How much should a person be making in noVA? (Arlington: apartment, rent)

[robtrevino]

Hey guys, I'm moving to a job in noVA, how much should a person be making there to live comfortably?

[FindingZen]

That's an open-ended question since it largely depends on one's individual needs and wants. Looking at another recent post of yours, I see that you are a 20-something person who was offered a job for $60K. That should be more than enough for you to live a comfortable if not necessarily extravagant lifestyle. It will help if you don't "party like a rock star" on weekends or drive anything much fancier than, say, a Toyota Camry (or perhaps choose to use the Metro).

[robtrevino]

That's right Tone, I was asking this question because I saw a post that someone made that said something like "I don't know how someone making less than 55k moves here"... and I got scared

[FindingZen]

Well if you said you had kids... or wanted a house on an acre of land, I probably would have agreed with the "$55K" person. As a single person, you're in a better position to enjoy life on $60K in an apartment situation. If the housing situation dips much further, you may even be able to afford a decent condo in a year or two.

[pcity]

Originally Posted by robtrevino

Hey guys, I'm moving to a job in noVA, how much should a person be making there to live comfortably?

I moved to Arlington 4 years ago making 50k, and was able to live quite comfortably, in a 1-bedroom next to the Metro. Now, admittedly, rents have gone up in the past 4 years, but not so much that 60k is unliveable. You'll be fine.

[musincy]

I make less than 50k and I'm doing fine... I do have a roommate, which helps, but I could probably rent a 1br on my own.

[robtrevino]

Thanks musincy! What city do you live in?

[SmerkyGrl]

The only people who whine about not being able to live on 60k are those who have no sense of budget or always want to spend extravagantly as if they were still living on mommy and daddy's 6-figure salaries.

I make 40-45k a year and am thriving just fine in Falls Church. Granted, I don't have student loans or car payments but I am able to have a lovely little 1-bedroom and still be able to go out for a drink or two every couple of weeks with coworkers.

[Nancy in Nokomis]

Dont know about singles but if you were a family of 4 you need at least 100k a year.

[FairfaxCoResident]

Well, my husband is enlisted in the military.... Note: ENLISTED. He brings home about that, and we are doing fine on his income. We don't touch my salary - it is invested. We lived in a nice apartment, bought a town home this year and still manage to save money. Our rent was $1800/mo. so that left $2,000/mo to spend on utilites or whatever else. No, we are not rich but we don't live lavishly, so that is enough to live on for us.