MMV(make me vomit). Struggling on $300k/year.

[Ash]

I'm in the process of shoveling an enormous amount of vomit from my keyboard.


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...prss=rss_print

[tricky]

life is tough yo

The nanny and property taxes take $75,000 right off the top, but Steins considers both non-negotiable facts of her life and not discretionary. When she bought out her husband's share of the house after their 2006 divorce, she assumed the costs of keeping it afloat -- $8,000 to $10,000 a month. There's a pool man, a gardener and someone to plow the snow from the quarter-mile-long driveway.

[Nyteshade]

<----Gets by just fine on a combined income of less than $50k a year with 2 kids. Then again, I've never defined myself on being able to purchase flashy shit.

I have absolutely no pity whatsoever for her or her spoiled brats.

[tragicallyunhip]

In an upscale suburb of NY, $300k isn't shit. That $2.5mil home is probably around 2000 sq. ft. Look at their clothes. It's not like she's wearing D&G. Those look like classic fit GAP jeans and a GAP t-shirt. It's just a different culture that's hard for us to imagine because the cost of living is so low here.

[Nyteshade]

4000 sq feet according to the article and it makes mention of how she still buys clothes for attending parties in the Hamptons.

[tragicallyunhip]

A 4000 sq. ft. house goes for about $400k or so in Plano. Again, just a matter of perspective. And a black sweater for 20% off from Ann Taylor loft isn't exactly ballin'.

http://www.anntaylorloft.com/catalog...ategory=Misses

[J. Fees]

americans have never been good with the 'pride' vice.

[zerojunkie]

Originally Posted by tragicallyunhip

A 4000 sq. ft. house goes for about $400k or so in Plano. Again, just a matter of perspective. And a black sweater for 20% off from Ann Taylor loft isn't exactly ballin'.

http://www.anntaylorloft.com/catalog...ategory=Misses

So are the $40k/yr nanny and $500/mo gardener just a matter of perspective as well?

[zymote]

Originally Posted by tragicallyunhip

A 4000 sq. ft. house goes for about $400k or so in Plano. Again, just a matter of perspective. And a black sweater for 20% off from Ann Taylor loft isn't exactly ballin'.

http://www.anntaylorloft.com/catalog...ategory=Misses

Sorry, but the "pity poor me" attitude from that article is pretty ridiculous coming from somebody in a 4000 sf house with a live in nanny. Besides, it didn't even say that she lost any money in the recession - from the looks of it her salary had been steady. She just knew some folks that had been laid off, and was using their troubles as an excuse to feel sorry for herself now that she's divorced and doesn't have her husband's money to spend. Generally, getting a divorce means making some lifestyle concessions, and Steins doesn't seem able to fathom that.

That, and it was piss poor writing in the article. The reporter basically dug her nose up the subject's asshole as far as she could.

Oh, and fuck the Hamptons.

[J. Fees]

TU does have a point, 300k on the east coast and a dallas suburb are 2 diff things.

[tragicallyunhip]

Originally Posted by zerojunkie

So are the $40k/yr nanny and $500/mo gardener just a matter of perspective as well?

Yep. She works full time, and apparently commutes. A nanny may be a more practical option than daycare for a number of reasons. And the gardener comes with the house. When she decided to keep the house, the cost of the gardener was built in. Most people in my area pay around $120-$200 a month ($30-$40 per week) just to have their lawns mowed and edged. To have your flower beds weeded and maintained runs around $100 or so on top of that per month for your average home. If you have a large lawn with a nice garden, $500 a month is pretty average.

[djetaine]

yeah, 300k on the east coast would be more difficult than Dallas so if you are having a hard time... Move and be fucking rich. No pity for people like that.

[tragicallyunhip]

I don't think she's asking for pity. I think she's made an informed decision to stay where she is. The "struggling" was the person who wrote the article's choice of words, not the person the article was about. There is an inherent value in liking the area you live in and having roots there.

[matias pecile]

Originally Posted by tragicallyunhip

In an upscale suburb of NY, $300k isn't shit. That $2.5mil home is probably around 2000 sq. ft. Look at their clothes. It's not like she's wearing D&G. Those look like classic fit GAP jeans and a GAP t-shirt. It's just a different culture that's hard for us to imagine because the cost of living is so low here.

did you even read the article?

""Morning," says Laura Steins, 47, wearing a dark Armani suit and take-charge heels. Her blue eyes are lustrous and her skin is golden, and even with wet hair and no makeup, she radiates confidence."

because armani suits are just 50 bucks a pop right

[zerojunkie]

Originally Posted by tragicallyunhip

Yep. She works full time, and apparently commutes. A nanny may be a more practical option than daycare for a number of reasons. And the gardener comes with the house. When she decided to keep the house, the cost of the gardener was built in. Most people in my area pay around $120-$200 a month ($30-$40 per week) just to have their lawns mowed and edged. To have your flower beds weeded and maintained runs around $100 or so on top of that per month for your average home. If you have a large lawn with a nice garden, $500 a month is pretty average.

You're finding ways of rationalizing this lady's description of a decent from middle upper class to lower upper class as a struggle. Maybe the statement (and it is her words, and not the author's) was meant as a quip; I hope so.