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twowrist t1_j56ju3i wrote

To be clear, you’re currently making $115K, and your girlfriend in the ballpark of $70K?

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thehuntforrednov OP t1_j56mi1h wrote

Yes. We make almost exactly $200k combined in Alabama.

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twowrist t1_j56p0k3 wrote

You’d be fine with that income in this area, and I assume that any offer would be noticeably more than that. So I’d suggest asking again, but giving the type of career and how many years experience in the career. You should be putting more emphasis on what’s a fair salary than on how much you need to get by.

Do be aware that much of the housing stock is older, and hence smaller than what you might be used to. Pay attention to what parking is like, since you can’t assume there will be dedicated parking for two cars. Also, dogs can be an issue for renting.

Since you asked about lunch, I’ll throw in that I get takeout from a small vegetarian fast-casual chain called Clover, and their sandwiches and platters start around $11-13. But they change their menu regularly to match locally available produce, and it’s generally healthier food than you’d get at most sandwich shops. I don’t honestly know what prices are like at McDs or Subway these days.

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thehuntforrednov OP t1_j56pcmg wrote

>Since you asked about lunch, I’ll throw in that I get takeout from a small vegetarian fast-casual chain called Clover, and their sandwiches and platters start around $11-13.

Thank you. The concept of a vegetarian chain is absolutely unheard of where e I'm from. We've got enough fried chicken to kill...well kill a human pretty quickly from heart disease.

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bobby_j_canada t1_j5727ii wrote

For a couple it kind of goes like this around here:

$50K - hope you like rice and beans

$75K - you're stable. . . ish

$100K - you have some breathing room but don't get careless

$150K - you're comfortable enough and can even afford some luxuries (like off-street parking and an in-unit washer/dryer. . . luxuries!)

$200K+ - you don't really need to worry about much but you might not be saving as much as you'd assume you should be given your income

So yeah, for you two the main impact isn't going to be on your quality of living so much as how much you'll be able to save.

Also note that if you plan on having a kid anytime soon, $2000/month for a private childcare is pretty common. MA has the highest childcare costs in the country because we have strict regulations about the caregiver:child ratio and square footage:child ratio. These aren't bad things in and of themselves -- it means you don't get cramped, small daycares crammed with too many kids -- but it does drive up the cost per kid.

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thehuntforrednov OP t1_j575g8e wrote

Thanks for that income breakdown, I'd kind of like to go car-free but I'm not sold on that idea either. I'm gathering we're probably going to want to have about 250k or so of combined income.

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bobby_j_canada t1_j579p3m wrote

I'd say you're pretty much looking at $25-30K of extra cost of living, most of that being housing. So even with "only" $225K (lol) you wouldn't notice a huge change in your standard of living.

The car-free thing depends on where exactly you want to live. You really need to live in the core areas (most of Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, and specific neighborhoods of Brookline, Revere, Newton, and Malden) for it to be feasible.

One option is going "car light" and signing up for Zipcar or one of those services. Then you can rent a car in your neighborhood at an hourly or daily rate whenever you need one, without having to deal with the hassle of parking, mechanics, etc.

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wurkbank t1_j57vhi6 wrote

You can’t go car-free in Lexington, but if you can walk/bike to work you can get by with one car.

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