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Minimum income required?

April 2nd, 2006 at 06:50 am

On another board people were saying that it's very hard to have a nice life on $50k or less.

The median household income in the US (median means that exactly half make less and half make more) is $44k. So over half the households in the US are not living a nice life?

I just can't wrap my mind around that. We just now make $50k. This is the first time in our lives that we've had this much income. Yes, some years have sucked (the year that neither of us had jobs for 3 months and then moved 750 miles comes to mind). But for the most part, we've always had a good life.

We have more CC debt than I'd like. Most of it is from that year mentioned above, but we did have some before. So, technically we weren't living fully in our means. But, we've always had a positive net worth. If we had had to, we could have paid off all of our debt.

I told those people they were full of it. Half the people in the US are not living bad lives. Some people may be feeling that they don't have enough "stuff" but they have all their needs met.

I think it takes a lot of hubris to say that you HAVE to have more income than over half the nation to have a good life.

Posted in The Good Life, Waxing Philosophical | 11 Comments »

11 Responses to “Minimum income required?”

  1. dmontngrey Says:
    April 2nd, 2006 at 02:53 pm 1143986029
    1143986029

    My mother is trying to get by on under $1000 per month. I am struggling to put together her budget and get her finances under control. I don't know how she's been able to survive so far. I'm baffled!! Yet she always seems very thankful for what she has. I don't think she would ever say she's not living a nice life. How financially "rich" she'd be if she made $50k!!

  2. Ima saver Says:
    April 2nd, 2006 at 03:53 pm 1143989629
    1143989629

    I agree!

  3. Ima saver Says:
    April 2nd, 2006 at 03:56 pm 1143989811
    1143989811

    What board is this? I would love to go to other financial sites!

  4. Thrifty Ray Says:
    April 2nd, 2006 at 04:08 pm 1143990539
    1143990539

    The article is a perfect example of a conpiracy theory...

    Make people believe they have to make more so they can spend more..and every one wins...
    the merchants win, because in increases spending...
    the auto manufacturers win...we have to have a nicer car so everyone knows we make lots of money...
    the fast food industry wins...who has time to cook...
    the doctors win... all the stress and junk food insure this!
    the IRS wins...oooh...lots of income fromt this one!!!
    I could go on and on, but I will stop at this one...
    the bankruptcy courts win....(the numbers speak for themselves)
    the lawyers win, because we all know how many divorces are out there

    So the great minds behind this conspiracy decided it needed a catchy name...

    Let's call it "keeping up with the Jones'"

    (disclaimer * this response was in no way poking fun at two income families...rather the idea that it takes 50K to live a good life)

  5. katy Says:
    April 2nd, 2006 at 07:37 pm 1144003039
    1144003039

    We have lived with way less than $1000 per month for years. We pay tithe first and after that, everything takes care of itself. we raised 4 kids this way and sent them to parochial schools.

  6. Single Mom Extraordinaire Says:
    April 2nd, 2006 at 11:09 pm 1144015759
    1144015759

    Cercis: I just posted the antithesis to that overconsumptive way of thought under Live Well on Less on my blog. It's kind of a little parable of sorts that expresses what a lot of us here feel.

    I live well on less than $50,000. Sheesh.

    I'm with Ray: it is a conspiracy! Smile

  7. marieelaine75 Says:
    April 4th, 2006 at 02:38 pm 1144157913
    1144157913

    I'm not so sure I agree that it's entirely true for every part of the world you live in.

    Im in Boston and it's impossible (for a family of 5) to live on less than $35,000... $50,000, yes we can live comfortably on less than $50,000 but we can't go much lower than $35, 000...

  8. DivaJen Says:
    April 5th, 2006 at 09:12 pm 1144267924
    1144267924

    I would wonder about location when people toss around figures. We live in a modest home, drive 7 and 12 year old cars, don't take fancy vacations, DH rides his bike to work, etc. We need $25K+ just to meet mortgage and property taxes. And this isn't a big house - 1500-1600 sq ft, 3 bedrooms. Add in food, insurance (health, car, home), dentist, copays, utilities and other life necessities, and living a "nice" life for $50K really seems hard to even fathom here.

    I guess if one's housing expenses are a lot less, it might be different.

  9. lrjohnson Says:
    April 7th, 2006 at 03:51 am 1144378308
    1144378308

    Last year I had a very luxurious life, spending less than $20K. I traveled to Mexico and Poland, and ate out all the time. I never felt deprived for a second. This was LUXURY at $20K. I can't imagine what I would do with $50K. I suppose I might be a homeowner-in California, it is hard - but jeeeeeeez. A gratitude check is in order for some people.

  10. PRICEPLUS Says:
    April 10th, 2006 at 10:43 pm 1144705411
    1144705411

    It seems many people raise their spending as soon as they get some extra money. Maybe the idea in life is to do more with less. The best times in my life were when I was young and poor. Maybe if we lived more and bought less we'd be better off.

    Living well is a lifestyle choice for many. Some make 100,000 and live hand to mouth worrying about how to stay a step ahead of creditors. Some folks make 40000 or less and live well. The difference is lifestyle and what is important in their lives. You canbe quite happy and live on less than 50K a year!

  11. Tightwad Kitty Says:
    April 18th, 2006 at 10:47 pm 1145396836
    1145396836

    I agree with Priceplus.
    I live on less than 12K AU a year!
    I find that I have a lifestyle that I can do what, when I wont too and still save money too! It's choices that you make now and what you owe from past spending sprees. That's the problem.

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