Studio/Rent Help

Be straight with me - is laying down 2000/month for my own luxury studio (doorman, elevator, gym, courtyard, etc.) egregious for a first-year BB analyst? I calculated 1/3 of my after-tax income, which is typically the cutoff line, assuming a 65K bonus (same as last year) and it came out to roughly 2200 a month so it should be fine right? Is this living beyond my means? Im the type that spends a lot of time at home and doesnt have many non-living expenses (loser). Thanks yallllll stay fresh

12 Comments
 
Best Response

a) you may be the kind of person who spends a lot of time at home, but once you start banking youll be the kind of person who spends every waking hour in your office, and the 4-6 hours a day (or less) you have not at your office, youll be asleep

b) 65k is a hefty assumption for your first year. its near 100% of bonus in a really shaky pay environment. i wouldnt count your chickens before they hatch

c) its doable, but its not gonna be very easy. itll be over half your paycheck (not including bonus), so the first year will be tight until you actually do get your bonus

d) if your building doesnt include all utilities, expect to pay a decent bit more every month (close to 100 in the city for cable and internet, gas, water, electric, though im sure a luxury building will include some of that)

e) with that said, i honestly dont think its a terrible idea. because work can be so miserable at times, whatever you can do that will make your life the slight bit easier or happier is often worth it. i dont have a doorman, but now i really really wish i did (cant get packages, laundry, or dry cleaning delivered, and its nearly impossible to work around in my schedule). i rarely go to the gym because its just too tough to get to when i dont even get home until 12-3AM. if it were in my building, the days i get home at 10 or 11, id actually probably work out more, be healthier, and subsequently be happier. a gym membership alone can cost over 100 in the city, so you can knock that part off your rent if you want and assume its gym membership fee.

 

Aside from the risk inherit in budgeting a large bonus into your calculation of how much housing you can afford, I agree it might not be worth it as an analyst. Perhaps wait (and save) until you've done your time, then really splurge?

But, to each his own. Everyone spends their money on different things. Just realize that you'll probably only get to enjoy what the extra expense is buying you for a few hours here and there.

"Buy gas. It's a sure-fire commodity with no risk except for the sure risk of fire." - Stephen Colbert
 

You'll be fine. Enjoy some of the finer things in life...

Assuming you're living by yourself, you can only go so much cheaper. It's extremely difficult to find a halfway decent studio for 1500, so say you settle for something along the lines of $1700, you're only saving $2-3k. In the grand scheme of things, it's not that huge of a deal in my opinion.

 

This is a retarded idea. You should not be calculating bonus in to your take-home pay, as it is not guaranteed, and doesn't get paid until the end of the year anyway. You'll have absolutely no liquidity and spend all your time regretting the fact that you are paying so much for what will be, frankly, still a pretty mediocre apartment. You're looking at well over half of your take home going just to rent every month. It literally boggles my mind that you would even consider this.

 

It's honestly way more important to find a place as close as possible to your office. $2000 is pretty decent for a studio in a luxury building but if you're going to pay more for your place, it'd be smarter to stay in a regular building within 5 minutes walking distance to your office. You may not think so now, but you'll realize soon enough how nice it would be.

 

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