How do people get by on their own?

[thejigsup]

Everyone has to sacrifice these days. I make good money but I live where it is expensive. I chose to live here because it is achingly beautiful and there is always something going on! I've lived all over this country and I love Southern California the best! I need new furniture and my car needs work, but I can wear shorts year round and never have to shovel my car out ;-) Gotta love it! I have beautiful mountains rising up less than half a mile from my front door. Palm trees line the streets and my neighborhood is so friendly and festive! I love L.A.!

[cyberdog]

Wow, I can't imagine paying $700+ for rent anywhere, unless I'm buying. Where I live I pay $300, including water and garbage pickup. Power, phone, and Internet is less $200 month total, a tiny bit more in the winter. Food and gas for about $150. I save back a bit of money each month, some for emergencies (car repair, computer repair, any minor home repairs) and some just for future savings.

 

I have a job as a network administrator 'assistant', so it doesn't pay that great. To get a decent raise they want me to get a masters degree, which kind of makes me mad because I find myself frequently showing my supervisor his errors and fixing his mistakes. It would basically be $60,000+ for schooling as well which I don't have and don't like taking out loans. Besides I can learn all about the material from the library and Internet.

 

I know there are places that pay better than what I get with no degrees or certifications, and with certifications even better. Getting certifications isn't very expensive (esp. not as expensive as 6+ years college) so I think I'll focus the next few years on that and on finding better employment if this job doesn't pick up.

[shikashika]

From what I've read in here, I've seen some Americans with ridiculously cheap rent. don't know if you live in small cities? You wouldn't find a single place in the whole city i live where you could pay $300 even if you were sharing with 8 people.

 

Friends of mine who have bought a modest, nothing extaordinary 2 bedroom apartment, condo are paying about 1600 or so for their mortgage... plus condo fees, plus bills plus tax plus whatever else goes wrong with their house. That seems to be the norm.

[thejigsup]

College changed everything for me. It's not just about the money, but it makes you better informed and educated on several subjects. My bf fired his secretary to hire me because I can converse on a higher level with his clients. They like that. Also, I teach and have to know my stuff. I am over $50,000 dollars in debt, but I could do that with a car. I guess it just depends how much you value education.

[Daligal83]

$300 for rent?? I live in a city, but not a huge city. I pay $700 for a one bedroom (a pretty small one in my opinion). That includes utilities and I pay a quarterly fee of $85 for water and garbage, then $104 per month for cable and internet. And this is probably on the cheaper end for the area I live in.

[cyberdog]

I value education and have attended college. High school AP Calculus courses were held at the local community college. I also have an associates degree in computer electronics, but my employer wants a masters degree (for something as simple as network administration). I already had a great deal of experience before then, as in high school I would play around with computers and networks, build computers for friends, help the high school network administrator rewire the school network, and more. Even now I frequently research the latest technologies as well as other fields of interest (astronomy, mythology, etc).

 

I think the problem is that technology changes quickly. I could pay a great deal more money to get a masters degree and several years after college everything I learn would be obsolete or on the way to becoming obsolete. The good thing is that many local employers I've checked consider experience more than higher education in computer technologies.

[COtuner]

When I first moved out, I went to a town that was less expensive than where my parents lived. Also grabbed as much overtime as possible at my first job.

 

one thing that helps is to live in a state with low taxes. You'd be surprised what a difference that can make to help you start out.