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I'm behind a paywall, so I'm sure they pick up on this, but the biggest problem I ran into when I thought I could afford a house was the down payment. You can make $100k (or less!) and quite easily afford a monthly mortgage payment, but that doesn't necessarily mean you have enough saved up for a down payment.
$100,000 still a lot of money. You can buy a beer in Vietnam for 20 cents. The problem in the Bay Area, where I live, is we artificially limit the amount of housing. So prices move to infinity.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Median household income in USA is $59,039. That's both the mother AND father working to bring home $59,039 on the average (before taxes and other costs). Its clear you live in a rich area where $100k isn't much. But that's also why a large chunk of Americans think that "city-folk" are disconnected from reality. $100k is a lot for many people. My sister lives in an area (in USA) where a 2-bedroom apartment is just $50…
Rural folk don't understand that even if you're making 100k in the big city, a lot of that is eaten up by housing costs. The fantasy of what people who don't earn 100k think 100k buys you is very different from the reality of what lifestyle 100k affords.
After all, people in big cities by and large don't earn $100k either, and yet they manage to live somehow!
It's been a long time since $100k was a lot of money
Median household income in USA is $59,039. That's both the mother AND father working to bring home $59,039 on the average (before taxes and other costs). Its clear you live in a rich area where $100k isn't much. But that's also why a large chunk of Americans think that "city-folk" are disconnected from reality. $100k is a lot for many people. My sister lives in an area (in USA) where a 2-bedroom apartment is just $50…
There's very few places where there is an overlap of "jobs that pay $100k" and "homes that can be afforded at $100k salary".
Small town America will have $500 / month for a 2-bedroom apartment, while paying medical-doctors $200k+ / year. But you may be the only doctor around for 10s of miles. Which is why you'd be so valuable. I'm sure there are other $100k to $200k jobs that small towns need. No, you won't get high-tech or programming in small-town America. But there's more to life than just the tech-field. Its easy to forget because we'r…
Part of the problem is these jobs don't have the sex appeal of SV tech so they aren't on people's radar or just not considered desirable because of the nature of manufacturing work.
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What is the typical american dream and why is there a typical version and an atypical version?
The typical american dream has always been a detached home with a car and 2 kids. At 100k a year I'd break even.
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the sweet spot in terms of arbitrage right now is: find full time employment at a high earning job in a major metro area, move far enough from that metro area to work remote while being able to come into the office a handful of times per month. A three hour commute is easier when you only do it twice a week, or a few times a month.
A 3 hour commute each way is not easy even when you do it only twice a week
It's been a long time since $100k was a lot of money
Median household income in USA is $59,039. That's both the mother AND father working to bring home $59,039 on the average (before taxes and other costs). Its clear you live in a rich area where $100k isn't much. But that's also why a large chunk of Americans think that "city-folk" are disconnected from reality. $100k is a lot for many people. My sister lives in an area (in USA) where a 2-bedroom apartment is just $50…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Median household income in USA is $59,039. That's both the mother AND father working to bring home $59,039 on the average (before taxes and other costs). Its clear you live in a rich area where $100k isn't much. But that's also why a large chunk of Americans think that "city-folk" are disconnected from reality. $100k is a lot for many people. My sister lives in an area (in USA) where a 2-bedroom apartment is just $50…
Hmm, do most households have two people nowadays?
I'd presume that most "single family homes" owned by a single-person would have 1-or-2 rooms rented out, providing 3+ income streams for the household.
There's very few places where there is an overlap of "jobs that pay $100k" and "homes that can be afforded at $100k salary".
There are many places throughout the south, midwest and northeast with decent job markets and dirt cheap housing. The mortgage on my 1800 sq foot house is nearly a third of the cost of my tiny one bedroom back in Seattle. The cost of the entire house is a tenth of a house in the Bay Area.
I am fortunate to work remotely but when deciding where to live I wanted to be able to afford to keep this roof over my families' head even if I didn't have a Bay Area/Seattle gig. I think the biggest obstacle may be coming up with enough cash to secure the financing in the first place, and for that I am grateful to have lived and worked in a tech hub.