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Peter Thiel: Startup CEO Salaries Shouldn’t Be Above $150,000

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Re: Peter Thiel: Startup CEO Salaries Shouldn’t Be Above $150,000

#31

Post by mattdeboard »

earl wrote: post #16
philwelch wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Most people with kids and mortgages get by on less than 150k. If you really can't make ends meet on 150k you've overextended yourself.

Not in sf or nyc. a low end (not dumpy, but definitely not high end with a doorman) 2 bed apartment is going to run you $650k in the decent bits of sf and more in nyc. In sf, you end up paying approx $1100 per month per million dollars of value in property taxes. So $715 in taxes, $300 or so in insurance, a $2500 mortgage, and you can easily be spending $3500-$4k/mo (after taxes) on housing. Using the rough rule of t…

Then I guess you'll just need to live outside the city and commute like millions of people do every day.

Re: Peter Thiel: Startup CEO Salaries Shouldn’t Be Above $150,000

#32

Post by larrys »

_delirium wrote: post #19
earl wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not in sf or nyc. a low end (not dumpy, but definitely not high end with a doorman) 2 bed apartment is going to run you $650k in the decent bits of sf and more in nyc. In sf, you end up paying approx $1100 per month per million dollars of value in property taxes. So $715 in taxes, $300 or so in insurance, a $2500 mortgage, and you can easily be spending $3500-$4k/mo (after taxes) on housing. Using the rough rule of t…

>> Most people with kids and mortgages get by on less than 150k. > Not in sf or nyc. It's still trivially true that most people in SF and NYC, including married adults with families, get by on way less than $150k. Even Upper-East-Side Manhattan, one of the wealthiest zip codes in the U.S., has average incomes "only" in the high 5 figures. Maybe there is a small section of Nob Hill where $150k incomes are normal, but…

"Even Upper-East-Side Manhattan, one of the wealthiest zip codes in the U.S., has average incomes "only" in the high 5 figures."

I'm not sure that you can look at simply average income without knowing whether the people are single, cohabitating and if they have children and how many. Also average income I would imagine doesn't take into account healthcare costs which can run thousands. One person may be covered, another not covered, another on medicare etc. Some may have child support to pay.

Saying that someone can get by on "less than 150k" is like saying that someone can build an ecommerce website for $X.

Re: Peter Thiel: Startup CEO Salaries Shouldn’t Be Above $150,000

#33

Post by philwelch »

wtvanhest wrote: post #11
philwelch wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Most people with kids and mortgages get by on less than 150k. If you really can't make ends meet on 150k you've overextended yourself.

Yes, but they have 9 to 5, low stress jobs. I want the CEO of a company I work for/invest in etc. to be focused on the business, not saving. I want them to feel good about their personal expenses so they can focus on the business.

I really can't understand this kind of lack of perspective. Ask your waitress, or barista, or the guy that changes your oil sometime if they have a "9 to 5, low stress job". Because they don't. And no one's paying them $150,000 a year--more than three times the median household income in the United States--to make them feel better about it.

Re: Peter Thiel: Startup CEO Salaries Shouldn’t Be Above $150,000

#34

Post by philwelch »

larrys wrote: post #12
philwelch wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Most people with kids and mortgages get by on less than 150k. If you really can't make ends meet on 150k you've overextended yourself.

What if they have a few kids in college? Even a public college can cost, what, $35,000 these days if out of state? What if they want to do a startup but they already have kids in private college? Sorry kids, I want to do a startup please switch to the instate public college. My point is simply that there are other circumstances and picking an absolute number seems to be biased toward younger people with no obligation…

Most parents, even parents with kids in college, get by on less than $150,000 a year. Kids can get scholarships and student loans. Actually, a lot of private colleges give need-based scholarships, so by taking your compensation as a lower salary today followed by lucrative equity compensation after you exit, you can usually end up minimizing the amount you pay out of pocket for your childrens' tuition.

Re: Peter Thiel: Startup CEO Salaries Shouldn’t Be Above $150,000

#35

Post by adora »

tlogan wrote: post #25

Can we also have rule that VC salaries should not be more than $150K? And they will be paid only from funds profits and there will be NO management fees for their funds?

Hypothesis: this would lead to less innovation over time as VCs would start looking for less risky, more guaranteed wins.

Re: Peter Thiel: Startup CEO Salaries Shouldn’t Be Above $150,000

#36

Post by philwelch »

larrys wrote: post #27
vaksel wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

yeah you'd think they'd want the CEO to be able to 100% focus on their startup If for example the CEO's wife lost her job...$150K is suddenly not that much for a family. Do you really want your CEO to do consulting on the side to pay the bills instead of focusing on the startup?

To me this is simply an attempt by Thiel to try and limit CEO's to a) ramen hungry founders or b) founders who already have money to live on c) founders without family obligations that can dedicate themselves 100% to the startup. Using the fact that money spoils (not denying that it could be true for some people) is just a red herring. I know many people who could retire and still work 6 or 7 days a week for the chal…

Maybe we should take up a collection for the poor, impoverished startup CEO's who only earn $150,000 a year. That's only three times the median household (not individual) income. How do they get by!?

Re: Peter Thiel: Startup CEO Salaries Shouldn’t Be Above $150,000

#37

Post by wtvanhest »

philwelch wrote: post #33
wtvanhest wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, but they have 9 to 5, low stress jobs. I want the CEO of a company I work for/invest in etc. to be focused on the business, not saving. I want them to feel good about their personal expenses so they can focus on the business.

I really can't understand this kind of lack of perspective. Ask your waitress, or barista, or the guy that changes your oil sometime if they have a "9 to 5, low stress job". Because they don't. And no one's paying them $150,000 a year--more than three times the median household income in the United States--to make them feel better about it.

I do not have a lack of perspective. I have been a server, a security guard, worked for minimum wage at a beagle shop etc. Now my job is much better than those jobs, but I still remember how "tough it was". It was tough in the sense that stress came from uncertainty in paychecks and in social status. But, that type of stress does not compare to being the CEO of even a small company.

If you make $100k in most cities that is pretty good, in SF or NY $100k a year means you have roommates. Do you want the CEO of a company that has the potential to make billions of dollars for investors to worry about who's turn it is to clean the kitchen?

Of course not, that is the most ridiculous thing I have ever read. It literally makes zero sense.

Re: Peter Thiel: Startup CEO Salaries Shouldn’t Be Above $150,000

#38

Post by wtvanhest »

mattdeboard wrote: post #31
earl wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not in sf or nyc. a low end (not dumpy, but definitely not high end with a doorman) 2 bed apartment is going to run you $650k in the decent bits of sf and more in nyc. In sf, you end up paying approx $1100 per month per million dollars of value in property taxes. So $715 in taxes, $300 or so in insurance, a $2500 mortgage, and you can easily be spending $3500-$4k/mo (after taxes) on housing. Using the rough rule of t…

Then I guess you'll just need to live outside the city and commute like millions of people do every day.

So you want the CEO of a company to commute rather than focused on adding value for shareholders?

Re: Peter Thiel: Startup CEO Salaries Shouldn’t Be Above $150,000

#39

Post by michaelochurch »

_delirium wrote: post #19
earl wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not in sf or nyc. a low end (not dumpy, but definitely not high end with a doorman) 2 bed apartment is going to run you $650k in the decent bits of sf and more in nyc. In sf, you end up paying approx $1100 per month per million dollars of value in property taxes. So $715 in taxes, $300 or so in insurance, a $2500 mortgage, and you can easily be spending $3500-$4k/mo (after taxes) on housing. Using the rough rule of t…

>> Most people with kids and mortgages get by on less than 150k. > Not in sf or nyc. It's still trivially true that most people in SF and NYC, including married adults with families, get by on way less than $150k. Even Upper-East-Side Manhattan, one of the wealthiest zip codes in the U.S., has average incomes "only" in the high 5 figures. Maybe there is a small section of Nob Hill where $150k incomes are normal, but…

Even Upper-East-Side Manhattan, one of the wealthiest zip codes in the U.S., has average incomes "only" in the high 5 figures.

East of Lexington, the UES is upper-middle-income yuppies. Apartments are affordable but very small: like 400 SF for $2,000 per month. Not an option if you have kids.

Also, if UES is defined from 59th to 110th street, that includes areas in the north that are low-income and more like Harlem than UES. The change is quite stark.

Re: Peter Thiel: Startup CEO Salaries Shouldn’t Be Above $150,000

#40

Post by emmapersky »

~95% of Americans individual income is less than $100K [1] and while there are sadly many people living in poverty, that the other end of the scale. $150k a year is more than enough for a multi-person single earner family, you just might have to forgo that penthouse with a Central Park view for something that, shock horror, is in the outer boroughs. You know, like most New Yorkers. (I'm sure there is a similar analogy for SF and East Bay, or something)

So, have some respect people. Stop acting like spoiled children. Oh wait.

[1] http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/cpstables/032011/perinc/new01... via Wikipedia

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