Chicago 1st timer- moving for work (Oak Park, Maywood: for rent, condos, neighborhood)

[appleaday87]

Hi I am in a very similar situation and looking for apartments for around $1500 (with parking included). Why is a budget of $1300 to $1500 considered too high for someone making about 45 K a year? I have also been a student all my life and have no clue how to budget.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by appleaday87

Hi I am in a very similar situation and looking for apartments for around $1500 (with parking included). Why is a budget of $1300 to $1500 considered too high for someone making about 45 K a year? I have also been a student all my life and have no clue how to budget.

45k before or after taxes?

[knitgirl]

Originally Posted by appleaday87

Hi I am in a very similar situation and looking for apartments for around $1500 (with parking included). Why is a budget of $1300 to $1500 considered too high for someone making about 45 K a year? I have also been a student all my life and have no clue how to budget.

Your monthly gross income at $45,000 is $3750, $1500/month for rent is 40% - that is really high! That doesn't leave you much room to go out and have fun, to pay student loans, to save. Remember that $3750 is BEFORE taxes. You should be trying to spend no more than 25 - 30% of your monthly gross income for housing.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by knitgirl

Your monthly gross income at $45,000 is $3750, $1500/month for rent is 40% - that is really high! That doesn't leave you much room to go out and have fun, to pay student loans, to save. Remember that $3750 is BEFORE taxes. You should be trying to spend no more than 25 - 30% of your monthly gross income for housing.

$45,000/year will result in around $2500-$2600 in total income for the month after tax. Then you have to account for any insurance (medical, dental, vision) you might have to pay for. If you do pay for it, then let's say it's a minimum of $50/month. 401k? Could be anywhere from say $50 to $200 a paycheck at $45,000/year let's say, or more.

Let's just say $150/month for this stuff. That leaves $2350-$2450

The guy above wants parking too, so $1500 AFTER parking which is fine, but then you have to account for insurance and gas, and maybe small things like motor oil and windshield wiper fluid. Won't be driving everywhere if living in Chicago, so there's also public transit costs. I sold my car 3 years ago, but let's say $85/month for insurance, $40/month for public transit, and $30/month for gas. That's $2195-$2295

Then we still haven't accounted possibly for cable, internet, cell phone, and any utilities that need to be paid (i.e. electric). Then you have to deal with food. Say $80 for cable and internet and $80 for having a good cell phone. Now we're down to $2035-$2135. Average of...$50/month in electric let's say. Okay, $1985-$2085.

Subtract $1500 in rent from that, you're left with $485-$585 and we haven't included anything yet like groceries, toilettries, going out (restaurant, food), entertainment, any new clothes, emergency stuff, etc. What if you have student loans or credit card payments? Then it's even more.

[FAReastcoast]

Originally Posted by appleaday87

Hi I am in a very similar situation and looking for apartments for around $1500 (with parking included). Why is a budget of $1300 to $1500 considered too high for someone making about 45 K a year? I have also been a student all my life and have no clue how to budget.

On the high end I would suggest rent to not exceed 40x gross income. Personally that is a bit high and I would rather my money work for me in other ways besides going to rent, but 40x is a good benchmark.

[sfcambridge]

It depends a little bit on what your loan situation is at the moment.

If you are starting to pay back Med school loans, and have the additional burden of a car payment/credit card debt, then you need to be frugal and careful about keeping your rent low. We strongly encourage you to start saving in your 401K at work, especially if they have a match. These days, often the benefits of matching 401K contributions from employers is terrible for medical residents, and they usually don't offer it. But now is the time to start getting in the mindset of saving and trying to max out your 401K.

That being said...... If you DON'T have Med school loans, and even better, DO NOT have car loans/credit card debt hanging over you, then I commonly see Medical Residents spend a higher percentage of their income on rent then the usual recommendations.

Is this you? Are you the lucky 10% of medical residents?

Residency is tough, the hours are long, and the stress is high. If you are doing it right, you will have very little time outside of work/studying to do much more then get home/eat/take care of yourself. For that reason, often residents with NO DEBT will live in apartments that are comfortable for them (size/location/parking/laundry available...) to make that aspect of life as pleasant as possible. You may also find that you will get take out food/eat out more often then in the past, again.... since you are so busy and tired. That is an additional expense to consider. It's a hard 3-7 years....

Only you knows your personal loan situation, and how responsible you are with money. If you tend to blow $$ as soon as you get it, shop on the internet, have to have the fanciest cable/cell phone etc.. then your money will go fast.

[mossyfiber12]

I think I am gonna suck it up the first year at least and try to find a place in Wicker park/Bucktown area.

You guys have any suggestions on how to go about finding a place. I have been on padmapper and domu but those listings don't stay open for very long.

If you guys know of any good realtors then let me know. I will be in town toward the end of this month so I want to nail down a place during that visit.

Thanks for all the great info.

Btw...I will be renting a car during my visit there. Do these rentals come with city tags and if not will parking on the street be an issue?

[sfcambridge]

Originally Posted by mossyfiber12

I think I am gonna suck it up the first year at least and try to find a place in Wicker park/Bucktown area.

You guys have any suggestions on how to go about finding a place. I have been on padmapper and domu but those listings don't stay open for very long.

If you guys know of any good realtors then let me know. I will be in town toward the end of this month so I want to nail down a place during that visit.

Thanks for all the great info.

Btw...I will be renting a car during my visit there. Do these rentals come with city tags and if not will parking on the street be an issue?

I found Craig's list helpful, but several have been posting lately that the site is getting filled with agent postings and less from private renters. But I would still look there. Also, look at the free newspaper "The Reader". You can access their listings online as well.

Remember, your first year is internship.... often the worst with regard to hours with the least amount of time for social life. I almost would recommend the opposite..... live close first, then move later when you have less call and better hours. But I am assuming you have already talked with current residents and know what your schedule will be like. A lot of residencies are much lighter now because of the work hours changes so maybe your internship year isn't bad.

I strongly recommend that you find out what your typical work hours will be for your first year of residency. Then while you are here looking for apartments, do the drive from Wicker Park to Loyola and back at your expected commute times of day. Then you will have a better idea what you are in for.

[mossyfiber12]

From everyone that I have talked to, the general consensus is that 2nd year is tougher because you have longer hours + 30 hour calls + more responsibility. So to me it seems like I will have more time to enjoy the city during my intern year.

My monthly income, before tax, will be around $3800 so I am aiming to spend ~1200 max with rent+parking. Since I am rooming with someone this has decidedly become much more realistic.

I will definitely do the drive from wicker park/bucktown area to the hospital and see how long it takes.

I have also started considering west loop now as it seems closer 290 plus offers better parking options at prices comparable to wicker park. What are your guys' take on that?

Does the west loop tend to more congested and hence being closer to the 290 doesn't really mean much as far as commuting time goes?

[emathias]

Originally Posted by mossyfiber12

I think I am gonna suck it up the first year at least and try to find a place in Wicker park/Bucktown area.

You guys have any suggestions on how to go about finding a place. I have been on padmapper and domu but those listings don't stay open for very long.

If you guys know of any good realtors then let me know. I will be in town toward the end of this month so I want to nail down a place during that visit.

Thanks for all the great info.

Btw...I will be renting a car during my visit there. Do these rentals come with city tags and if not will parking on the street be an issue?

A rental car should be fine for the city requirements, however some streets have local resident permit requirements, so just watch for those.

Also, the rental market in desirable areas is as tight as I've seen it in Chicago. It's not as bad as Manhattan, but it's a lot tighter than it's been in recent memory so it may well be challenging.