Good salary

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by KSUViolet06

Spending 60% of your salary on rent? Yikes. Why? Could she not find anything better (or does she just WANT to live above her means?)

She probably wasn't deliberately "living above her means." $1600 in DC isn't a luxury condo! Housing in cities is expensive, and like someone said, you might have to pay a lot more just to be within a reasonable commute to your office (especially if you don't have a car), to live in a safe neighborhood, and to have a clean apartment. Even if you have several roommates, your rent in a city like DC, Boston, NYC, or SF is going to be high.

I suspect, and Mel and KSigkid might be able to back me up here, that the entry-level salaries in big cities are a little depressed. Not saying that they're low--they're just not that high, especially if you have a degree of any sort. I know what I was making with a master's degree when I first started working, and it was embarassing. I actually managed to live comfortably--I paid for everything in cash, put money in savings, and was able to throw money into my 401(k). Now I make much more than that, after only 3.5 years of working. I think the low salaries are a way to weed people out who aren't that committed. One small comfort in the low salary/high rent conundrum is that, for the first few years out on your own, most of your friends are in the same position. It's funny to look back and see how we all "grew up."

[KSUViolet06]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

I think the low salaries are a way to weed people out who aren't that committed. One small comfort in the low salary/high rent conundrum is that, for the first few years out on your own, most of your friends are in the same position. It's funny to look back and see how we all "grew up."

This makes sense. If you're recent grad in say, architecture, who is making an embarrassingly low amount of $$ in an entry-level position, you're going to find out pretty quickly whether you love architecture enough to stick it out.

[KSigkid]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

She probably wasn't deliberately "living above her means." $1600 in DC isn't a luxury condo! Housing in cities is expensive, and like someone said, you might have to pay a lot more just to be within a reasonable commute to your office (especially if you don't have a car), to live in a safe neighborhood, and to have a clean apartment. Even if you have several roommates, your rent in a city like DC, Boston, NYC, or SF is going to be high.

Exactly - plus there's always the parking issue if you have a vehicle, where you're either paying for parking in/around your own building, or you're paying for nearby public parking. At least in Boston, neither of those are cheap!

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

I suspect, and Mel and KSigkid might be able to back me up here, that the entry-level salaries in big cities are a little depressed. Not saying that they're low--they're just not that high, especially if you have a degree of any sort.

That was my experience and the experience of my friends, outside of those who went into finance or investment banking. I always thought my salary was low because I was working for a non-profit (doing public relations), but my friends at PR agencies were making a similar amount. The funny thing is my salary didn't go up until I moved to CT and got my current job!

Having friends in the same circumstances definitely helps - not a lot of pressure to go nuts on Friday and Saturday nights when you know that everyone's money, for the most part, is going to rent.

[ADqtPiMel]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

I suspect, and Mel and KSigkid might be able to back me up here, that the entry-level salaries in big cities are a little depressed. Not saying that they're low--they're just not that high, especially if you have a degree of any sort. I know what I was making with a master's degree when I first started working, and it was embarassing. I actually managed to live comfortably--I paid for everything in cash, put money in savings, and was able to throw money into my 401(k). Now I make much more than that, after only 3.5 years of working. I think the low salaries are a way to weed people out who aren't that committed. One small comfort in the low salary/high rent conundrum is that, for the first few years out on your own, most of your friends are in the same position. It's funny to look back and see how we all "grew up."

I think you're absolutely right about entry-level salaries being a little depressed. I can only speak for DC and for the jobs I'm familiar with (media, PR and the Hill), but there is a real sense of using low salaries to weed out people who aren't dedicated. Employers are able to get away with paying low salaries because so many young people move out here and want to work on the Hill -- for every person who won't accept 20k to answer phones, there is another who will. And once you're in the door, it's like a test to see who cares enough about the work to stick out the lower salary. Turnover tends to be high and those who are willing to pay their dues can see huge salary increases once they've proved they can stick it out. Most people I knew who worked on the Hill were annoyed by the low pay and menial job duties and quit -- but the ones I know who stayed were promoted to legislative assistant or press secretary after a year or so (since turnover is so high) and most of them are making about twice as much as they used to.

In regard to the percentage of salary spent on rent -- I did some calculations and we do spend about half of our income on rent. My husband is graduating law school in May and theoretically he should have a job sometime soon (shakes fist at the economy). We've always lived comfortably on just my salary, so I'm always baffled when we visit friends in the Midwest who complain about having no money. I'm like, "Really? Because you make only a little less than I do and your rent is only $400 a month." But then I realize that my husband and I don't spend huge amounts of money on going out to eat, going to bars, shopping sprees, dropping a hundred bucks on random shit at Target, etc. Even with relatively expensive hobbies (me triathlon, him photography), I've never felt like we're lacking in the basics. I think paying that much in rent makes you more aware of where the rest of your money goes.

[KSigkid]

Originally Posted by ADqtPiMel

I think you're absolutely right about entry-level salaries being a little depressed. I can only speak for DC and for the jobs I'm familiar with (media, PR and the Hill), but there is a real sense of using low salaries to weed out people who aren't dedicated. Employers are able to get away with paying low salaries because so many young people move out here and want to work on the Hill -- for every person who won't accept 20k to answer phones, there is another who will. And once you're in the door, it's like a test to see who cares enough about the work to stick out the lower salary. Turnover tends to be high and those who are willing to pay their dues can see huge salary increases once they've proved they can stick it out. Most people I knew who worked on the Hill were annoyed by the low pay and menial job duties and quit -- but the ones I know who stayed were promoted to legislative assistant or press secretary after a year or so (since turnover is so high) and most of them are making about twice as much as they used to.

In regard to the percentage of salary spent on rent -- I did some calculations and we do spend about half of our income on rent. My husband is graduating law school in May and theoretically he should have a job sometime soon (shakes fist at the economy). We've always lived comfortably on just my salary, so I'm always baffled when we visit friends in the Midwest who complain about having no money. I'm like, "Really? Because you make only a little less than I do and your rent is only $400 a month." But then I realize that my husband and I don't spend huge amounts of money on going out to eat, going to bars, shopping sprees, dropping a hundred bucks on random shit at Target, etc. Even with relatively expensive hobbies (me triathlon, him photography), I've never felt like we're lacking in the basics. I think paying that much in rent makes you more aware of where the rest of your money goes.

I think you put this perfectly. They can get away with paying low in the media professions (PR, journalism, editing, etc.) because, as you said, it's almost like a way to prove your worth. You make almost nothing for a while, do a good job, and end up (if you're lucky) with a good salary after a couple of years. The people I know who stuck with it are 5-7 years into their careers and are on their way to better salaries and more challenging positions (whether as a primary press secretary or higher within a political office, handling their own accounts in PR firms, or getting front-page stories for their newspapers).

Good luck to your husband in finding a job. The lawyer market was hit pretty hard, it's kind of discouraging out there right now. I'm looking at the DC area as a possible destination, and heard that the lawyer market down in DC/VA/MD hasn't been hit quite as hard as the Northeast.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by ADqtPiMel

Most people I knew who worked on the Hill were annoyed by the low pay and menial job duties and quit -- but the ones I know who stayed were promoted to legislative assistant or press secretary after a year or so (since turnover is so high) and most of them are making about twice as much as they used to.

I think paying that much in rent makes you more aware of where the rest of your money goes.

There's a lot to be said about paying one's dues. It's hard to understand when you're just out of school that the money gets better quickly, and to just hold out and work hard. If anything, making so little just out of graduate school prepared me for the importance of saving money, investing for retirement, and not blowing my money on frivolous stuff like clothes. I have chosen to blow my money on frivolous stuff like travel.

I agree completely. I tried really hard to find a place where I wouldn't be paying a ton of money on rent; even now I pay about 1/3 of my net pay each month on rent. But, I'm super careful about where the rest of my money goes. I'd probably pay less if I chose to have roommates, but I'm pretty happy living on my own and think it's worth it now.