What do you consider a good salary?

[Chipmunk]

My answer is all of the above.

[cedargrove]

I picked the last option, because I'd prefer it over all the other options.

[Carolina]

Originally Posted by wantonebad

it's not really a fair question in my opinion, I'm not trying to be a jerk but I have friends who have raised family's on a single teachers salary and have scrimped and saved at every turn and I have friends who have one kid and both parents work, they always cry poor and go on vacations twice a year. I mean it's a mater of priorities isn't it? And education/training industry you work in, motivation/drive, location lots of factors to consider.

[Dr. Robert]

A bazillion dollars, U.S. $'s.

[sea-dweller]

Too many factors to consider to answer. Here in Northern California, a working couple would need at least 200K to live comfortably in a middle class/upper middle class neighborhood. The housing prices are astronomical.

[Letsgodiving]

Originally Posted by Chipmunk

My answer is all of the above.

A little off-topic but since this isn't a scientific poll and is already wandering wasn't there a recent study that indicated that $75k was approximately the break-even point in salary vs. happiness? Basically once you hit that salary you generally have all your needs met and people who reach that amount are just as happy/content as folks who make much more. Below that amount and your satisfaction in life and general happiness tends to be lower.

[snowbird]

Originally Posted by sea-dweller

Too many factors to consider to answer. Here in Northern California, a working couple would need at least 200K to live comfortably in a middle class/upper middle class neighborhood. The housing prices are astronomical.

And a lot more if they want to live in Palo Alto, for example, and don't already own a house purchased years ago.

[Boopie]

Hard to say. Location is a factor, plus whether there are two working parents or one. In LA there are so many terrible schools and terrible neighborhoods. Great neighborhoods with great schools that are relatively close to downtown are expensive. There are also great neighborhoods and schools that are more affordable, but are much farther away. So, you "pay" by either paying more for a home, or paying with your time (via a commute).

I think living in LA for under $75-100K a year gross is really tough. "Do-able," but tough.

[Watch Professor]

Originally Posted by noonan

haha, no option below $75k? You just eliminated probably about 90% of the world population.

99.9%

[Boothroyd]

$343K puts you in the top 1% of US household earnings (key word "household"). Median (50th percentile) is $43K per household. $75K, your bottom rung, is roughly the 80th percentile in US. So, of 116M households in US(2010 census) your poll eliminates the lowest 94 or so million households. So anyone answering the poll is probably in pretty good shape, whether they know it or not!

[Boothroyd]

For what it's worth...2005 numbers to put it in perspective: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Househo..._United_States

[Passionata]

$10k per month

[EE33]

Dalip's $600,000 pa nett for 25 hrs a week work.

[Cato]

Originally Posted by Boopie

Hard to say. Location is a factor, plus whether there are two working parents or one. In LA there are so many terrible schools and terrible neighborhoods. Great neighborhoods with great schools that are relatively close to downtown are expensive. There are also great neighborhoods and schools that are more affordable, but are much farther away. So, you "pay" by either paying more for a home, or paying with your time (via a commute).

I think living in LA for under $75-100K a year gross is really tough. "Do-able," but tough.

You know, there is a world east of the 405.

[Monte Cristo]

Whatever I pay my employees

[david_ord]

I find it lame that the OP started a thread with an ambiguous question, then never bothers to follow it or address it in any manner. He simply vanished, so it seems.

But in reality, he didn't go anywhere. He's been online the whole time. He just started another thread about his kitchen cabinets 2 hours ago. http://rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=234116

Proper etiquette dictates that if you start a thread, you need to be diligent enough to follow it, read every response, interact with participants....answer questions.... If you care enough to start the thread, you should care enough to tend to it.

[AIKO]

I am guessing you are including bonuses, commissions ect...I agree with others that I have friends that earn close to 7 figures per year and seem over-extended and others that earn 80k per year that seem like the richest people in the world (very happy).

[MonBK]

Originally Posted by david_ord

I find it lame that the OP started a thread with an ambiguous question, then never bothers to follow it or address it in any manner. He simply vanished, so it seems.

But in reality, he didn't go anywhere. He's been online the whole time. He just started another thread about his kitchen cabinets 2 hours ago. http://rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=234116

Proper etiquette dictates that if you start a thread, you need to be diligent enough to follow it, read every response, interact with participants....answer questions.... If you care enough to start the thread, you should care enough to tend to it.

How dare he start a thread about kitchen cabinets before tending to this thread?

[gwalker]

I believe Harvard did a study and the answer was 35%ore than you are currently making is considered by most to be a good salary. It's impossible to pick just on numbers without knowing variables. My fiancé and I live in the house her parents got her after college so not much bill wise now. We spend our money on cars, vacations, our toys, and going out to eat and AC a lot, and of course retirement funds. We are young with no kids and 2 pets. Our combind salary in the $170k range is wonderful for us. We don't want for anything and can still put back a ton into savings. NJ is very expensive here but I live a life I couldn't imagine leaving college. I hope to continue getting better jobs but as long as there are no kids in our picture we will live very comfortable for many years.

[dalip]

Originally Posted by EE33

Dalip's $600,000 pa nett for 25 hrs a week work.

Bringing back memories of when I first started working

[jhilly8982]

I think like alot of people have already stated, it is all relative. When I graduated college in 2004 and moved to chicago my salary was $50k, wife earned around $25-30k. We didn't have car payments, student loans or credit card debt, we only had 1 bedroom apt rent and utilities to pay and that seemed like plenty of money to go out to eat occasionally and take some frugal vacations. Last year our adjusted gross income was $195k and with that comes more bills, $36k a year in rent, $10k a year for our car and all I can think about is that I don't earn enough, even though we save around $40-50k of that a year, but the majority of that will go to a house downpayment. We don't max out my wifes 401k be we should and I put away $5k a year for my IRA.

Oh the irony as I type this response on a luxury watch forum :)

[bayerische]

High income usually means high expenses.

I voted option 1.

[Lisa]

Originally Posted by bayerische

High income usually means high expenses.

I voted option 1.

...

[floater156]

Originally Posted by david_ord

I find it lame that the OP started a thread with an ambiguous question, then never bothers to follow it or address it in any manner. He simply vanished, so it seems.

But in reality, he didn't go anywhere. He's been online the whole time. He just started another thread about his kitchen cabinets 2 hours ago. http://rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=234116

Proper etiquette dictates that if you start a thread, you need to be diligent enough to follow it, read every response, interact with participants....answer questions.... If you care enough to start the thread, you should care enough to tend to it.

I've read the posts and agree with most of them that said it's a diffuclt question to answer. I apologize for my lack of responsiveness to this thread. I was more interested in the poll than the written answers.