A Move To Miami Came With A $3K Rent And A $900 Car Payment, All On One $6K Salary. 'Making $100,000 A Year Is Not What It Once Was'

A determination to Miami was expected to beryllium a caller start. Instead, it turned into a fiscal compression that near 1 young household surviving paycheck to paycheck connected a $6,000 monthly income.

Ethan, an active-duty subject work member, called into “The Ramsey Show” precocious looking for assistance aft what helium described arsenic putting himself “in a hole” implicit the past six months. Between a $10,000 relocation, a $3,000 monthly rent outgo and a $900 car payment, the mathematics simply stopped working.

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“I much oregon little person enactment myself successful a spread implicit the past six months oregon so,” Ethan said. “Made immoderate dumb decisions and person locked myself successful a fiscal bind.”

The determination to Miami outgo astir $10,000, which helium borrowed from aggregate sources, including household members. Not agelong aft settling in, helium bought his woman a 2025 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The monthly payment: astir $900. The balance: astir $50,000.

One of the problems is that the SUV is worthy astir $30,000, leaving the household astir $20,000 upside down.

Although Ethan earns astir $6,000 a month, and his woman stays location with their 8-month-old son, their rent runs astir $3,000 a month, astir fractional their take-home pay.

Co-host Jade Warshaw was straightforward. “Making $100,000 a twelvemonth is not what it erstwhile was,” helium said. “You get this wage and you're like, ‘Yes, I'm making six figures.' And it feels similar it's going to beryllium a way. That wealth dwindles precise quickly, which is what you’re experiencing.”

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Even though Ethan receives a lodging allowance done the military, Warshaw pointed retired that erstwhile everything is combined, rent inactive eats up astir 50% of the household income. “There is nary extra. There's thing left,” she said.

That's wherefore the hosts focused connected 2 large changes: lodging and the car.

First, they encouraged Ethan to find a cheaper spot to live, adjacent if that means moving farther extracurricular Miami, downsizing to a one-bedroom flat oregon breaking the lease early. Breaking the lease would outgo 2 months' rent, but keeping a $3,000 outgo for the remainder of the lease would effect successful adjacent much strain.

“This is the clip to bash the sacrifice,” Warshaw said, noting their kid is inactive young and much flexible.