$350K salary and has to hand wash dishes...

[REattempt]

and he's upset about it! He lives in 1200 Square feet. I live in 1400 square feet and have no problem!

What are the bankers going to do? I especially like the "we aren't savers" part.....

Bonus Withdrawal Puts Bankers in "Malaise" - Yahoo! Finance

Enjoy seeing how the best half of the country lives. I'm shocked at the perspectives, but not surprised.

[clifp]

I am bet I'm not alone in my reaction.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVFBK9GhS5Q

[Keim]

Aww. Maybe we should take up a collection.

[W2R]

I'm pretty shocked, all right. Paying $38 per dog, per walk, to have two dogs walked? Surely that can't be common.

And yet, one of these high earners was living with his wife and two kids in 1200 square feet without even the dishwasher he longs for. A portable dishwasher would cost less than $500 if he really wanted one but I guess he can't find the $500 for it.

I have a 1600 square foot home with a very nice built-in dishwasher. Makes me feel lucky to have so much.

[Letj]

It is all relative. How can someone living in Brooklyn, NY send their children to the local public school? To work on Wall Street and make this type of money, you will have to live fairly close to work given the long hours. Most people probably already know that city schools in the US often attract children from economically disadvantaged background and they often come from tough homes with parents who lack much education (sounds harsh but true) so if your kid is not good enough to get into one of those gifted city schools, private school may be your only option.

[Midpack]

How high COL cities like NYC even exist has always been beyond me. A 2300 sf house (the size of our crackerbox) in Manhattan would run about $6M, that's just crazy!

Articles like this must be fascinating to the OWS folks...

[DangerMouse]

I agree with comments that I have seen that perhaps $250-$350k does not buy as much as people might think it does.

However, none of these people seem to be grounded in reality. Don't bitch about money being tight and then mention the summer rental house. Money being tight means having your electricity turned off, not being able to buy groceries unless they are on sale or marked down, worrying if your rent check is going to bounce.

I think people are delusional if they want me to feel sorry for them because of the cost of private school education for 3 kids. My first reaction is if you couldn't afford to have 3 why didn't you stop at 2? Or why not just become involved in the local public school and help make a change instead of whining about the quality of free education.

[Letj]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DangerMouse I agree with comments that I have seen that perhaps $250-$350k does not buy as much as people might think it does. However, none of these people seem to be grounded in reality. Don't bitch about money being tight and then mention the summer rental house. Money being tight means having your electricity turned off, not being able to buy groceries unless they are on sale or marked down, worrying if your rent check is going to bounce. I think people are delusional if they want me to feel sorry for them because of the cost of private school education for 3 kids. My first reaction is if you couldn't afford to have 3 why didn't you stop at 2? Or why not just become involved in the local public school and help make a change instead of whining about the quality of free education.

I agree with you up to a point. In reality, it depends on your vantage point. For some people, who have not experienced much hardship in their upbringing, doing dishes by hand can be a real hardship for them.

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Midpack How high COL cities like NYC even exist has always been beyond me. A 2300 sf house (the size of our crackerbox) in Manhattan would run about $6M, that's just crazy! Articles like this must be fascinating to the OWS folks...

Seems like they are living in a huge bubble that hasn't burst. Meanwhile, it's as though a dollar there and a dollar here are two different currencies.

[Mulligan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by W2R I'm pretty shocked, all right. Paying $38 per dog, per walk, to have two dogs walked? Surely that can't be common. And yet, one of these high earners was living with his wife and two kids in 1200 square feet without even the dishwasher he longs for. A portable dishwasher would cost less than $500 if he really wanted one but I guess he can't find the $500 for it. I have a 1600 square foot home with a very nice built-in dishwasher. Makes me feel lucky to have so much.

I took it that he could afford to give up the space for a dishwasher, not he didnt have the money for it. I also enjoy these articles as these people live in a world I am unfamiliar with. I have no sympathy for the one mentioned people in his career can make $500k, gave up his trips to Tahoe and Aspen because they cant afford it. What this means is he cant afford to BLOW excessive money NEEDLESSLY while on vacation. Im going to Aspen for 6 days tomm. and I paid for flight, hotel, and ski/lift right out of my monthly check and I only make $75,000. I wont be out $1300 for the whole trip. Tahoe is a lot cheaper. You dont have to spend 15k on a vacation. Ya, Im not staying at a 5 star, but Im at a 3.5, and it is nicer than what I need.

[Gumby]

For goodness sake, people, have a heart. The poor guy might have to walk his own dogs.

[Midpack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by W2R Seems like they are living in a huge bubble that hasn't burst. Meanwhile, it's as though a dollar there and a dollar here are two different currencies.

San Francisco, La Jolla, Boston, Nantucket, LA and many other cities in CA, CT, MA are equally hard for me to comprehend. Wonderful places, but why would anyone put up with a COL like that? No answer...

[ls99]

Seems "they" subscribe to the greater fool theory. Failing to realize who the greater fool is.

[FIREd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Midpack San Francisco, La Jolla, Boston, Nantucket, LA and many other cities in CA, CT, MA are equally hard for me to comprehend. Wonderful places, but why would anyone put up with a COL like that? No answer...

In a few weeks I will trade my largish house in Dixie for a smallish apartment in San Francisco. I can't wait to see how our expenses will be impacted by the move.

[TrvlBug]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Midpack San Francisco, La Jolla, Boston, Nantucket, LA and many other cities in CA, CT, MA are equally hard for me to comprehend. Wonderful places, but why would anyone put up with a COL like that? No answer...

The weather . DH has turned down a number of job offers through the years and says it's the weather. He was born and lived in Chicago, coming out here for graduate school.

[Peter]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Midpack San Francisco, La Jolla, Boston, Nantucket, LA and many other cities in CA, CT, MA are equally hard for me to comprehend. Wonderful places, but why would anyone put up with a COL like that? No answer...

Because they can afford it?

[powerplay]

Maybe it's time to bring in Dave Ramsey and Suzy Orman to help these poor folks get a grip on their financial life!

[mb]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Midpack San Francisco, La Jolla, Boston, Nantucket, LA and many other cities in CA, CT, MA are equally hard for me to comprehend. Wonderful places, but why would anyone put up with a COL like that? No answer...

January and July (in California) !

[mb]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrvlBug The weather . DH has turned down a number of job offers through the years and says it's the weather. He was born and lived in Chicago, coming out here for graduate school.

DW followed me to the East Coast once and now that we're back in CA she has made it very clear that will never happen again!

[MichaelB]

This reminds me of the Todd Henderson blog frenzy. He is the U of Chicago Law professor that wrote a blog entry complaining that things were getting so tight, if a tax increase was passed they would have to let go of either the nanny or the maid, and insisted his family was middle class. Brad DeaLong and Paul Krugman picked it up and there ensued a week long battle. Henderson finally did the smart thing and shut up. In situations like this the facts do not matter. Wealthy people cannot complain in public about their cost of living. It ends badly for them.