Minimum take home income to live on your own?

[Agent_Smith]

I also live on my own and have noticed that the cost of living has definitely gone up due to working from home. Small little things I never used to worry about that add up like drinking my own coffee and milk to obviously using more electricity to run routers, laptops and monitors. While it has been partially offset by not driving as much (hence, less on petrol) it is still noticeable.

 

[thestaggy]

Yep all within reason though. I'm currently paying off my car, but I'm not planning on buying a new car when the installments end. I drive a Mazda and have had NO issues with it at all and has all the creature comforts I want/need.

My car has been paid off now for 4-years exactly this month. 26 March 2017 was when I paid the last installment.

I couldn't even replace it with the same car at the same age I did when I first bought it. I wouldn't cope with the installments.

 

[thestaggy]

Most of my acquaintances in the IT space are earning between R60k-R90k gross per month. A few are getting between R100k - R120k. That's with about 5 -15 years experience in most cases.

None of them are rocket scientist level of IT people, they are obviously good at what they do but aren't unicorns.

Well yes, professionals are earning mega salaries.

An acquaintance of mine has a BCompt and is grossing R70,000 in the accounting field.

Maybe that's the answer? She's a single mother so perhaps I must become the daddy?

 

[Pineapple Smurf]

Long life milk is only long life when it's not opened lol

Nope, mine lasts weeks in the fridge once opened

 

[Nerfherder]

Long life milk is only long life when it's not opened lol

They last a lot longer than fresh milk when opened as well.

 

[DA-LION-619]

R21k is actually a lot for a single person!

Don't fall into that trap,you can definitely live a happy comfortable life with R21K in SA per month for a couple!

Any amount could be a lot for someone that isn't living on their own but aggregating salaries and dividing it as a couple isn't a fair comparison.
1. You have more hands for chores
2. Even room mates don't get a 50/50 split. A 2 bedroom place is slightly more than a 1 bedroom but not by 50%.

My goodness. Most middle class people I know earn about R20 - R30 000 combined income. KZN. Much less if it is only one person with a stable job (not talking about horses here). Some of them even with kids. Although you won't be on private medical aid or paying of a home loan. Maybe if you buy a flat.

But where the heck is it normal to get 50-100 000K a month. Getting paid in ZAR anyways?

Post-Covid, it is even worse now. People are screwed.

Cost of living in KZN is way less because it's not as densely populated.
For 1 hair cut in JHB, I could have 4 in DBN.
Another example, private schooling in JHB is kinda the main option, there's no space in public schools.

Yeah I was the same when I was young. But, it was a mistake.
Once you've learned a bit, cooking is a joy. Read: "Joy".
A toasted slice of my homemade sourdough with just butter salt and pepper, coffee on the side, will kick a McDonalds meal's ass. Tastier, healthier, and more satisfying. And I spend about 20mins a week actively making bread.
It's just not obvious on the face of it, when starting out, but there's definite wealth in the ability to cook.

Time is the factor, you could easily bake two loaves and I buy the other.
You can learn to cook at any time like in your 40s but you can't do the same for your career.

Most of my acquaintances in the IT space are earning between R60k-R90k gross per month. A few are getting between R100k - R120k. That's with about 5 -15 years experience in most cases.

None of them are rocket scientist level of IT people, they are obviously good at what they do but aren't unicorns.

Talent is distributed, opportunity is not.
It only makes sense that if you want growth then you have to move where the talent pool is, till it isn't competitive enough.

 

[HibiscusTunes]

Talent is distributed, opportunity is not.

So true, hey! Remote working will be the equalizer, methinks.

 

[Pineapple Smurf]

I need to re calculate
I cant possibly be living on R46 a day for food

 

[Zurg]

The point I was trying to make was the more you earn the more life costs... and I can't explain why.

At some point money becomes trivial. If you get R200k pm you will get that house and that car and the bank will give you a higher credit limit and you will use it.

There is a lower limit on what what you could get buy on but there is no upper limit on "enough".

Its crazy to think that 13 years ago when I moved out of home we had a combined income of less than 22k and the bond was my wifes entire salary. Its been quite a journey to get to the point we are now but its hard to see what we have gained... all our money seems to be locked up in pensions and policies that don't even seem real.

Yeah I'm not too keen on putting money away for a pension, with the government wanting to stick their fingers in it I'd rather invest in something else or find another way to save it that doesn't require constant attention.

 

[Zurg]

That said, something like software development might have a lower barrier to entry compared to CA, engineering, medical doctor, etc. In the sense that you can DIY (no university needed) and you'd still earn very well once you've got some experience.

Yeah that's kind of what I'm banking on, I'm not looking for handouts, rather opportunity, I'd be more than willing learn and gain xp.

 

[Zurg]

Yes, for brunch i will have a bovril sandwich or something like that
i drink 1 cup of coffee in the mornings, only buy long life milk, a 1 litre will last me weeks in the fridge
hardly ever eat fruit and veggies

Oof that can not be good for you body.

 

[Zurg]

Well yes, professionals are earning mega salaries.

An acquaintance of mine has a BCompt and is grossing R70,000 in the accounting field.

Maybe that's the answer? She's a single mother so perhaps I must become the daddy?

To bust a nut or not to bust a nut that is the question.

 

[pinball wizard]

Nope, mine lasts weeks in the fridge once opened

Mine last that or longer...

 

[DA-LION-619]

So true, hey! Remote working will be the equalizer, methinks.

In time, it needs to happen organically. You can't throw money/technology at a problem, there will always be different time zones, languages etc.

Yeah I'm not too keen on putting money away for a pension, with the government wanting to stick their fingers in it I'd rather invest in something else or find another way to save it that doesn't require constant attention.

Don't forget inflation is a tax on savings.

 

[JayM]

The point I was trying to make was the more you earn the more life costs... and I can't explain why.

Wife + kids, that's why.

 

[RanzB]

Even though I WFH, I can’t really pack up and move back home because fibre is non-existent in DBN also all the other services like Uber etc.

When were you last in Durban?

 

[RanzB]

Long life milk is only long life when it's not opened lol

At the end of the week that's his yoghurt.

 

[cguy]

The point I was trying to make was the more you earn the more life costs... and I can't explain why.

At some point money becomes trivial. If you get R200k pm you will get that house and that car and the bank will give you a higher credit limit and you will use it.

There is a lower limit on what what you could get buy on but there is no upper limit on "enough".

Its crazy to think that 13 years ago when I moved out of home we had a combined income of less than 22k and the bond was my wifes entire salary. Its been quite a journey to get to the point we are now but its hard to see what we have gained... all our money seems to be locked up in pensions and policies that don't even seem real.

In my experience, there seem to be people who will limit their expenditure based on a certain level of practicality regardless of income, and those who will always push it to the limit. The determining factor of who ends up in in which camp is usually determined by some combination of intelligence, education, insecurity, etc. Sometimes it just takes a bit to reach that limit.

Personally, (if you exclude buying another house last year), my monthly expenditure has remained the same over the last 6 years or so, despite earning several times more than I did back then. (Normalizing for the lack of travel/restaurant expenditure in 2020/2021). I go to the same restaurants, drive the same car, go on the same holidays, travel the same way, buy the same clothing, same jewelry (i.e., nothing), same type of furniture, same class of phone (new iPhone every 4 years), same level of computer equipment, etc.

 

[DA-LION-619]

When were you last in Durban?

Last March, prior to lock down.
I don’t mean non-existence literally, more in the sense that it existed in patches.
You to be really close to a popular place like The Pavilion but the whole of Westville wasn’t covered as an example, then places more south like Toti weren’t green at all if I recall.

I checked again, it seems lock down might have pushed some businesses online, some already had a presence that existed already like McDelivery.

Connectivity seems be more focused on wireless than wired, I do get better LTE speeds down there.

All of that said, I could pitch up in Durban at anytime and get a 6 pack plus something to eat.

 

[Hackson]

Here is how my budget looks after payday on the 25th.
I usually update these as the month goes because 22seven.com doesn't really do me justice.
It looks weird because my rent and car are almost the same percentage but that's cause I live alone in a pad and I like it here.
How I like to keep is that if I lose half my salary I should be able to continue problem free for a while. If I lose all my income then mommy and daddy have to pay up since the gifts category goes to them. And maybe the church should also help me.