# Living expenses **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 21, 2012, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350 "2012-09-21T02:48:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Loveforever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b2d939/32.png) [@Loveforever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loveforever)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/1 "2012-09-21T02:48:06Z")
Does 1850 dollars a month is enough for living a standard life in USA. I have medical insurance that cover full health care. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/2 "2012-09-21T02:50:08Z")
Depends where you are. That’ll last you about 30 seconds in Manhattan or San Francisco. It’ll pay for a mansion in Nebraska. ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/3 "2012-09-21T02:51:50Z")
It depends on where you want to live. New York City- not possible. South Tucson- live like a king. ---
**Author:** ![Loveforever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b2d939/32.png) [@Loveforever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loveforever)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/4 "2012-09-21T02:53:45Z")
No south Carolina, I found apartment for 700 dollar ---
**Author:** ![Loveforever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b2d939/32.png) [@Loveforever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loveforever)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/5 "2012-09-21T02:55:32Z")
How much would you pay for an apartment ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/6 "2012-09-21T02:58:42Z")
Not counting furnishings… utilities- power, gas, phone, cable, internet… these are going to run you 200-300/month food- if you’re very frugal you could keep it under 500/month but not much less than that cleaning supplies and laundry if you have to use pay washers and dryers- 50-100 whatever car payments, insurance, gas, and maintenance you require You’d be cutting it close. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/7 "2012-09-21T03:01:20Z")
> [@Loveforever](#): > > How much would you pay for an apartment 700 a month for an apartment is very reasonable, I don’t know the specifics of the area so can’t comment specifically. For comparison in Houston 500 a month is about the cheapest before you start having serious issues like crime or serious things wrong with utilities or plumbing. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/8 "2012-09-21T03:03:39Z")
> [@Alice\_The\_Goon](#): > > food- if you’re very frugal you could keep it under 500/month but not much less than that LUXURY! No seriously that is HIGH for a single person, you can easily eat well at 3 dollars or under a day as long as you avoid eating in restaurants. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/9 "2012-09-21T03:10:07Z")
> [@Alice\_The\_Goon](#): > > food- if you’re very frugal you could keep it under 500/month but not much less than that I didn’t pay that much for a family of four. ---
**Author:** ![Bartman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@Bartman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bartman)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/10 "2012-09-21T03:26:08Z")
I currently live on not too much more than that. I pay $900 for rent. Utilities can normally be kept under $150 total. Keep transportation under control (ie a beater for a car) and there is plenty for food and entertainment. It isn’t a glamorous lifestyle by any means. But I don’t feel deprived of anything. This is in Denver by the way. Not a cheap city, but not an expensive one either. Most cost of living indexes put it just above the national median for cost of living. ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/11 "2012-09-21T03:26:30Z")
Food is expensive these days. ---
**Author:** ![Blackberry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blackberry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackberry)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/12 "2012-09-21T03:44:45Z")
Food is not THAT expensive! $500 for one person is extremely high. I can easily spend $150 for just myself, less if I want. ---
**Author:** ![F.Pu-du-he-pa-as](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c89c15/32.png) [@F.Pu-du-he-pa-as](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.Pu-du-he-pa-as)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/13 "2012-09-21T03:46:56Z")
For many years I’ve been spending about $200/mo on food, if that. I mostly eat beans and rice (bought in bulk) combined with vegetables of various sorts, along with some eggs and cheese. I almost never eat meat or fish, never buy per-prepared food, and almost never eat out. It can totally be done. ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/14 "2012-09-21T03:49:09Z")
Okay, okay. Food’s not that expensive. Please don’t highjack the thread about this one thing. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/15 "2012-09-21T03:56:37Z")
> [@Alice\_The\_Goon](#): > > Food is expensive these days. Only the kind of food that comes from a menu, or in a box, or a can. $50 a week is enough for one person. $75 will give you high quality and variety. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/16 "2012-09-21T04:02:14Z")
$700 for an apartment seems quite high for South Carolina. I Googled apartments in Columbia, SC, and the very first result showed a three bedroom, two bath with a fireplace (?) and a pool for $795. If you’re not living on Kiawah Island you should be able to find something much cheaper and still be nice. ---
**Author:** ![chizzuk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@chizzuk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chizzuk)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/17 "2012-09-21T05:17:05Z")
> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > Only the kind of food that comes from a menu, or in a box, or a can. $50 a week is enough for one person. $75 will give you high quality and variety. I could get takeout every day, all month, and not spend $500. And I live in Los Angeles. Even half of that is still a good budget, particularly in SC. ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/18 "2012-09-21T05:40:34Z")
You could get by on that in Sacramento. If you had a one bedroom apartment and paid attention to your expenses, you would be fine. ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/19 "2012-09-21T06:35:44Z")
Welcome **Loveforever**! Where do you come from? ---
**Author:** ![lazybratsche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ba8739/32.png) [@lazybratsche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lazybratsche)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350/20 "2012-09-21T11:52:18Z")
I survived just fine on a similar income in Boston, which is one of the most expensive cities. But I could not afford my own apartment – even a shitty studio in a bad location was upwards of $800. If you live with roommates, your portion of the rent can be a much more manageable $500-$700. Also, I did not need a car, since Boston has a pretty good public transit system. So my expenses were just rent, food, utilities, and student loan payments. But there aren’t many places in the US where you can get by without a car. Really, just a handful of big cities have extensive public transit systems – Boston, Chicago, New York, DC, etc. Most cities have some very basic bus system at least, but you have to plan very carefully to make that work. Otherwise, you can very easily end up with a 90-minute commute, if you need to transfer between two slow and infrequent bus routes. Still a car isn’t totally out of the option in your budget, if you can keep the rest of your expenses under control. Ballpark, expect $100/month for insurance, $100/month for gas, and $200/month for loan payments on a basic used car. And if you’re driving an older car, you’ll pay $50-$100/month on average for maintenance – most of the time you’ll just need the occasional $30 oil change, but there’s always the occasional $200 maintenance, $500 minor repair, or $2000 major repair. Can you tell us where you’ll be living? You absolutely can get by with $200/month for food, but you have to spend a lot of time cooking if you do. If you eat out on any kind of regular basis, even just grabbing fast food or takeout a couple times a week, you can easily spend another $100-$300/month. Daily lunch at the sandwich shop near where you work? That’s $150/month. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-expenses/635350.md?page=2)