New York Magazine's Money Issue
The 2006 Money Issue is out at New York Magazine. I've only had a chance to look at some of it, but it looks like it would appeal to many of the personal finance bloggers. In fact, it looks like many of the pf blogs: articles on difference in spending between friends, spending diaries of a range of people (subsidized grad student to a Wall Street trader), and a billionaire's penchant with nubile girls giving him a massage. Well, I'm not sure that last one is on many pf blogs.
My favorites so far is the article on a security guard getting by (kind of) on $10 an hour and the spending diaries.
The people in the spending diary and their summaries are below:
The Subsidized Grad Student: $20,000
Brian, a 26-year-old M.F.A. candidate in fiction, earns a modest living from teaching, assisting professors, and writing magazine articles. His parents pay his tuition as well as a $140-a-month gym membership at Equinox. The rent for his half of a West Village two-bedroom is $1,800 a month, most of it covered by his parents. Each month, Brian pays $125 for cable and Internet access,$59.31 on his Verizon cell-phone bill, and $96.67 for a shared desk at Paragraph, a writing space.
The Junior Professional: $54,000
Matt, a 25-year-old publicist, lives with a roommate in an East Village two-bedroom, where his share of the rent is . . . $1,100 a month. His biggest monthly expenses include the bill for his BlackBerry ($63), his cable bill ($50), and electricity ($50).
The Mid-Career Fund-raiser: $150,000
Jack, a 35-year-old fund-raiser for a nonprofit news organization, lives with his fiancée in downtown Brooklyn, in a 1,000-square-foot converted loft that costs $2,000 a month. After rent, his biggest expense is the $5,000 to $10,000 a year he spends on two European vacations. He spends $76 on a monthly MetroCard and has a $67-a-month membership to the Y. His utility costs are relatively low; his landlord pays for heat and hot water, while his Internet, telephone, and cell phone are covered by his employer. He has no cable television, but his Netflix membership costs $45.50 a month (for seven DVDs at a time).
The Expense-Account I-Banker: $700,000
Mary, 32, lives alone in a one-bedroom on the Upper West Side that she rents for . . . $3,200 a month. She spends about $3,000 a year on vacations and$5,000 on a Hamptons summer share. Her utilities come to about $100 a month, and she pays $130 for cable and $90 a month for her cell phone and BlackBerry. Mary often travels for business, so her daily expenses are covered by her investment bank during those days and weeks.
The Trader (and His Wife): Over $1 Million
William, 41, is a trader at a major Wall Street brokerage, and his wife, Beth, 35, stays home with their 3-year-old twins. They live in a four-bedroom apartment on the Upper West Side, which they rent for $9,000 a month. They spend $28,000 a year for their kids’ preschool, and about $1,000 a month on car payments, insurance, and garage costs. Other big expenses include the$30,000 they spent to rent a house in Amagansett in August, and a six-week apartment-renovation project they estimate at $20,000 to $25,000.
My favorites so far is the article on a security guard getting by (kind of) on $10 an hour and the spending diaries.
The people in the spending diary and their summaries are below:
The Subsidized Grad Student: $20,000
Brian, a 26-year-old M.F.A. candidate in fiction, earns a modest living from teaching, assisting professors, and writing magazine articles. His parents pay his tuition as well as a $140-a-month gym membership at Equinox. The rent for his half of a West Village two-bedroom is $1,800 a month, most of it covered by his parents. Each month, Brian pays $125 for cable and Internet access,$59.31 on his Verizon cell-phone bill, and $96.67 for a shared desk at Paragraph, a writing space.
The Junior Professional: $54,000
Matt, a 25-year-old publicist, lives with a roommate in an East Village two-bedroom, where his share of the rent is . . . $1,100 a month. His biggest monthly expenses include the bill for his BlackBerry ($63), his cable bill ($50), and electricity ($50).
The Mid-Career Fund-raiser: $150,000
Jack, a 35-year-old fund-raiser for a nonprofit news organization, lives with his fiancée in downtown Brooklyn, in a 1,000-square-foot converted loft that costs $2,000 a month. After rent, his biggest expense is the $5,000 to $10,000 a year he spends on two European vacations. He spends $76 on a monthly MetroCard and has a $67-a-month membership to the Y. His utility costs are relatively low; his landlord pays for heat and hot water, while his Internet, telephone, and cell phone are covered by his employer. He has no cable television, but his Netflix membership costs $45.50 a month (for seven DVDs at a time).
The Expense-Account I-Banker: $700,000
Mary, 32, lives alone in a one-bedroom on the Upper West Side that she rents for . . . $3,200 a month. She spends about $3,000 a year on vacations and$5,000 on a Hamptons summer share. Her utilities come to about $100 a month, and she pays $130 for cable and $90 a month for her cell phone and BlackBerry. Mary often travels for business, so her daily expenses are covered by her investment bank during those days and weeks.
The Trader (and His Wife): Over $1 Million
William, 41, is a trader at a major Wall Street brokerage, and his wife, Beth, 35, stays home with their 3-year-old twins. They live in a four-bedroom apartment on the Upper West Side, which they rent for $9,000 a month. They spend $28,000 a year for their kids’ preschool, and about $1,000 a month on car payments, insurance, and garage costs. Other big expenses include the$30,000 they spent to rent a house in Amagansett in August, and a six-week apartment-renovation project they estimate at $20,000 to $25,000.
posted by Dwight at
10:01 AM
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