4 ms·

I’ll be that guy, but $300k pre-tax at current cost of life is not an insane number at all.

alabastervlog 1y ago
I both agree that $300k household income is roughly the bottom edge to support a Fussellian upper-middle lifestyle these days (and that edge is retreating upwards fast…), but also notice that it’s about 94th percentile for US household income. Household. A married couple both making that are 98th percentile.
- whiplash451 1y ago
  Sure but less than 8% of Americans live in the top 10 most expensive cities. In what percentile of your social class do you sit with $300k? Probably not very high.
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]
  - yusina 1y ago
    "Of your social class"? That comparison doesn't make much sense. If you are at the bottom of your social class, you picked the wrong class to compare yourself with. Of course I'm at the bottom of all millionaires, but that's because I barely have a 7-figure net worth and have a weird self image.
blitzar 1y ago
Said like a 1990's banker / a 2020's tech worker.
archagon 1y ago
That’s silly. As a high-income FAANG engineer living in the heart of SF, I was easily able to save more than 70% of my money.
- babyent 1y ago
  What was your rent though? I was not at FAANG, but a unicorn startup back in mid to late 2010s, and I was making 150-180k in that time, but not in SF. Rent back then for a 2br was like $2400.. Today, that same apartment goes for $4900. I am pretty sure the base for the same level today is probably more like 170-200k, but literally everything has also become doubly expensive. Also if you're in SF you either need to allocate another 300-400 a month for parking, or sell your car. I was paying 130 per month for my garage parking spot (again, not in SF), and when I moved to SF some time ago I sold my car because it was going to cost me a lot to use my car. And unlike FANG, where you can either hold and double every 3-4 years if lucky, or sell immediately with taxes, I walked away with 10x or more..
  - archagon 1y ago
    Rent was (and is) around $4000 for 3br, shared between 2 people. (And this was not an unusual price to see during our apartment hunt a few years ago.) If you're paying $4900 for 2br in the city, my impression is that it's either a brand new development or in a posh area like Pac Heights. I don't have a car, but I feel like that's one of the biggest privileges of living in the city. Maybe the calculus changes if you have kids, though.
    - babyent 1y ago
      Well there you go. Sharing it makes it simpler but also not very ideal unless you’re a really young person or single and don’t mind sharing. I have cats so I need my own place and they need their own spaces :3 Getting rid of the car has been an awesome change though. I’m so cheap now it’s crazy. Only spend money on food and cat stuff haha.
      - archagon 1y ago
        If I wanted to go for a studio or 1br, I think I'd be able to get a good one for $2500-$3000 in SF. Either way, it's only around 15% of a $300k salary after tax. There should be no CoL issues at all with a FAANG salary.

I both agree that $300k household income is roughly the bottom edge to support a Fussellian upper-middle lifestyle these days (and that edge is retreating upwards fast…), but also notice that it’s about 94th percentile for US household income. Household. A married couple both making that are 98th percentile.

whiplash451 1y ago
Sure but less than 8% of Americans live in the top 10 most expensive cities. In what percentile of your social class do you sit with $300k? Probably not very high.
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
- yusina 1y ago
  "Of your social class"? That comparison doesn't make much sense. If you are at the bottom of your social class, you picked the wrong class to compare yourself with. Of course I'm at the bottom of all millionaires, but that's because I barely have a 7-figure net worth and have a weird self image.

blitzar 1y ago

Said like a 1990's banker / a 2020's tech worker.

archagon 1y ago

That’s silly. As a high-income FAANG engineer living in the heart of SF, I was easily able to save more than 70% of my money.

babyent 1y ago
What was your rent though? I was not at FAANG, but a unicorn startup back in mid to late 2010s, and I was making 150-180k in that time, but not in SF. Rent back then for a 2br was like $2400.. Today, that same apartment goes for $4900. I am pretty sure the base for the same level today is probably more like 170-200k, but literally everything has also become doubly expensive. Also if you're in SF you either need to allocate another 300-400 a month for parking, or sell your car. I was paying 130 per month for my garage parking spot (again, not in SF), and when I moved to SF some time ago I sold my car because it was going to cost me a lot to use my car. And unlike FANG, where you can either hold and double every 3-4 years if lucky, or sell immediately with taxes, I walked away with 10x or more..
- archagon 1y ago
  Rent was (and is) around $4000 for 3br, shared between 2 people. (And this was not an unusual price to see during our apartment hunt a few years ago.) If you're paying $4900 for 2br in the city, my impression is that it's either a brand new development or in a posh area like Pac Heights. I don't have a car, but I feel like that's one of the biggest privileges of living in the city. Maybe the calculus changes if you have kids, though.
  - babyent 1y ago
    Well there you go. Sharing it makes it simpler but also not very ideal unless you’re a really young person or single and don’t mind sharing. I have cats so I need my own place and they need their own spaces :3 Getting rid of the car has been an awesome change though. I’m so cheap now it’s crazy. Only spend money on food and cat stuff haha.
    - archagon 1y ago
      If I wanted to go for a studio or 1br, I think I'd be able to get a good one for $2500-$3000 in SF. Either way, it's only around 15% of a $300k salary after tax. There should be no CoL issues at all with a FAANG salary.