I'll be starting full-time in NYC this summer and I was just curious about how much I should spend on rent. I know for NYC you don't need to start looking for housing until it gets closer, but I figured I'd begin thinking about it regardless.
If I were to live in Murray Hill/Turtle Bay/Kips Bay (i.e. Midtown East area) with a roommate, how much should I realistically spend? Is it worth flexing a 1 bed/1 bath or flexing a 2 bed/2 bath (and getting a third roommate)? Or would spending around $2,100/person each month be worth it to have my own bathroom (in a 2 bed/2 bath)? Curious what other people have done in the past.
Judging from the "I can't save money" post where he/she is paying 1900 on month and was told to spend less than that, I think you should def not spend 2100.
I'm a second year doing $1,200 a month... 1 bedroom flexed into 3. It sounds bad but it isn't, got more than enough space and our schedules don't clash.
Go cheap. I'm doing 8% pre-tax into my 401k + $100 a week into a Roth IRA. On top of that I'm setting aside $200 a week in cash savings.. almost all of that is covered based on my rent savings. I've already got a nest egg of nearly $23k, many associates I know have much less because they simply spend too much.
I would strongly advise spending as little on rent as possible. I am not saying that you need to live on a park bench, in a 1 BR with three other guys, in NJ, etc., but every dollar that you spend on rent is a dollar not going into your 401k. Ya, ya, I know, that sounds like something an old man would be saying, but the difference between someone who starts saving for retirement early vs. someone who starts later is astronomical. You really are hurting yourself, unless retiring early/having a financial cushion is something that you are not interested in.
My first apartment in NYC was in Chinatown, $1,000/month. For that, I got rats, roaches, bedbugs etc. 10/10 would recommend to save money. Live like a 19th c. Italian immigrant.
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