This edition of Behind the Budget is jobs that pay about $150k/year. We have someone who works as a UX designer and researcher, who gets a retirement contribution match and is frankly slam-dunking contributions to their retirement account as well. They have a condo [plus condo fees], and a lil doggo which leads them to put aside a decent chunk of money for emergencies and they are paying off debt while also making sure they have money to travel without adding to their debt, and give. This example person spends a fair amount on groceries, food out and going out – but that’s all balanced with their aggressive saving and retirement investing. 

Our NPO consultant example technically earns more, but since working for yourself carries significant costs [business expenses, payroll taxes, pay all your own retirement and PTO] , their take-home salary is about the same as the other example this time — they live in an apartment and spend on food, going out, and personal care – some of which they see as required expenses and some which they approach more flexibly. They also pay themselves via payroll and a draw, a common approach when your business is earning over $100k, and you’ve set up a s-corp because it saves on taxes [pro tip: self-employment taxes don’t count on the draw, just the payroll, when you have an s-corp and run some income through payroll.]

As always: these are fictional but based in reality – real ways I have seen clients over the years with these types of jobs and lives earn and spend money. If there’s a type of income, job, or life situation you want to see – let me know and I’ll spin up a budget.