Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm a single 26, yr old male and considering a move to DC. My salary would be $55k/yr. I wouldn't be opposed to living in Montgomery County, MD or somewhere in Northern, VA so long as I am not TOO far out (not like Germantown, MD or Reston, VA). I don't really want to live in the District, because, it's not worth the money to me. I'd like to have no more than two other roommates.
What do you think? Is that a decent salary for DC or would I be eating eggs and counting pennies to do my laundry? To give you some perspective, I currently live in Asheville, NC and make $41,500. They have some comparison calculators online, but I wanted to get the opinions of some actual DC people.
Thanks!!!
Last edited by ctownlowdown; 04-24-2011 at 03:21 PM..
Do you have debt? I imagine you can live in DC off $55K. That's probably the "cut off" point IMO, but if you want do to an apartment share of some sort, try Craigs List. Silver Spring is pretty good, Arlington as well.
Based on what you have mentioned, Arlington or Old Town/Crystal City Alexandria might be get locations. Arlington is much tougher to find a place because it is expensive, but I have co-workers that have found places there on a smaller salary. I would also recommend Silver Spring in MoCo, which is similar to Arlington. Those are all vibrant places that have a lot to do for people your age and they both have metro stations. The draw back with Arlington and Silver Spring is they are both cities and culturally aren't a whole lot different than DC so if you don't like the city life it probably wouldn't be a good pick.
If you are looking for something a little more laid back but still close and not too spread out, places like Bowie, Springfield, Alexandria (Fairfax County), and Falls Church come to mind. Here are a few questions:
Where in the area specifically will you be working?
How close do you need to be to the metro stations?
How long of a commute are you willing to have?
I live off of about that. My debts add up to about the same as yours. I have a car payment and insurance on top of that, and also a small amount of tuition for grad school. I'm able to live off of my salary and I have enough left over to contribute to savings and have some discretionary money as well. Now, I save on expenses by living in an affordable area (SW Waterfront). I'm not living it up in a new luxury condo in dupont circle! I also don't have cable (partly because of cost, partly because I just got fed up with cable companies). And I'm not a partier. I rarely go to drink or party, and only go out a few times a month for dinner. I love coffee but mostly buy drip coffee to save $$. I bring my lunch to work most days.
So that gives you an example of what you can live off of in the district. Another comparison might be that $43,500 qualifies a household of 1 for rent assistance.
Commuting costs are definitely something to consider. I drive to work because I need my car for work, and of course gas prices are rising. Gas in the district is about $4.50 right now. Of course, metro costs are going up too.
Another thing to look at is rent control. The district has rent control. The suburbs do not. I've always lived in rent-control areas, and honestly living without seems pretty scary to me. I've heard some horror stories from the near suburbs, particularly arlington, in the clarendon and courthouse areas, from people who saw their rent double as soon as their lease was up. It doesn't take too many stories like that to scare me away! Maybe some other forum posters can offer a different perspective on this issue.
That's certainly doable, especially if you're willing to share an apartment. Seems to me that the absolute baseline rent for a yuppie-grade (read the Craigslist share ads and you'll understand) group house in central DC is $1000/month. With rent at 25% of salary, that implies a minimum income of $48K annually.
That said, Asheville is *really* cheap living -- hence the flocks of retirees, I suppose. The other thing to factor in is career potential; for most people, a bigger city will mean a longer/higher career ladder, so your earnings potential a few years in might be much better.
What you pay in DC proper isn't going to be any different from what you pay in any inner suburbs in the areas you listed, so if DC's not worth it to you then the same would be true for most other places you'd consider. You can live on your own on that salary.
Yeah that's an alright salary to live on especially if you're willing to go with roommates. I'm in that same income area and don't live on my own because the apartments that I've seen in my price range in Arlington were either fugly or lacked the amenities that I've grown accustomed to.
Yes you can find places in the District for the same price as Arlington particularly the hot spots like Clarendon. The less hip places like my neck of the woods in south Arlington are a little cheaper. I'd say that it depends on whether or not you're going to be driving. Also stuff in the city is a touch more expensive most noticeable is gas prices being 20 cents or so higher. Also I know my car insurance would double if I were to move to the city. So you have to take in those factors when determining cost of living. I'd say that if you're willing to do roommates you can be comfortable on that salary.
Do you have debt? I imagine you can live in DC off $55K. That's probably the "cut off" point IMO, but if you want do to an apartment share of some sort, try Craigs List. Silver Spring is pretty good, Arlington as well.
You might be able to get by in the West End of Alexandria in a non share situation with your profile.
55k is a quite generous salary for someone living in DC and you should have plenty left over, considering the average rent in the District -- say, in a moderately safe and convenient area, for ~1500 a month for a suitable two bedroom apartment -- would only be around 30-33 percent of your income (financially ideal). Less if you want a one bedroom, say, ~1250 at just over a quarter percentage of your income. And that goes to show that you can pay up to 16 or 1700 for rent and still be in sensible financial shape. You'll be fine, and will have more options to take the metro to work and save money on gas for transportation, since you'll be closer. The traffic congestion here is hideous, btw, as you'd burn expensive gas just sitting in it going nowhere.
Not all of DC is a hustle and bustle area without a view, if that's what you mean by "not worth the rent". If anything, the places you'd find in nearby metro areas such as Silver Spring and Arlington will have a higher cost of rent if not the same as within the district; and that's before you even take into consideration that these areas do not have rent control, whereas the district does. There are areas in the district that are pleasant and just like living in the suburbs, you wouldn't be able to tell you're inside the city just a few miles from downtown at all. Research the areas and rent for the kind of place you're looking for. And having a roommate ain't all it's cracked up to be, especially in these times -- imagine your roommate not being able to pay his part of the rent for however long for whatever reason, and you having to sulk up the balance yourself.
And you wouldn't be counting anything to do your laundry, because with what you'd be making, you'll be able to comfortably afford an apartment with a washer and dryer already included in the unit. And if you're thorough, you won't have to pay utilities either, as they will be included in the rent (look for "all utilities included" in any apartment ad you see), and check the Apartment Showcase catalogs -- they're free.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
