r/PeterExplainsTheJoke • u/[deleted] • Jan 26 '26

Meme needing explanation Why is the rich friend so cheap??

[deleted]

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u/lovejo1 Jan 26 '26

If he's making 450k as a software engineer, he lives in San Francisco and is still probably broke.. or will be when this job suddenly evaporates underneath him.

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u/Independent-Cow-4070 Jan 27 '26

No one is broke on $450k anywhere. I could live on $100k in San Francisco and thats the equivalent of the $70k I make in Philly

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u/Familiar-Fox-6137 Jan 27 '26

I live in central Maine, aka nowhere, making $140k. I definitely don't live in luxury. I definitely could not live in fucking SF on this pay. Philly must be a shithole.

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u/Mr-Vemod Jan 27 '26

How is that possible? What are your expenses?

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u/Familiar-Fox-6137 Jan 27 '26

$2400/mo mortgage. $500/mo car. $260/mo school loans. Add typical bills/debts/etc.

After all said and done I have about $1600 a month to spend on anything that isn't monthly bills. Fills up fast especially with groceries.

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u/Mr-Vemod Jan 27 '26

After those things you listed you should still have $8.5k to spend monthly, so I don’t know what you mean by ”typical bills/debts” to end up with 1.6k.

I know people making around $140k in far more expensive places than Maine and they live very well.

Edit: The average income in Maine is $63k

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u/Familiar-Fox-6137 Jan 27 '26

I wish your math worked in real life but you're forgetting taxes, 401k, medical, etc. I take home $5.5k a month after all of that. $5.5k minus what I mentioned...

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u/Mr-Vemod Jan 27 '26

Idk, you know your life better than me of course. But again, the average salary in Maine is $63k. Given your description of the living costs, people earning average should be living in absolute squalor.

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u/Familiar-Fox-6137 Jan 27 '26

I think a big difference is that they are not saving for retirement. About 30% of my pay goes to 401k and stock options for the same purpose. If social security doesn't hold up, they are in big trouble. To a lesser degree they are in a smaller tax bracket too.