[MrPrena]

LONG TIME AGO, when I graduated , DELL was offering 32k/yr salary, and Salmon Smith Barney as JR Analyst was offered 49k at NYC.

[BayMoWe335]

Originally Posted by csu87

i graduated at 23 with only a 55k salary . no way would I have had 60k by 25. Most people I know would not have 60k by 25, even if they graduated at 22. I think the national average starting salary for a college grad is around 50k. At 27, Im just now crossing over 75k, but my salary has increased significantly since then.

My wife graduated at 22, had a year of unpaid internship, then had to get certified and registered to begin working in her field. At 25, she got her first career job.

The 401k is pretax, so you should be able to live on a little less than $40k/yr. $55k is a pretty good salary directly out of school. In 3-4 years, you can get that to about 65k.

[P1]

Originally Posted by MrPrena

LONG TIME AGO, when I graduated , DELL was offering 32k/yr salary, and Salmon Smith Barney as JR Analyst was offered 49k at NYC.

How long ago was this? My first job out of college was at Dell and I bet I had that $32K a year job also...

[csu87]

Originally Posted by BayMoWe335

The 401k is pretax, so you should be able to live on a little less than $40k/yr. $55k is a pretty good salary directly out of school. In 3-4 years, you can get that to about 65k.

that would still only be 30k at 25yo.

and sure you could live on 40k pretax if you are in a cheap area. My apartment was 1200/month though. And strippers dont dance for free.

[Whostheboss]

Originally Posted by MrPrena

LONG TIME AGO, when I graduated , DELL was offering 32k/yr salary, and Salmon Smith Barney as JR Analyst was offered 49k at NYC.

I'll guess, 1995

[MrPrena]

Originally Posted by Whostheboss

I'll guess, 1995

Around there....

[Whostheboss]

Originally Posted by MrPrena

Around there....

lol That was close to when i arrived in the US. Bill Clinton was running for a 2nd term against Bob Dole, OJ Simpson and Jonbenet-Ramsey was all over the news. Nintendo 64 was the hottest technology

[MrPrena]

Originally Posted by Whostheboss

lol That was close to when i arrived in the US. Bill Clinton was running for a 2nd term against Bob Dole, OJ Simpson and Jonbenet-Ramsey was all over the news. Nintendo 64 was the hottest technology

Due to Jon benet-Ramsey case around 96, we were short of parking spots.
One block south of Ramsey's resident was where I use to park to go to school. It is only 2hr parking, except for residents. I had to move vehicle every classes. Paid parking lot was almost always full.

[csu87]

Originally Posted by MrPrena

Due to Jon benet-Ramsey case around 96, we were short of parking spots.
One block south of Ramsey's resident was where I use to park to go to school. It is only 2hr parking, except for residents. I had to move vehicle every classes. Paid parking lot was almost always full.

And here I thought you were a decent guy. Little did I know you went there for school.

[jlstyle]

Who cares.
You guys are too tied up with numbers.
World is going to end soon so eat up and enjoy!


All jokes aside, your life doesn't always go as your numbers are planned for.
Just work hard & efficiently and continue to vision big. Then your income will soon overpower your spending limit.

[SunnyD]

Originally Posted by SheaButter

Personally I think the trick is to find a happy middle-ground with enjoying your hard earned money while also prepping for a future. Quite honestly I have found that the $80k-$90k marker allows you to "have it all" on a budgeted level. You won't be in a Lamborghini and a $10mm house. But you can afford an M3 (or another equal sports car), mod it while also, traveling, owning a home, saving money, and prepping for retirement.

^^(Based on being single). Anything past the 80-90 marker I have found that I just end up investing more or saving more. Even dipping into the mid 100's it doesn't change much beyond the 80-90 range besides being able to do the same stuff on less of a budget. I'd imagine in the low-mid 200's is where you have freedom to lease/buy an exotic, $2mm plus house, etc. Obviously none of this is solid economics, just my personal experience.

I totally agree with this, although I read an article that said people are at their happiest when their salary is around $75K. Unless you're making significantly more than that (I mean well into the millions), your life isn't going to change dramatically if you're in that ballpark.

[MrPrena]

Originally Posted by csu87

And here I thought you were a decent guy. Little did I know you went there for school.

I literally LOLed after reading this.

I thought http://www.m3post.com/forums/showpos...7&postcount=50 this thread already gave you an idea where I went to school.

[csu87]

Originally Posted by MrPrena

I literally LOLed after reading this.

I thought http://www.m3post.com/forums/showpos...7&postcount=50 this thread already gave you an idea where I went to school.

i thought you were just giving me a great idea for a costume. or you were an outsider who incorrectly thought CU was a better school.

[MrPrena]

Originally Posted by csu87

i thought you were just giving me a great idea for a costume. or you were an outsider who incorrectly thought CU was a better school.

In terms of football, you are correct.

[JasonCSU]

Originally Posted by BayMoWe335

Even at 25, you should have about $60k, plus about $20k in an IRA.

This isn't very realistic for most people in that age range, especially considering stagnant wages and the rising costs of living.

[SheaButter]

Originally Posted by SunnyD

I totally agree with this, although I read an article that said people are at their happiest when their salary is around $75K. Unless you're making significantly more than that (I mean well into the millions), your life isn't going to change dramatically if you're in that ballpark.

Yeah, I think I read something about that as well. While I found that article interesting, it was tough for me to wrap my head around "happy". Because for me "Rich/Happy" would be being able to retire and coach my son's soccer team (I don't have a son yet). The rest of the monetary stuff is just fun stuff really, not sure it can be classified as being happy.

I agree though, you'd have to make hundreds of thousands/year to really be on the next level. I usually find the climb from a 30k job to 130k job to be a gradual staircase in achievements. Whereas people don't fully understand what has to happen to jump into the exotic life. It's incredibly difficult, and something I still have yet to achieve. Cheers man!

[BayMoWe335]

Originally Posted by JasonCSU

This isn't very realistic for most people in that age range, especially considering stagnant wages and the rising costs of living.

Not really...it can be done, but would take discipline...something most people that age don't have.

[JasonCSU]

Originally Posted by csu87

And here I thought you were a decent guy. Little did I know you went there for school.

Originally Posted by MrPrena

In terms of football, you are correct.

The game will be coming up next month.

[MrPrena]

Originally Posted by JasonCSU

The game will be coming up next month.

Saturday Sep. 19
CU VS CSU
Sports Authority Field at Mile High, Denver, CO
5:00pm MT
CBSSN

[csu87]

Originally Posted by BayMoWe335

Not really...it can be done, but would take discipline...something most people that age don't have.

i want your money then. My situation is different, because I was able to move fast through my profession. Most people that got out of school making $50-55k/yr, by age 30 wont have a huge 401k and savings account and still be able to afford a decent car/house. Their pay may have increased to 60-65k by then, but so does the cost of living, unless they live in a cheap area of the country.

[tony20009]

Originally Posted by P1et

Let me throw everyone for a loop here. I was 24, had just gotten married and had a good quarter at work. I was stupid, and spent $34K cash on a brand new 2004 Dodge Ram 2500. It was my dream truck. I was living in a one-bedroom apartment with my wife, I think we spent $1,100 a month on rent. I drove that truck for 10 years and sold it for $24K cash to a guy from Indiana. Not once did I have to pay for big repairs beyond just regular maintenance. Many times I was tempted to buy something else, but never did. When you break down per month how much that truck cost me in the end, I think it was around $130 or so. Not bad eh! And yes, she looked like the pic below until the day I sold it.

[pic deleted]

Off Topic:
Where is the loop? I don't see a "loop," but I do see two uncommon factors in the situation you shared:

• Your being a 24 year old having had $34K in disposable cash.
• Your finding a buyer willing to spend $24K for a vehicle that (based on your having shared nothing about how it was optioned) should have at most cost something like $15K - $17K (assuming a year ago for the sale).
  • http://www.nadaguides.com/Cars/2004/...SLT-4WD/Values
  • http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-s...402728588&mmt=[DODGE[RAM25002WD[]][]]&listingId=406158129&Log=0

More Off Topic:
When did pickup trucks start listing for about the same sums as a BMW 3er? Did some marketing/pricing strategy guru determine that truck buyers have the same willingness to spend correspondingly large sums on them as will so-called premium car buyers will on BMWs and competing vehicles?

Yes, I know Mercedes currently plans to offer a pickup in U.S. Call me crazy, but I don't see "Bubba" buying a Benz and hauling hay and deer carcasses as "he" does with his F-150 or Ram. On the other hand, "Biff" may consider one just the thing for pulling his horse trailer or tailgating at Foxfield.



If there's a "loop" for me in your post, it's in what I discovered as a result of having been inspired to check out the Ram website to see what new one costs. I was shocked and surprise to find that a base model Ram SLT lists at $34K, and there are models that at considerably more. Seeing that made me wonder when the hell did pickup trucks became so damned pricey? $34K is easily about ~$10K more than I'd have expected a modestly appointed pickup truck to cost.

It seems I'm not the only one who was surprised. I Googled "why are pickup trucks so expensive" and found this:

• http://www.detroitnews.com/story/bus...cing/23401285/
• http://www.caranddriver.com/columns/...-truck-feature
• http://news.pickuptrucks.com/2013/06...ood-thing.html
• http://www.autobytel.com/top-10-cars...e-cars/trucks/

All the best.

[csu87]

My current work truck cost more than a new 335.

Trucks have always cost that much. In 2000 suburbans were 40-50k and the denali version was in the 60s