. You could do what we did in NYC all the time: window A/C's.
- taurath 7y ago
  Ah, so you want a single family home now. And it has to be in San Mateo->Mtv. And it must have /CENTRAL/ AC, one would assume. I'm not going to look for houses for you, except to note there are over 100 houses available right now under $5k in that region, all of which you could install central AC into for a couple grand if you wanted. If you MUST live in the San Mateo->Mtv corridor, with all those amenities, why would you imply you're looking to move? It seems like you know what you want, and are not willing to compromise on anything. Go forth and find that perfect rental, or if you don't make enough money to get it, work harder, or re-evaluate whats actually important to you.
  - briandear 7y ago
    You can’t install central ac for $2000 and certainly not in a rental.
    - taurath 7y ago
      $4k-$5k you can, and maybe even get a break on the rent. Add an extra month to getting your 30% down payment.
      - bradlys 7y ago
        Where are these numbers coming from? Adding central air to an old home without it costs way more than that even outside of the bay area.
  - fizzbuzz123 7y ago
    >if you don't make enough money to get it, work harder Ah yes clearly the reason people can't afford to rent or buy in SV is that they just don't work hard enough. Lmao did you graduate from the Ayn Rand School of Economics?
- BubRoss 7y ago
  In 40 minutes you can get so far north that there are no cellphone towers, no lights and no pavement.
  - astrange 7y ago
    In 40 minutes driving north from Mountain View I think you'll be in SF at best. You might make it to North Bay/Marin - which is true that it's rural, but it's not because it's a secret or far from humanity or anything. It just has the fiercest NIMBYs on the planet who are fine with all their services being provided by day laborers with 2 hour commutes.
    - BubRoss 7y ago
      Are we talking about SF or mountain view? 40 minutes north of SF is beyond Marin. Remember that this is about living comfortably on $5,000 per month for rent. That should get a pretty incredible place anywhere north of the golden gate bridge.
base698 7y ago
Eh, twice that ($230K) after 401K, insurance, and taxes is barely over $10K a month. Not sure how you got $115K being $9600.
- joshuamorton 7y ago
  They're talking about net, not gross.
- PenguinCoder 7y ago
  Do people really bitching about ~barely~ over 10k USD a MONTH? There's a lot of people living on that or barely double that, for a year. Yes, even in/near SF. Quit with the damn entitlement.
  - closeparen 7y ago
    You need $8-10k/mo for mortgage and property tax payments on a median home, so yes, the "barely" part is your entire discretionary budget.
  - base698 7y ago
    Wasn't bitching, just not understanding how one could get $9600 from $115K.
- taurath 7y ago
  We were talking net, after taxes, and after saving half of the net on a $400k salary. $115000 / 12 months === $9583.33
closeparen 7y ago
>You can spend $5k/mo on a rental This is the key to happiness in the Bay Area, honestly. The rentals are just fine if you're willing to shell out. Sure you're not building wealth but you have plenty left over to invest, even in a kickass high-rise apartment. It's specifically a desire to own that will screw you over, no matter your compensation.

cdkee 7y ago

After taxes 115k is more like 5-6k a month, depending on how much you’re putting into retirement accounts, healthcare, etc.

borski 7y ago
Parent was already talking about net, after taxes.

bradlys 7y ago

Where is this $5k/month house with AC within 40 minutes drive of SF and 20 minutes drive of work? (Menlo Park to Mountain View generally being work area) It basically limits you to San Mateo to Mountain View. I haven't seen anything for $5k/month with AC there. If you find it, let me know. I'm in the market - lol. I have seen one show up here and there but it's almost unequivocally in a terrible neighborhood and/or near the train tracks. Both are dealbreakers. I ain't listening to trains go by at midnight or blast horns at every intersection. Lived that life - done with it.

borski 7y ago
I spent 3 minutes searching: https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/36746960/3-bedroom-2-bath-apartment-at-3925-nelson-dr-palo-alto-ca-94306 https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/36746960/3-bedroom-2-ba... https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/13951431/3-bedroom-2-bath-apartment-at-2062-rialto-ct-mountain-view-ca-94043 https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/13951431/3-bedroom-2-ba... Point is: the trope of “nobody can live in the Bay Area on 125k net” is total bullshit, tired, and flat-out untrue. Is it harder than living on 125k elsewhere? Absolutely. Are you “poor” and unable to afford a great house? No, not at all. There are plenty of great places.
- bradlys 7y ago
  > https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/36746960/3-bedroom-2-ba.. https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/36746960/3-bedroom-2-ba.... > https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/13951431/3-bedroom-2-ba.. https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/13951431/3-bedroom-2-ba.... These are apartments - not single family homes.
  - borski 7y ago
    I mean, I’m not actually a realtor, but here’s a home for you: https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/35506914/3-bedroom-2-bath-apartment-at-251-chiquita-ave-mountain-view-ca-94041 https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/35506914/3-bedroom-2-ba... My search space was Mountain View, so expand and you’ll find more. Point is there are plenty of options, you just have to look for them. And, to be fair, I only searched PadMapper, which is an apartment rental website, so my results weren’t even focused on SFH.
    - bradlys 7y ago
      > https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/35506914/3-bedroom-2-ba.. https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/35506914/3-bedroom-2-ba.... Doesn't have AC. Looks like a pretty depressing home - tbh. HDR'd to hell but a brick yard and a BYO washer/dryer that's literally underneath the sun and skies isn't exactly where I'd like to put my expensive appliances. You can check Craigslist and you won't have much better results. Adding AC | Air Conditioning to your search criteria makes it narrow. Go figure - homes with it are in high demand. God forbid they say, "Air conditioning" but really mean just central air and there's no actual air conditioning. Went to more than one showing that advertised that falsity. :( Either way, this is beyond the point. Spending over 50% of your net income on rent alone isn't a great move. Which is what you'd be doing at $115k net income.
      - borski 7y ago
        I think your standards may be too high. That looks like a gorgeous home to me. To be fair, I will agree with you that most places in the Bay Area don't seem to have A/C, but that's also because it's not generally needed here except for a couple weeks a year. You could do what we did in NYC all the time: window A/C's.
taurath 7y ago
Ah, so you want a single family home now. And it has to be in San Mateo->Mtv. And it must have /CENTRAL/ AC, one would assume. I'm not going to look for houses for you, except to note there are over 100 houses available right now under $5k in that region, all of which you could install central AC into for a couple grand if you wanted. If you MUST live in the San Mateo->Mtv corridor, with all those amenities, why would you imply you're looking to move? It seems like you know what you want, and are not willing to compromise on anything. Go forth and find that perfect rental, or if you don't make enough money to get it, work harder, or re-evaluate whats actually important to you.
- briandear 7y ago
  You can’t install central ac for $2000 and certainly not in a rental.
  - taurath 7y ago
    $4k-$5k you can, and maybe even get a break on the rent. Add an extra month to getting your 30% down payment.
    - bradlys 7y ago
      Where are these numbers coming from? Adding central air to an old home without it costs way more than that even outside of the bay area.
- fizzbuzz123 7y ago
  >if you don't make enough money to get it, work harder Ah yes clearly the reason people can't afford to rent or buy in SV is that they just don't work hard enough. Lmao did you graduate from the Ayn Rand School of Economics?
BubRoss 7y ago
In 40 minutes you can get so far north that there are no cellphone towers, no lights and no pavement.
- astrange 7y ago
  In 40 minutes driving north from Mountain View I think you'll be in SF at best. You might make it to North Bay/Marin - which is true that it's rural, but it's not because it's a secret or far from humanity or anything. It just has the fiercest NIMBYs on the planet who are fine with all their services being provided by day laborers with 2 hour commutes.
  - BubRoss 7y ago
    Are we talking about SF or mountain view? 40 minutes north of SF is beyond Marin. Remember that this is about living comfortably on $5,000 per month for rent. That should get a pretty incredible place anywhere north of the golden gate bridge.

base698 7y ago

Eh, twice that ($230K) after 401K, insurance, and taxes is barely over $10K a month. Not sure how you got $115K being $9600.

joshuamorton 7y ago
They're talking about net, not gross.
PenguinCoder 7y ago
Do people really bitching about ~barely~ over 10k USD a MONTH? There's a lot of people living on that or barely double that, for a year. Yes, even in/near SF. Quit with the damn entitlement.
- closeparen 7y ago
  You need $8-10k/mo for mortgage and property tax payments on a median home, so yes, the "barely" part is your entire discretionary budget.
- base698 7y ago
  Wasn't bitching, just not understanding how one could get $9600 from $115K.
taurath 7y ago
We were talking net, after taxes, and after saving half of the net on a $400k salary. $115000 / 12 months === $9583.33

closeparen 7y ago

>You can spend $5k/mo on a rental This is the key to happiness in the Bay Area, honestly. The rentals are just fine if you're willing to shell out. Sure you're not building wealth but you have plenty left over to invest, even in a kickass high-rise apartment. It's specifically a desire to own that will screw you over, no matter your compensation.