5 ms·

I'm in the 35-44 group and I just continue downward. Salaries post 2k7 haven't recovered, and health care costs in the past couple years have sky rocketed with

I'm in the 35-44 group and I just continue downward. Salaries post 2k7 haven't recovered, and health care costs in the past couple years have sky rocketed with the new plans. So, with cost of living and property taxes increasing, my pay stagnating to falling when you include health care premiums, I can't even live paycheck to paycheck half the time. The sad thing is I make more in my current developer job of 15 years than if I left to go somewhere else to 2k7 pay levels, so that's not an option. It's not just a young person thing. It's the new economy with the gap ever widening and I don't see it changing. Just get into the right field. Sales execs making real good money around here (the mid-Atlantic) while IT is not.

thrownaway2424 12y ago
Property taxes increasing because of rates or because of valuation?
- quaffapint 12y ago
  It's made up of a few different things - less state/federal government support, drying up economy (less companies paying taxes), and things cost more. We also live in a sprawl area, so more schools being built, etc. I've lived here for 10 years and for 10 years the property taxes have gone up. I would consider moving, but my kids are in middle/high school and I am trying my best to not uproot if I can avoid it.
  - thrownaway2424 12y ago
    Didn't really answer the questions. Do your property taxes increase because the rates increased or because the assessed value of your property increased, or perhaps because your governments added flat per-parcel fees?
    - quaffapint 12y ago
      I re-assessed many years (5+) ago to get it as low as possible and haven't had that changed. The selling price of the homes went down with everyone else in 2k7, and have slowly gotten better to maybe worth a little more than what we paid for. It's really do to what I listed.
      - thrownaway2424 12y ago
        I'm starting to wonder if your unwillingness to answer simple questions could be contributing to your unsatisfactory income.
        quaffapint 12y ago
        I don't know what more I can add.
        simoncion 12y ago
        You could say the one or two of these phrases that most accurately sums up the reason for your property tax increase: "My taxes increased because of an increase in property tax rates." "My taxes increased because of an increase in property valuation." I think I know which one you will say, but I'm not 100% sure, and I expect that the GP is also unsure.
        quaffapint 12y ago
        I thought I stated, but I guess not clearly, that it is due to the mill rate increasing every year for the past 10 years due to the factors I listed, not valuation.
morgante 12y ago
With due respect, shouldn't a developer with >15 years of experience be making in the high 6 figures? (>$150k) Is it really hard to live on that, even with a family?
- sologoub 12y ago
  That number is less common than you think, but even if it were the median, you'd still have half of people below that. Areas where that kind of salary is most common are extremely expensive. When you factor in all family expenses and commute (unless you get ridiculously lucky or are ok with really cramped quarters), you end up with bills a lot higher than a single person. For kids, there is healthcare, school related stuff, toys, the right good and so on. It's a lot tougher than you might think. Psychology also kicks in here - when you've been busting your ass for 15 years to make a good living, you expect to be able to afford certain things. Unfortunately, prices of luxury goods have far outpaced consumer goods, so you end up feelings lot less "wealthy" than you think you should.
- quaffapint 12y ago
  Just to add on to what sologoub stated...When I started IT many moons ago, I had a nice linear progressions of jobs and pay. We moved from an apartment to small house to slightly bigger rural area house. My job felt steady and I liked that with a young family. When I was ready to move onto the next position 2007 happened. Now any move I make in the field would likely end up being a step down or lateral move in pay, based on the many recruiters and their position offerings I speak with. It's just the nature of the current economy. I make good money, but the cost of living has now outpaced what good money means and my pay has stagnanted if not gone down with health premium costs.
  - morgante 12y ago
    > When I started IT many moons ago I can't help but think that referring to technology as "IT" might be part of the problem. Nobody I know who's doing technical product development calls it IT. In my mind, that term connotes working as a glorified support specialist in a large corporation.

thrownaway2424 12y ago

Property taxes increasing because of rates or because of valuation?

quaffapint 12y ago
It's made up of a few different things - less state/federal government support, drying up economy (less companies paying taxes), and things cost more. We also live in a sprawl area, so more schools being built, etc. I've lived here for 10 years and for 10 years the property taxes have gone up. I would consider moving, but my kids are in middle/high school and I am trying my best to not uproot if I can avoid it.
- thrownaway2424 12y ago
  Didn't really answer the questions. Do your property taxes increase because the rates increased or because the assessed value of your property increased, or perhaps because your governments added flat per-parcel fees?
  - quaffapint 12y ago
    I re-assessed many years (5+) ago to get it as low as possible and haven't had that changed. The selling price of the homes went down with everyone else in 2k7, and have slowly gotten better to maybe worth a little more than what we paid for. It's really do to what I listed.
    - thrownaway2424 12y ago
      I'm starting to wonder if your unwillingness to answer simple questions could be contributing to your unsatisfactory income.
      - quaffapint 12y ago
        I don't know what more I can add.
        simoncion 12y ago
        You could say the one or two of these phrases that most accurately sums up the reason for your property tax increase: "My taxes increased because of an increase in property tax rates." "My taxes increased because of an increase in property valuation." I think I know which one you will say, but I'm not 100% sure, and I expect that the GP is also unsure.
      - quaffapint 12y ago
        I thought I stated, but I guess not clearly, that it is due to the mill rate increasing every year for the past 10 years due to the factors I listed, not valuation.

morgante 12y ago

With due respect, shouldn't a developer with >15 years of experience be making in the high 6 figures? (>$150k) Is it really hard to live on that, even with a family?

sologoub 12y ago
That number is less common than you think, but even if it were the median, you'd still have half of people below that. Areas where that kind of salary is most common are extremely expensive. When you factor in all family expenses and commute (unless you get ridiculously lucky or are ok with really cramped quarters), you end up with bills a lot higher than a single person. For kids, there is healthcare, school related stuff, toys, the right good and so on. It's a lot tougher than you might think. Psychology also kicks in here - when you've been busting your ass for 15 years to make a good living, you expect to be able to afford certain things. Unfortunately, prices of luxury goods have far outpaced consumer goods, so you end up feelings lot less "wealthy" than you think you should.
quaffapint 12y ago
Just to add on to what sologoub stated...When I started IT many moons ago, I had a nice linear progressions of jobs and pay. We moved from an apartment to small house to slightly bigger rural area house. My job felt steady and I liked that with a young family. When I was ready to move onto the next position 2007 happened. Now any move I make in the field would likely end up being a step down or lateral move in pay, based on the many recruiters and their position offerings I speak with. It's just the nature of the current economy. I make good money, but the cost of living has now outpaced what good money means and my pay has stagnanted if not gone down with health premium costs.
- morgante 12y ago
  > When I started IT many moons ago I can't help but think that referring to technology as "IT" might be part of the problem. Nobody I know who's doing technical product development calls it IT. In my mind, that term connotes working as a glorified support specialist in a large corporation.