What is considered an average salary?

amother

Yellow

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 12:27 pm

crust wrote:

Ok. I'll bite.

You need 250k to make it with a family if 4+ in the Tristate area.

If you don't need that amount you either don't live in the Trisate area or you don't have/plan to have 4+ kids or your kids are toddlers.

I used to think 250k would be very comfortable....at this point I think it’s 500k with my kids getting older.

(My husbands business earns more Bh, but we take out pay in the tune of 70k a month) sorry if these numbers offend imamothers here....

amother

Chocolate

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 12:30 pm

amother [ Yellow ] wrote:

250K is not about being comfortable. It's about just making ends meet.

And never apologize for your good fortune.

amother

Blonde

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 12:31 pm

amother [ Silver ] wrote:

There are programs for free childcare for not working moms. (I don’t know the details but my neighbor has free childcare with transportation and never worked. But they are in a lower income bracket then OP with 6 kids)

Why would the government pay for child care for non- working mom? Maybe that family is eligible because the mom has a disability.

amother

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 12:37 pm

Thanks everyone for your replies. I get it that everyone has different standards and what could be a standard for one can be someone else's luxury. I know there is no real answer but I was just trying to get an idea.
I'm not going to go into details and give a detailed list of the amounts we spend on everything but you can be sure we dont spend a penny extra on anything we dont need.
My dh and I are both in agreement that we need a higher income and we are trying to figure out ways to get there.
Yes, I know getting a raise is one way but even if he does it wont be that much and we will still be short.

amother

Silver

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 12:39 pm

amother [ Blonde ] wrote:

Why would the government pay for child care for non- working mom? Maybe that family is eligible because the mom has a disability.

No. I think there are programs for low income 3 and 4 yr old kids to go to school bec the govt decided it’s impirtant. They are public programs hosted in daycare centers. It could be you pay a stipend to cover the Jewish topics.

crust

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 12:41 pm

amother [ Yellow ] wrote:

Yes, this.
I think people just want to dig their heads in the sand but this is the reality.

I'm not saying that I make 250k definitely not 500k but thats the amount you need.

amother

Honeydew

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 12:44 pm

We make about $78k net (My husband works full time, I work part time). In Lakewood with 3 kids.
We are eligible for no programs besides for Jersey care for the kids only (with the highest monthly premium - which has been waived since the beginning of Corona, though)

We are very tight and can't cover the month on a regular basis. I can't imagine doing it on the numbers you give. And we live very simply. We don't eat out, don't really go on vacation, have only one car, shop my kids clothes on sale and in cheap stores, almost never get myself anything new unless I literally don't have what to wear. I never got a new shaitel, piece of real jewelry or new furniture since we got married. I'm trying to think what I could possibly cut out of my budget if we were making less money and there is nothing. I guess I would just have more credit card debt.

amother

Amber

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 12:57 pm

maybe this should be a spin off but if 250 is needed then what does everyone who doesn't make that do? Do most people in Brooklyn make that?

I often wonder- what percentage of the frum community ideally SHOULD be on tzedakah? I understand that there will always be poor people but I think most people would agree that if 95 percent need to depend on charity or be in massive debt there's a problem. so where is that line?

amother

Rose

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 1:17 pm

amother [ Amber ] wrote:

I always wonder about this too!!!!

amother

Vermilion

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 1:34 pm

I don’t agree that you need 250k. I have a nice sized family BH and we live in the tristate area. We don’t bring in close to that and my children are not deprived. A LOT depends on who their friends are and what they feel “everyone” has or does...

amother

Bisque

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 1:36 pm

crust wrote:

Because once you have a house full of teenage and adult children it really doesn't matter whether your mortgage is 1700 or 1000 a month.

You need 250k whichever way you slice it.

You live in Lakewood because you have more room in your home than in BP.

You dont move to Lakewood because you suddenly have more or need less, money.

Not sure I agree with you, help me understand. My family lives in Lakewood because they're husbands learned in BMG. I live in Queens because my husband learns here.

Going to give VERY rough estimates here. I don't own a house and know mortgages so Im going to use rent as the baseline even though hopefully by the time I have a permanent residence, I own.

5 kids baby- elementary school age

Queens
House rent - 3,700 for a small 3 bedroom = 45k a year
Tuition/Babysitting - average 10k per kid besides 3k for UPK = 40-50k a year

Vs
House Rent - 1500 (Lakewooders can tell me how big of a house that is) = 18k a year
Tution/Babyistting = avergae of 5k but that's probably a lot if including babysitting/playgroup = 25k a year.

That's more than half less. Again, how can you equate living in ny and living in Lakewood?

crust

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 1:36 pm

amother [ Vermilion ] wrote:

You are not telling us something.

I don't know what that something is but either you're not marrying children off yet, you don't pay tuition or you are doing things on a C-corp and... ehem.

I'm not judging you for the last possibility but don't say you don't need 250k.

amother

Chocolate

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 1:45 pm

amother [ Bisque ] wrote:

Because your numbers are off. There is nowhere to rent a house today in Lakewood for $1500 a month (that would be a basement or a tiny Conventry house).

I live in Lakewood and my tuition last year was well over 60K, so I'm not sure where you got the number 25K from. Also, they do give scholarships in Queens.

Also Chassidishe schools have much lower tuition.

crust

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 1:49 pm

Amother bisque- the 250k doesn't care if you live in 1 bedroom in NYC or on 28 acres in Montana.

If you are rasing a frum family in the Tristate area (and I'll venture to say that in Baltimore and in LA is the same or more) then this is the amount you need.

Ask people in Lakewood/Queens/Brooklyn/Monsey that are marrying off and have children in yeshivas.

amother

Honeydew

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 1:52 pm

amother [ Chocolate ] wrote:

Just saying... there are plenty of places in Lakewood where you can rent a nice sized townhouse for approximately $1500-$1800.

amother

Chocolate

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 1:54 pm

amother [ Honeydew ] wrote:

Just saying... there are plenty of places in Lakewood where you can rent a nice sized townhouse for approximately $1500-$1800.

No. Only if they are renting from quite a few years ago. If you are looking for a townhouse now it's way more.

Look at this thread:

https://www.imamother.com/foru.....11103

amother

Bisque

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 1:55 pm

amother [ Chocolate ] wrote:

Whoops. But how much do you pay per kid? How many kids do you have? I guess my family sends to cheaper schools.

I was under the impression that babysitting and playgroup is 3-4k a year by you. Here its 7-11k. You can only get scholarships in Elementary school and even thats not easy. (Ex. Baby 10k, 2 yr old 9k, 4 yr old, 3k, 6 yr 11k, 8 yr old 11k)

small bean

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 1:55 pm

I have 8 kids, live in Lakewood. I live on less than 250k (not much and I put away money) and live comfortably. No debt (other than mortgages) and no financial stress. Bli ayin hora.

There is something called a standard of living and that matters. Also how much services do you do on your own and how much do you pay for. There are a lot of factors. I eould not say it's just tuituon, rent and food. There is so much else going on.

gold21

Thu, Nov 19 2020, 1:56 pm

amother [ Chocolate ] wrote:

That would only be legal if you were a teacher living in New York, so otherwise maybe you shouldn't write this on a public forum.

Give it a rest. Puh-leeze. You know nothing about this person.