How much to live on?

[Glock 'em down]

Most retired couples are living on $30,000 or less a year.

Pitiful, ain't it.

 

[16colt]

I don’t see how young couples do it now. I’ve never borrowed over $120K for a house and w/ today’s money and housing prices, that won’t even buy a “starter” home. I’ve seen 1600 ft^2 homes around me sell for over $300K on one to two acre lots. I am afraid the “new” middle class families are going to have to make north of $100K annually to be able to afford a home, occasional new car and keep food on the table for a family of four.

 

[KOPBET]

I get around $34.6k after Medicare deductions. Wife still works, makes around $40k. Then there's RMDs, interest and dividends paid. No debt. We scrape by somehow.

 

[montesa]

Yeah, big city cops make good money. When you're a cop in a sleepy little rural, podunk town, mmm...not so much.

What's really sad is that I've been a cop for 35 years and this is the most money I've ever made.

Hell, I can remember having two or three other part time jobs along with my full time just to barely make ends meet.

Well send me your supervisors contact and I'll give him an ass chewing. Small town or not, you deserve more. Jokes of course but you might be too humble especially with that level of experience. You can clearly be trusted to go out and police without getting yourself killed or bringing problems to the city. That deserves something.

 

[Glock 'em down]

I don’t see how young couples do it now. I’ve never borrowed over $120K for a house and w/ today’s money and housing prices, that won’t even buy a “starter” home. I’ve seen 1600 ft^2 homes around me sell for over $300K on one to two acre lots. I am afraid the “new” middle class families are going to have to make north of $100K annually to be able to afford a home, occasional new car and keep food on the table for a family of four.

Yup. My oldest daughter and her husband bought a house two years ago for around $250K. She's a kindergarten teacher and he's the maintenance manager for a local tribe.

I guess they do alright. They do eat at our house three or four times a week, however.

 

[Glock 'em down]

Well send me your supervisors contact and I'll give him an ass chewing. Small town or not, you deserve more. Jokes of course but you might be too humble especially with that level of experience.

I appreciate the kind words, but nah...it's all good.

 

[2busy]

That's why I grow most of what we eat. I make about $1500 a month.

 

[OK Corgi Rancher]

Yeah, big city cops make good money. When you're a cop in a sleepy little rural, podunk town, mmm...not so much.

What's really sad is that I've been a cop for 35 years and this is the most money I've ever made.

Hell, I can remember having two or three other part time jobs along with my full time just to barely make ends meet.

I got sgt's pay at the metro-Denver area department where I worked 25 years ago. Adjusted for inflation it was $1500+ per month more than what a sgt makes today at the lowest pay step of $133k+ per year. And that's not even figuring overtime, incentive pay, specialty pay, uniform/cleaning allowances, equipment pay, etc. That all added up to about $28k per year additional for me (again...25 years ago). I don't know what that extra pay figure would be now.

And I hated every minute of it...not the job. I loved the job but I hated what policing was becoming and I didn't care about the money. So I bailed in late 2000. I miss a lot about it but I'm glad I left when I did.

It's not always about how much money a guy makes.

 

[rj ︈]

Most retired couples are living on $30,000 or less a year.

I wouldn't consider being retired with no kids at home a "normal" situation. If you've had many years to pay off your house, buy reliable cars, prepare for retirement, AND you don't ever want to go outside, then I could see how someone could live on that. But I couldn't.

 

[xseler]

Funny, it seems.....when I made a lot of money, I always seemed to have enough. Same goes for when I didn't make so much -- I always seemed to have enough.

I may just be the lucky one!