You know what’s awesome? The way our wages are structured has absolutely no correlation to the cost of living. We have a minimum wage set in place, that moves every quarter of a dollar or two every half a decade while the cost of a gallon of milk and the average price for a bus ride has gone up over 150%. Even odder are the lack of wage disparities based on the community or state you live in. In other words, if your rent is 700$ for a 1 BR in Montana, you can expect to earn 9 dollars an hour and if your rent is $1400 in New York City for a 1 BR, you can expect to earn the same 9 dollars an hour. Think about what this means.
They don’t give two shits if your cost of living is way higher than other regions of the country and yet we wonder why bankruptcies and homeless folks exist. Now let’s take a walk into the lives of Californian’s, New Yorkers, Bostonian’s and other major cities I forget to mention in this post. The average city dweller has to pay for some form of metro transportation that eats up about $100 a month. But guess what? Most individuals also need a vehicle to go anywhere outside of their city and therefore adding another expense for transportation. You are probably working a 9-5 that a) takes out money for your “social security” (ha) and healthcare (say about 1/3 of what you actually earn) You usually buy groceries at the end of the week and some basic hygeniene products once a month. Occassionally, you get to watch a movie and buy some clothes or are paying back credit cards that you used to do your shopping.
Breakfast, lunch, dinner, metro transportation, car payment, rent, shopping and guess what? Your out of money. They figured that the average person will NEVER be able to have enough left over to change their living situation. And so, we have a cost of living disparity that stretches from $1000 a month to $3000 a month, but CVS, Walmart, convenience stores are not obligated to pay you any differently. This hamster wheel continues until you grow old and realize your entire life is over……
There are many steps you can take to avoid this trap. But first, if you do not acknowledge that this inequality exists, this will never change.
- Lease a vehicle, do not buy it. The maintenance costs of a car add up and you’ll realize it half way through the finance agreement. Lower payment + gas efficient vehicle + maintenance paid = $150/month
- Airbnb your place = Yes, it’s a hassle and yes you’re letting strangers into your apartment. But trust me, if you can deal with your annoying relatives couple times a year, you can deal with someone paying you money to stay at your place once a month. You’ll be surprised how much you save.
- Go to a state school and save yourself the private tuition. If you’re good at your craft, opportunities will open no matter if its Columbia or Andover College. (Ofcourse, pick a career that’s projected growth is faster than average)
- Buy your groceries, cleaning products and hygiene products in bulk. Go to Costco, BJ’s or Jet.com That $35 you save adds up to $1000 a year. (that’s 33% of a down payment on a 100,000 house!)
- Work smarter than all of your co-workers. Make your job dependent on you. Do not be the person that says “I don’t take shit from no one” Be the crutch, be the extra hand and when you notice they are dependent on you, ask for a raise and explain to them the cost of your transportation.
- Plan to retire early. Europe has adopted six hour working days for a reason. People end up cheating with coworkers for a reason. YOU SPEND SO MUCH FREEKN TIME AT WORK! Be realistic and be sharp! Plan out your finances and see how you keep to it every quarter.