What $$$ would considered as a good annual income in your area?

[t-c]

I found this. Hopefully this settles the answer. The income to live comfortable by covering necessities. It mentions rent, so it doesn't cover saving or investing in a house- you'd need more. AND it doesn't mention having a family. So this is the basic income to live above water, as a single individual.

https://www.gobankingrates.com/personal-finance/money-live-comfortably-biggest-cities-2017/

SF - 110k

DF - they say you only need 56k for Sac Area. So you must be filthy rich!

That $86,466 quoted for NYC probably encompasses all 5 boroughs. Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island suburbs are much much cheaper than Manhattan and Brooklyn.

Here is the Manhattan Rental Market report from May 2017 . It says the average rent for a studio in a non-doorman building is $2526. Most landlords require annual salaries that are 40x monthly rent; that would mean an average annual salary of $101,040 to qualify for a studio.

 

[madelise]

40x rent? lol I wouldn't have qualified if that was true! Yikes!

 

[alene]

That $86,466 quoted for NYC probably encompasses all 5 boroughs. Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island suburbs are much much cheaper than Manhattan and Brooklyn.

Here is the Manhattan Rental Market report from May 2017 . It says the average rent for a studio in a non-doorman building is $2526. Most landlords require annual salaries that are 40x monthly rent; that would mean an average annual salary of $101,040 to qualify for a studio.

It would have to be $86K after taxes, right? So about $111K salary? I think it's doable for a single person in NYC, certainly not for a family.

 

[OoohShiny]

Where does the 40x multiplier come from? (and why!)

 

[t-c]

Where does the 40x multiplier come from? (and why!)

It's just the standard income requirement for renting in Manhattan. It's consistent with the guidance that people not spend over 30% of their income on housing. That said, my first landlord didn't even ask about income, but did require an agent.

It would have to be $86K after taxes, right?...

I don't know; the article doesn't specify.

 

[jaaron]

We just signed as guarantors for our oldest and two friends to rent in Manhattan (all are about to start first jobs post-college) and the requirement for guarantors was 80x monthly rent. Not sure if it was just this developer/company or if that's the new normal.

 

[jaaron]

In our neighbourhood, the average sale price is just over £1.7m (about $2.1m), and trust me, what you'll get for 1.7 isn't anything to get too excited about. Additionally there's a tax you pay at the time of purchase (stamp duty) that's calculated on a somewhat complicated formula, that on the £1.7 would amount to £117,000 (almost $149,000), which, in addition to the downpayment, needs to be cash.

I honestly don't know how anyone starting out without inherited money could do it. Even most bankers don't make the kind of money that would buy you a nice family house here.

 

[t-c]

We just signed as guarantors for our oldest and two friends to rent in Manhattan (all are about to start first jobs post-college) and the requirement for guarantors was 80x monthly rent. Not sure if it was just this developer/company or if that's the new normal.

80x for guarantors is likely normal. Think about it: you have your own expenses. The landlords want you to show you would be able to handle your expenses and your son's rent.

 

[madelise]

The article does not mention family nor home owning. Just rent. So, I'm assuming surviving for the 'now' as a single person.