Quote:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-06-01/a-third-of-americans-making-250-000-say-costs-eat-entire-salary?sref=ZMFHsM5Z
Some 36% of households taking in nearly four times the median US salary devote nearly all of their income to household expenses, according to a survey by industry publication Pymnts.com and LendingClub Corp.
It's particularly true among millennials, who are now in their mid-20s to early 40s: More than half of top earners in that generation report having little left at the end of the month.
The $250,000-plus income bracket roughly represents the top 5% of earners in the country, according to US Census Bureau data
Living paycheck-to-paycheck doesn't necessarily mean hardship, and LendingClub makes the distinction between those can pay their bills easily and those who can't. Only a fraction of high earners -- roughly one in ten -- reported issues covering all their household expenses in April, according to the survey.
Housing expenses, which typically take up large chunks of the budgets of wealthier people, have skyrocketed during the pandemic. For example in Orange County, California, a top-tier home cost $1.7 million in April, up from $1.2 million in February 2020, based on Zillow Group Inc. data. A mortgage on that house, assuming a 20% down payment, would cost about $100,000 per year. That's 40% of a $250,000 annual pre-tax income.
Among all consumers surveyed, 61.3% reported living paycheck-to-paycheck in April, a 9 percentage-point increase from a year earlier, LendingClub said in its report.
We don't have an earning problem, we have a spending problem...... Learn to live within your means folks, life is much easier and less stressful that way. It's really not all that hard to do.
Hint: stop worrying about what others think of you.
