$15/hour minimum wage in California. $31,200/year before taxes if working 40 hours a week.
this post was submitted on 29 Aug 2023
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Work Reform
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I'm a disabled veteran in California. I hear you. The government chooses my quality of life and they have chosen poverty.
"Thank you for your service!"
If there's one thing I've learned from the pandemic is Americans calls ppl heros when they don't want to actually pay them. See teachers, retail workers, nurses, doctors, EMTs, soldiers, first responders, mail carriers, delivery drivers, I can keep going
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It is very unlikely a single person is having a comfortable life in San Diego on $80k.
No shit...
It's state averages so it's not going to be enough for the most expensive areas in any of the states. That's how averages work
It’s averaged over the state. So there are places in California where you can, just not in the major cities.
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Articles like these are better served split up between metro city areas, burbs and rural. Vastly different numbers that are otherwise hidden by averages. 50k ain't getting you shit inside atlanta and most of the burbs. If you wanna live 2 hours out in the sticks? Sure, maybe
Good luck making $50k 2 hours in the sticks, though, unless you’re in Oil and Gas. At least near me, people in the rural areas love oil because it was the first time they could get “decent” blue collar jobs. That’s why paid retraining and/or relocation needs to be offered to people in Oil as Gas as part of any climate action. You won’t get people who used to make $4/hr to agree to go back to that when oil pays then $35/hr.
Nobody seems to get this when I bitch about home prices and low salaries....
Yes I'll just move to nowhereville, job openings: 6, 5 of which are $10/hr while homes are still $180k
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This can't be defined at the state level. It costs a hell of a lot more to live in San Francisco, than to live in Tulare, CA. Most states have high and low cost areas.
Damn I'm not even close
I’m about 12k/ yr shy, and since my state is on the lower end of cost of living, that’s a sizable gap.
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And federal minimum wage is $7.25 or 15,080 before taxes. Which is about 1/3rd of the lowest in this article (Mississippi at 45,906)
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I make more than the article listed for my state, but it’s unlikely I could actually get by on my own, at least not without sacrificing some comforts like a well maintained apartment, eating every day, and paying my bills on time. Granted, I do live in the city. If I lived in the middle of nowhere my CoL would be lower, but then I’d be unemployed.
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This is a really good source of information by county:
One thing that people forget is that minimum wage is a factor as well. In texas a living wage is $14 and living wage of $25 in california. so you’d think you’d have a better cost of living in texas. However if you compare the minimum wage texas is $7.25 and california is $15.50.
For the amount you work, california is a better deal. However that makes it harder for people to come move to california obviously.
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These are significantly higher than they used to be, but nowhere near some of the most out of touch numbers I've seen people claim online.
The cost of living minimum is $40,000+. The most I've made in a year is ≈$20,000. Something's not adding up.
They say single, so I assume they also mean living alone. Being able to pay rent etc on your own without roommates. Still, while I skimmed the article I didn't read all the nuance so I might have missed where they specified their parameters.
Edit: found it:
In Hawaii, the living wage for single workers is $112,411 — the highest in the U.S. — according to an analysis by personal finance website GOBankingRates.com. To determine the living wage in each state, GOBankingRates calculated the minimum amount a single person would need to follow the 50/30/20 budget, using data from Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Following this outline, 50% of income is used to cover necessities, such as housing and utility costs, 30% goes toward discretionary spending, and 20% is left for savings or investments.
It would be interesting to compare home costs to income to get a ratio.
Why is "getting by" the goal? Shouldn't the goal be to thrive? American exceptionalism my ass
I know DC isn't a state but I'm curious since I live here and it's way too expensive.
These all have to be after-tax numbers or there is definitely no way.
64,463 for a single person in New Jersey. I'm tying to reach that goal to make that much. Right now I make about 45,000 and am using as many programs as I can (nj snap, some energy program and more) because I'm the sole income provider for my family of 4. I currently am renting a house from a friend for 1500 and he plans to sell soon. When he does I will be screwed. I can't find rent that low. He should be renting the house I'm in for 2k a month or more. All I want to say is I'm much better off then alot of people out there and life is still a struggle.
Try having 2 kids in a HCOL. Shit’s fucked.
Honestly how is that even possible. I'm single in HCOL and I budget every item on my grocery list, I cut my own hair, I don't even use the bus and I'm still near break even some months.
But dual income parent is probably better off than single income solo.
You make it work. Full disclosure, it’s easy for me, personally. Our household earns well. But for many, there are unpleasant compromises.
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When I lived in the US, I didn't make enough money to afford any of these states.
man, the vast majority of states are a lot lower than i would have expected.
While couples can usually find some cost savings by splitting mortgage or rent costs, there is no such discount for single people
Hilarious that the author hasn't heard of roomates
Or OnlyFans!
Clearly people need to do things other than live on their regular wages or the author didn't think of it!
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