Household Income

melzh · October 2013

Before I found out I was pregnant with DD we both lost our iobs and were completely homeless, literally living in a stairwell or sleeping in my car which had broken seats. I was told how irresponsible I was for being pregnant once the temporary shelters got wind of my pregnancy. I got pregnant while using protection. To judge someone for not making a lot of money or even enough to the point that they need temporary givernment assistance is wrong. Don't judge because you haven't walked in their shoes.

Andrewsgal · October 2013

mrscrcalli said:
The categories are what they are there were no additional comments of judgement you made those assumption on your own. I was asked to start an income poll based on another thread. I'm sorry there aren't 20 different combinations of options it was all if FUN. Gezus get a grip no one is judging anyone accept you are judging anyone who doesn't have the same opinion as you.

Don't worry about it this is a very sensitive topic and there is a lot of reading into things and assumptions being made. You did nothing wrong.

Serenla · October 2013

Mmmmm abandon thread!

bingbongsmama · October 2013

melzh said:
Before I found out I was pregnant with DD we both lost our iobs and were completely homeless, literally living in a stairwell or sleeping in my car which had broken seats. I was told how irresponsible I was for being pregnant once the temporary shelters got wind of my pregnancy. I got pregnant while using protection. To judge someone for not making a lot of money or even enough to the point that they need temporary givernment assistance is wrong. Don't judge because you haven't walked in their shoes.

I'm so sorry you went through that. I can't even imagine.

Andrewsgal · October 2013

jellysparkles said:

Andrewsgal said:

jellysparkles said:

Andrewsgal said:

jellysparkles said:

mrscrcalli said:

jellysparkles said:
Wheee, let the classist judginess commence!
Why would any of it need to be drama?? I would never judge anyone on making 10k and I should hope no one would judge me cause I make more. Or my husband does. We are all here together having babies so we all have one of the biggest things in common, who cares.

Either you're not paying attention or you're ignorant to the issues. People are already saying crazy classist shit.
Or people like you are looking for reasons to get offended and stir shit up.
I don't have to look for reasons when they're thrown right out there. I'm happy for you that you and a number of the others here can't relate.
Nothing was thrown out there and you are making some huge assumptions that by simply asking why her husband want working I couldn't relate. Once again looking for stuff to be offended by.
Your posts in other threads have done well to show off your privilege. IPhones for kids? I don't care if you do it, but let's not pretend that's something everyone can do. Thus, not relating.

So because we have money now that we worked our ass off for we don't know what it's like to be living off minimum wage? Your assumptions have once again made you look like an ass. When we got married DH was a manager at Walmart earning min wage so yes we know just what it is like yo live paycheck to paycheck. You are right we are not even close to living like that anymore but doesn't mean I can't relate nor am I ashamed that we are living well now. We worked our asses off to get where we are. Just because we have money now doesn't mean we always did. But good try. And yep I will buy my kids an iPhone because we can afford it and worked damn hard to get there too.

melzh · October 2013

bingbongsmama said:

melzh said:
Before I found out I was pregnant with DD we both lost our iobs and were completely homeless, literally living in a stairwell or sleeping in my car which had broken seats. I was told how irresponsible I was for being pregnant once the temporary shelters got wind of my pregnancy. I got pregnant while using protection. To judge someone for not making a lot of money or even enough to the point that they need temporary givernment assistance is wrong. Don't judge because you haven't walked in their shoes.
I'm so sorry you went through that. I can't even imagine.

I appreciate that, but honestly I am not. It was hard, but I grew up upper or middle class, this really made me appreciate everything because we lost everything except the clothes on our back and oddly enough a stuffed eeyore. That stuff is a reminder of where we came from. I was overwhelmed with the kindness of others who gave me their baby things to help me get started when we got our apartment. People who do not make $$$$ shouldn't feel bad for it. We do what we can as parents.

Andrewsgal · October 2013

jellysparkles said:

Andrewsgal said:

jellysparkles said:

Andrewsgal said:

jellysparkles said:

Andrewsgal said:

jellysparkles said:

mrscrcalli said:

jellysparkles said:
Wheee, let the classist judginess commence!
Why would any of it need to be drama?? I would never judge anyone on making 10k and I should hope no one would judge me cause I make more. Or my husband does. We are all here together having babies so we all have one of the biggest things in common, who cares.

Either you're not paying attention or you're ignorant to the issues. People are already saying crazy classist shit.
Or people like you are looking for reasons to get offended and stir shit up.
I don't have to look for reasons when they're thrown right out there. I'm happy for you that you and a number of the others here can't relate.
Nothing was thrown out there and you are making some huge assumptions that by simply asking why her husband want working I couldn't relate. Once again looking for stuff to be offended by.
Your posts in other threads have done well to show off your privilege. IPhones for kids? I don't care if you do it, but let's not pretend that's something everyone can do. Thus, not relating.
So because we have money now that we worked our ass off for we don't know what it's like to be living off minimum wage? Your assumptions have once again made you look like an ass. When we got married DH was a manager at Walmart earning min wage so yes we know just what it is like yo live paycheck to paycheck. You are right we are not even close to living like that anymore but doesn't mean I can't relate nor am I ashamed that we are living well now. We worked our asses off to get where we are. Just because we have money now doesn't mean we always did. But good try. And yep I will buy my kids an iPhone because we can afford it and worked damn hard to get there too.
Cashiers at Wal-Mart fresh out of high school don't make minimum wage. Not far above it, but this has been Wal-Mart's argument against critics for 20 years. I'm done here.

Next time you can just admit you are wrong.

spano41 · October 2013

jolieemma said:

So interesting how home prices differ so much! We just bought a foreclosure for $270k here in Seattle. It was built in 1940 and main living area is 830 sq ft, 2bed/1bath, and the income suite in the basement is the same. Huge lot, just was neglected for a long time so we're putting a lot of work into it. Should be worth about $350k when we're done. Anybody looking to rent a 2/1 daylight basement in Seattle?

@jolieemma where did you find that!! We have been looking for 3br 2ba houses in the 400-500K price range and can't find anything! It sounds like you got pretty lucky. There are 1br condos in my building going for more than $270K!! It is so competitive right now that we have put buying a house on the back burner. We are actually thinking about moving to ID where my family is because the cost of living in Seattle is so high and the type of work we are in doesn't take into account cost of living.

IndyPRGirl · October 2013

We live in Mich. Single income family, make around $125. Just bought a new construction spec home--1600 sq ft (has a 1600 sq ft basement ready to finish), all granite, hand scraped hardwoods, no landscaping yet in an amazing neighborhood for $195k. 3br 2ba (will be 5br 3ba when done)

edoliesmom · October 2013

LalaMama81 said: LittleLady77 said: I can't believe about half of the ladies on here make over 100K. Interesting.
Meh, I'm sure the age spread has a lot to do with that. If both people are working, 100k isn't an enormous amount, depending on their career and how long they've been doing it.
I have more trouble believe someone's combine income was under $10k (not the non-USA one).

I work about 31 hours a week at $7.50 an hour (and between unpaid holidays and time-off, I would say about 49 weeks a year). My husband makes minimum wage and went from 15 hours a week to 9. So after taxes, social security and all that is taken out, we make about $10K a year, give or take a few hundred. My husband informed me that student loans counts as part of our income, so if you want to count that, you can. But it mostly goes to his college, and whatever is left over, we use to help pay rent (but there's one month of the year where we have to budget to pay out of pocket). So yes, it IS possible to make that little a year in the US.

amhah09 · October 2013

SLSchuerg said:

LalaMama81 said:

LittleLady77 said:

I can't believe about half of the ladies on here make over 100K. Interesting.

Meh, I'm sure the age spread has a lot to do with that. If both people are working, 100k isn't an enormous amount, depending on their career and how long they've been doing it.

I have more trouble believe someone's combine income was under $10k (not the non-USA one).

I work about 31 hours a week at $7.50 an hour (and between unpaid holidays and time-off, I would say about 49 weeks a year). My husband makes minimum wage and went from 15 hours a week to 9. So after taxes, social security and all that is taken out, we make about $10K a year, give or take a few hundred. My husband informed me that student loans counts as part of our income, so if you want to count that, you can. But it mostly goes to his college, and whatever is left over, we use to help pay rent (but there's one month of the year where we have to budget to pay out of pocket). So yes, it IS possible to make that little a year in the US.

I don't think anyone ever claimed that it wasn't possible to make that. The statement that caused all of this was stating that it isn't outrageous for two working individuals to make a combined amount of 100K/year or more and that is probably more likely than <10.

edoliesmom · October 2013

@LalaMama81 This is true, and for that I'm grateful. But it's not earned income that we can spend. It's already spent before we even have it, and it'll be debt for us once my husband graduates. I'm not complaining though I guess. I'm glad it's available to him so that he can get his degree, and it got us out of living with his parents. But hopefully by the summer of next year he will have secured a teaching position, and our income will have increased by about 20-30K. [-O<

amhah09 · October 2013

LalaMama81 said:

amhah09 said:

I don't think anyone ever claimed that it wasn't possible to make that. The statement that caused all of this was stating that it isn't outrageous for two working individuals to make a combined amount of 100K/year or more and that is probably more likely than <10.

Exactly. I didn't realize it was that difficult to understand.

It's not judgement, it's not classist commentary, etc.

You had no idea what you were starting :-P

As others stated too, we have to look at income in relation to location. 100K goes a long way in some places and barely paying bills in others.

vanvoorhis-101 · October 2013

I have to laugh when people list their property by how many square feet it is. I have 6+ acres, to my DH and I its not much, but I guess its a lot compared to other locations. We have a 2400 sq ft house plus a large detached garage (in addition to the attached garage), the six acres previously mentioned, a creek, a river and we only paid 205K. I love Ohio.

Kelseyl34 · October 2013

I think how much you make is less relevant then how much you spend. Someone making 50k a year may be richer then someone making $100k if they have student loans, car payments, credit card debt etc.

dmresnick · October 2013

I'm on the middle higher end on paper, but college loans are a bitch and cut our income in half. It's like I only work to pay loans.Truth.

abbeylanecb · October 2013

We will make about $90,000 this year and in Louisiana that's solid middle class. We live in a 1500 sq ft house new construction and drive 2 newish cars. We went on 3 vacations this year. Our income doubled this year so living here on 40,000 is very possible, just no extras.

Serenla · October 2013

vanvoorhis-101 said:
I have to laugh when people list their property by how many square feet...

it's a lifestyle choice. I also found that comment a bit douchey.

Rogue237 · October 2013

Serenla said:

Mmmmm abandon thread!

Hahahhahaha @serenla I heart you. BAIL BAIL BAIL!

Rogue237 · October 2013

I live in Ann Arbor, MI. It's a great city to live in - it's got town and city charm and is very diverse (race, religion, LGBT, etc). Houses where we are are around $250K. We got ours for a steal because the owners have been dead for years and the family wanted to unload it and it's a fixer upper (DH loves to fix things). We'll sell it for 4 times what we paid when we sell it one day, but for now it's all putting money and time into it. We make a little over $100K HH. I feel like we should have a lot more extra cash than we do sometimes, but we're not in a stressed-over-cash situation thankfully. My family was poor when I was young (my parents got gov't assistance on top of their income), and now they are well off just from working their asses off. I feel like it gave me a good perspective on money. I agree with most of the posters on here - it's all about location and the debt you're paying off!

katieharpiceland · October 2013

Hehe, its weird to see the sq. feet. Makes me miss America a bit. But, only a bit. We live in 80 sq meters, which is like 860 sq feet. That's 2 br/1 b. We have a backyard we share with our two upstairs neighbors. We live in a basement, but, the windows are big. It cost 18.9 million krona, or 180,000$. Of course, I mentioned yesterday that the principal of our loan is always going up based on inflation. So, after buying this place in March for 18.9, it now costs us 18.95 million krona. There are no other loan types here, so, you kinda just hope the price of milk and beer doesn't go up too much. Yes, our loan principal varies depending on the price of milk and beer. We make about 50,000$ a year after paying 33% income tax, plus a billion other taxes :-)

katieharpiceland · October 2013

Oh yea, gas is 10$ a gallon :-)

Serenla · October 2013

LalaMama81 said:

Serenla said:

vanvoorhis-101 said:
I have to laugh when people list their property by how many square feet...
it's a lifestyle choice. I also found that comment a bit douchey.

Which comment? When your lot is like .017 acre, you usually list it in sq feet.

There are lots of things I love about more rural areas or even suburban-rural areas, but living in a first ring suburb that's barely a suburb has tons of advantages. And sometimes we don't live in the area we live in my choice, jobs have a big factor.

Um the comment I quoted...
Eta the "I have to laugh" bit.

beautifulstr13 · October 2013

BiggerinRealLife said:
We paid 410k for a cluster townhouse in the Silicon Valley. Two bedrooms/loft 1.5 bath. No yard, just an enclosed atrium in the back, and HOA takes care of the lawns outside. My friend built her dream house in Georgia for just over 40k. I love our home, and love where I live, but dang. I can't watch House Hunters because I get too jealous.

Dang. I couldn't imagine. I bet it's beautiful there but I love our cheap living. We have an almost 6,000 sqf home for $500k. Plus we live on almost 200 acres of land. The differences are crazy. I bet we would be lower middle class where you are.

Serenla · October 2013

LalaMama81 said:

Serenla said:

LalaMama81 said:

Serenla said:

vanvoorhis-101 said:
I have to laugh when people list their property by how many square feet...
it's a lifestyle choice. I also found that comment a bit douchey.

Which comment? When your lot is like .017 acre, you usually list it in sq feet.

There are lots of things I love about more rural areas or even suburban-rural areas, but living in a first ring suburb that's barely a suburb has tons of advantages. And sometimes we don't live in the area we live in my choice, jobs have a big factor.

Um the comment I quoted...
Eta the "I have to laugh" bit.

Look, I can read just fine. The way your worded your post sounded like you were referring to another comment b/c you said "that comment." I would have said, "If found this comment..." Perhaps I just read it wrong and asked for clarification.
Ooooook.

jolieemma · October 2013

spano41 said:

jolieemma said:

So interesting how home prices differ so much! We just bought a foreclosure for $270k here in Seattle. It was built in 1940 and main living area is 830 sq ft, 2bed/1bath, and the income suite in the basement is the same. Huge lot, just was neglected for a long time so we're putting a lot of work into it. Should be worth about $350k when we're done. Anybody looking to rent a 2/1 daylight basement in Seattle?

@jolieemma where did you find that!! We have been looking for 3br 2ba houses in the 400-500K price range and can't find anything! It sounds like you got pretty lucky. There are 1br condos in my building going for more than $270K!! It is so competitive right now that we have put buying a house on the back burner. We are actually thinking about moving to ID where my family is because the cost of living in Seattle is so high and the type of work we are in doesn't take into account cost of living.

Oh trust me, it took forever! Ours is the third house we put an offer in on and we were lucky to not get into a bidding war for it. And it *was* a foreclosure in rough shape. But we knew what we were looking for! It's definitely not in our ideal location (Northgate...no way you could get anything even remotely livable in Greenlake, Ballard, or Queen Anne for that!), but we don't plan to be in this place for long. ID is definitely cheaper as far a COL goes. Good luck, let me know what you decide to do!

ohbaby4 · October 2013

jellysparkles said:

Rogue237 said:
I live in Ann Arbor, MI. It's a great city to live in - it's got town and city charm and is very diverse (race, religion, LGBT, etc). Houses where we are are around $250K. We got ours for a steal because the owners have been dead for years and the family wanted to unload it and it's a fixer upper (DH loves to fix things). We'll sell it for 4 times what we paid when we sell it one day, but for now it's all putting money and time into it. We make a little over $100K HH. I feel like we should have a lot more extra cash than we do sometimes, but we're not in a stressed-over-cash situation thankfully. My family was poor when I was young (my parents got gov't assistance on top of their income), and now they are well off just from working their asses off. I feel like it gave me a good perspective on money. I agree with most of the posters on here - it's all about location and the debt you're paying off!
Love A2! We live a half hour north in the country. It's nice being close enough to come enjoy what A2 offers.

DH went to U of M for law school so he loves AA and we visit often.

But now we live in Bloomfield Hills where everything is super expensive for no reason.

babyfever1111 · October 2013

I feel like our combined income is A LOT because where we grew up it would be a ton of money... But it doesn't matter how much you make. It's all relative to where you live! We can only afford a one bedroom apartment in the Bay Area!! Rent for our tiny apartment is $2400 a month!!

So move away?? Right?? Can't. The jobs are here. =\

patunia7321 · October 2013

I have to laugh when people list their property by how many square feet it is. I have 6+ acres, to my DH and I its not much, but I guess its a lot compared to other locations. We have a 2400 sq ft house plus a large detached garage (in addition to the attached garage), the six acres previously mentioned, a creek, a river and we only paid 205K. I love Ohio.

This is pretty similar to where I live in PA. We actually bought our current home for $30k as is/foreclosure and gutted/renovated the whole thing on our own. DH is insanely handy (should really start a construction company- "but then it wouldn't be fun anymore"-anyway!) We are now looking for 5+ acres ideally with an old farm house that we would be able to renovate.

railroadRN · October 2013

Kelseyl34 said:

I think how much you make is less relevant then how much you spend. Someone making 50k a year may be richer then someone making $100k if they have student loans, car payments, credit card debt etc.

This.

We are considered upper middle class in our little corner of the world, but we have plenty of debt to bring us back down to earth.

knotty-girl · October 2013

MrsStanton87 said:

knotty-girl said:

MrsStanton87 said:
I live in Eugene and it's relatively inexpensive considering I used to live in Napa Valley. We can get a starter home that is somewhat updated for $250k, and that would have been impossible if we still lived back home. Yes, it is still expensive, but it is manageable for a starter home.
That's where I'm from! Did you grow up there?

you're from Eugene or Napa? We both grew up in Napa but have lived in Eugene for about 2 years

_____________________________
Oh no, I'm from Eugene. Lived there most of my life until I was 19.

Heeb918 · October 2013

DH and I bring in about 170k total. In Indiana, our farm house with 20 wooded acres and 2 barns was 250k when we bought it, and was recently appraised at 350k. Doesn't really matter to us, we will never leave it. Unfortunately, because of the temporary move to Baltimore, we are also paying to rent here. I cannot believe the difference in COL! Our 3 br townhome is twice our mortgage at home. Thankfully, the only debt we have is my car and our house, and we are able to put away a decent amount into savings as investing as well. Having two sets of bills will certainly cut into that this year, but it was this or my husband not having a job. Do what you have to, right?

loveyoga7 · October 2013

We purchased our home in Livermore, Ca for $757k. Most recent comps are $960k after having an appraisal done for a possible loan. DH is an air traffic controller and is part of the government shut down. So he is working, just not getting paid at the moment. I hope this shut down ends soon because I work on commission as a realtor and don't have anything in escrow right now. Thankfully are cars are paid off and student loans. Cost of living in Ca is high. I consider us middle class, possibly upper middle at most.

loveyoga7 · October 2013

loveyoga7 said:
We purchased our home in Livermore, Ca for $757k. Most recent comps are $960k after having an appraisal done for a possible loan. DH is an air traffic controller and is part of the government shut down. So he is working, just not getting paid at the moment. I hope this shut down ends soon because I work on commission as a realtor and don't have anything in escrow right now. Thankfully are cars are paid off and student loans. Cost of living in Ca is high. I consider us middle class, possibly upper middle at most.

*our (darn autocorrect)

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