Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here I am working out on a possible budget to look like this:

Rent: $2200
Utilities: $100
Car payment: $450
Car Insurance $100
Gas: $100
Groceries: $600
Cellphone: $180

So total: $3780.

I will have to decrease my retirement contributions so I have more wiggle room.

Way too tight. I’d keep it under $1400 for rent. You have no spending money. Cell phone is way too high. Car insurance too low. You forget clothing, extras, going out, car repairs, hair cuts, etc

Agree. You have NO wiggle room
here—no saving, no holidays, no clothing, no nothing. You could do it for six months but then you either need a housemate or an additional job.

Don’t forget that the retirement saving won’t come back to you 1:1 unless it’s Roth. Taxes will be deducted.

I’m sorry—this sucks.

This is just plain wrong.

I make $112K and spend $2,700 monthly on rent and bills with around $1,000 per pay period left over. With OP's budget that would be $460 wiggle room every pay period, with two "bonus" pay periods per year which is tight but easily manageable. Especially considering OP could easily cut $150 from his cell phone bill and $200+ from his grocery bill.

About 1/3 of your income can go to housing. Buy a used car and pay it off in full.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Cellphone: $180

Why? Are you single? My 5MB cell phone account is $30 per month. And I could cut that to $15 if I wanted to.

Did you even read the title post? This person is divorcing.
What kind of question is, “are you single?”

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here I am working out on a possible budget to look like this:

Rent: $2200
Utilities: $100
Car payment: $450
Car Insurance $100
Gas: $100
Groceries: $600
Cellphone: $180

So total: $3780.

I will have to decrease my retirement contributions so I have more wiggle room.

Way too tight. I’d keep it under $1400 for rent. You have no spending money. Cell phone is way too high. Car insurance too low. You forget clothing, extras, going out, car repairs, hair cuts, etc

Agree. You have NO wiggle room
here—no saving, no holidays, no clothing, no nothing. You could do it for six months but then you either need a housemate or an additional job.

Don’t forget that the retirement saving won’t come back to you 1:1 unless it’s Roth. Taxes will be deducted.

I’m sorry—this sucks.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here I am working out on a possible budget to look like this:

Rent: $2200
Utilities: $100
Car payment: $450
Car Insurance $100
Gas: $100
Groceries: $600
Cellphone: $180

So total: $3780.

I will have to decrease my retirement contributions so I have more wiggle room.

Way too tight. I’d keep it under $1400 for rent. You have no spending money. Cell phone is way too high. Car insurance too low. You forget clothing, extras, going out, car repairs, hair cuts, etc

I make a similar amount as OP. $2800 a month would eat up more than 1 paycheck.

I wouldnt get an apartment thats more than $1800.

I would cut your retirement savings to $10K per year rather than the $25K you're currently doing.

I think your withholding might be wrong or your estimates of your net are wrong.

If you reduce to $10K retirement you're looking at $102K gross - say $6000 for insurance = $94K pretax then say 25% for taxes puts you at about $70K total net or almost $6K per month.

A Mint plan is $15/month.

Anonymous wrote:Cellphone: $180

Why? Are you single? My 5MB cell phone account is $30 per month. And I could cut that to $15 if I wanted to.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you don't have kids (or don't have full custody ) and don't need to worry about school districts you could ditch the car which would give you enough to rent a nice 1br with den or an OK 2br in a central part of DC that won't require a car.

Plus a central DC location will be much more conducive to dating if that's something you're ready for.

My office is in Vienna so I need a car and to live nearby and all 1 bedrooms are around $2200.

Why do you need a nice car AND to live nearby AND to live in a 1 br?

With no kids there is no reason for you to have a new car AND live in Vienna in your own place:

You should choose, as most do:
1. Spend more on rent and go car free (you'll save even with ubers) or get a beater OR
2. Get the nicer car but live farther out from vienna and commute
3. Get the nicer car and live in Vienna but give up the idea of living in your own place and rent a basement unit or share

I have mint mobile for my cell phone, OP, and I think I pay $15 per month. You need a phone that’s already paid off and unlocked.

I’ve been through a divorce and I agree with the others about finding a less expensive place to live and inexpensive car. You can rent from an individual owner for less than what the corporate owners charge — contact a realtor to start a search. And obviously living a bit further out will save money. You’ll want to have room in your budget for spending money to treat yourself to meals out or a little trip with friends, so cut costs where you can. Best wishes in this new chapter.

Anonymous wrote:Landlord here. We required a monthly HHI of at least three times the rent.

I had an income of $15k in a good year and few investment accounts. The manager also went on and on how I needed 3x the rent, so $90k+ something. After seeing the balance of one of the investment accounts, they told me to come get the apartment. The security deposit was also waived.
This wasn't even a private landlord who can decide whatever. My private landlord never checked references, credit, on time payments. They got the place ready for me in one day.
One can easily lose a job. It is much harder to lose bunch on money invested.
This is why I told op to rent the cheapest place, build up their investments, and nobody cares about his income going forward.
30 years ago I got an apartment based on my race. I guess they needed more people looking like me.
I was told I have good credit. I had just moved to US. I had no credit and had no idea what that was.

Do you need a car? You live in a city with some of the best public transport in the world. Even with spending $300 a month on ubers, you would come out ahead.

Definitely get roommates, OP. How old are you?

That takehome doesn't sound correct. Do you have a lot of payroll deductions besides retirement?