Does anybody here earn more than $ 250,000 ?

[jerryskids 6,960]

No, but I know people who do make this much and yes, they can easily afford to pay a little extra, and still keep their boats (both of them) and their Lexus. Taxes will not break them by any means.

I've had years in the past where I made over $250K, sometimes much more. I've paid well over six figures in federal taxes some years. I don't own any boats however, and I've had my Lexus-equivalent car for 13 years. Instead I was relatively prudent and, as a result, I've been able to weather the past two years of very low income.

 

If instead I had paid more in taxes, I suppose I could have sold my house and maybe gone on food stamps?

[titans&bucs&bearsohmy! 2,745]

The wife(36c) and I make about $200k per year.

 

Nice. She must suck a lot of d!ck to make all that cash.

[NewbieJr 541]

Typical philly. Claims he knows something, and when asked to illuminate the rest of us, he just makes a stupid joke.

 

At least you used to be mildly amusing. Now you're less funny than RP and just as annoying.

Phillybear to a tee.

[phillybear 366]

No, actually, my first few years here, you were pretty focking funny, what with the "bucket of aids" and "Dead hooker" stuff.

 

But eventually you got stale, and have slowly morphed into yet another grouchy annoying right wing political hack troll. Yawn.

 

Just because I think Obama is a piece of sh!t doesn't make me a right winger. However, I believe my left wing political hack aliases more than make up for it.

 

Here is a rare honest moment from me. This bored is dead. It's been dead for many years now. If I didn't troll in the political threads, where else would I post? I had a post deleted yesterday on the Main Bored because I took a tongue in cheek shot at FBG, nothing too crazy. I guess the mods haven't suspended or banned me yet and are doing me the favor of just deleting my posts. So I don't make a stink about it, but it has lead to some self censorship on my part. The lesson is that we cannot post like we used to, such as the so called AIDS jokes and dead hooker jokes. What's the point, if it's going to be gone in a couple of minutes because some faggut reported me. There are more restrictions, I can tell you from first hand experience and many deletions. Most of the creative and funny posters have left. I never posted about politics until there was no other choice. Yeah, yeah, I know I should leave too.

[Brad GLuckman 519]

I'm around $200K this year, but usually pull in between $80-90k. Instead of buying a Lexus, I drive the same Trailblazer I've had since 2007. Instead of buying a boat or a pool, I've put all that money towards my mortgage.

 

There are plenty of people I know who make a LOT less than I do, yet have a nicer car, bigger TV, and have upgraded their kitchens in their homes. These are the same people who didn't like Romney because he didn't share their struggles in life. You'd think that after 2008, people would fear debt a bit more. They don't though, not on a personal level and not on a government level.

[Frozenbeernuts 2,292]

You'd think that after 2008, people would fear debt a bit more. They don't though, not on a personal level and not on a government level.

You are right about that.

 

Bout 160k this year. Usually around 100k. When my wife gets her degree in nursing I assume we will make around 140k-ish a year. I just want to pay my focking mortgage off and invest the money in property. That mortgage is a biatch on your savings.

[NorthernVike 2,088]

I'm around $200K this year, but usually pull in between $80-90k. Instead of buying a Lexus, I drive the same Trailblazer I've had since 2007. Instead of buying a boat or a pool, I've put all that money towards my mortgage.

 

There are plenty of people I know who make a LOT less than I do, yet have a nicer car, bigger TV, and have upgraded their kitchens in their homes. These are the same people who didn't like Romney because he didn't share their struggles in life. You'd think that after 2008, people would fear debt a bit more. They don't though, not on a personal level and not on a government level.

I can't tell you how nice it is to have your mortgage paid off. Granted, up here in northern Minny it's alot easier as housing prices are much less than other parts of the country, I had a goal of paying mine off by the time I was 40, made it by two months. Been almost five years without one and I sleep very well at night knowing that my family will always have a roof over their heads if something happens to me.

[The Next Generation 10]

I'm around $200K this year, but usually pull in between $80-90k.

 

Bout 160k this year. Usually around 100k.

 

Obama!!!

[redtodd 7]

Not yet, but I do plan on getting there.

 

You know how? By working hard and making smart choices.

[vuduchile 1,945]

Not yet, but I do plan on getting there.

 

You know how? By working hard and making smart choices.

 

It's nice to know you've got a good head on your shoulders! You and I are so much alike.

 

I plan to start selling nickel bags of rat poison and oregano to 4th graders as soon as I collect enough aluminum cans to get the start up money.

 

It's an untapped market.

[Patriotsfatboy1 1,433]

You are right about that.

 

Bout 160k this year. Usually around 100k. When my wife gets her degree in nursing I assume we will make around 140k-ish a year. I just want to pay my focking mortgage off and invest the money in property. That mortgage is a biatch on your savings.

Meh. If you are paying less than 4% interest and you get to claim the deduction, why pay off the mortgage?

[NorthernVike 2,088]

Meh. If you are paying less than 4% interest and you get to claim the deduction, why pay off the mortgage?

Peace of mind for starters. Also, it frees up cash for opportunities you may not be able to take advantage of if you are saddled with debt.

[Patriotsfatboy1 1,433]

Peace of mind for starters. Also, it frees up cash for opportunities you may not be able to take advantage of if you are saddled with debt.

 

If you have enough free cash to pay off the mortgage, then you are typically the person who is not "saddled with debt". If I carry say $100k in a mortgage, I can use the cash to invest and use for those opportunities that you mention. My cost is 4% minus what I can deduct from my taxes, so your effective cost of capital is around 3%. When have we been able to say that?

[NorthernVike 2,088]

If you have enough free cash to pay off the mortgage, then you are typically the person who is not "saddled with debt". If I carry say $100k in a mortgage, I can use the cash to invest and use for those opportunities that you mention. My cost is 4% minus what I can deduct from my taxes, so your effective cost of capital is around 3%. When have we been able to say that?

But is your risk tolerance as high knowing that your have 100K hanging over your head? I'm not trying to say it's for everyone but, it I paid mine down from 1999-2007. My original mortgage had an interest rate of 7.5%. Refied at 4.99 for five years and still paid it off. Now if I want something I can afford to go and get it without financing all of it.

[Patriotsfatboy1 1,433]

But is your risk tolerance as high knowing that your have 100K hanging over your head? I'm not trying to say it's for everyone but, it I paid mine down from 1999-2007. My original mortgage had an interest rate of 7.5%. Refied at 4.99 for five years and still paid it off. Now if I want something I can afford to go and get it without financing all of it.

I am fine with even more than $100k sitting as debt. My ratios are just fine and I build up credit rating and I get a lot more than 3% as a rate of return on investments. Debt is not a bad thing. Too much debt is a bad thing, though.

[naomi 360]

"Earn" is a tricky word. Many small business owners gross over 250,000 a year. Many of these same owners net almost nothing. Still, these business owners will get hit with Obama's highest of all his tax increases based on their gross and go out of business.

 

Philly, how would that fall out in shady terms despite the tax code TBBOM brought up?

 

BS'ing then deflecting isn't part of your schtick

[phillybear 366]

Philly, how would that fall out in shady terms despite the tax code TBBOM brought up?

 

BS'ing then deflecting isn't part of your schtick

 

Because tax codes change every single year. Fundamental principals of tax laws change every single year. Obama has shown a penchant to want to make drastic changes in tax law. Did anyone foresee a future where the IRS hires tens of thousands of new agents to enforce ObamaTaxCare by prying into people's lives unsolicited? Everybody that owns a business is going to be focked.

 

On a side note, I had a conversation with a business owner the other day. He has three businesses. Well, had. He is shuttering one place at the end of December, laying off around 50 people. He met with his business managers, financial advisers, accountant, etc; it was a party. They encouraged him to close the place because it would have cost him 200,000 extra dollars a year due to ObamaTaxCare. And that was the cheapest option. He would have been forced to provide full coverage to all his employees, which is something that restaurant owners rarely do. His other businesses were turning a profit, but what ObamaTaxCare does is combine all the employees that work for a person rather than treat each business separately. The business he is closing wasn't making money yet, but showed promise. But with the added costs, he said he had no choice. This is peek at the immediate future.

[Frozenbeernuts 2,292]

Meh. If you are paying less than 4% interest and you get to claim the deduction, why pay off the mortgage?

I do realize that the write off is key, very key, to my tax return. If Romney would have been elected I think this write off would have been one of his targets to eliminate. He was planning on cutting taxes for the middle class but eliminating tax "loopholes" like the mortgage interest write off.

 

 

Peace of mind for starters. Also, it frees up cash for opportunities you may not be able to take advantage of if you are saddled with debt.

This is the biggest thing for me. If I lose my job I don't have to worry about making my mortgage. Also, once I pay off my house I want to save up for more investments like buying more property. Or maybe I will get myself an investment with depreciating value, like a bad ass Cobra or Corvette.

[Patriotsfatboy1 1,433]

I do realize that the write off is key, very key, to my tax return. If Romney would have been elected I think this write off would have been one of his targets to eliminate. He was planning on cutting taxes for the middle class but eliminating tax "loopholes" like the mortgage interest write off.

 

The write off is just part of the factor. If I am paying 7% interest, then the my effective interest rate (after the tax write off) is about 5%. If you factor in that my investments are going to get (at least) taxed, then I probably have to make at least 8-9% on my investments in order to address taxes, risk, etc. for it to be worthwhile instead of paying the mortgage.

 

Now, if the interest rate is 4%, then my effective interest rate is under 3%. In that scenario, I only have to make about 5% for it to be worthwhile for me to invest instead of paying off my mortgage. That is very achievable even in today's economy, which leads me to not want to pay down my mortgage and use that money elsehwere.

 

As far as worrying about losing my job, I think that you have to have those investements in such a way that you are liquid enough to tap into them in case you need those reserves. You need to do that regardless of whether you invest in your home or some other vehicle.

[Frozenbeernuts 2,292]

The write off is just part of the factor. If I am paying 7% interest, then the my effective interest rate (after the tax write off) is about 5%. If you factor in that my investments are going to get (at least) taxed, then I probably have to make at least 8-9% on my investments in order to address taxes, risk, etc. for it to be worthwhile instead of paying the mortgage.

 

Now, if the interest rate is 4%, then my effective interest rate is under 3%. In that scenario, I only have to make about 5% for it to be worthwhile for me to invest instead of paying off my mortgage. That is very achievable even in today's economy, which leads me to not want to pay down my mortgage and use that money elsehwere.

 

As far as worrying about losing my job, I think that you have to have those investements in such a way that you are liquid enough to tap into them in case you need those reserves. You need to do that regardless of whether you invest in your home or some other vehicle.

Well I guess I do have my 401K there as a backup. It would be absolute last resort, but if I needed to tap into it I would have money available. Now if I actually had the time or desire to search out investments that would give me a higher return than what I am paying in interest, I would go that route.

 

The major investments I plan on making for profit are homes. This requires a sizeable down payment in most cases which is easiest to build up once an initial mortgage is payed off. One guy that I met in particular gave me some very good investment advice. He told me about how he bought his first house at the age of 37. He put everything he could into the house and payed it off in eight years. He told me he lived fairly frugally until it was payed off to cut down on any interest he would have to pay off. Now this had to have been at least 15 years ago so interest was much higher than it is now and thus more costly like you pointed out.

 

The key here, after paying off the mortgage of course, was what he did with his money after his first house was payed off. He saved up until he had a down payment, bought another property, and then rented it out. Well his second house he bought he made a mistake on. The mistake was renting it out. Renting out houses can be a real nightmare and can be very costly if you are not ready to shoulder the entire burden if left without a renter.

 

He rectified his mistake by selling the house. What he did with the rest of the homes that he bought was a strategy I had never heard before (not like I listen to all of the investment gurus of the world). When he would buy a house and fix it up to sell back to the market he wrote up his own contract and basically became the bank. Now this was only achieved if he was able to pay the house off in full before he sold it. Once he owned the house outright he was able to collect on the interest payed on the house. As you know the beginning of a home owner loan's life the majority of a payment is interest.

 

Obviously it isn't as easy as just pay off two houses and then you're rich. It takes time and dedication but can be very fruitful if enough effort is put into it. The same can be said for all investments I guess, just don't have the time now.

 

I was 24 when I bought my first house 4½ years ago. So if I take 11 years to pay it off I will still only be 35.

[Patriotsfatboy1 1,433]

Well I guess I do have my 401K there as a backup. It would be absolute last resort, but if I needed to tap into it I would have money available. Now if I actually had the time or desire to search out investments that would give me a higher return than what I am paying in interest, I would go that route.

 

The major investments I plan on making for profit are homes. This requires a sizeable down payment in most cases which is easiest to build up once an initial mortgage is payed off. One guy that I met in particular gave me some very good investment advice. He told me about how he bought his first house at the age of 37. He put everything he could into the house and payed it off in eight years. He told me he lived fairly frugally until it was payed off to cut down on any interest he would have to pay off. Now this had to have been at least 15 years ago so interest was much higher than it is now and thus more costly like you pointed out.

 

The key here, after paying off the mortgage of course, was what he did with his money after his first house was payed off. He saved up until he had a down payment, bought another property, and then rented it out. Well his second house he bought he made a mistake on. The mistake was renting it out. Renting out houses can be a real nightmare and can be very costly if you are not ready to shoulder the entire burden if left without a renter.

 

He rectified his mistake by selling the house. What he did with the rest of the homes that he bought was a strategy I had never heard before (not like I listen to all of the investment gurus of the world). When he would buy a house and fix it up to sell back to the market he wrote up his own contract and basically became the bank. Now this was only achieved if he was able to pay the house off in full before he sold it. Once he owned the house outright he was able to collect on the interest payed on the house. As you know the beginning of a home owner loan's life the majority of a payment is interest.

 

Obviously it isn't as easy as just pay off two houses and then you're rich. It takes time and dedication but can be very fruitful if enough effort is put into it. The same can be said for all investments I guess, just don't have the time now.

 

I was 24 when I bought my first house 4½ years ago. So if I take 11 years to pay it off I will still only be 35.

 

A couple of pieces of advice from someone a little older (but not necessarily wiser).

1. Don't consider your 401k to be a liquid asset. The penalties are killer.

2. Don't put all your eggs in one basket - be it real estate, stock market, insurance, gold, other commodities, etc. There were a lot of people who made a killing on flipping houses and real estate. A lot of those people have filed bankruptcy in the last 6-7 years.

[SUXBNME 1,583]

You losing your house? gypsy skip out on rent?

Naa...He's good. I got a few months behind before he was paying rent here and the focking mortguage won't accept anything but the full amount owed.

I did get another roomate, though. Once I get caught up, (if I do) it will all be good.

[parrot 789]

Oh, I earn more than $250k, unfortunately I don't get paid near that much.

[Frozenbeernuts 2,292]

A couple of pieces of advice from someone a little older (but not necessarily wiser).

1. Don't consider your 401k to be a liquid asset. The penalties are killer.

2. Don't put all your eggs in one basket - be it real estate, stock market, insurance, gold, other commodities, etc. There were a lot of people who made a killing on flipping houses and real estate. A lot of those people have filed bankruptcy in the last 6-7 years.

Yeah I would never want to rely on it before retirement. It is still there in case of extreme circumstances.

 

I was putting all of my money into my house and then decided to max out my 401k before the year ended.

[Reality 3,121]

The Geek club never disappoints, well over the national average for income....

 

Income is relative to where you live. Approximately half way to 250k between me and my wife but, live a great lifestyle in Southern Indiana. Great schools for the kids, new house in a upper middle class area, and no debt other than the mortgage all before I've turned 40. Wouldn't trade it for twice the money in a place like Boston or NY city.

[Giants Fan 85]

I never have, but my father has (still does w/ a University pension?). He voted for Obama both times. That's pretty good money for Tucson.

 

Also, I never bought a house I couldn't afford, or made any risky investments, and I went BK. I was making 60K a decade ago. That's before I got my Masters. Now I think, it's doubtful I will ever make that kind of money again.

[Savage Beast 1]

Just because I think Obama is a piece of sh!t doesn't make me a right winger. However, I believe my left wing political hack aliases more than make up for it.

 

Here is a rare honest moment from me. This bored is dead. It's been dead for many years now. If I didn't troll in the political threads, where else would I post? I had a post deleted yesterday on the Main Bored because I took a tongue in cheek shot at FBG, nothing too crazy. I guess the mods haven't suspended or banned me yet and are doing me the favor of just deleting my posts. So I don't make a stink about it, but it has lead to some self censorship on my part. The lesson is that we cannot post like we used to, such as the so called AIDS jokes and dead hooker jokes. What's the point, if it's going to be gone in a couple of minutes because some faggut reported me. There are more restrictions, I can tell you from first hand experience and many deletions. Most of the creative and funny posters have left. I never posted about politics until there was no other choice. Yeah, yeah, I know I should leave too.

 

 

I got banned for a few months last year for making a n!##er joke.

 

But back in the day, you could proudly post the n-word around here with no bans at all.

[Giants Fan 85]

 

I got banned for a few months last year for making a n!##er joke.

 

But back in the day, you could proudly post the n-word around here with no bans at all.

 

That's true. There's a long story to that. Pen!s and D!ck ... while allowed on TV, still not allowed here. See the geek spelling dictionary. Peamus.

 

F@ggot and n-word used to be allowed.

 

Someone was vocal about changing that. Hmmmm. I wonder who that was.

 

[Giants Fan 85]

Also my mother, and me being her only surviving child, effectively I own a small business. We would love to provide health insurance to our employees, but we can't. We are really small, and have been struggling like everyone else in this economy. Hopefully we've found some new ways to sell our products. But we have products that sell, just have a production bottleneck.

 

My Mom, who started the business decades ago, and usually takes no salary, or puts her own social security money into it, to keep it going. She also voted for Obama, as did I.

 

You see, not everyone buys the fear mongering that has become the Republican platform. Even in Arizona.

[jerryskids 6,960]

Also my mother, and me being her only surviving child, effectively I own a small business. We would love to provide health insurance to our employees, but we can't. We are really small, and have been struggling like everyone else in this economy. Hopefully we've found some new ways to sell our products. But we have products that sell, just have a production bottleneck.

 

My Mom, who started the business decades ago, and usually takes no salary, or puts her own social security money into it, to keep it going. She also voted for Obama, as did I.

 

You see, not everyone buys the fear mongering that has become the Republican platform. Even in Arizona.

 

You never have, don't, and never will sniff the income discussed in this thread. So why are your comments or your opinions of the "Republican platform" relevant?

[Savage Beast 1]

We would love to provide health insurance to our employees, but we can't.

 

You have a first aid kit, right? It's all you need to provide.

[IGotWorms 4,060]

I was making 60K a decade ago. That's before I got my Masters. Now I think, it's doubtful I will ever make that kind of money again.

 

But I thought your pond was going to yield a bunch of super-valuable fish, no?

[Giants Fan 85]

You never have, don't, and never will sniff the income discussed in this thread. So why are your comments or your opinions of the "Republican platform" relevant?

 

Income? Income is for chumps. Just ask Mitt Romney.

 

Jerry, maybe you didn't believe me before, or maybe you weren't paying attention. You could make 20 million dollars. That's what the 2 foundations in my family name have to give away. That's where Obama met the terrorist, Bill Ayers ... through my family endowment to mitigate poverty in Chicago.

 

My father was a self made millionaire. Law Professor, University of Arizona, and real estate investor. He says he's not a millionaire anymore. I dunno ... we don't talk about money, and we have no access to the family money as far as I know.

 

I dunno Jerry ... I got this business, if I can turn it around ... suggesting I'll never "sniff" whatever it is you seem so proud to brag about ... I have different options in life than you do, and like most people, I am doing what is best for me at the time. But I've never been ambitious. Actually that's wrong ... I've never cared much about money. That's been easy because I've never had much. I'm doing this job, at a greatly reduced rate, in order to build value in a company I will eventually own. If we can't sell it first.

 

How come you think you are so much better than me? And my family that has been in Arizona since the 60's? Because we disagree politically? Get over it.

 

Sniff this.

[Giants Fan 85]

Buffet on the election

 

"The head of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. said he gets a sense of the economy's direction from reports he gets from subsidiaries of the Omaha-based conglomerate. Its holdings include the BNSF Railway, MidAmerican Energy and a large real estate brokerage that includes Home Real Estate and Woods Bros. in Lincoln."

 

My great-great grandfather was an auctioneer of cattle and land in Nebraska. After his days fighting for the Union out of Illinois. He had 4 sons. 3 of them went on to found the telephone company in Chicago and they all got rich. The other one is my great grandfather. He was president of the University of Maryland. He was a scientist. He was secretary of Agriculture to the United States. But he never got rich.

 

My grandfather was a Lt. Colonel in the Army and an attorney, and a business owner. He died poor. His son is my father, the law prof.

 

Thus, family fortune averted!

[nobody 2,781]

Any of you who do could send me around $5000.00 so I don't lose my house.

 

Just a thought

 

Damn it, Sux, if 500 won't help, what's five grand gonna do?

 

Didn't I tell you to never let the banks get a hold of you? You don't listen. I was giving you a living, Sux, showing you the playbook I put together off my own beats.

 

That wasn't enough for you...No... No, this time there is no money.

 

I give you five grand, what's that buy you? 3 months? No, I give it to you, I'm wasting it.

 

You did it to yourself.

[jerryskids 6,960]

Income? Income is for chumps. Just ask Mitt Romney.

 

Jerry, maybe you didn't believe me before, or maybe you weren't paying attention. You could make 20 million dollars. That's what the 2 foundations in my family name have to give away. That's where Obama met the terrorist, Bill Ayers ... through my family endowment to mitigate poverty in Chicago.

 

My father was a self made millionaire. Law Professor, University of Arizona, and real estate investor. He says he's not a millionaire anymore. I dunno ... we don't talk about money, and we have no access to the family money as far as I know.

 

I dunno Jerry ... I got this business, if I can turn it around ... suggesting I'll never "sniff" whatever it is you seem so proud to brag about ... I have different options in life than you do, and like most people, I am doing what is best for me at the time. But I've never been ambitious. Actually that's wrong ... I've never cared much about money. That's been easy because I've never had much. I'm doing this job, at a greatly reduced rate, in order to build value in a company I will eventually own. If we can't sell it first.

 

How come you think you are so much better than me? And my family that has been in Arizona since the 60's? Because we disagree politically? Get over it.

 

Sniff this.

Ima apologize for that comment for a few reasons. One, I didn't realize you were commenting about the Republican party in the context of your parents. I read it as in your own personal context. Second, the comment did come off as holier-than-thou. I wasn't consciously doing it, but that isn't an excuse. In fact that is twice I've done that recently, both of which are when I was drinking. I wonder if there is a correlation.

 

Anyway, I work with entrepreneurs quite a bit -- mentoring at ASU in various startup programs, and I've judged a startup pitch event. A few pieces of advice:

1. You aren't going to succeed if you do it half-assed. Quit going to the poker room and get back to the business.

2. Don't just work in the business, work ON the business. How are you going to make it successful? Which leads me to...

3. Read "Lean Startup." It is geared more towards internet startups, but the concepts apply to any new business. The basic premise is to scrap the traditional long business plan and development cycle, and do things more iteratively where you consistently get customer feedback before you go down long, expensive, probably incorrect development activities.

[RLLD 4,275]

I've had years in the past where I made over $250K, sometimes much more. I've paid well over six figures in federal taxes some years. I don't own any boats however, and I've had my Lexus-equivalent car for 13 years. Instead I was relatively prudent and, as a result, I've been able to weather the past two years of very low income.

 

If instead I had paid more in taxes, I suppose I could have sold my house and maybe gone on food stamps?

 

[bankster] Each individual is responsible for managing their own money and bank accounts[/bankster]

 

Unless you are a bank of course, then you cry like a little b!tch if the government (see taxpayers) do not bail your stupid arse out