As a college graduate, getting by on minimum wage is not easy. Pay wise we're looking at maybe 1200 a month, and that's if I can pull 40 hours every week. Well, after a breakdown expenditures...

Food - Average 7.50/day. 7.50*30 = 225
Rent - 400 (that's about average for cheap places I've seen in dallas)
Water - 30
Electricity - 70
Gas - 50*4 = 200 (filling up once a week)

Total - 925
Remaining Cash - 275

So, after all that you start adding in additional things like car payments, cell phone bills, student loans, etc. etc.

I don't think it's too unrealistic to say that you'd have less than a hundred dollars a month to pay for unneeded things, or save for emergencies.

With all that said, I've worked at placed while in college where people twice or even thrice my age are working, and getting paid little more than I did. These people surely have more things to pay for than I do. So how do people manage that kind of ordeal?

Wife/partner/room mates and state aid

If you have $100 a month to pay for unneeded things you are surviving quite nicely...

Working one full and one part-time, or two full-time jobs also helps.

corpsesarefun wrote:If you have $100 a month to pay for unneeded things you are surviving quite nicely...

Nerivant wrote:Working one full and one part-time, or two full-time jobs also helps.

Yes on both of those. Sad to say.

I dunno. Everyone should join the military. Free meals, free housing, free bullets to shoot, and cheap clothes!

If that's not your style, work two jobs, I guess.

Or more importantly, work on finishing your schooling so you have a better chance to get a better job. The wife is doing that currently. And in about a month or so Ill be producing various Cigarbox guitars for sale to add to the muneh.

Get rid of stuff you dont need. Get harder but better paying jobs that nobody wants to do (usually labor).

Before i started my own business, i didnt have a cell phone because its not needed unless you do.
I lived with people to split costs
Learn to cook instead of eating out
Dont have expensive hobbies
I bought a used car, etc.

Now that im more well off i still kept some of my old habits and therefore have tons of money left over every month. Id say 40% of my income goes to savings now.

I can agree with the above alot actually. Around here, we only have a few things we actually dont need, like TV. And in all honesty, if we absolutely had to cut spending down, we could drop around $200 a month in expenses. Thats a problem, for some reason, MOST people cant understand by not living beyond your means. I dont get it, because we live comfortably, more then alot of the people that live in our neighborhood, and we make ALOT less then they do.

KingCracker wrote:Or more importantly, work on finishing your schooling so you have a better chance to get a better job.

In my case, I was a rather thick headed chap coming out of highschool with a parent mentality. I wanted to get a degree and not be an uneducated dredge of society. Well a bachelors in Business/HR later I'm back where I started. My degree takes me no where, and I'm left with a ridiculous loan because I made a bad decision on which college to go to.

Get harder but better paying jobs that nobody wants to do (usually labor).

I've been trying to get into construction and other such jobs my whole life. I love labor intensive jobs. I'd rather be kneedeep in mud then sitting behind a desk from 8-5. Only problem is I can never find or get into such jobs. My father works pipeline, but he can't get me in. My family also seems to think it would be too tough for me (I really REALLY don't see where this is coming from. Guess because I'm the youngest?).

I really would prefer to go the military regardless of job situation, but a childhood of poor nutrition and limited play in sports left me with something of a gut. Been doing a lot of extreme sports post high school, but I'm not catching up to where I should be at all. I've heard different stories how they'll take you in if you think you can cut it, but I've also heard they'll just tell you to gtfo if you don't meet the requirements. I'd prefer to go marines btw.

Get you in? There are smaller businesses that hire without unions and all the politics that keep you out.
Worst care you can literally go door to door asking people if they need any house work done (if you are handy). My landscaper started out like that.

VanHammer wrote:Get you in? There are smaller businesses that hire without unions and all the politics that keep you out.
Worst care you can literally go door to door asking people if they need any house work done (if you are handy). My landscaper started out like that.

Think Imma start turning tricks on the corner. That market will never die

Keep looking. Look to businesses where you can get your hands dirty. But most of all, keep looking.

I had two roommates when I had a lower wage job in my early 20's. There is a saying about if you want to lose a friend move in with them....If that is not where you want to go it is all about trimming the fat so to speak. Cooking instead of eating precook food (meal in a box), and not eating out stretches your dollars more than you may know. Bike, jog or walk for short distances (distances will vary for each person, I used to go 10 miles on my bike to work several times a week, not bad on a bike) and carpool when possible. I still use a tracphone because it works out to about 5 bucks a month and I do not need internet access wherever I go. Meanwhile a family member o mine gets a new phone plan yearly due to not being able to keep up with the payments. His phone is way cooler than mine though. Aside from trimming the fat and doing without, sometimes even with all that you still need government assistance, or sell drugs. Choose wisely!

As for getting higher paying jobs with with little to no secondary education I always tell people go into wildland fire. 3-5k a month is pretty common in areas where fire danger is high. You work long hours, and the labor is pretty intense at times. There is a work rest ratio they must maintain but initial attack sometimes gets you a large sum of hours all at once. They take care of you, drive you home or to your sleep area so you don't fall asleep at the wheel, feed you provide your tents etc. The work is physically taxing, every fire season we have people make it a day or two then quit. Start of the season we would field 3 20, man teams, near the end of the season we would have 1. After a fire season you have cash, abs and a helluva farmers tan. Results may vary on the abs part, but you will jog/hike like a madman by the end. If you are competent there is room to move up in fire, they send you to classes and have programs to put you on course for an equivalent of a 2 year degree. There is work off season too with burning, layout and forest health (thinning/prevention work). With room to move up, traveling the country and pay/benefits it is a great job if you do not mind physical labor. Pay varies but up here as an EFF (Emergency Fire Fighter) pay is $13 an hour. There is a investment of boots which you must have to work. Before you can go on fires you must complete a course of wildland fire which they pay you for, they tell you it is a good idea to buy boots with that money.

Anyways that got a bit off of how to make it with a minimum wage job. I thought to offer an alternative to the usual retail type jobs that pay low and require people to put up with a lot.

J-Roc77 wrote:There is a saying about if you want to lose a friend move in with them

I very much agree. Although it's good to hear others say the same thing, for a while I thought it was because I'm just a rather loud and outgoing person that couldn't get along with people for extended periods of time.

J-Roc77 wrote:As for getting higher paying jobs with with little to no secondary education I always tell people go into wildland fire. 3-5k a month is pretty common in areas where fire danger is high. You work long hours, and the labor is pretty intense at times. There is a work rest ratio they must maintain but initial attack sometimes gets you a large sum of hours all at once. They take care of you, drive you home or to your sleep area so you don't fall asleep at the wheel, feed you provide your tents etc. The work is physically taxing, every fire season we have people make it a day or two then quit. Start of the season we would field 3 20, man teams, near the end of the season we would have 1. After a fire season you have cash, abs and a helluva farmers tan. Results may vary on the abs part, but you will jog/hike like a madman by the end. If you are competent there is room to move up in fire, they send you to classes and have programs to put you on course for an equivalent of a 2 year degree. There is work off season too with burning, layout and forest health (thinning/prevention work). With room to move up, traveling the country and pay/benefits it is a great job if you do not mind physical labor. Pay varies but up here as an EFF (Emergency Fire Fighter) pay is $13 an hour. There is a investment of boots which you must have to work. Before you can go on fires you must complete a course of wildland fire which they pay you for, they tell you it is a good idea to buy boots with that money.

Anyways that got a bit off of how to make it with a minimum wage job. I thought to offer an alternative to the usual retail type jobs that pay low and require people to put up with a lot.

That looks...AWESOME! I'm surprised I've never heard of it before, and now I'm def going to be looking into it. Thanks for the heads up!

Here in Chicago its a bit tougher to survive on minimum wage.

But eating in, and Having a room mate or two can help a lot.

One or two others to share the electric and water bill helps.

yea, minimum wage is tough! try for a room mate... if not you could always take up being a jigalo

Tech support brah. I make double minimum wage +benefits, and its super easy work.

Spend a lot of my time at work on these forums lol.

Necroshea wrote:

That looks...AWESOME! I'm surprised I've never heard of it before, and now I'm def going to be looking into it. Thanks for the heads up!

I live in eastern Washington, pretty good fire danger here. Where you live it may not be such a big deal, it is very much regional. Places like California have great opportunities with the CDF, they do not often ask for assistance from 2 teams, only type 1 (in wildland fire type 1 is a higher degree than type 2, opposite in structural fire). I think it is a better alternative than oil fields due to being out in the woods and travel. Only reason I quit is because I had a kid, I didn't want to be gone 4-6 months at a time and not see him during these younger years.

Samus_aran115 wrote:I dunno. Everyone should join the military. Free meals, free housing, free bullets to shoot, and cheap clothes!

If that's not your style, work two jobs, I guess.

Grocery ads come out on Tuesday and Wednesday. We watch them like a hawk for deals. Rice is cheap, those $5 rotteserrie chickens are too, if you know when they mark them down to $1 late at night that helps too. Extreme sales are a time to stock up...like couponers...oh yeah don't forget coupons. Use your bicycle to get around when you can... Being poor is a lifestyle.

Budgeting and looking over your priorities.

Right now most of my money goes to my car because I'm an idiot and bought a 47 year-old pony. *sigh* all the hard work will pay off eventually.

Horst wrote:Tech support brah. I make double minimum wage +benefits, and its super easy work.

Spend a lot of my time at work on these forums lol.

Nods wisely.

/Brofist

You can always try canvassing, most people wash out, but if you're any good you can make ~20 USD/hr.

Its a pretty easy gig too, if you can take rejection and activist co-workers.

Ouze wrote:

Horst wrote:Tech support brah. I make double minimum wage +benefits, and its super easy work.

Spend a lot of my time at work on these forums lol.

Nods wisely.

/Brofist

Not if you work in the Casino industry.

J-Roc77 wrote:Pay varies but up here as an EFF (Emergency Fire Fighter) pay is $13 an hour.

That does not seem that good to me.

Out of interest, what is the minimum wage, and how does it compare with the cost of living in the US

Minimum wage here in texas, and central US for that matter (with a couple states to the east) is a whopping 7.25

Average cost of living is 46,742

Minimum wage is supposed to be tough to survive on. It should make people strive to better themselves through increasing thier skills, then they can find better paying work.

People making minimum wage should not have things like car payments, cell phones, or cable tv.

Buy a cheap car outright. Get a land line for your phone. Watch free video online for entertainment, or get Netflix instead of cable if you must watch tv/movies.

Live like every other young minimum wage earner has in the past. Find the best rental housing deal you can find and enough housemates to fill it.

Quad apartments are not ideal, but since they are small and have a kitchen shared with 3 other people. You get a big room, your own bathroom and fridge. They are cheap. It is basically like having housemates you only have to share a kitchen with. Quads and apartments also tend to have the garbage, water and electricity bills included in the rent.

Eat right, cook your own meals, pack your own lunch, save for things you want.

Not rocket science. If you get married and your spouse also works minimum wage, your living conditions can vastly improve.

@VanHammer - nicely done, sounds a lot like me. I can not afford to put as much into savings as all that, but then I have a mortgage and car payment and other debts to pay off. Once my credit cards and car are paid off, I will be looking at the same sort of thing. More money into my IRA/savings.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:Minimum wage is supposed to be tough to survive on.

I'm fairly sure that's not its purpose.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:
Eat right...

Is actually really difficult if you have little disposable income. Well, unless your definition of "right" is flexible.

Necroshea wrote:Average cost of living is 46,742

Median Household Income: $26,364

dogma wrote:

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:
Eat right...

Is actually really difficult if you have little disposable income. Well, unless your definition of "right" is flexible.

Honestly, it's very important to get your recommended daily intake of MSG.

Actually it isn't. A Box of apples that will keep for a month and last for a month, plus milk, cereal, bread, peanut butter and jelly. Then Rice, veggies, actual meat, bag of shrimp, etc.

Total cost about $50 a month. You can live on this and it is pretty healthy.

$50 is less than what most people spend on their cell phone. see my bit about the landline phone. or that whatchmacallit Magic Jack phone.. even less.

This frees up your money to buy essentials like food.

Fafnir wrote:Honestly, it's very important to get your recommended daily intake of RAMEN.

FTFY

I spend about $100 on food a month, and feel like I am splurging by buying Sirloin steak for making bulgogi with, and things like that. I find the best deals on fresh real food that I can.

I do not eat anything out of a box.

So I eat pretty "right"

I have lived on a food budget of $50 not that many years ago, and I ate real food. nothing from a box, barely anything canned either.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:Actually it isn't. A Box of apples that will keep for a month and last for a month, plus milk, cereal, bread, peanut butter and jelly. Then Rice, veggies, actual meat, bag of shrimp, etc.

Total cost about $50 a month. You can live on this and it is pretty healthy.

What kind of magic meat are you buying that lasts a month and is cheap enough to buy all the rest of that and still be under $50? This is all assuming you are alone and have no kids to take care of either. A small bag of shrimp is going to be at least $5 and won't last a month, and probably not even more than a meal. Milk is, we'll say $2.75 a gallon so that right there is $10.50 a month. This of course isn't counting places like Alaska where milk can be $9.50 a gallon. Your numbers don't really add up, unless this is the 1970's. Living at starvation levels is not exactly healthy or something to aspire to.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:Actually it isn't. A Box of apples that will keep for a month and last for a month, plus milk, cereal, bread, peanut butter and jelly. Then Rice, veggies, actual meat, bag of shrimp, etc.

Total cost about $50 a month. You can live on this and it is pretty healthy.

When I was in college, and not working, it used to cost me 110 USD for bread, turkey breast, cheese, ramen, and cereal (I eat dry cereal). That would last 3 weeks.

Granted, I lived in a city, and have a body that possesses more muscle than most, but that has to be considered when thinking of what people need for food.

There is this thing called a freezer. You bag up your meat products, and put them in, keeps longer.

A bag of shrimp I am referring to is usually at least 3 pounds, frozen, and about $6. This should last you way more than 1 meal.

Meat would not be an everyday thing. Other protein sources include peanut butter as listed, and beans which are also cheap.

There is always powdered milk if your milk.

Honestly though, I use at best 2 gallons of milk a month. Sometimes I only buy one, it is not an everyday item in my diet.

Your diet is up to you, most people overeat, or eat the more expensive options.

And yes, alone with no kids to support would be correct.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:
A bag of shrimp I am referring to is usually at least 3 pounds, frozen, and about $6.

Again, where in God's name do you live?

That would be, at least, a 15 USD purchase here.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:
Meat would not be an everyday thing. Other protein sources include peanut butter as listed, and beans which are also cheap.

Not at all healthy. Protein is not protein.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:
Sometimes I only buy one, it is not an everyday item in my diet.

It should be if you're eating random protein.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:
Your diet is up to you, most people overeat, or eat the more expensive options.

You healthy diet is not up to you. Your diet is healthy, or it isn't. What you like has no bearing on that.

Buy on sale, coupons, etc etc etc etc. I have survived on very little.

I have known people who ate nothing but Top Ramen for months on end.

It can be done, is it awesome? no. will it keep you alive. yes. The OP asked how people survive on minimum wage. This is how people do it.




Automatically Appended Next Post:
I live in Springfield Oregon..

No Sales tax state I guess helps, but last I knew, they never put the sales tax on food.

So you are using personal, anecdotal, single person, sustenance level feeding as a model? No, I don't think so. I also still don't believe you buy a months worth of all this:

Box of apples
Shrimp
Meat
Rice
Vegies
Cereal
Peanut Butter
Jelly

for only $50. You can have a starvation diet with so little you are buying, but not a healthy diet.

Also no, not everyone needs milk. Most people do not. a lot of people are lactose intolerant.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:Buy on sale, coupons, etc etc etc etc. I have survived on very little.

I have known people who ate nothing but Top Ramen for months on end.

Survival isn't the argued point, that eating healthy costs more money than not eating healthy is the argued point.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:Also no, not everyone needs milk. Most people do not.

There are 11 essential amino acids. If you're not consuming animal protein every day, then you need to drink milk every day.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:
No Sales tax state I guess helps, but last I knew, they never put the sales tax on food.

To be honest, regardless of sales tax, I think you're lying. Maybe without intention, but still lying. Or, at least, failing to understand what a healthy diet entails.

Just curious, if you literally ate nothing but ramen and drank water you would die after like a month or so wouldn't you?

Necroshea wrote:Just curious, if you literally ate nothing but ramen and drank water you would die after like a month or so wouldn't you?

I don't know if you would die, but you certainly would feel...off.

Once again. eating healthy is not more expensive.

It just isn't.

An example. Carrot about 10 cents, Bell Pepper for about 60 cents, Cup of rice about 25 cents, Half an Onion about 10 cents, A serving of shrimp (about 6) 60 cents. Total cost = $1.65

Thats a good meal, and about 560 calories. Skip the expensive bell pepper, and the meal is about 530 calories and $1.05 If you get a good sale on stuff, buy onions in bulk etc, more like 75 cents.

Compare to say box of "Suddenly Pasta Salad" Which my housemate eats too often, cost about $2.50 plus 10 cents of Mayonaise, so $2.60. Serving size, 1/2 cup, which is 350 calories, and claim the box is 4.5 servings at that serving size. Likelyhood you will eat 1 serving at a time? yea right.
You still need to add something to get the protein. say a can of tuna, about 75 cents to a dollar. I will give you the lower cost. Total cost $3.35 for about what 3 meals if you if you serve yourself about 3/4 a cup of it. Equalling $1.11 each.

Even if you divide by the 4.5 servings they claim. Each serving will cost you 74 cents and be about 390 calories with the tuna added.

Cost is about the same, give or take a penny but for nutrition purposes, My meal beats it out everytime.

Which would you rather eat?


Actually I screwed up my math. My meal of rice, and fresh veggies also has more calories, on top of being better for you.

Most people, especially young men, have absolutely no idea how to grocery shop is the real problem I think.

It's easy in England. I had a month off the beer in September, I think i spent about £100. Living expenses would be what.. 500?

I could live off about 650, so minimum wage would be piece of cake.

Although.. booze aside I have a spartan lifestyle. I don't buy clothes, jewels or much technology.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:
An example. Carrot about 10 cents, Bell Pepper for about 60 cents, Cup of rice about 25 cents, Half an Onion about 10 cents, A serving of shrimp (about 6) 60 cents. Total cost = $1.65

1.65 x 3 x 30 = 148.5

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:I will give you the lower cost.

Of course you will, it favors your argument.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:...more like 75 cents.

.75 x 3 x 30 = 67.5

Good job.

And this is before I go into all the nutritional problems with what you'e outlined.

@dogma - don't be an itiot. No one is suggesting you eat that meal 3 times a day.

it was an example of 1 meal of crap compared to 1 good meal, proving that your theory of eating healthy is more expensive is simply wrong.

Also you used the most expensive figure, which suggests you have absolutely no idea how to do proper grocery shopping. See my comment above.

Use my 75 cents number and you get $67.50. If this is all you ate, 3 meals a day.

Now if you include my earlier suggestions, peanut butter, jelly, bread, fruit etc. You can get to $50 a month.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
I was suggesting the lower cost of 75 cents on a can of tuna compared to $1.. which favoured you in my arguement. I still came out ahead.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:
Now if you include my earlier suggestions, peanut butter, jelly, bread, fruit etc. You can get to $50 a month.

If you don't want to eat healthy. I can eat at McDonalds for less than 50 US per month if all I care about is not dying.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:
I was suggesting the lower cost of 75 cents on a can of tuna compared to $1.. which favoured you in my arguement. I still came out ahead.

No it didn't. A lower cost of any foodstuff favors your, as my argument is "Eating healthy food is, in American, more expensive than eating non-healthy food."

And, even with the .75 number you come out behind, as it leads to a cost above 50 USD.

What are you even playing at?

I disagree with you for a change Dogma.. I definitely spend less when im living healthy. When I train through the week I spend feth all.. I have a protein bar and a glass of milk for breakfast, a tuna sarnie or something for lunch, a protein shake after phys and chicken and beans or similar for evening meal. It's easy and cheap to eat healthy.

Then I get to a weekend.. knack a few pizzas, a couple pints of ice cream and a loaf of bread and I've spent in two days what i did in the five prior!


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Although this may be due to volume.. but either way I think the price is about the same.

I mean, I'm the same, but my "not healthy" is "Take 20 shots and eat a large pizza." not "Eat ramen once a day." or "Subsist on McDonalds for 1 month."

And even then my large pizza and 20 shots would cost ~85 USD where I live, whereas 85 USD will buy you a godawful amount of ramen.

There is an awful lot of wacky suggestions here. Don't have car payments, just go buy a car outright? Laughable. First off, it's going to really tough to even find a drivable beater for less than $500. I agree with the thought, but it's just so disconnected with reality. Go to the supermarket and buy a month of food for $50? Beyond math that is so preposterous it doesn't require debunking, it ignores the fact that many poor people live in urban or rural areas that do not have supermarkets, and so you're limited to the expensive, unhealthy crap they stock at the bodega or convenience store.

How do people live on minimum wage? Poorly. They eat lousy food that costs more than it does for the middle class, they pay rents on tiny apartments at rates that would pay off a house in most of the country inside a decade (subsidized by the government, so no one's a winner except the landlords), and get screwed at every possible avenue, be it higher interest rates on everything, fees to pay bills in person, opportunity costs of being limited to jobs that the bus goes near, and so on and so forth. They live poorly, and they hope not to get any kind of illness that requires more than a single trip to the emergency room.

No car or private motorised transport of any kind.
No boozing (or at least very little).
No clubbing.
Join the "bridge and tunnel crowd" (commuters).
Live with parents until you can afford to move out or get a better job.

Been there, done that.

Food - Average 7.50/day. 7.50*30 = 225

Nothing you can do about food. It's a necessary expense.

Rent - 400 (that's about average for cheap places I've seen in dallas)
Water - 30
Electricity - 70

Get a roommate and cut these costs in half! 2 people can share a 1 bedroom apartment - someone gets the couch.

Gas - 50*4 = 200 (filling up once a week)...car payments

Don't get a car. Take the bus or split the cost with a friend. The amount of time you actually use a car is negligible. Two (or more) people could easily share a vehicle. Also, $50 to fill up the car every week is pretty high. That's at least 14 gallons a week. I have an old Honda with a 10 gallon tank that I fill up twice a month, about $30 every two weeks.

cell phone bills

Don't get a cell phone. Or get a cricket phone for $25/month if you absolutely need a cell phone.

student loans

If you've got student loans you shouldn't be working minimum wage. Or go with income based repayment - if you make less than $15,000 per year you don't have to pay anything.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:Actually it isn't. A Box of apples that will keep for a month and last for a month, plus milk, cereal, bread, peanut butter and jelly. Then Rice, veggies, actual meat, bag of shrimp, etc.

Total cost about $50 a month. You can live on this and it is pretty healthy.

$50 is less than what most people spend on their cell phone. see my bit about the landline phone. or that whatchmacallit Magic Jack phone.. even less.

This frees up your money to buy essentials like food.

Box of apples - Small Gala @ 1/day - $10.23 (I'm referring to the really small ones meant for kids lunches.)
Milk - $1.50 average, if you hunt for sales @ 2/month - $3.00
Cereal - $2.50 per bag of cheap gak that's bad for you @ 3/month - 7.50
Bread - $1.25 for cheap store brand that will make you really fat @ 1/week - $5
Peanut Butter - ~$9.00 for the big 40 oz. jar @ 1.5 a month - $13.50
Jelly - More than peanut butter, but let's pretend it's the same - $13.50

We're now at 52.73 pre-tax. This post is extremely hyperbolic :/



To answer OP, roommate is the only real way to work it. Find someone of like mind and of similar economic status to prevent one of you from moving out too early. As someone who has gone from being homeless in 2010 to being well enough off to have voluntarily gone to the doctor on his own tab yesterday for the first time ever, you really, really need to just put up with living with someone else. Be honest about your shortcomings and avoid petty disputes, though they're somewhat inevitable. If you want cheaper bills, sleep with people. If you spend the night at their place they'll often feed you and will feel the need to accommodate you as a guest to some degree (heater/ac, entertainment); become a regular and you'll get less of a red carpet treatment but then have fridge-raiding rights. If anyone ever gives you something for free, act super grateful, way over the top as they'll give you more free stuff. Ask for gift cards. Walk places if it's within 3 miles. Go to your local Mexican supermarket to buy meat in bulk (I prefer these places now). That's the best I've got.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:
An example. Carrot about 10 cents, Bell Pepper for about 60 cents, Cup of rice about 25 cents, Half an Onion about 10 cents, A serving of shrimp (about 6) 60 cents. Total cost = $1.65

Carrots and bell peppers are cheap but you're undercutting. Onions cost way more than that. Where are these 10 cent shrimp coming from?

Don't mess with the Produce guy

Also just remembered, a couple of cheap meals:

Cheapest ground meat you can find (usually pork or turkey). Go for the biggest pack for best deal so you can freeze the extra and pre-ration it.
Bag of frozen veggies or fresh ones (peppers are ultra cheap if you can deal with the spiciness)
Rice for filler, preferably brown as white is absolute gak for you.

Make patties on the stove top and cook. Barbecue sauce is cheap flavor, build up a collection of those $1.00 spices, have fun

Cheap tortillas (I prefer to minimize the carbs and multigrain if you can splurge)
Store brand pizza sauce in the jar
Fresh veggies of your choice
Optional - Canned meat (splurge only)

Make like pizza. Toss them in the oven for a few minutes and you're set. Mushrooms/cheese are amazing too!

@dogma and others I am sorry for getting cranky on this thread last night. I was pretty tired, should have been in bed, and had just had a discussion with my housemate yesterday about why she spends $300 or so a month on groceries compared to my $100 or so.

I crossed the line implying you were being an idiot. again I apologize.

biccat wrote:
Get a roommate and cut these costs in half! 2 people can share a 1 bedroom apartment - someone gets the couch.

I think that the 400 number is for apartments with roommates. I certainly have never lived in any major city in which you can rent an apartment for that price.

biccat wrote:
If you've got student loans you shouldn't be working minimum wage.

That sentiment caused the revolution in Egypt.

Shadowseer_Kim wrote:@dogma and others I am sorry for getting cranky on this thread last night.

Meh, worse has happened. Just go back and read the thinly veiled hostility between biccat and myself, or further back and read the completely unveiled hostility between myself and Fraz. Or type "Gailbraithe" into the search bar.

No worries.

Necroshea wrote:

KingCracker wrote:Or more importantly, work on finishing your schooling so you have a better chance to get a better job.

In my case, I was a rather thick headed chap coming out of highschool with a parent mentality. I wanted to get a degree and not be an uneducated dredge of society. Well a bachelors in Business/HR later I'm back where I started. My degree takes me no where, and I'm left with a ridiculous loan because I made a bad decision on which college to go to.

Hey dont feel bad. My oldest brother has a 4 year degree in Psychology and Criminal Justace and a 2 year in....something else Anywho, he has all that, and works for a company that are basically the middlemen in approving loans. So.................... Im not saying its GOING to be better, but it will certainly help

DFW has lots of apartments for 400 or just a little over at least, FWIW (several under but they're pretty ghetto). I know housing is drastically different in other places.

dogma wrote:

biccat wrote:
Get a roommate and cut these costs in half! 2 people can share a 1 bedroom apartment - someone gets the couch.

I think that the 400 number is for apartments with roommates. I certainly have never lived in any major city in which you can rent an apartment for that price.

While it's been a few years since I've lived on my own, I paid less than that when I had to have my own place. Any area with a decently sized university will have inexpensive housing available. Even so, $800/mo for a one-bedroom apartment is high outside of New York.

dogma wrote:

biccat wrote:If you've got student loans you shouldn't be working minimum wage.

That sentiment caused the revolution in Egypt.

I'm not sure what you're getting at, and I'm pretty sure that among the causes of the revolution in Egypt, that particular sentiment would rank pretty low.

Then again, my personal theory is that anyone who isn't independently wealthy (or from a wealthy family) should go to college for job training rather than "expanding their horizons" or whatever.

biccat wrote: Even so, $800/mo for a one-bedroom apartment is high outside of New York.

I paid $600 to live with 5 roommates (against city code) in a house in St. Paul, Mn.

Where my parents live, in an, admittedly wealthy, Chicago suburb a 1 bedroom apartment would run upwards of $700 a month.

My one bedroom, college town apartment cost me $1000 a month. It had many amenities, but the lowest price I saw on market was $600.

biccat wrote:
I'm not sure what you're getting at, and I'm pretty sure that among the causes of the revolution in Egypt, that particular sentiment would rank pretty low.

Not really. In fact, many analysts have cited dissatisfaction with the Mubarak government, stemming from high rates of education, but low rates of proper employment, as a key factor in the revolt.

Anyway, I'm getting at what I assumed was you making a comment about poor major choice.

dogma wrote:Anyway, I'm getting at what I assumed was you making a comment about poor major choice.

While I'm never one to shy away from that argument (see above), I was actually making the point that if you're working minimum wage and have a college degree you're simply not looking hard enough. Unemployment among college-educated people is around 5%. While I'm sure many of them are underemployed in the current economic climate, I doubt that many are working minimum wage jobs.

Soup kitchens and food banks perhaps? Live in a shelter or under a bridge maybe? But as long as they can have a box to keep their warhammer models in, then they'll be just fine.

If you can buy warhammer you are surviving nicely.

biccat wrote:While I'm sure many of them are underemployed in the current economic climate, I doubt that many are working minimum wage jobs.

I don't know, and have no statistics to cite (I'm also too lazy to look) but it would be an interesting topic of research (ie. I may look later).

corpsesarefun wrote:If you can buy warhammer you are surviving nicely.

Not always. I knew a guy who would sneak his roommates food to keep from having to buy anything past ramen so he could buy Warhammer. There was another that built his entire collection of D&D books stealing them from stores and libraries. I condone neither and find both sad, but in the end people often find strange ways to get things they shouldn't.

If you can buy warhammer and have even an ounce of common sense then you are surviving nicely.

Minimum wage earners dont 'survive', they get into debt instead.

The dumb ones get into debt.

KingCracker wrote:The dumb ones with credit cards get into debt.

Fixed.

I'm trying to stockpile money for College, to cut down my debt, on minimum wage. It's nice living with my parents.

Go solar, live out of town, live for free, free internet and power:

http://youtu.be/fJsDOD0dTQI

Slarg232 wrote:

KingCracker wrote:The dumb ones with credit cards get into debt.

Fixed.

I'm trying to stockpile money for College, to cut down my debt, on minimum wage. It's nice living with my parents.

I know what its like to be on benefits and on very low wages, its easier on benefits. Low wages supposedly give you more money, indeed government calculations guarantee that, but expenditure is not the same, once you have accounted for travel and eating at lunchtime away from home you have already blown any saving you have from having a job. wage earners need more money to live, especially if any form of commuting is involved. I remained solvent on low wages by only taking jobs I could get to by bike and not eating at lunchtime and having no berr money. A lot of people find that hard month in month out, year in year out, and credit is too easy to get.

Were it not for my loathing of credit culture I would be there too, and even then I got into debt anyway, heavy rent arrears due to cashflow problems. I am also lucky in that tobacco and alcohol has no hold on me, and I do not run a car.

I see the point raised a lot, but debt does not solely come from credit cards. Medical bills (sometimes unavoidable), surprise overdraft crap (not talking about overspending, talking about random fees you were unaware of and the like) that begins a snowball and other mandatory miscellaneous expenses that take priority over bills that can be paid slightly late (your work clothes got burned in a fire and what are you going to where? stuff like that ). It's really not so simple.

VanHammer wrote:Go solar, live out of town, live for free, free internet and power:

http://youtu.be/fJsDOD0dTQI

After watching that I don't mind so much being a "slave to the system" and having a mortgage.

VanHammer wrote:Go solar, live out of town, live for free, free internet and power:

http://youtu.be/fJsDOD0dTQI

.

Costco is the place to shop for cheap food. You can get a huge ass bag of chicken cheap. The frozen stir fry mix is the best, I never had the energy to cook so many veggies before but everything is just ready to be cooked.

Orlanth wrote:

Slarg232 wrote:

KingCracker wrote:The dumb ones with credit cards get into debt.

Fixed.

I'm trying to stockpile money for College, to cut down my debt, on minimum wage. It's nice living with my parents.

I know what its like to be on benefits and on very low wages, its easier on benefits. Low wages supposedly give you more money, indeed government calculations guarantee that, but expenditure is not the same, once you have accounted for travel and eating at lunchtime away from home you have already blown any saving you have from having a job. wage earners need more money to live, especially if any form of commuting is involved. I remained solvent on low wages by only taking jobs I could get to by bike and not eating at lunchtime and having no berr money. A lot of people find that hard month in month out, year in year out, and credit is too easy to get.

Were it not for my loathing of credit culture I would be there too, and even then I got into debt anyway, heavy rent arrears due to cashflow problems. I am also lucky in that tobacco and alcohol has no hold on me, and I do not run a car.

£55 a week on unemployment benefit, £240 a week for a minimum wage job.
It's a myth that it "pays to be unemployed".

It's not easy. I work part time for a regular pay check. I get tips, and there are days where you can make a lot of money on tips more than minimum wage. A former class mate of mine was a waitress at a Olive Garden for a few years before decided to go to college. She made more being a waitress than some of my friends who are electrical engineers.

I also do odd jobs for people that get paid a bit of money for but it is not a reliable income, meaning I could go weeks without doing an odd job for someone.


Replace sinks, fix toilets, lay tile, put in a water heater, fix a dish washer, etc. Did a lot of it growing up.


It's probably easier for me since I don't drive. No gas. No maintenance. No auto insurance.


What's really difficult is being a single mother working for minimum wage. Quite a few of them come into the restaurant I work at in the morning tell me their struggles. A mother should have to decide between medicine and food.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Joey wrote:
£55 a week on unemployment benefit, £240 a week for a minimum wage job.
It's a myth that it "pays to be unemployed".

You guys got that myth going on over there too?

Wow.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Bleak_Fantasy wrote:Costco is the place to shop for cheap food. You can get a huge ass bag of chicken cheap. The frozen stir fry mix is the best, I never had the energy to cook so many veggies before but everything is just ready to be cooked.

Ahhhhhh Costco. Miss the place. The store where you can buy chocolate muffins the size of your head.

Unfortunately upstate New York does not have a costco, at least where I live.

The real question is how do people making close to minimum wage survive working less than 30 hours a week...

I work 30-36 hours a week right now, IDGAF, just doing it until I go back to college and get a different part time job. There's people I work with that are 28+ with multiple children working less than 30 hours a week, making at most $8.50/hour. That ain't spit. Not much sympathy for most of them either since they're sloppy, lazy, slow, and turn down extra hours (which in turn would lead to a raise and promotion....). state aid man smh

Amaya wrote:The real question is how do people making close to minimum wage survive working less than 30 hours a week...

I work 30-36 hours a week right now, IDGAF, just doing it until I go back to college and get a different part time job. There's people I work with that are 28+ with multiple children working less than 30 hours a week, making at most $8.50/hour. That ain't spit. Not much sympathy for most of them either since they're sloppy, lazy, slow, and turn down extra hours (which in turn would lead to a raise and promotion....). state aid man smh

Know what you mean man.

Amaya wrote:
...and turn down extra hours (which in turn would lead to a raise and promotion....).

Possibly because they have other jobs, or, you know, kids.

Joey wrote:

Orlanth wrote:

Slarg232 wrote:

KingCracker wrote:The dumb ones with credit cards get into debt.

Fixed.

I'm trying to stockpile money for College, to cut down my debt, on minimum wage. It's nice living with my parents.

I know what its like to be on benefits and on very low wages, its easier on benefits. Low wages supposedly give you more money, indeed government calculations guarantee that, but expenditure is not the same, once you have accounted for travel and eating at lunchtime away from home you have already blown any saving you have from having a job. wage earners need more money to live, especially if any form of commuting is involved. I remained solvent on low wages by only taking jobs I could get to by bike and not eating at lunchtime and having no berr money. A lot of people find that hard month in month out, year in year out, and credit is too easy to get.

Were it not for my loathing of credit culture I would be there too, and even then I got into debt anyway, heavy rent arrears due to cashflow problems. I am also lucky in that tobacco and alcohol has no hold on me, and I do not run a car.

£55 a week on unemployment benefit, £240 a week for a minimum wage job.
It's a myth that it "pays to be unemployed".

£600 a month rent - paid for.
£125 council tax - paid for.

Things are starting to even out....

mattyrm wrote:

Joey wrote:

Orlanth wrote:

Slarg232 wrote:

KingCracker wrote:The dumb ones with credit cards get into debt.

Fixed.

I'm trying to stockpile money for College, to cut down my debt, on minimum wage. It's nice living with my parents.

I know what its like to be on benefits and on very low wages, its easier on benefits. Low wages supposedly give you more money, indeed government calculations guarantee that, but expenditure is not the same, once you have accounted for travel and eating at lunchtime away from home you have already blown any saving you have from having a job. wage earners need more money to live, especially if any form of commuting is involved. I remained solvent on low wages by only taking jobs I could get to by bike and not eating at lunchtime and having no berr money. A lot of people find that hard month in month out, year in year out, and credit is too easy to get.

Were it not for my loathing of credit culture I would be there too, and even then I got into debt anyway, heavy rent arrears due to cashflow problems. I am also lucky in that tobacco and alcohol has no hold on me, and I do not run a car.

£55 a week on unemployment benefit, £240 a week for a minimum wage job.
It's a myth that it "pays to be unemployed".

£600 a month rent - paid for.
£125 council tax - paid for.

Things are starting to even out....

Pretty sure the housing benefit is regardless of employment, hence the "scandal" over people in London earning 30k a year and receiving housing benefit.

Necroshea wrote:As a college graduate, getting by on minimum wage is not easy.

It's not meant to be easy. Minimum wage is supposed to be the minimum you can get by on. It sucks that you're stuck with that job, but life is hard sometimes. Best of luck finding something better!

Necroshea wrote:Pay wise we're looking at maybe 1200 a month, and that's if I can pull 40 hours every week. Well, after a breakdown expenditures...

Ouch! Living in a state with the lowest minimum wage is extra rough.

Necroshea wrote:Food - Average 7.50/day. 7.50*30 = 225

You could cut way down on food costs. When I was in college, I was living off of ~$3 per day for food. It's possible to go even below that. And, there are soup kitchens and things like that to provide extra help if need be.

Necroshea wrote:Rent - 400 (that's about average for cheap places I've seen in dallas)

That's fairly high. I did a quick scan on Dallas craigslist and found plenty of places for $300 or less.

Necroshea wrote:Water - 30
Electricity - 70

A roommate will help with that. But, $100 per month per person isn't too bad.

Necroshea wrote:Gas - 50*4 = 200 (filling up once a week)

Public transit can be a big saver here. A monthly pass is $100.

Necroshea wrote:Total - 925
Remaining Cash - 275

So, after all that you start adding in additional things like car payments, cell phone bills, student loans, etc. etc.

Car payments are rough, but they shouldn't be too bad. If you paid more than a few thousand for the car, you're driving a luxury you really didn't need. (And, if you go with public transit, you can forgo the car all together.) Cell phone bills can be reduced greatly if you don't use a smartphone and pay by the minute (with keeping phone calls to a minimum). Student loans should be able to be differed or even forgiven if your income is low.

Necroshea wrote:I don't think it's too unrealistic to say that you'd have less than a hundred dollars a month to pay for unneeded things, or save for emergencies.

If you can save money while working on minimum wage, you're doing great. Most people on minimum wage are living paycheck to paycheck, or are surviving on credit and getting deeper and deeper into debt.

Joey wrote:

Orlanth wrote:

Slarg232 wrote:

KingCracker wrote:The dumb ones with credit cards get into debt.

Fixed.

I'm trying to stockpile money for College, to cut down my debt, on minimum wage. It's nice living with my parents.

I know what its like to be on benefits and on very low wages, its easier on benefits. Low wages supposedly give you more money, indeed government calculations guarantee that, but expenditure is not the same, once you have accounted for travel and eating at lunchtime away from home you have already blown any saving you have from having a job. wage earners need more money to live, especially if any form of commuting is involved. I remained solvent on low wages by only taking jobs I could get to by bike and not eating at lunchtime and having no berr money. A lot of people find that hard month in month out, year in year out, and credit is too easy to get.

Were it not for my loathing of credit culture I would be there too, and even then I got into debt anyway, heavy rent arrears due to cashflow problems. I am also lucky in that tobacco and alcohol has no hold on me, and I do not run a car.

£55 a week on unemployment benefit, £240 a week for a minimum wage job.
It's a myth that it "pays to be unemployed".

Tax already 'paid' JSA is net taxable income, minimum wage with a full annual wage yields £12,400, that is enough to lump you with £1K of tax, and cuts your pay to £208/week.
Then you have to pay rent, housing benefit will not cover all of this, the rates will vary but with £100 a week for rent you can expect to have a top up of about £30,could be more or less, this cuts you down to £138 as a guess. Next comes council tax, this cannot be offset, you can complain about high rent and get a reduction, lawful tax cannot. The council cannot decide to let you off, under any circumstances outside of a council tax reduction claim. This could end up any amount frankly and personal contributions will only go so far. Its hard to put a figure to this but £20 a week is not unreasonable.
We are now down to £118.

A lot better than £55 yes?

However now count in commuting costs, that isnt cheap. If the minimum wage guy can walk your golden, but I am going to assume a bud is taken and the bus journeyt costs £3 each way. Thats £30 a week.

This guy is also working a full week, probably not on the best hours either, so he needs food. Lunch out might cost £3, more if you eat healthier. Thats £15 minimum. An unemployed person can buy incredients and cook at home for a fraction of the price., I will assume both have similar out of hours food expenses. This cost is pure extra to have something to eat while working, probably doing something manual.

Your minimum wage worker is down to £73 a week.

I stop here, but fate doesn't. If the job is new you are on emergency tax, which is a higher rate, if the pay is late it will likely be harder to fix than late JSA and income support payments. JSA offices pay out with a counter cheque quickly enough, employers might not like to admit error swiftly. They might ask for evidence in writing etc and be very slow. JSA related housing benefit etc are also easy to calculate, when working the council asks for proof, reviews etc. So your persons housing benefit may well be delayed.
This cuts net monies from £73 to £43. Is this likely? Hell yes. I know plenty of people who have had a lot of problems with councils miscalculating and being tardy with payments.

The governments calculations guarantee you are better off working, if the calculations do not add up in your favour you get as work credit top up to ensure you have more than benefits would get you. However working incurs higher costs, and we only touched on the minimums here, more tellingly the bureaucracy is harder on the workers than the non workers as the calculations are individually tailored rather than taken from a single benefit entitlement base.

The kicker is that if you have plenty of kids and get a large council house it is real easy to have more on benefits than you can likely earn. Though extreme cases go beyond the scope of this thread.
100% housing benefit and council tax benefit, in council/housing association accomodation.
No

dogma wrote:

biccat wrote: Even so, $800/mo for a one-bedroom apartment is high outside of New York.

I paid $600 to live with 5 roommates (against city code) in a house in St. Paul, Mn.

Where my parents live, in an, admittedly wealthy, Chicago suburb a 1 bedroom apartment would run upwards of $700 a month.

My one bedroom, college town apartment cost me $1000 a month. It had many amenities, but the lowest price I saw on market was $600.

Thats so stupid...I just bought a brand new 1500 sq ft home and it's only $617 a month (not including taxes and insurance)!

That is another thing that really hurts people who can not save anything at all. They are throwing away money on something they will never see a return on.

In my $1300 River North apartment I saw a great return on awesome views, and drinking scotch on the balcony.

Orlanth wrote:

Tax already 'paid' JSA is net taxable income, minimum wage with a full annual wage yields £12,400, that is enough to lump you with £1K of tax, and cuts your pay to £208/week.
Then you have to pay rent, housing benefit will not cover all of this, the rates will vary but with £100 a week for rent you can expect to have a top up of about £30,could be more or less, this cuts you down to £138 as a guess. Next comes council tax, this cannot be offset, you can complain about high rent and get a reduction, lawful tax cannot. The council cannot decide to let you off, under any circumstances outside of a council tax reduction claim. This could end up any amount frankly and personal contributions will only go so far. Its hard to put a figure to this but £20 a week is not unreasonable.
We are now down to £118.

A lot better than £55 yes?

However now count in commuting costs, that isnt cheap. If the minimum wage guy can walk your golden, but I am going to assume a bud is taken and the bus journeyt costs £3 each way. Thats £30 a week.

This guy is also working a full week, probably not on the best hours either, so he needs food. Lunch out might cost £3, more if you eat healthier. Thats £15 minimum. An unemployed person can buy incredients and cook at home for a fraction of the price., I will assume both have similar out of hours food expenses. This cost is pure extra to have something to eat while working, probably doing something manual.

Your minimum wage worker is down to £73 a week.

I stop here, but fate doesn't. If the job is new you are on emergency tax, which is a higher rate, if the pay is late it will likely be harder to fix than late JSA and income support payments. JSA offices pay out with a counter cheque quickly enough, employers might not like to admit error swiftly. They might ask for evidence in writing etc and be very slow. JSA related housing benefit etc are also easy to calculate, when working the council asks for proof, reviews etc. So your persons housing benefit may well be delayed.
This cuts net monies from £73 to £43. Is this likely? Hell yes. I know plenty of people who have had a lot of problems with councils miscalculating and being tardy with payments.

The governments calculations guarantee you are better off working, if the calculations do not add up in your favour you get as work credit top up to ensure you have more than benefits would get you. However working incurs higher costs, and we only touched on the minimums here, more tellingly the bureaucracy is harder on the workers than the non workers as the calculations are individually tailored rather than taken from a single benefit entitlement base.

The kicker is that if you have plenty of kids and get a large council house it is real easy to have more on benefits than you can likely earn. Though extreme cases go beyond the scope of this thread.
100% housing benefit and council tax benefit, in council/housing association accomodation.
No

£100 a week for rent? Where the hell do you live?
You can get a city centre place for about £40 including bills.
Everything else you listed would have to be paid for by someone on JSA as well so I really don't know what your point is.
There's no mystic maths to it. 40 hours a week at minimum wage is far in excess of job seeker's allowance.

what city do you live in?
Best I found locally when I was looking for somewhere to live was £350/month, unfurnished not including bills, in an area you wouldn't want to live in.

marv335 wrote:what city do you live in?
Best I found locally when I was looking for somewhere to live was £350/month, unfurnished not including bills, in an area you wouldn't want to live in.

http://www.gumtree.com/p/flats-houses/single-room-in-modern-refurbished-house-sharing-with-professionals-inc-bills/94206323
£180pm. There's much cheaper than that, though.
Even cheaper when i lived in Leicester.
You did know that not everywhere in the Uk is rich, right?

dogma wrote:

Amaya wrote:
...and turn down extra hours (which in turn would lead to a raise and promotion....).

Possibly because they have other jobs, or, you know, kids.

Didn't I just state that it's the lazy people turning down extra hours? No, they don't have another job. People with another job aren't even asked to stay later or come in on days they're scheduled off.

Amaya wrote:
Didn't I just state that it's the lazy people turning down extra hours?

You did, but I've learned over the years not to trust what people say.

Joey wrote:

marv335 wrote:what city do you live in?
Best I found locally when I was looking for somewhere to live was £350/month, unfurnished not including bills, in an area you wouldn't want to live in.

http://www.gumtree.com/p/flats-houses/single-room-in-modern-refurbished-house-sharing-with-professionals-inc-bills/94206323
£180pm. There's much cheaper than that, though.
Even cheaper when i lived in Leicester.
You did know that not everywhere in the Uk is rich, right?

So on JSA you can 'afford' to live in a flat that isnt a shoe box in a bad area. You cannot get £40 a week outside of hell holes or hen houses in the Hebrides.

corpsesarefun wrote:If you have $100 a month to pay for unneeded things you are surviving quite nicely...

You're kidding right?

$100 equates to something like £60. That's £15 a week! Working your arse off all week for that kind of disposable income must be really difficult and I sympathise with the OP.

Iv'e been really broke before and it really rankles with me when I hear someone moan about how broke they are because they've only got £300 in the bank to spend on going out when they usually have twice that!

If I say I'm skint I mean I'm skint. Iv'e got like 26p in mybank account. What do other people mean when they claim brokemanship?

Muhr wrote:

corpsesarefun wrote:If you have $100 a month to pay for unneeded things you are surviving quite nicely...

You're kidding right?

$100 equates to something like £60. That's £15 a week! Working your arse off all week for that kind of disposable income must be really difficult and I sympathise with the OP.

Iv'e been really broke before and it really rankles with me when I hear someone moan about how broke they are because they've only got £300 in the bank to spend on going out when they usually have twice that!

If I say I'm skint I mean I'm skint. Iv'e got like 26p in mybank account. What do other people mean when they claim brokemanship?

If you have any money spare at all you are surviving quite nicely, emphasis on surviving rather than enjoying your survival.

Back in the day I pulled it off. Rent was 325 for a two bedroom on the edge of the ghetto. Had a roommate that covered half of the rent/utilities. I was driving a 10 year old car that didn't have payments on it, insurance was $70 for liability, no health insurance, two part time jobs. I did a lot of cheap cooking back then.

Luxuries included a six pack of beer once a week, and pipe tobacco. It's survivable, provided you have no dependents and you don't get hurt.

Of course, it was during this time I cut my hand, and had to go about two months waiting for the wound to close while keeping it wrapped in gauze and tape. Wonder the damn thing didn't fall off.

Joey wrote:

marv335 wrote:what city do you live in?
Best I found locally when I was looking for somewhere to live was £350/month, unfurnished not including bills, in an area you wouldn't want to live in.

http://www.gumtree.com/p/flats-houses/single-room-in-modern-refurbished-house-sharing-with-professionals-inc-bills/94206323
£180pm. There's much cheaper than that, though.
Even cheaper when i lived in Leicester.
You did know that not everywhere in the Uk is rich, right?

I live in Kent at the moment, and the average is about £90 a week not including bills for rent. London is worse.

No doubt you can get better deals when living shacks off on the various Scottish isles, but I doubt you'll find anywhere under £70 a week worth living in in any major town or city.

christ almighty, reading things like that makes me go "America, leading the free world, huh?"

I mean, if that happened here, you'd be down to emergency and get stitched up free of charge. Even if you were a tourist.

Hey bud, we like our freedom to die of gangrene.

dogma wrote:Hey bud, we like our freedom to die of gangrene.

*cough* health tourist to Cuba or Canada *cough*

Cuba is better, the Canadians expect health tourism and frown, Cubans like it when Yanks turn up from their backward country and say 'comrades please heal me!' or words to that effect. Cuba has a good health service.

Da Boss wrote:christ almighty, reading things like that makes me go "America, leading the free world, huh?"

I mean, if that happened here, you'd be down to emergency and get stitched up free of charge. Even if you were a tourist.

You say that, but I'm torn. On one hand (pun) it was a really gakky couple months, and changing the bandages, not to mention the wound reopening continually while I'm trying to keep working, was outright miserable. On the other hand, I've been to the emergency room before, especially now that I have my big boy job with insurance, and I see the people there abusing the system for headaches/stomachaches/drugs in spite of the fact that it's life-alteringly expensive. And then I think to myself, "If it was 'free' for them, they'd abuse it even more." I don't know how often that kind of stuff happens elsewhere, but Americans culturally, have a hard time stopping themselves when the word "free" gets bandied around, even when it's not free. ESPECIALLY when it's other people paying for it. My end conclusion is that while I certainly don't think people should be in a situation where they're severely injured and left in the cold because they can't afford it, it would be sheer madness if they all of a sudden nationalized health care here, at least for the first several years. There's no obvious "right and easy" answer, at least, in my mind.

Of course, that betrays my gakky world view, and now I've derailed the thread. I apologize for both.

Orlanth wrote:
Cuba is better, the Canadians expect health tourism and frown, Cubans like it when Yanks turn up from their backward country and say 'comrades please heal me!' or words to that effect. Cuba has a good health service.

To be fair, you have to go to Cuba via Mexico, or some other country, which increases the cost.

This is, of course, something I've never done.

I can't speak for other areas' minimum wages, but at least in San Diego, California where I live within America the costs of living are fairly astronomical relative to minimum wage. At $8.00/hr, most jobs will hire on for ~32 hours a week, allowing for a yearly income of ~$11,200. Given that the average rent for a small 1-2 bedroom apartment is $1,000 a month around here...

I suppose the answer to the original question is 'not very well'.

Joey wrote:

Orlanth wrote:

Slarg232 wrote:

KingCracker wrote:The dumb ones with credit cards get into debt.

Fixed.

I'm trying to stockpile money for College, to cut down my debt, on minimum wage. It's nice living with my parents.

I know what its like to be on benefits and on very low wages, its easier on benefits. Low wages supposedly give you more money, indeed government calculations guarantee that, but expenditure is not the same, once you have accounted for travel and eating at lunchtime away from home you have already blown any saving you have from having a job. wage earners need more money to live, especially if any form of commuting is involved. I remained solvent on low wages by only taking jobs I could get to by bike and not eating at lunchtime and having no berr money. A lot of people find that hard month in month out, year in year out, and credit is too easy to get.

Were it not for my loathing of credit culture I would be there too, and even then I got into debt anyway, heavy rent arrears due to cashflow problems. I am also lucky in that tobacco and alcohol has no hold on me, and I do not run a car.

£55 a week on unemployment benefit, £240 a week for a minimum wage job.
It's a myth that it "pays to be unemployed".

Well the problem there is, at least over here, most people on unemployment (I say most because my state is a former big shop state, so most unemployed were paid MAX 9 bucks an hour) can qualify for state benefits as well, like food for example. So yea, those "free" checks pay just enough to keep the lights on and watch some TV, and the state pays for your food. So really, free money and free food is a nice gig. Sign me up, because ANYONE would be lying if they said they wouldnt want that. Go ahead and try to tell me you would turn down a "free" paycheck and free groceries for a year or longer

Necroshea wrote:I really would prefer to go the military regardless of job situation, but a childhood of poor nutrition and limited play in sports left me with something of a gut. Been doing a lot of extreme sports post high school, but I'm not catching up to where I should be at all. I've heard different stories how they'll take you in if you think you can cut it, but I've also heard they'll just tell you to gtfo if you don't meet the requirements. I'd prefer to go marines btw.

the requirements for the Marines are two full pull ups, arms locking out, running a mile and a half in 13:30 and 50 cruches in less than 2 min.
my recurters are cool with out of shape people and would have you start coming to pt. belive me when i say the weight just melts away