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“Making $120,000 and can’t afford groceries” America in 2023

DarkNoon said:
I think the majority of Americans who are well below the poverty line (which is a lot lower then 120,000 🤦‍♂️😂😂) is going to laugh their socks off at this girl. Sounds like a 'you problem'.
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Her+husbo make 120k.
Honestly, 120k in every state is good, even cali/ny.
Tbh I buy a lot of junk on the side and my food is 300-400 max, depends how stupid I go.
 
ZedBoy said:
Wounder what she spends money on. 120,000 is a lot. She likely buys designer, or things outside of her means and is in debt. I know a few people like that. Food costs me 300 max per month and eat out.
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There could be any number of things that arent just that. Or she was doing well before inflation, and indeed buy outside of her means on a loan, but at the time, they seemed in her means.
I do agree somewhat, but I'm also not going to say the cost of living isnt insane there. I am 20, and best job I could get (because I'm unskilled and had no employment history since I was 17) was a temp job that paid me 17.50/hr, and now I cant even find a job that pays that(or at all, because even these jobs require qualifications I do not have or simply wont hire me). Now, everyone told me that is great. especially for my age and experience.H ad that been a permanent position, id have made $34,000 after social security and medicare deductions.

Now, I have basically no expenses except gas and my phone bill, and although I generally dont spend things on consumables[or anything, really, im a cheapskate, been in deeeep poverty], but given the money I did spend without saving at that job (about $400 including gas and a month of phone bill, total money made was about $3000). 14% of my income spent. So we will say $29000 I could have saved in a year working at that job, with absolutely no expenses. Now, I want to use as much of my money as possible to be able to decrease my future expenses, as I will not be able to live with my grandma, driving her car, on her insurance forever, and if that was a full time permenant job, I could kiss my medicare and food stamps goodbye. What am I supposed to do, what can I do with 29000 to reduce my future expenses if I wanted to live like society tells me to. You cant buy a reliable car or house or most of the time, even a meaningful education, with that money.

None of this is to complain, I'm doing very well, I am doing insanely well for someone my age, but I also can see that its really fucking hard for someone my age to get ahead in life when they have a lot more expenses usually, and usually a lower wage. Ill get there myself, I plan to build a cheap tiny home/bunker type deal and that would cost me probally about $29000, I have a small plot of land I bought with the money I made from that temp job, and I have a car that may be worth $7000 when I fix and sell it, I am doing well.
But that is because I have made very good financial decisions and have pretty much no expenses. Its one thing to be buying a new iPhone, thats irresponsible and stupid, but its another to buy a car(500/m) or get a student loan (average payment for masters degree: 560), or live on your own(1000/month plus, say $500 for bills and food, and thats if you are lucky, and your power bill alone isn't $300 like where I used to live), or you know, basically do what society tells you makes you successful. Once you have a car loan or a student loan, or sign a lease, you have those expenses whether you realize that was a poor decision, and all those expenses, they add up to $30000/year, if you are lucky, I would not have enough cash for 1 year of living alone. That is why I want to reduce them before I cant, and actually need those things. But like I said, some people just dont have the opportunity to potentially save $29000 in a year.

I know that all doesnt seem too relevant, but my point is, dont assume someone else is being truly irresponsible just because of your situation, the cards are really stacked against young people and young families, and yea, a lot of them are making maybe not the best decisions, but usually they are told to, and they arent things like designer cloths, or a new iPhone usually. They are big ones that they are told they should make, and they often cant be undone when you realize they arent the best. Maybe this person got a house that was a little too expensive, or a car that is, or a student loan that is. Thats really all it takes when your grocery bill doubles, or your gas bill, or whatever, because frankly, people who have that income are going to do things like buy a house or car, or sign a lease that is too expensive, because at the time they may have had 20-30% of their money free, which is what they are told to save, and that matches about the real inflation in the past year. Sure, maybe they could have made better financial decisions, but the issue isnt buying designer clothing or a new iPhone, it is simply society giving bad financial advice to young adults, and those young people suddenly realizing they werent the best, but cant undo them.
 
DarkNoon said:
I think the majority of Americans who are well below the poverty line (which is a lot lower then 120,000 🤦‍♂️😂😂) is going to laugh their socks off at this girl. Sounds like a 'you problem'.
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Personally, as I kind of detailed in my other post, yea, this sounds kind of stupid. But that doesnt mean they arent struggling somewhat when inflation hits. Poor financial decisions affect all of us, and often they cant be undone.
And with 2 people in my house, me and my mom, we together lived on $800/month in a place where the utility bill could be $300/month, and our rent was $400/m, by Gods grace, because it averaged $750+ for a 2 bedroom house, and there were no apartments. I lived 30 miles from a grocery store, I fuckin didnt have a registered car or insurance, couldnt afford it. But I thought needed that car to survive. That cost me every last spare dime I could get my hands on, in tickets and impound fees, and car repairs on the cars I paid an average of $500 for before they broke down. Sure as hell couldnt get a job when my car broke down every two weeks and I couldnt afford gas.

Ive been in poverty, bad, and this aint it, but that dont mean they arent struggling. I made poor financial decisions because I didnt know better or thought they were good ones. And those decisions cost me. A lot. They probally cost me 10 grand over the year I lived there. Leads to a vicious cycle that is hard to undo even when you realize your mistakes. I only escaped by moving accross the country.

Had I made better financial decisions, such as, having a neighbor pick up the groceries for a few months, and saved for more reliable cars and at least registration to stop being pulled over, I would have probally had a solid job making $20/hr right now. But unfortunately after two weeks my car broke down right before work one day. Past decisions catch up to you, even though they may have seemed to be the right ones at the time.
 
I guess what im trying to say with those two posts is, I get it. I do. I wont tell a person they arent struggling because of the numbers I see on their paycheck, and I wont assume they are still making poor financial decisions. So I have sympathy for this girl.
 
intel-bank said:
I guess what im trying to say with those two posts is, I get it. I do. I wont tell a person they arent struggling because of the numbers I see on their paycheck, and I wont assume they are still making poor financial decisions. So I have sympathy for this girl.
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I'm young, and I agree the world is against us because there is a lot of opportunity against us. It's really hard to get ahead.
 
ZedBoy said:
I'm young, and I agree the world is against us because there is a lot of opportunity against us. It's really hard to get ahead.
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They really are, but the other point to be taken away from my posts is life changes. There are good times and bad times. Times are rough now. But do what you can, fill your head with the right knowledge(knowledge[and love] are the most valuable things), learn to handle money correctly, and yes, make sacrifices, try to make the right decisions, really think about the choices you make because they will bite you in the ass. If you want to change the system, do everything you can to avoid playing into it. That is also why I do not want to live in a traditional way. Society says spend a quarter million on a house and work away your life, I say no thank you I'll find a different way

That's my advice for people my age. Most people my age, or at all, haven't had the struggles I have. I understand the struggles that face all of us right now, but we can't use them as an excuse. Change happens with us, young people. We are the future. Act like it.
 
DarkNoon said:
Then don't live in a major city. No one is forced to live their. 🤦‍♂️💁‍♂️ Cities have always been more expensive to live in. If you don't make a lot of money, one should not move or live in the city. Always been that way.

Again sounds like a her problem.
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I think she was just bitching about the cost of living going up. You know venting.
 
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