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Can you live in the DC area for 40K a year?

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TheMightyFavog Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Oct-16-07 11:15 PM
Original message
Can you live in the DC area for 40K a year?
I'm looking at a job posting in the area and I'm curious.
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Perseid Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Oct-16-07 11:17 PM
Response to Original message
1. no idea, but
where I'm at, I can easily live on less, and I mean less, than 20k

it's a weird world
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Genevieve Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Oct-16-07 11:17 PM
Response to Original message
2. Isn't DC expensive like New York City? nt
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Shakespeare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:12 PM
Response to Reply #2
32. It's nowhere NEAR as expensive to live in DC as it is to live in NYC.
Much, much cheaper, in fact.
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Genevieve Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:14 PM
Response to Reply #32
36. Thanks---
I had no idea -- I thought it might be!
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ThomCat Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Oct-16-07 11:23 PM
Response to Original message
3. Not very easily.
Edited on Tue Oct-16-07 11:24 PM by ThomCat
:(

I had an ex that lived in DC. He used to say you needed 50k just to go to the bathroom in DC. And that was 20 years ago.
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deadparrot Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Oct-16-07 11:47 PM
Response to Original message
4. Any way you could live outside the city and commute?
I hear the Maryland/Virginia 'burbs are a bit easier on the pocketbook.
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AZBlue Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Oct-16-07 11:50 PM
Response to Original message
5. I don't see how.
I lived there 16 years ago and it would have been pretty tight on $40K even then!
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TheMightyFavog Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:22 AM
Response to Original message
6. Is there links to public transport in the maryland and Virginia burbs?
Keep in mind, I've also got about 15K in student loans staring me in the face.
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fortyfeetunder Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:25 AM
Response to Reply #6
8. There are suburban trains in MD and VA
Check out the Washington Metro site:

www.wmata.com
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Virginia Dare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 09:48 AM
Response to Reply #6
19. If you're in your 20's live in the city if you can, that's where the "scene" is..
and there are affordable group homes out there if you can stand that lifestyle.
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Mutley Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 11:57 AM
Response to Reply #6
28. Marc train would be your best bet.
Then the metro once you get into D.C. itself.
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fortyfeetunder Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:23 AM
Response to Original message
7. Barely.
Depends where the job is and where you want to live in proximity to that job.
DC is expen$ive for housing....
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GoddessOfGuinness Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:49 AM
Response to Original message
9. Prince Georges County in MD...
You can still find relatively cheap housing in neighborhoods that are not crime-ridden. Is the job located in DC? If so, Metro is the way to go.
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tkmorris Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 01:17 AM
Response to Reply #9
12. Link to public transport maps
There is the Metrorail and the Metrobus, which are shown on different maps. The bus system is quite extensive, and the maps for it are separated by the areas they cover.

http://www.wmata.com/maps/maps.cfm?fromMenu=MapsAndStations.0

There are some very decent areas to live around DC, but beware, there are plenty of awful ones as well. The culture and entertainment is outstanding. It can be a great place to live if a tad on the expensive side. If there is ANYTHING specific you want information about please let me know.
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grasswire Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:53 AM
Response to Original message
10. I think you could if you shared an apartment.
I made $38,000 when I lived there twenty years ago, and it was very, very tight. I was able to find a MIL apartment in a home of a co-worker, and that helped. I lived in NOVA.
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tkmorris Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 01:07 AM
Response to Original message
11. That's my home town
Edited on Wed Oct-17-07 01:08 AM by tkmorris
And the only way I see that you could do it would be to make a longish commute. How bad it would be depends a lot on where the job offer actually is. The good news is that there is public transportation which not only blankets the city but also snakes deep out into the suburbs. There is a commuter train that runs out to Manassas for example, and you could find some accommodation out there that could work for you.

A lot depends on the location of the job. Care to share any more info?
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The Inquisitive Donating Member (480 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 01:28 AM
Response to Original message
13. it would be a squeeze
you'd really have to be quite thrifty.
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Aptastik Donating Member (210 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 02:20 AM
Response to Original message
14. I managed it easily on less 4 years ago
But I also lived in what would be called here a "less desirable neighborhood."

I guess it depends on your willingness to sacrifice certain things, I never really felt threatened where I lived, but I certainly couldn't bring girls back to my place, or get a cab home from Adams Morgan.

For those wondering, I lived right near Langdon Park.
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SoxFan Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 09:39 AM
Response to Original message
15. DC proper? No. PG? Possibly.
Rents are cheaper in Prince Georges County than in the habitable portions of the District itself (Montgomer Cty and the VA burbs are outrageously expensive). Look for something near the Orange or Blue Lines.
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Virginia Dare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 09:45 AM
Response to Original message
16. Yes, on a shoe string budget..
prepare to live in a group house, and not have a whole lot of money left over.
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anarch Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 09:47 AM
Response to Original message
17. that depends on your standards as far as living conditions
and on whether you have any dependents. For a single person who doesn't have any expenses beyond food and shelter, and doesn't mind living in a group house, sure.

If you have to make car/insurance payments, or much of any other kind of monthly expenses, expect to live in anything besides a group house or cheap efficiency apartment (in a crime-ridden, less-than-fashionable neighborhood), or have any kind of family to support...LOL. No.
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La Lioness Priyanka Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 09:48 AM
Response to Original message
18. i know plenty of peopel who survive in nyc on 30,000
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Genevieve Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:08 PM
Response to Reply #18
30. That must
incredibly difficult, no?

Alone? I'm assuming they have roommates.
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La Lioness Priyanka Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:09 PM
Response to Reply #30
31. people can do it. graduate students etc have to.
its tough but doable
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Genevieve Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:12 PM
Response to Reply #31
33. I know graduate students do it -- but,
my question is 'do they live alone?'

Having a roommate changes the equation - now you're dealing with a combined household income.

So, do you know people who live alone in NYC and make less than $30,000?
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La Lioness Priyanka Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:14 PM
Response to Reply #33
35. yes, they typically live in brooklyn and commute to manhattan for work/school
or live in inwood/spanish harlem etc/
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Genevieve Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:16 PM
Response to Reply #35
37. It still must be very difficult for them, though.
Even in the boroughs, the rents have risen quite a bit.
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supernova Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 09:49 AM
Response to Original message
20. With a roomy perhaps you can live in the district.
and not in a swanky area like Adams Morgan.

You can manage on one salary out in the outlying areas and fairly close to the Metro. NoVA tends to be pricey but MD is probably still doable. I lived in Prince Georges County for five years. Laurel is a small(er) town within commuting distance of DC, Baltimore, and Annapolis.
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QueenOfCalifornia Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 09:58 AM
Response to Original message
21. No....
Not unless you get in the wayback machine to the late '70's or even early '80's...

I lived in D.C. back in the '70's - I earned about $36,000 - I was doing very well -- I had an apartment that was very nice and the rent was around $250 to $300 (I can't remember the exact amount...) I moved to Silver Spring Maryland and lived on a very old and very big farm -- (That place was haunted I tell you.)

Here is the classified page for rentals now: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/rentals/findarental/
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Mutley Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:13 PM
Response to Reply #21
34. Listings for housing in the Baltimore area as well.
http://www.apartments.com/partner/Results.aspx?page=results&who=baltimoresun&p=baltimoresun&rgn1=57&state=md&partner=baltimoresun&area1=y&subarea1=y&subarea2=y&subarea3=y&subarea4=y&prvpg=5&Rent_Minimum=0&Rent_Maximum=99999

A commute from most parts of Anne Arundel county to D.C. wouldn't be too bad. Then again, I've lived in this area for sixteen years, and I'm used to the idea of a 1+ hour long commute.
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Zavulon Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 10:12 AM
Response to Original message
22. I made it on $35K, one-bedroom apartment though.
If you're got a spouse and kids, I wouldn't try it.
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bikebloke Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 10:17 AM
Response to Original message
23. I'm doing it on a lot less
I live in a small studio just across the river. My car is a bike. And I manage to put away some savings every month. But then I'm pretty frugal and am not dating. I guess it depends on each individual's lifestyle.

But yes, it is possible.
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northzax Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 10:50 AM
Response to Original message
24. Sure
There are a lot of people who do. You won't own anything, but if your job is on metro, or in the city, you certainly can. For the people talking about living way outside and commuting in, remember to factor in the cost of commuting. while the metro can be done pre-tax, it can still be $tmm/month, you better find a dirt cheap apartment for that to make sense. . Pm me if you want more specifics, as a poor dc resident.
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TZ Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 11:37 AM
Response to Original message
25. You can, however...
That would probably entail renting an apartment in the Burbs (Upper Montgomery County or PG county) and commuting in...
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LSK Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 11:43 AM
Response to Original message
26. yes, staffers do it all the time
Edited on Wed Oct-17-07 11:44 AM by LSK
You need roommates thou.

http://www.legistorm.com
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Mutley Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 11:55 AM
Response to Original message
27. Yes.
Edited on Wed Oct-17-07 11:56 AM by mutley_r_us
There are towns all over Maryland (and I'd assume Virginia, too, but I don't live in Virginia) where the cost of living isn't as high as D.C. itself, and the commute isn't too horrendous. If you're alone, you probably wouldn't easily be able to afford a mortgage, but renting a house or an apartment wouldn't be out of the question.

I make far less than that, and I'm making it just fine. I have roommates, but still, I'm making it.
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Shakespeare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Oct-17-07 12:01 PM
Response to Original message
29. I did it several years ago on $30k, and lived on Capitol Hill (without a roommate).
I can't imagine the cost of living has gone up more than 30% since I left in 2000. I had a great one-bedroom flat in an 1860s townhouse on the Hill, and loved every second I lived there. If you live in the city (or at the very least one of the close-in suburbs), you won't even need a car. The public transportation there is outstanding.
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