5 ms·

$3500/month rent is $42k/yr. You need $124k/yr of after-tax money for food, transportation, and everything else?!

lumost 3y ago
This was for owning, rental rates are more difficult to assess due to the likelihood of collective living. General rule is that mortgage shouldn't exceed 30% post-tax, hence multiplying by 4 to allow a 5% buffer and a stable financial situation. In a city where a condo costs 3500/month.. It's quite likely that you'll need 124k for everything else. A basic "fast" lunch in downtown Boston runs ~20 dollars these days (5000/yr), parking alone can burn ~10k/yr. If you opt to avoid cars for public transit then you need to add 2-4k to the mortgage payment. As everyone else is facing the same housing math, prices rise. There is some lag to pricing as individuals avoid paying market rate for housing by buying 10+ years ago or locking in lower interest rates.
- gamblor956 3y ago
  It's quite likely that you'll need 124k for everything else. $124k is $12.4k/month in non-rent/mortgage costs. The costs you describe come nowhere close to $124k. You've described maybe $10-14k in other costs, a large portion of which are discretionary luxuries. $100/week in eating out for lunch? That's a luxury. The alternative is to do what most people do: bring a lunch from home. Sandwiches and pasta are cheap: $100 of pasta will feed a person for months. Somehow, non-techies manage to make things work on way less than $168k/year.
- jannyfer 3y ago
  > General rule is that mortgage shouldn't exceed 30% post-tax This is where you went wrong. 30% rule is pre-tax (gross income): https://www.chase.com/personal/banking/education/budgeting-saving/how-much-income-should-go-to-rent https://www.chase.com/personal/banking/education/budgeting-s... https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/10/always-use-the-30-30-3-rule-before-buying-a-home-during-pandemic-says-finance-real-estate-expert.html https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/10/always-use-the-30-30-3-rule-...

This was for owning, rental rates are more difficult to assess due to the likelihood of collective living. General rule is that mortgage shouldn't exceed 30% post-tax, hence multiplying by 4 to allow a 5% buffer and a stable financial situation. In a city where a condo costs 3500/month.. It's quite likely that you'll need 124k for everything else. A basic "fast" lunch in downtown Boston runs ~20 dollars these days (5000/yr), parking alone can burn ~10k/yr. If you opt to avoid cars for public transit then you need to add 2-4k to the mortgage payment. As everyone else is facing the same housing math, prices rise. There is some lag to pricing as individuals avoid paying market rate for housing by buying 10+ years ago or locking in lower interest rates.

gamblor956 3y ago
It's quite likely that you'll need 124k for everything else. $124k is $12.4k/month in non-rent/mortgage costs. The costs you describe come nowhere close to $124k. You've described maybe $10-14k in other costs, a large portion of which are discretionary luxuries. $100/week in eating out for lunch? That's a luxury. The alternative is to do what most people do: bring a lunch from home. Sandwiches and pasta are cheap: $100 of pasta will feed a person for months. Somehow, non-techies manage to make things work on way less than $168k/year.
jannyfer 3y ago
> General rule is that mortgage shouldn't exceed 30% post-tax This is where you went wrong. 30% rule is pre-tax (gross income): https://www.chase.com/personal/banking/education/budgeting-saving/how-much-income-should-go-to-rent https://www.chase.com/personal/banking/education/budgeting-s... https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/10/always-use-the-30-30-3-rule-before-buying-a-home-during-pandemic-says-finance-real-estate-expert.html https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/10/always-use-the-30-30-3-rule-...