In NYC and SF, You Need a $300,000 Salary to Take Home $100,000 After Taxes

[madville]

In NYC and SF, You Need a $300,000 Salary to Take Home $100,000 After Taxes

(Bloomberg) -- It’s tax season in the US, and nowhere is that felt more acutely than in three cities — New York, San Francisco and Honolulu — where you need a salary of over $300,000 to bring home $100,000 after taxes and adjustments for the cost of living.

That’s according to an analysis by SmartAsset, a consumer-focused financial information provider. The firm adjusted $100,000 for the local cost of living in 76 of the largest US cities and then used its paycheck calculator to account for federal, state and local taxes for a single taxpayer with an annual salary and no additional withholdings.

Residents of the country’s priciest cities, contending with formidable housing costs and other mounting expenses, need a net income of over $180,000 for their purchasing power to break the $100,000 mark, according to SmartAsset’s analysis of the Council for Community and Economic Research’s cost-of-living data. And since high-earners are taxed upwards of 40% in those cities, they need to command top dollar for their take-home pay to actually feel like six figures.

Meanwhile, in Houston, an employee only needs to gross about $125,000 to achieve the same purchasing power as someone making $312,000 in New York. A six-figure paycheck is much easier to achieve in Texas, according to SmartAsset’s analysis, since the cost of living in many Lone Star State cities is lower than the national average and residents don’t pay a state income tax. In cities like El Paso, Corpus Christi and Lubbock, salaries can be as low as $122,000 and still feel like a true $100,000.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/in-nyc-and-sf-you-need-a-300-000-salary-to-take-home-100-000-after-taxes/ar-AA19TRyC

[bullimiami]

1. AND ADJUSTMENTS FOR COST OF LIVING. Somehow the sensationalist headline cuts that.

[madville]

2. Makes sense

My rent in the SF Bay Area for a 600 sq ft one bedroom mediocre apartment was $2600 a month. My house payment in Florida for a 2000 sq ft house on 6 acres is $1337 including the taxes and insurance escrowed in. The cost of living differences are a major factor in how far one’s income goes. I’m doing much better making 100k in FL than I was making $150k in CA.

[maxrandb]

12. It's cheaper to live among Nazis

and send your kids to a school that teaches Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a dinosaur.

Don't have a life-threatening medical emergency while pregnant, and pray that someone you love isn't forced to carry a rapists baby to term, but yeah, other than that, Florida and other "low tax" red states sound wonderful.

You'll pay even less taxes in Mississippi or Alabama.

[madville]

14. You know there are millions of Democrats in FL

Right?

My city and county are blue, went for Obama, Clinton and Biden, Democratic mayor, city commission and school board are Democratic majorities. It’s a very diverse state.

Those are all valid considerations to living here, doesn’t change the fact it has lower income taxes and is generally cheaper to live in than those places mentioned, with some exceptions for some pockets like high dollar beach communities with very high real estate costs and community fees.

[bullimiami]

18. i grew up in N Miami so I suppose I do know.

So Fla is not cheap. Cheaper than NYC, SF or L.A.
No state income tax but insurance and property taxes are high.

[madville]

19. Would have to do a more in depth comparison

Like if SF property taxes are around 1% of the property value annually versus it being around 2% in Miami-Dade, but a comparable property is 4 times as much in SF, the property taxes are still double there even at a lower rate.

Average homeowners insurance in CA is $1300 versus $2400 in Florida, so that’s a little better. Earthquake insurance out there could be an additional premium, like flood insurance is here, lots of variables. California more tightly regulates their property and auto insurance industries, my auto insurance was cheaper out there.

[maxrandb]

25. Yes! There are also millions of Retrumplicans in CA, NY, IL, MN, MI, etc

and those states legislatures aren't expelling Retrumplican state legislators for speaking.

They aren't banning books and defunding public libraries.

They aren't passing legislation to destroy public education.

They aren't putting asylum seeking immigrants on 50 hour busrides to Orlando.

They aren't passing vigilante laws offering $10K for turning your neighbors in for seeking abortion.

They aren't passing legislation changing death penalty cases from unamimous 12-0 votes, to 8-4.

They aren't bringing back firing squad and hanging as corporal punishment.

They aren't allowing every Tom, Dick and Harry to carry concealed weapons without license, or background checks at any age.

They aren't passing laws to make polluting easier.

They aren't repealing child labor laws.

They aren't passing 6 week abortion bans, or joining lawsuits to repeal FDA approval for medication, and filing amicus briefs in support of outlawing contraception.

They aren't making it criminal to immunize your children.

They aren't criminalizing transgender and LGBTQ members of society.

So please, tell me, what are the "good" people and Democrats of those states doing?

I am sure that there were millions of southerners that didn't support slavery either, yet they continued to elect politicians that were in favor of it.

It's way past time we thought of the "good" people of these states, that continue to elect racists, fascists, misogynists, and hate-filled white supremacists to super majorities in their legislatures, and begin concentrating on the insane people they put in power.

[NowISeetheLight]

23. I Can Relate

I love living in Palm Springs but I'm "house poor" here with a large mortgage and house payment (and my interest rate is decent). The cost of living in California is ridiculous. Years ago I looked at a job in the Palo Alto area with a major university health system. The job paid over $150k a year when I was making around $85k in Phoenix. I was in a 35 year old house with a $880 month mortgage payment. The rent on a one bedroom near the hospital was $2400. I used a tax calculator I found online and adding up the fact my state income tax would've doubled, gas prices, etc, there was no way I could accept a job there.

[obamanut2012]

26. lol most people in FL are paying that $1300 a month on taxes and insurance a month

I moved from FL to CA a few months ago, and I am in a much better place financially.

What you state is not the reality of most FL homeowners, let alone renters.

[Phoenix61]

3. I thought the same thing. I'm curious about the

“high earners in those cities are taxed upwards of 40%.” How is a city taxing anyone based on income?

[ProfessorGAC]

4. I'm Guessing Total Tax Load

Federal, state, property, payroll and municipal fees might add up to 40% of total income.
I don't read it as those cities levying an exorbitant tax on income.

[sl8]

7. NYC sure does:

https://propertyclub.nyc/article/new-york-city-income-tax

[Phoenix61]

8. I did not know that. Thanks for sharing. nt

[MissB]

11. We get hit with local income-based taxes.

Our local metro government and our county have an income based tax.

[madville]

13. Some states allow cities/counties to tax income

Like New York City has a 3-4% income tax in addition to the state income tax, Philadelphia is 3.8%, San Francisco is 1.5%, etc. Washington DC is between 4 to 8.5% but I guess that’s a district, not a city in a state, so they just pay their district and federal taxes.

[Voltaire2]

27. with a city income tax?

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

5. yes. headline makes it seem that taxes are reason for disparity

[madville]

10. They're a significant portion of it

New York City and San Francisco both have city income taxes for instance. That’s on top of New York State and California also having state income taxes, and that’s on top of the federal income tax.

States like TX, FL, and TN don’t have state income taxes or any city income taxes that I’m aware of. That’s a significant reason why people generally take home more of their income in those places, they pay less taxes.

[marybourg]

15. +1

[walkingman]

6. I wish I had transferred there (SF) when I had the opportunity at work in 1974. Love the area.

[madville]

9. I loved living there

Lived there from 2000-2001 and from 2017-2019, it’s a beautiful area and so much to do. Just expensive to live around there.

[Sympthsical]

16. This article feels like it is written as confusingly as possible

Read through it three times. I get what they're trying to say, but there are parts that don't string together well.

Anyway. Yep. SF is expensive. I think the last figure I saw was $4,100 average rent, house prices average $1.3 million. That may have come down with the rate hikes. Bought a home farther from the city because it was crazy more affordable then watched the value shoot up 30% in a couple years. Good for us, terrible for renters.

I was reading an article the other day about a proposed residential building project in the city. "It will have 100 units of low-income housing!"

Low income housing means you make $63,000 or less as a single person.

Let that marinate. Then wonder what all the service industry people are doing to live.

The state of California told S.F. to get its shit together about the housing crisis by 2030. If not, they're coming in. Chances of S.F. getting it together by then? It's a tidy zero. Too many hands out, too much money jumping between too many pockets. And let's discuss the bureaucracy. Actually, let's not.

So glad I moved to North Bay.

[Mr.Bill]

17. I would be willing to bet someone making 300K a year

would have quite a bit to write off and actually pay less income tax than someone making much less.

[madville]

20. Lots of variables

Are they single, married, own or rent, live with parents, have children, no children, healthy and no medical costs, no current education costs, etc, etc. They could have a bunch of write offs or none, gonna vary by situation.

[roamer65]

24. Bingo.

The key item you mention is children.

Kids versus no kids.

Not having children in an urban setting makes it MUCH more affordable for anyone.

That is key reason why birth rates are falling so fast.

Children are fast becoming unaffordable trophies in an urban setting.

[tinrobot]

22. Not always, just depends how people are paid.

Engineers in San Francisco can make $300k in salary alone. That would be taxed at a higher rate.

If they get stock as compensation, then tax depends on how those shares are distributed.

And yes, they can deduct things like home office or whatever.

[Fiendish Thingy]

21. People who make $300k typically don't have that amount as *taxable* wages/salary

They can afford financial planners and put a lot of pre-tax money into shelters like IRAs, 401k’s, 457’s, stock options and other investments where they can reduce their taxable income and still grow their wealth, claiming it as lower taxed capital gains rather than straight income.

[Voltaire2]

28. According to 'SmartAsset' the referenced site from this article, $181,866.

$181,866 is the actual net income after taxes for a single resident of Manhattan making 300,000 with no 401k or other substantial deductions.

A more realistic dual income 300,000 with 10% 401k contribution: $215,194.
https://smartasset.com/taxes/new-york-tax-calculator#ea2dL6XodF