Existing on a LOWER CLASS Income

mrstravisjones

i know you just want to vent, but here's the deal - you do what you have to until you can do what you want to. i used loans to get through school. was about $50k in debt by the time i finished. i have worked up to 4 jobs at a time to make ends meet. life is work. you have to put in the effort to get the results you want. i know that seems harsh, but your life is in your hands.

and other people who grew up middle class like me will probably agree with this statement. when it comes to getting an education, lower income families and wealthy families have it easier than middle class. lower income can receive tons of aid. you just have to put in the work and look for it. it is there. and wealthy people can just pay for it outright. the middle class is the class that gets screwed when it comes to higher education. we don't make enough to pay for our schooling and we make to much to qualify for most of the available aid.

if you're willing to do the work needed, you will be able to get out of the minimum wage/no benefit job rut. good luck to you.

kimharper13

People complain all the time about what benefits they don't get at work. No one is a slave, if you don't like your work environment, pay, benefits, etc.; you are more than free to find another job. There are some drawbacks to working for a small business but there are some advantages to. What you have to do is decide if the benefits outweigh the drawbacks. If they do then shut up and make the most of what you have. Have you thought for a teeny, tiny second that the owner of the small business get NO paid vacations, NO sick leave; most small business owners get NOTHING if they are not at their job working. That small business owner made a lot of sacrifices to start that business and keep it going. In the process that small business owner made it possible for you to have a job. Rather than complaining about what you don't have be thankful for what you do have. That small business owner can only provide some much in salary and benefits because at the end of the year the business MUST show a profit or the business will have to close. Small business are the the government, they can't run up a deficient and just borrow more money from China to keep going.

FabMrFox

I'm sure I could assist with financial advice if more of your variables were known. share appt with roomates to cut bills? this can save you 30-40% with one roomate(not 50% due to increase in bills ie: 1 bdrm- 2bdrm) Meal planning and budgeting can save an additional 20-40%. Part time job of just 2 days a week can make another 10-20%+. What type of car do you drive? insurance can vary alot as well as registration fees etc. You may find that re-evaluating needs and wants may be the difference between living paycheck to paycheck and financial freedom.

WendyTerry420

Hmmm.... I work for a corporation that owns the largest market share in our industry. Still no sick days, no health insurance. etc.

You can thank the Federal Reserve bankers and the blowback from a century of inflation for our truly sucky economy. We shouldn't *need* health insurance anyway, except for emergencies or catastrophic illnesses and such.

LuckyLeprechaun

People complain all the time about what benefits they don't get at work. No one is a slave, if you don't like your work environment, pay, benefits, etc.; you are more than free to find another job. There are some drawbacks to working for a small business but there are some advantages to. What you have to do is decide if the benefits outweigh the drawbacks. If they do then shut up and make the most of what you have. Have you thought for a teeny, tiny second that the owner of the small business get NO paid vacations, NO sick leave; most small business owners get NOTHING if they are not at their job working. That small business owner made a lot of sacrifices to start that business and keep it going. In the process that small business owner made it possible for you to have a job. Rather than complaining about what you don't have be thankful for what you do have. That small business owner can only provide some much in salary and benefits because at the end of the year the business MUST show a profit or the business will have to close. Small business are the the government, they can't run up a deficient and just borrow more money from China to keep going.

qft

BrunetteRunner87

"small businesses" can't always afford to give you pay for sick days, health insurance, etc. Or they could but then you would make less overall. It's one thing if you're working for Wal Mart and you get no benefits, it's another if your boss is just a regular person. They have to live too.

digitalbill

I joined the Military.
20 vacation days the first year
All the sick time I needed and I got a steady paycheck.
Promotions were almost gaurenteed and the benefits were better then any corportation could ever give.

hughtwalker

So, what you are saying is that apart from the weather, things aren't so bad here in UK after all.

I know, I'm lucky. I qualified 41 years ago, before our government thought of student loans instead of maintenance grants and my qualification, being fairly specific and vocational, led to finding a job easily and being self-employed means that I have a fairly good relationship with my employer.

WendyTerry420

I can't wait til I can figure out how to afford school, finally get a degree and leave this retail bull**** behind.

I feel like a prostitute.

This is a genuine comment. How do people not afford school nowadays? I went to school on loans, pell grants (only AFTER I turned 23) and working. I definitely don't have a pretty loan history (only 40k in debt from loans at the end of a 4yr degree that took me 6.5 years :drinker: ) but I'm so confused how people can't afford school with the pell grants, loans, scholarships, working opportunities available.

I did loans and Pell grants. Then the asshats at the Dept of Education cut me off, two semesters away from my degree. Now what?

WendyTerry420

I can't wait til I can figure out how to afford school, finally get a degree and leave this retail bull**** behind.

I feel like a prostitute.

This is a genuine comment. How do people not afford school nowadays? I went to school on loans, pell grants (only AFTER I turned 23) and working. I definitely don't have a pretty loan history (only 40k in debt from loans at the end of a 4yr degree that took me 6.5 years :drinker: ) but I'm so confused how people can't afford school with the pell grants, loans, scholarships, working opportunities available.

Not sure when you went to school but


source: BLS

Energy costs up, health care costs [for employees] up, state funding for universities down equals above graph...

The line that is missing from this graph is the huge increase in student loans that contribute to rising tuition rates.

Prudiddy

I understand this completely and just experienced that too. I recently had to make a serious decision to have the money taken from my earnings so I could have medical coverage. I went about 2 1/2 years without it because it would have cost me a little under half of what I made each pay period to have good coverage for myself and the family. I just could not afford to pay $700 per pay period for my entire family in the beginning. The government said I made too much to get state medical and if I did, there would be a $1900 share of cost per month. I could either pay $700 to my employer or $950 to the state or wait until I accumulated more seniority with my company which I did and am very thankful that now the insurance is a little more comfortable to manage. Sometimes it is not an easy decision to make considering in my case, normal monthly bills, food, fuel, student loans and other necessities for the household, but I held on and now I'm glad I did. I am blessed to have a career and a beautiful family. Good luck to you.

WendyTerry420

Yes, there are loans, but then you have to pay them back at a ripe 6.8% interest rate and post graduate jobs with a liveable salary are not easy to get - if they exist at all.

Getting a student loan is the WORST mistake I have ever made in my life.

n0ob

I got a $1700 check (from scholarships) every semester AFTER tuition, books, and board was paid for.

You people did it wrong in HS...

MaryJane_8810002

It is easier to make the money go farther when tuition is $600/semester versus $20,000+ a semester at UCLA or UCSD.

Where the hell did your kids go to college to pay $600/semester? I have attended Community Colleges in New York City and Florida and you expect to spend $2,000 at least per semester.

jplord

Mira Costa - Oceanside, CA
Palomar - San Marcos, CA

k8blujay2

Might I suggest a few blogs of families that are living on Lower class incomes? And with 4 kids.

k8blujay2

It is easier to make the money go farther when tuition is $600/semester versus $20,000+ a semester at UCLA or UCSD.

Where the hell did your kids go to college to pay $600/semester? I have attended Community Colleges in New York City and Florida and you expect to spend $2,000 at least per semester.

In Texas I paid less than $1000 for a semester.... maybe even around $500... I can't remember now. but I do remember not having a problem working minimum wage and paying for college then.

MaryJane_8810002

Mira Costa - Oceanside, CA
Palomar - San Marcos, CA

Dude you gotta get with the times Palomar costs more than that:

https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/college-university-search/palomar-college

k8blujay2

So either it can be done or these people are lying out their arses:

http://thepeacefulmom.com/living-on-less-than-28000-a-year-series/

ItsCasey

School and health are paid by the government.

You silly Canadians. I wonder what it is you think your taxes pay for. :noway:

This is all such a load. "I can't afford college." "My parents never went to college, so they don't see the value in it and won't help me." "I'm getting raped by having to work a fast food drive-thru window" :sad: :sad: :sad:

I grew up poor. My parents didn't go to college. I busted my *kitten* in high school to get as many scholarships as I could, got a few bucks in Pell grants (seriously, I got like $450 a semester), and the rest of it I paid for by getting a J-O-B. I graduated with ZERO debt. The reason college is so freaking expensive now is because the government throws unlimited funds at people in the form of student loans. Many of thse people should not even be going to college (yes, I said it ... college is not for everyone). And then you have morons majoring in "literary journalism" or some other such nonsense instead of getting a marketable degree with an income potential that allows them to pay back their loans within a reasonable time period.

Furthermore, a college education entitles you to a diploma, not a job. Nobody OWES you employment or a fat paycheck.

Finally, stop acting like you're a victim because you find yourself working at a job that doesn't give you benefits. At least for now, America is still the land of the free. You don't have to work there. If your wages aren't good enough for you, then quit. Go sit at home and collect your welfare check and be glad it's now the government, instead of your boss, who is exploiting you.

Sweet fancy Moses ... if you wonder why America is in the crapper, take a long, hard look at the whiny pansies in this thread.

WendyTerry420

So either it can be done or these people are lying out their arses:

http://thepeacefulmom.com/living-on-less-than-28000-a-year-series/

Of course it can be done! I have lived on less than that my whole life. I have a family or four. it still sucks. (especially when the Dept of Ed takes my annual income subsidy (EITC/CTC) when they are the reason that my salary is still a pittance)

LilPinkNinja

Didn't get to read through it all, but OP, please go to http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/ and fill it out. A lot of people don't even realize what kind of grants and tuition assistance they qualify for until they fill it out.

WendyTerry420

School and health are paid by the government.

You silly Canadians. I wonder what it is you think your taxes pay for. :noway:

This is all such a load. "I can't afford college." "My parents never went to college, so they don't see the value in it and won't help me." "I'm getting raped by having to work a fast food drive-thru window" :sad: :sad: :sad:

I grew up poor. My parents didn't go to college. I busted my *kitten* in high school to get as many scholarships as I could, got a few bucks in Pell grants (seriously, I got like $450 a semester), and the rest of it I paid for by getting a J-O-B. I graduated with ZERO debt. The reason college is so freaking expensive now is because the government throws unlimited funds at people in the form of student loans. Many of thse people should not even be going to college (yes, I said it ... college is not for everyone). And then you have morons majoring in "literary journalism" or some other such nonsense instead of getting a marketable degree with an income potential that allows them to pay back their loans within a reasonable time period.

Furthermore, a college education entitles you to a diploma, not a job. Nobody OWES you employment or a fat paycheck.

Finally, stop acting like you're a victim because you find yourself working at a job that doesn't give you benefits. At least for now, America is still the land of the free. You don't have to work there. If your wages aren't good enough for you, then quit. Go sit at home and collect your welfare check and be glad it's now the government, instead of your boss, who is exploiting you.

Sweet fancy Moses ... if you wonder why America is in the crapper, take a long, hard look at the whiny pansies in this thread.

See, I should have done like you. I made straight A's in high school, so everyone said, "go to college." I wish had gotten a job first.

Student loans should be illegal.

red1775

School and health are paid by the government.

You silly Canadians. I wonder what it is you think your taxes pay for. :noway:

This is all such a load. "I can't afford college." "My parents never went to college, so they don't see the value in it and won't help me." "I'm getting raped by having to work a fast food drive-thru window" :sad: :sad: :sad:

I grew up poor. My parents didn't go to college. I busted my *kitten* in high school to get as many scholarships as I could, got a few bucks in Pell grants (seriously, I got like $450 a semester), and the rest of it I paid for by getting a J-O-B. I graduated with ZERO debt. The reason college is so freaking expensive now is because the government throws unlimited funds at people in the form of student loans. Many of thse people should not even be going to college (yes, I said it ... college is not for everyone). And then you have morons majoring in "literary journalism" or some other such nonsense instead of getting a marketable degree with an income potential that allows them to pay back their loans within a reasonable time period.

Furthermore, a college education entitles you to a diploma, not a job. Nobody OWES you employment or a fat paycheck.

Finally, stop acting like you're a victim because you find yourself working at a job that doesn't give you benefits. At least for now, America is still the land of the free. You don't have to work there. If your wages aren't good enough for you, then quit. Go sit at home and collect your welfare check and be glad it's now the government, instead of your boss, who is exploiting you.

Sweet fancy Moses ... if you wonder why America is in the crapper, take a long, hard look at the whiny pansies in this thread.

We need a like button because you hit it on the head.

corn63

Student loans should be illegal.

Disagree. The companies that RUN and loan student loans and manage your loans should be disassembled and the people managing those companies should be put in jail. But the loans themselves are not bad. I have a fixed loan at 4.8% and learned my lesson on private loans. Definitely NEVER get a private loan for school. 12$% on that bad boy. It's on the fast track to repayment, that's for sure.

My main student loan was through the Department of Education. Then it got bought out by Mohela. I was not notified via mail, email, phone call, carrier pigeon that this was done. I didn't catch it until two months later when I realized my loans weren't being taken out of my bank account. Had to buy arrears and everything. What a f'n fiasco that was.

College is available to those that want to go. And no, a degree doesn't guarantee you a job, but it helps a great deal. And opens up your employment opportunities beyond those that just require a diploma. Even an AA or AS is better than nothing.

SarahofTwins

A college degree does not guarantee a job.

This.

They look for the experience along with a degree. That's my personal experience after I've graduated a few years back.

Yieya

Move to Quebec, Canada! School and health are paid by the government. Of course, it's not perfect; we had huge protests last year about the scholar fees going up (from a few hundreds to a thousand a year, yes you can laugh)

I work for a university. If I'm sick, I'm fully paid. On the third day of absence, I have to see a doctor and then according to his diagnostic, I can have up to 6 months with my full salary. And that is even if I'm a temporary employee. After giving birth, women are paid for a year between 50 to 75% of their salary to stay home by the government. My employer pays the rest to make it 92%.

Private High schools are funded. So it costs an average of 2 to 3,000$ a year to send your kid to a private school. Technical schools (called cegeps) cost an average of 500$ per session.

If you go to the doctor, you don't pay if you have your health card (which is given to every citizen staying more than 6 monts a year in Quebec soil). Same for hospitals. You might have to wait 12 hours before you see a doctor though...

The downside: you give almost 50% of your salary in taxes. There are huge taxes on gas, car license and stuff like that. But hey, nothing's perfect...

it's not free if the Gov't is taking half your paycheck.... I rather keep more of my paycheck and shop around for my own schooling and healthcare.

Litlbeast

Yup, I'm there too. Mainly because a portion of my income gets funneled into funding my potential music career, and that gets expensive even when you're extremely choosy about where you aim your precious dollars. No insurance, and TN's a tough state for low-income folks because their qualifiers for EBT and state insurance (for kids) are more strict.

But...

Most people should take advantage of food pantries, sliding-scale health clinics, thrift clothing and grocery stores, Freecycle, craigslist free. I use all of these things. I'd rather use them than get $$ for the gov't, and I'd also rather work a second or third part-time job.

School can be tough, getting medical care can be tough, but you have to think outside the box for everything nowadays. There are also websites where you can apply for small private loans to get you through tough times. Google the heck out of whatever you need - help is out there.

And hang in there.

Serenstar75

This is a genuine comment. How do people not afford school nowadays? I went to school on loans, pell grants (only AFTER I turned 23) and working. I definitely don't have a pretty loan history (only 40k in debt from loans at the end of a 4yr degree that took me 6.5 years :drinker: ) but I'm so confused how people can't afford school with the pell grants, loans, scholarships, working opportunities available.

It depends on if you want debt up to your eyeballs and a chance that you still might NOT find a job afterward that will allow you to pay back your loans. I have loans, pell grants, all of that. I'm going to school right now, but it's slow. I'm now working on scholarships as well. I'm already well over 20k in debt, possibly more and not even close to finished because I work full time and take care of home as well. When I wasn't getting benefits or making enough to at least get by, I found a new job. If you have a job, it's a lot easier to get hired at a better one.

WendyTerry420

Student loans should be illegal.

Disagree. The companies that RUN and loan student loans and manage your loans should be disassembled and the people managing those companies should be put in jail. But the loans themselves are not bad. I have a fixed loan at 4.8% and learned my lesson on private loans. Definitely NEVER get a private loan for school. 12$% on that bad boy. It's on the fast track to repayment, that's for sure.

My main student loan was through the Department of Education. Then it got bought out by Mohela. I was not notified via mail, email, phone call, carrier pigeon that this was done. I didn't catch it until two months later when I realized my loans weren't being taken out of my bank account. Had to buy arrears and everything. What a f'n fiasco that was.

College is available to those that want to go. And no, a degree doesn't guarantee you a job, but it helps a great deal. And opens up your employment opportunities beyond those that just require a diploma. Even an AA or AS is better than nothing.

The Dept of Education screwed me over. I was too young and naive to be allowed to sign for a loan. It was definitely the worst mistake I ever made and will regret it my whole life. I should have gotten a job instead of going to college. Of course, if they had let me finish college, I might feel differently. But I still want to dismantle the DoE piece by piece and fire every employee they have. No, I'm not bitter.