Bamaman
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
If a household is spending 400k a year on consumption and taxes, but is earning 500k a year, they are is LBYM.
Even better, when they cash out and retire young in a low cost geography, they can retire with the same lifestyle for 200k a year. The downside is, at least for Silicon Valley is you are working too many hours to enjoy the toys much.
In the past, we didn't see so many Californians moving to ultra low cost of living states. Now, an incredible number are moving to Texas for the improved quality of life and no state income taxes. There are so many entertainers, movie stars and musicians living in Nashville, Tennessee that they call it "The Third Coast."
But getting back to the personal economics of California. It's obvious that those luxury cars are leased. Another observation is husbands are often working second jobs and wives are also working to just maintain what would be a normal lifestyle in other states.
I've visited a number of relatives in the Los Angeles basin, and I honestly don't know how they afford to live there.
If I had three times my current income, I would love to move to California. However I would still be lowering my standard of living substantially.
Last edited: