Is $34,000 an okay salary?

Question

I live in Pennsylvania and have a 2 year old son. I work full time and am also a full time student (online).

Is $34,000 a decent salary with minimal college? I just started going back to school and I feel like we are doing fine on this salary but I know I need my degree so I can make more eventually.

$34,000 okay for a family of 2 or 3? (Not long term)

Edit:

I have a car, car insurance, rent, etc. it's not easy but we aren't struggling to keep the electric on. There are far less fortunate people. I was just curious because I'm just doing some research (curious minds lol)

PA's cost of living is higher than some southern states but still pretty low considering NY and MD. I've always wanted to move out of PA and Georgia is where I have been thinking.

Answer

Yes in PA that is great for someone with minimal college. I'm in OH and I made $32k at my first job out of college in the finance field. I finished my Masters in May and still only make $39,500 so not that big of a jump. The cost of living in PA and OH is a lot lower than other places. I think if you are smart with your finances and keep to a good budget you should be fine with $34k.

Answer

A lot of people survive on that. That's actually high without a full degree. Even with a degree that's high.

Answer

There is nothing wrong with $34k its all how you manage it. The fact that you are putting yourself through college and have a kid is admirable. Keep working hard and you will see it increase over time.

Answer

That seems good but im in kentucky so that would great for this area and we would be sailing by no problem... we barley get 10,000 yearly! And that is my husband with a decent job! But jobs are very very hard to come by! I have been applying for a year and not got one!

Answer

It completely depends on the cost of living in your area. I would check to see if you can find the average cost of living where you live. I know in LA, we couldn't afford to live on our own on that, let along with children.

Answer

You can always check to see where your income falls for local areas. I live in San Diego and 34k isn't a lot of money compared to the cost of living.

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It's seems a good start to me especially since you get to work from home so your other costs like transportation expenses are going to be lower. I also work from home and the benefits of that for a mother can't be beat. If your child gets sick, you don't have to take days off work. You have no extra gas expense because you don't drive to work. You don't have to put those extra thousands of miles on your car each year, thereby reducing the amount you'll pay in repairs, tires, etc. Not to mention you can wear ANYTHING you want to work. You could also get another job, depending on what you're doing, and work both of them at home at the same time and make twice the money.

Answer

It really depends where you live. I live in MA just south of Boston and with that salary I wouldn't be able to afford to have a house. The area I live in is really expensive, but I think that's a good amount with the schooling you have.

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Where I live $52,400 is considered median income for a family of 4. It's really hard to gage livability for an area unless you live in it. With that said, increasing your earning power is rarely a bad endeavor, though with the current economy it's never guaranteed.

Answer

My husband and j lived on 40k until our daughter was 6 months old. Money was extremely budgeted and we had no car payments, etc. we made it work but it wasn't easy.

Is $34,000 an okay salary?

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