what percentage of your income goes to clothes?

[Augusto86]

Are there really this many students on SF? Good lord, I overestimated the average age of this board by at least 10 or 15 years.
Maybe it's just that the level of discourse here is higher than typical internet sites like fark.com, SA, and so forth.
As for debt, I try not to spend more in 2 given weeks than I can make in 1. Works for me.

 

[JBZ]

Originally Posted by Augusto86

Are there really this many students on SF? Good lord, I overestimated the average age of this board by at least 10 or 15 years.
Maybe it's just that the level of discourse here is higher than typical internet sites like fark.com, SA, and so forth.
As for debt, I try not to spend more in 2 given weeks than I can make in 1. Works for me.

I always assumed that there were a good number of students (or recent graduates) here precisely because of the level of discourse. There have been many times when I've read a post and thought, "oh yeah, I used to know that back when I was studying it in college." Sad to say, gentlemen, but the day you graduate from your institution of higher learning is the day when your breadth of knowledge will be at its greatest. Barring some serious continuous effort on your part (and I'd just rather be reading detective novels

), it's all downhill from there. On the other hand, as time goes by, you will develop certain specific knowledge and skills relating to your employment to an extremely high level.

As to credit card debt, it's financial cancer. It keeps growing and growing, is extremely hard to get rid of and, ultimately, if unchecked, it will drag you down with it.

 

[whoopee]

The level of discourse on the streetwear forum screams student-dominated.

 

[Monster]

Originally Posted by Noctone

My main job is actually $7/hr right now, and the other is $5.25/hr. Didn't I just explain how it's not ridiculous? Just because you couldn't discipline yourself enough to pay off your credit cards doesn't mean I can't. Maybe some college students pay for everything out of their pocket, but I and many others take out loans for tuition, housing, etc. For the most part, work money is spending money for me.

I'm sure my loans are going to get close to $100k by the time I'm done, since it's going to take me either 5 or 6 years depending on if I study abroad next year (two engineering degrees), but I'm not really worried because the engineering field is ridiculously lucrative right now, and both of my degrees are among the best paying (Computer & Electrical Engineering). Asssuming no major changes in my life, I'll be looking at $50k/yr to start AT LEAST with only myself to look after. I can pay $20k/yr towards loans and still have plenty of money to take care of everything else.

I don't understand why everyone is bitching at me. If I'm still mired in credit card debt by the end of the summer, THEN you can ***** all you want.


I'm sorry, but this is just hilarious.

I'll admit to getting myself in a bit over my head during college (excellent credit score..never even late with a payment). There were months where money was tight.

And what I found particularly funny is the $20k/yr part. You will probably pay about 25% of that 50k in taxes. That leaves you with $37.5k So you're gonna pay more than 1/2 of that towards debt? HA!
You would have to scale back your lifestyle like crazy, but I have a feeling you will end up with a shiny new car when you get that engineering job, NOT paying down debt.

 

[Noctone]

Originally Posted by Monster

I'm sorry, but this is just hilarious.

I'll admit to getting myself in a bit over my head during college (excellent credit score..never even late with a payment). There were months where money was tight.

And what I found particularly funny is the $20k/yr part. You will probably pay about 25% of that 50k in taxes. That leaves you with $37.5k So you're gonna pay more than 1/2 of that towards debt? HA!
You would have to scale back your lifestyle like crazy, but I have a feeling you will end up with a shiny new car when you get that engineering job, NOT paying down debt.

Ideally I won't need a car. I've been living without one for the past three months and to be honest it's actually pretty nice. Not paying for gas every week is ******* huge. Admittedly it is a pain ********** to get around -- my bike can only get me so far so fast. The bus system here is practically useless. On the other hand I can actually get downtown faster because I don't have to look for a parking spot. My plans are to relocate to a major European city after university -- preferably London or Berlin -- so public transport should be more than sufficient.

I'll admit my calculations are a bit optimistic -- they're more theoretical than realistic. I'm just saying it could be done. To be honest I appreciate the finer things in life too much to be a miser, though. There's a thread on SA right now about being called cheap, and half the people there are a disgrace. They seem to skimp on everything just for the sake of being a ******* miser. ): There's a difference between being smart and being a Scrooge.

 

[NewYorkBuck]

Asssuming no major changes in my life, I'll be looking at $50k/yr to start AT LEAST with only myself to look after. I can pay $20k/yr towards loans and still have plenty of money to take care of everything else.

Two things that recent college grads overlook - 1) the impact of taxes, and 2) that their lifestyles will not change. To be honest, if you save more than 5 of that 50, I would be surprised. If you lived in NYC, that 50 would not be enough to live on. (You need a bare bones minimum of about 65-70 here)

An antecdote on the first phenomenon. When I was an undergrad, I had a friend who was an All-American on the football team. For some reason though, he never held down a paying job at any point of his life. When we were discussing his NFL draft status, the issue of taxes came up. He said, "Yeah - and whats the government take, like 5%?" I told him more like 50% all in. Being in his position, he underestimated the amount the govt would steal from him by about 1000%! Its all good - he was drafted by the Cleveland Browns and makes over a million a year now. Believe me - he knows about taxes now.....

 

[Noctone]

Originally Posted by NewYorkBuck

Two things that recent college grads overlook - 1) the impact of taxes, and 2) that their lifestyles will not change. To be honest, if you save more than 5 of that 50, I would be surprised. If you lived in NYC, that 50 would not be enough to live on. (You need a bare bones minimum of about 65-70 here)

That's pretty much true. My mother's an accountant so she handles all that **** for me. Taxes are way over my head. ): Definitely right on the lifestyle end too -- if anything it'll get more expensive. I desperately want some of the more traditional stuff that people discuss here, but until I move to a respectable city and get a real job it's practically impossible.

 

[chorse123]

nevermind

 

[GQgeek]

Entertaing thread ;p

I got a CC when I was 18 and at that point I was working for my parents. My limit quickly got raised to 3k because I would quickly fill it up and then pay it off in full. One day, my parents' business went kapoot, unfortunately, this happened right after I had bought a MTM Armani suit and a pair of Ferragamo oxfords. All of a sudden I lacked the means to pay-off that kind of debt quickly. Paying-off 3k working ****** part-time jobs is a *****. It didn't happen fast because it was very difficult to find jobs in my small town and I messed-up my credit score. Thinking back I should have swallowed my pride and asked my father to bail me out so that i didn't ruin my credit score, but there's not much I can do about it now. Needless to say, I've learned my lesson and I don't buy anything I can't pay for in cash now. As for our new friend that just put 5k on his CC, I hope he's not so arrogant as to believe he's got nothing to learn from those that have made the same mistakes.

I now make a lot more than most students and probably more than a lot of professionals. That said, I spent 50-60% of my after tax on clothing. The rest gets spent on eating out, girls, rent, etc. Living in a cheap city really helps, and I've put aside 3 months living expenses (which i don't touch) just in case I somehow lose my job.

I expect that I'll probably spend less over the coming year since my wardrobe is finally getting to where I want it to be, but then again, I think bespoke shirts will become a new vice.

I also want to start building an investment portfolio. I figure I could easily put in 20k-25k next year if i were to moderate my spending a bit. Knowing that I don't have the discipline to do it on my own, I'm probably going to sign-over my pay checks to my father starting in a couple of months and he'll put the money in to a trading account that I can manage.

 

[Noctone]

Originally Posted by GQgeek

Entertaing thread ;p
As for our new friend that just put 5k on his CC, I hope he's not so arrogant as to believe he's got nothing to learn from those that have made the same mistakes.

I don't want to sound arrogant, but why does everyone assume that I have created a problem? It's not like I work 10 hours a week and expect that to cut it. I'm working 40+ hours a week, and I'm going to be picking up more hours in a couple of weeks. Right now my sum CC debt is at just under $4400. I can guarantee $600/month towards that, more when summer hits. And that doesn't count my tax refunds or tuition reimbursement. I'm starting to feel like a broken record. ): It's like all the people that had problems are trying to make themselves feel better about their mistakes by acting like I'll **** up too. "Well ******** up with credit cards and I'm a pretty smart guy, no way this ****** can handle it."

Do I wish it didn't go down this way? Yeah. Do I feel bad about it? No. My wardrobe was absolutely deplorable, and nothing short of a complete overhaul would have satisfied me. The only lesson I've learned is that I should have researched clothing a bit more before I dove into spending. I bought about $500 - $600 worth of clothing in early January that wasn't actually too good. I ended up giving a bunch of it to my younger brother who can actually wear JC Penney-level clothing without it looking ridiculously poor-fitting. Everything else that I bought I know I'll wear for years, and I'm really glad that I bought it.

It's like I said before -- talk to me at the end of the summer and if I've made no progress then you can start talking about arrogance. I really hope I'm not coming off as an asshole but I can't just let people slag me off like this without knowing who I am.

 

[gorgekko]

No one is slagging you, they are slagging what you are saying. And no offence, you sound like a virgin who just watched a Appreciation and thinks he's an expert on sex.

I have a feeling that reality is going to wake you up very quickly.

 

[Aaron]

Originally Posted by Noctone

I'm starting to feel like a broken record. ): It's like all the people that had problems are trying to make themselves feel better about their mistakes by acting like I'll **** up too. "Well ******** up with credit cards and I'm a pretty smart guy, no way this ****** can handle it." Do I wish it didn't go down this way? Yeah. Do I feel bad about it? No. My wardrobe was absolutely deplorable, and nothing short of a complete overhaul would have satisfied me. The only lesson I've learned is that I should have researched clothing a bit more before I dove into spending. I bought about $500 - $600 worth of clothing in early January that wasn't actually too good. I ended up giving a bunch of it to my younger brother who can actually wear JC Penney-level clothing without it looking ridiculously poor-fitting. Everything else that I bought I know I'll wear for years, and I'm really glad that I bought it. It's like I said before -- talk to me at the end of the summer and if I've made no progress then you can start talking about arrogance. I really hope I'm not coming off as an asshole but I can't just let people slag me off like this without knowing who I am.
I don't think any of the posts were meant to attack you as a person Noctone. I think a lot of the posts in this thread served as a caution to you and others. If you're comfortable with your new wardrobe and confident you can pay it off, that's fine. However, the point I think you've missed is that it's easier to travel the same path once you've been down it. Oh btw belittling others, especially people you know little about, can, in some situations, come off as arrogant. A.

 

[Noctone]

Originally Posted by gorgekko

No one is slagging you, they are slagging what you are saying. And no offence, you sound like a virgin who just watched a Appreciation and thinks he's an expert on sex.

I have a feeling that reality is going to wake you up very quickly.

Actually I've had credit cards for a few years now, used them extensively, and never had problems.

Originally Posted by Aaron

I don't think any of the posts were meant to attack you as a person Noctone. I think a lot of the posts in this thread served as a caution to you and others. If you're comfortable with your new wardrobe and confident you can pay it off, that's fine. However, the point I think you've missed is that it's easier to travel the same path once you've been down it. Oh btw belittling others, especially people you know little about, can, in some situations, come off as arrogant.

A.

If I've belittled anyone, then I truly apologise. I don't intend to do so. I understand your point about bad habits, I just haven't ever had much of an addictive personality. Some people save up money to make big purchases (I do this sometimes -- my turntables and mixer for example), but sometimes (such as with my current wardrobe overhaul or my laptop purchase a couple of years ago) I buy things on credit and then work them off. I generally only tend to this with things that I deem necessary. I save up for the things that are pure desires. I certainly would think that SF members could understand the view that a proper wardrobe is an important part of life.

Don't get me wrong though -- I am listening. If nothing else, everyone talking about their CC problems just makes me even more determined to pay down my debt as quickly as possible.

 

[GQgeek]

Originally Posted by Noctone

Actually I've had credit cards for a few years now, used them extensively, and never had problems.

Neither did I, until my income was cut-off one day. People get laid-off, companies go bankrupt, **** happens in general. That's the point about spending debt, it's fine (well, not even) if your financial situation doesn't change, but often times it changes un-expectedly, and that's when people find themselves in trouble. That's exactly what happened to me. I was getting along fine, filling-up and paying-off my CC on a regular basis (it didn't get raised from 500 to 3k because i never made payments), and then one day the unexpected happened. It was at the end of the tourist season (meaning no jobs) and so the end result for my credit history wasn't very good.

All I'm saying is that in the future, you might want to reconsider spending an amount of money that will take you months of working 40+hours a week to pay-off assuming everything goes as planned.

 

[Connemara]

Originally Posted by demeis

I would probibly say 75%. I'ma student who works but i don't really have a balance right now. I just love clothes and i have an income i can spend and no loans. However i never want to carry a credit balance.

I'm in the same boat. Unfortunately, the fact that I spend that much of my paltry part-time job income on clothing means I barely have enough for gas and other discretionary expenditures. As of yesterday, I'm cutting myself off from clothing & shoes.

Yes, it hurts...very badly.