how much money does it take to be a 1 percenter?

[GarlicGuy]

Not nearly as much as I thought.....

Seems it really only takes about $400K a year in income, depending on where you live.... The state with the lowest amount is New Mexico at about $220K.... and Connecticut is at the high end with a bit over $500K. My home state - PA - is about $360K. That seemed so low to me because we have so many pharmaceutical companies in PA that pay very well. ( My wife works in one, and I am retired, and we aren't in the 1%, but I do know what pharmacy salaries are like..... my brother in law was basically a document reader making over $80K a year )

I found this interesting:

http://www.businessinsider.com/incom...ry-map-2016-11

[Azadina]

So, you find 400k a year to be low, because 80k a year is well paying job, and isn't even anywhere close to 400k?

What?

[rogueMatthias]

Worldwide to be in the top 1% you need either -

By salary - $32,400 a year

By "wealth" - $770,000 (including all property, savings, investments and other assets)

[Gamdwelf]

400k/ year is a shitton of money

[GarlicGuy]

So, you find 400k a year to be low, because 80k a year is well paying job, and isn't even anywhere close to 400k?

What?

You said that.... not me....

My only point was in pharmacy, even basic jobs pay really well.

[deveilblad]

You said that.... not me....

My only point was in pharmacy, even basic jobs pay really well.

You say your brother in law is basically a document reader and makes 80k a year, but he probably has a degree to be able to understand and edit the documents he reads lol...

He's not a 80k/year high school graduate.

[Revi]

$400k a year is a LOT of money. You can't think of wealth as just people you see on TV who can afford skyscrapers and private jets.

[Kujako]

He's not a 80k/year high school graduate.

I am (software engineer without a degree, average 90+k/year)! But I know that's not normal, and is also not a lot where I live (central CA).

[Forogil]

$400k a year is a LOT of money. You can't think of wealth as just people you see on TV who can afford skyscrapers and private jets.

On the other hand - a hot new thing is sharing private jets - so you can afford it even on a measly 400k$ per year.

http://www.economist.com/news/busine...ch-can-upgrade

[GarlicGuy]

You say your brother in law is basically a document reader and makes 80k a year, but he probably has a degree to be able to understand and edit the documents he reads lol...

He's not a 80k/year high school graduate.

No degree, and in fact, barely graduated high school.... he's 70 years old now, and just retired 2 weeks ago, I was just told.


EDIT: he was drafted into the military, and did not attend college,

[Vargur]

Why "by state"? Are you not all Americans? (I assume this is yet another USA thread)

[Kujako]

Why "by state"? Are you not all Americans? (I assume this is yet another USA thread)

Because money buys very different amounts of stuff in different states. What buys a small one bedroom house where I am, buys a mansion in many other places.

[Lady Dragonheart]

I hate sites that tell me to turn off ad-blockers.

[Jimson]

I hate sites that tell me to turn off ad-blockers.

Agreed. If you're interested, though, you can reload the page and hit the stop button before the pop-up loads.

[Azadina]

You said that.... not me....

My only point was in pharmacy, even basic jobs pay really well.

It was a short summary of your post. You say 400k seems low, but then go on to say that 80k is good pay. The logic doesn't quite match. If 400k is low, then 20% of that is downright poverty by comparison, not good.

[Mizix]

Seeing as experience can be counted in lieu of education, that doesn't tell us much in itself about the established requirements for the job. So he is either lucky to find a high paying unskilled job, or he has built up the right skills since high school to qualify.

Or he simply found his job in a completely different job market: 50-60 years ago it was much easier to get a well paying job without much education.

[Wildpantz]

41k a year thats little above average of what a normal person with a standard job earns here in sweden

[May90]

$400k/y off a job and not a business owning, stock market trade and such, is a nearly incomprehensible amount. Very-very top programmers, lawyers or doctors might make this amount, but for the most part, it is not something a usual worker, no matter the qualification, can ever hope to achieve.

That said, it is fair: becoming a 1 percenter is supposed to be hard; if it wasn't, then there would be more than 1 percent of people who have achieved it. I think the real question should be how hard it is to achieve a decent quality of life, regardless of part of what percent it makes you. And that in the first world, in general, is not hard, although it depends a lot on your background.

[Xandrigity]

400 k baby

[sdove05]

Not nearly as much as I thought.....

Seems it really only takes about $400K a year in income, depending on where you live.... The state with the lowest amount is New Mexico at about $220K.... and Connecticut is at the high end with a bit over $500K. My home state - PA - is about $360K. That seemed so low to me because we have so many pharmaceutical companies in PA that pay very well. ( My wife works in one, and I am retired, and we aren't in the 1%, but I do know what pharmacy salaries are like..... my brother in law was basically a document reader making over $80K a year )

I found this interesting:

http://www.businessinsider.com/incom...ry-map-2016-11

To put your brother-in-law in perspective if he worked at that company for 35 years and started at the average salary ~14k in 1981 he only needed to get a 2% raise over inflation to end up at 80K, seems reasonable for some who's good at their job. Now they will need an open office policy, hand holding, and allow sleeping at work for the millennial they will have to replace him.

- - - Updated - - -

$400k/y off a job and not a business owning, stock market trade and such, is a nearly incomprehensible amount. Very-very top programmers, lawyers or doctors might make this amount, but for the most part, it is not something a usual worker, no matter the qualification, can ever hope to achieve.

That said, it is fair: becoming a 1 percenter is supposed to be hard; if it wasn't, then there would be more than 1 percent of people who have achieved it. I think the real question should be how hard it is to achieve a decent quality of life, regardless of part of what percent it makes you. And that in the first world, in general, is not hard, although it depends a lot on your background.

"then there would be more than 1 percent of people who have achieved it."

Umm... No, think about that a minute. As wealth moves upward that number 400K will go up as well.

ps: no programmer is making 400k a year from that job alone unless there is some top secret job for a big company on wall street and you'll never hear about it if they were in that case. They only doctors making that kind of money have huge liabilities, and could loose their license to practice with even the slightest mistake. lawyers sure but they would more than likely be partners in a business or have a business of there own, not making salary from a company. The President does.