We have been at about 165k on two incomes. My spouse is also in education making the lower salary, and I'm a fed with PhD about to get promoted to GS13. (Wish I'd become an SEC lawyer based on this board, haha!)

The main area we feel it is in housing. We bought in 2020, being very conservative and buying a pretty small TH that we would be able to pay for on just my salary, which was 90k at the time. We intended to move up to a bigger SFH eventually. The market has gone so wild I don't think we will ever be able to, so I wish we'd stretched our budget a bit back then, it would be manageable now.

Other than that, we do ok. We have one car, two kids, and can get everything we need and most of what we want. We will be able to pay for in-state college or part of private if kids get scholarships.

We're at the point this year of feeling like we need to have a little more planning/discipline, as we've focused really heavily on maxing out retirement accounts for the last few years at 1/3 of our income, but we don't have the income to do that AND save for major home repairs/upgrades, vacations we'd like to take, and increasing charitable donations. Wondering if it's ok to pull back on retirement a little - calculators say we will be more than fine if social security still exists, but if it doesn't then we do need to save at this rate.

I make 100-110k based on bonuses. I live in a 2 bedroom rental with my husband. He made 50k this year. We never want for anything and can even splurge on some nice things every now and then. But I am sure it will change once we have children.

Anonymous wrote:We made it work. One parent at home, older paid off cars, cheaper house that we mainly DIY and saved up to pay cash for major things like the roof. No vacations or very simple/cheaper ones. We do eat out more than we should but usually asian or fast casual. Very happy. House is paid off now as we made that a priority and now we have plenty of money.

+1

We have splurged on travel.

Both parents worked flexible jobs that allowed for school pickups and attending their sporting events.

Cheap house. Will pay it off in 2024.

Lots of savings. Drive older cars.

Anonymous wrote:Most people in the world, including the DMV, are making 120k or less
Get some perspective and why do you ask

+ 100, and if you still aren't convinced, click this interactive link for some serious perspective

https://wid.world/income-comparator/

Anonymous wrote:Yes, we make $120k combined. No real bonus structure in either of our jobs. We have 3 kids. Live in a 2 bedroom townhouse so it’s cozy. We live in south Arlington in an area that commonly is discussed on here as trashy and low- rent but it’s what we can afford. Our jobs tie us to this region so no leaving. We don’t vacation more than day trips to the beach or hikes. The kids don’t really know different at this point.

I guess I should be upset we aren’t in a position to show them the world, but we have money to put food on the table and save a tiny bit each month. Though at this point buying a bigger house is likely out of the question.

No offense, but if you're making $120K combined, then you're not tied to this region by your jobs. The median income nationally for a FT worker is like $55K, so you could make at least $110K anywhere in the country, particularly in an area with a much lower COL, which would probably improve your lifestyle.

I have about $80k to use up in a year as a single parent to one child in DC.
Just as important as income is the fact that the car is paid off with low mileage, parking is free at home and at work, babysitting is free, schooling is free, most entertainment is free or cheap.
We have no expenses many people have.
When I had the baby I quit my daytime job, but found a night time job that started right after DH arrived home. I loved getting out of the house after all day with the kid.

Currently my DC makes 70K. First job after grad degree. Staying with us to save money.

Anonymous wrote:I make 65k and spouse makes 100k.
We own our own small SFH in northern Silver Spring. 2 cars, payment on one, other we own outright. No debt other than mortgage. One kid. We’re happy, we have friends, we go on a vacation every year plus beach trips. We own a Beach condo that we rent out so it pays for itself.
Be nice to make more but I value the low stress nature of my job, it works for our family. Our kid was never in daycare for long hours or going to bed late because of work or commute. We’re good.

Very similar. We live in a condo. One kid. Combined HHI of around 150k. It's tight sometimes but my lower income allows for lots of flexibility so we spend less on childcare and have very good quality of life. We travel a bit, eat well (mostly at home but we go out some). One car. I still have a bit of education debt but only because when rates shot up, it no longer made sense to make big payments toward principle anymore (it's locked in at 2%) so instead we took the money earmarked for paying it off and stuck it in i-bonds and a CD making a lot more than that.

We have to budget but we like our life. I wouldn't change anything.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, we make $120k combined. No real bonus structure in either of our jobs. We have 3 kids. Live in a 2 bedroom townhouse so it’s cozy. We live in south Arlington in an area that commonly is discussed on here as trashy and low- rent but it’s what we can afford. Our jobs tie us to this region so no leaving. We don’t vacation more than day trips to the beach or hikes. The kids don’t really know different at this point.

I guess I should be upset we aren’t in a position to show them the world, but we have money to put food on the table and save a tiny bit each month. Though at this point buying a bigger house is likely out of the question.

Are you striving for your kids to be more upwardly mobile than you? Are you immigrants and what are your education levels?

No, we are white. We both have college degrees. I’m a reading specialist at a school. I make $65k.

I enjoy helping kids learn to enjoy reading by giving them confidence.

I hope my kids find careers they are passionate about.

By local standards we are a failure. I get it.

Thank you for what you do. You are not a failure.

How do you adjust lifestyle inflation? It seems higher the income goes, higher the wants go. It doesn't make you much happier. You just yearn for more expensive things then before.

Anonymous wrote:Most people in the world, including the DMV, are making 120k or less
Get some perspective and why do you ask

This^. Here is a quick search with averages.

Average Americans makes less than $60k per year, average household income less than $75k.

Average human makes less than $10k per year, average household income less than $13k.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, we make $120k combined. No real bonus structure in either of our jobs. We have 3 kids. Live in a 2 bedroom townhouse so it’s cozy. We live in south Arlington in an area that commonly is discussed on here as trashy and low- rent but it’s what we can afford. Our jobs tie us to this region so no leaving. We don’t vacation more than day trips to the beach or hikes. The kids don’t really know different at this point.

I guess I should be upset we aren’t in a position to show them the world, but we have money to put food on the table and save a tiny bit each month. Though at this point buying a bigger house is likely out of the question.

Are you striving for your kids to be more upwardly mobile than you? Are you immigrants and what are your education levels?

wow

Anonymous wrote:Anyone living off one salary right now? Or work a regular job that makes an average salary? What does your life look like? Are you happy? Also bonus where do you live comfortably?

1. Yes I am always living off one salary.
2. Yes
3. My life looks like living in a rent-controlled shoebox of a 1 bedroom that always feels dirty and is in a not-great area of my neighborhood. My apartment building is poorly taken care of, so for example, we had no laundry facilities for a month recently. There are no nearby public ones. Sometimes they turn off water or electricity for the day. If I were to move, the jump in rent would be at least $600 per month, which I can't afford.
4. No.
5. Bonus: I am not comfortable.

I'm a teacher and I make around $81k. Single parent of an 18 yr old. I also make around $5k from tutoring. I have a Master's degree and have been teaching for 11 yrs now. Luckily, my DD got an awesome FA package for college so between what I make and the little I've saved, she will graduate w/o loans. That's what I'm proud of these days.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, we make $120k combined. No real bonus structure in either of our jobs. We have 3 kids. Live in a 2 bedroom townhouse so it’s cozy. We live in south Arlington in an area that commonly is discussed on here as trashy and low- rent but it’s what we can afford. Our jobs tie us to this region so no leaving. We don’t vacation more than day trips to the beach or hikes. The kids don’t really know different at this point.

I guess I should be upset we aren’t in a position to show them the world, but we have money to put food on the table and save a tiny bit each month. Though at this point buying a bigger house is likely out of the question.

Thank you for sharing! We are currently pregnant - after many many rounds of fertility treatment and we are so grateful. Thinking ahead and I have a flexible job that I can only do in a big city - very very high col. And DH and I always said we would love for one of us to stay home. Financially and have we don't want to outsource but it would mean cutting way back. DH has Amazing benefits and stability. Most years I tech make more but that's no guarantee and if I go part time that goes down or take any leave I'm making zero dollars since I work for myself. I don't know. DH feels pressure to get a higher paying job but he's also been at his job for 12 years and realistically I don't see it happening. He's bringing in around 98 right now again with fantastic benefits and healthcare.

My advice is try to live on your DH’s salary until the baby is born. Save your income. If you can do it, then the decision is easy.