Re:Rice University Says Middle-Class And Low-Income Students...
by rayiner on Tuesday September 18, 2018 @03:49PM
(#18018538)
But those other places pay for those things by heavily taxing the folks that would be considered "middle class" here. In Germany, folks making $65,000 or so pay 7.3% of their income (with another 7.3% being paid by their employer) for health insurance, on top of their taxes.
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Re:Rice University Says Middle-Class And Low-Income Students...
by harimau777 on Tuesday September 18, 2018 @05:04PM
(#18019112)
What sort of lifestyle do people making $65000 have? In the US if you taxed $65,000 at 42% there would be almost no cities where you could live comfortably and securely. As a conservative estimate for a small city I would say:
mortgage: $6,000
car payment: $2,400
gas: $1,560
food: $1,560
retirement: $10,000
That leaves about $11,500 for clothing, entertainment, emergency savings, vacation, education, etc.
Re:Rice University Says Middle-Class And Low-Income Students...
by rayiner on Tuesday September 18, 2018 @05:39PM
(#18019393)
Their tax system is progressive too, so just the money above $65,000 is taxed at 42%.
Re:Rice University Says Middle-Class And Low-Income Students...
by filmgirlcw on Tuesday September 18, 2018 @05:41PM
(#18019404)
In this scenario, you're way overestimating with $10k for retirement. Put that figure at $5k or maybe even $3k. Long-term, is that ideal? Not really -- but as you say, you need to budget for clothing, entertainment, emergencies, vet bills, etc.
Regardless, people and families do it all the time and do it on less.