How much is enough?

[Pekka]

How big of an income would make you happy? Well not happy, but that you settle for?

If you have family, then you are the only one bringing money in, how much is enough?

You live alone, how much now?

Give the real salary (what you'd like) and then please calculate how much you get after income tax.

How much is enough, to make you live so that you aren't poor, but is enough? What about how much, so you can 'live large', but be realistic.. not 'kazillion trillion dollars' please. I'm looking for realistic figures here.

[Skanky Burns]

More than I earn now.


EDIT: And an appropriate quote as I posted that.

It's pretty hard to tell what does bring happiness; poverty and wealth
have both failed.
-- Kim Hubbard

[red_jon]

I'll only be happy when I have enough to buy Cuba and declare myself Emperor.

[General Ludd]

Just enough to get by would be nice... but more is always welcome. If it gets to be too much, I could always give it away.

[DaShi]

There's never enough.

[Rogan Josh]

I would be happy with about $200k p.a. after tax.
Right now, I get about $120k.

[Pekka]

Figures people.. we need some figures!

Rogan Josh, you get $120k? Nice! What do you do?

[DanielXY]

Right now I live of 550,-/month (after taxes). You can live ok from that. I cant really complain, its enough for housing, food, clothes, pc, various communication bills, 4times a week cinema/bar/clubbing, etc.
And I got still some leftover for buying special stuff life furniture or the like....

Hm, but I guess it doesnt hurt to have some extra, so I would shoot for 1k/month (after taxes)
I could afford a car from such a salary ... but do I really need one? Wouldn`t I rather want to have more freetime instead of a car? Hmmm ...


I dont plan to get maried, but in that case I would say the needed salary would rise to at least 2,5k I guess

[Rogan Josh]

Pekka: Sorry, that figure is misleading. It includes my wife's salary too, because it all just goes into one big pot. I alone make slighty more than half that.

Daniel: Even when I was a student I couldn't have lived off $550 a month ($6600 p.a.), and there is no way I could live off $12k p.a. now. My rent alone is more than that!

[Cruddy]

In terms of money, it's kind of hard to figure...

The assets I would like are;

Self contained computer/electronics lab

Self contained metalshop/garage.

Testing range

Own sattellite uplink

Private airstrip

Compared to my present circumstances (disabled on state benefits) it's an absurd fantary - but we all need to dream.

[DanielXY]

@ Rogan Josh

Its not that I cant waste money, if I want to.

Im just good at adapting to many diffrent situations.
I had for some time a little business running (for about 2,5 years). At that time I wasted about 30k/year.
Later the business broke down (damn competition ). I was a bit in trouble for a few month, so I lived from 300,- in a 4month time-frame (ok no payment for rent needed at that time ) ) . Compared to that 550,-/m is comfortable.
My apartment costs me 240,-/m. I think its too expensive and Im looking for a cheaper one.

Ok you got a wife and stuff, so you are probably right that such a cheap life-style is out for you

[PLATO]

It takes $100-120K per year to keep my family of 4 going in our middle class life style. Could make it on$75K if we had to (Housing being a major part of the expense). 10 years ago it took a whole lot less.

[RGBVideo]

There's never enough.

Pretty much so.

How big of an income would make you happy? Well not happy, but that you settle for?

Rough estimate: € 10^6 / month.

[rah]

The borderline for me was when I finally stopped living paycheck to paycheck.

[DanielXY]

Hm is 100k not rather considered upper-class? I thought the average income per household in the US was something like 30-35k, which would make that the middle-class. Or am I mistaken?