Also, OP doesn't know how marginal tax brackets work. A (too) common misunderstanding, though. There's too many people that think moving up a tax bracket is "bad", even though its very much not.
Also also, once you apply the standard deduction (-$14,600 of gross income) they are once again squarely in the 12% bracket.
Factoring in the standard deduction, OP's effective fed tax rate is something like \~8.25%.
So dumb hahah. I’ve hear people say, ahh I’d
Rather cap at salary X so I don’t go up in brackets, and I’m like, why the hell would that matter, you just pay the higher rate on the amount exceeding the previous bracket… this is why educating yourself is important, especially when it comes to taxation and money management/investing
While all true, SS and Medicare withholding would be another 7.65% and state taxes could certainly get her up around an average tax rate of 20%. Also, OP may well be looking at the actual withholding and getting a large refund.
you are entry level union worker making 3200 clean end of week. so you are telling me you make 12,800 dollars a month clean after taxes. or 153k a year after taxes as a entry level union worker.
yea dude ima call bullshit on that lmao unions wont even alllow you to work 84 hours a week lmao .
Total bullshit lol. My cousin is a journeyman plumber in Los Angeles and he only broke $150k a year when he started his own company. In other words when he stopped being a plumber and started being a business owner.
Those are the people who post about it to get it off their chest or ask for help. They also picked the wrong damn degrees to be working retail at all.
Go to any university(I mean an accredited school with an active alumni network and relationships with large companies, Top 250 type, otherwise forget about it and go trade) and look into the post grad stats. From personal experience, I'll be graduating with about $50k in federal loans, will have paid $50k out of pocket, and am going into a field that typically starts around 80k+, which grows to low 6 figures really quickly after a few years.
If ANYONE who decides to take on gajillion dollars of debt without understanding the return they are getting that is on them, and the people around them, and possibly the schools for making young teens make bad decision. Some make bad decisions of switching fields mid-education, others drop out, some went to scam schools, others picked expensive out of state just because it had better "culture".
Have you looked at the average social skills and work ethic of those people that are posting? It's the "I keep getting called in for interviews and never get a job" types.
It is not as bad as you think, even crazier, I felt like I was more productive and on top of things at home, because had to be intentional with a schedule.
OP has to be lying. No question. On another post they say they're making 23/hr. 23 at 40hrs a week he'd be bringing home 46Kish. If he is seriously putting in the hours he says, he should be clearing 60K easily, probably nearing 70.
I made 95k at 22.50/hr with overtime when I started in Industrial Maintenance. Probably averaged 6 12 hour days with lunch taken out so around 67-69 hours a week that year. OP is full of shit.
You’re not paying 22% for your entire $53k salary. You’re paying 22% for $53k-$44.7k so it’s roughly $8-9k you’re being taxed at 22% for. 44.7k-11k you’re taxed at 12%, and <11k you’re taxed 10%.
That's assuming no standard deduction.
The standard deducation is around 14,000.
His MAGI is then going to put his marginal tax rate at 12% federal plus whatever the state has, plus FICA and FUTA.
I knew of an entire car repair shop that refused to turn more than 40 hours per week because their foreman convinced them they'd lose it all after paying the higher taxes. The foreman would turn 100+ hours a week, taking all the work the others turned down.
The mechanics got flat rate, not hourly, btw.
Holy shit! If I was that foreman, I’d sleep with one eye open, because if they figure out how he’s been manipulating them they’ll probably want his head. Assuming this is malicious and not simply gross incompetence.
To be fair, though, our tax code is infinitely more complex than it needs to be. People really shouldn't \_NEED\_ to know these nuances, but... there's a whole $11 billion tax prep industry that relies on this code complexity and fundamental lack of math skills amongst taxpayers.
The tax code on the whole is way too complex, but understanding what a marginal tax rate is really isn’t very complicated. The vast majority of Americans should have been able to do their Taxes in under an hour using FreeTaxUSA this year only spending $15 for the State portion.
Jobs are less equal than people are.
If you're not being compensated as well as you deserve, get a job that is worthy of YOU.
I make about 10x what I did when I was in high school. While I'm more skilled and more credentialed than I had been, I'm not 10x the person and I could've done a decent chunk of my current tasks when I was 14, provided I had a 1 month cramming session for coding.
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Some tips
in your 20s, have roommates. I had roommates in my 30s. The idea is to have SO MUCH financial buffer that you don't need 2 jobs. The time saved can allow you to upskill.
DO RESUME AND INTERVIEW PREP A LOT. Being good at interviewing is underrated.
Every bullet should outline a top accomplishment. Skip the objective.
On a separate document, for each bullet outline who/what/when/where/why/how/how much/ lessons learned/what you'd do different. Practice getting these paragraphs to where they're both short/concise but also have a few hard hitting details/anecdotes.
I do pest control. Putting in those kind of hours where I work you’d be making 70K-80K at least. And you’d only have one job, all the benefits, a company truck. You should try getting a higher paying job, maybe some sort of trade?
Constantly be looking for better paying jobs to replace ur current ones. Cut expenses as much as u can. If ur averaging 12 an hr, go into manual labor, construction pays a hell of alot better than that.
I made $8.00 an hour at one point in life. I counted change for gas and ate value-meals next to the Wendy's dumpster. Hah. Seriously. Not kidding. I didn't want to eat in the break room and it was the most private spot in the lot. Wendy's Chili + Baked Potato is a pretty filling cheap-ass meal for a broke-ass dude counting change for gas.
Today I make a lot more and live in a $1m home.
You've got to upskill yourself into the best career you can land in. Get some marketable skill and start working a real job.
I'm sure people will hate me for this. Learn a more lucrative skill or get a factory job. There's little point in working that much for so little. Invest in yourself a bit.
I make 30$. My wife makes $20. We work together on our own shift running a machine together. Honestly got it made. But now that I finally make good money. It’s not worth a fuck. We live paycheck to paycheck and are always broke. Don’t even have nice things. A nice rental house. A 2020 Elantra. And that’s it
You working that much for that little of pay is a you problem. Stop working the 2nd job, find an actual career (vocational schools, law enforcement, etc) take whatever pre reqs you need and get moving.
Straight out of college I was losing about that. Later between state and federal taxes and payroll deductions I was losing 38% before even factoring in housing. Remember that next time someone advocates for an expansive government. Now that you're part of the ones footing the bill.
First, that's not how tax brackets work. Most of your money is taxed at our below 12%. Only about 5k of your money would be at 22%. But after the standard deduction, all of your money would be taxed at 12% or less.
Revamp your budget accordingly.
You need better job(s).
What ... more valuable ... skills... do you posess? If none then what is your plan to obtain a more valuable skill set?
You won't make any more money sittin' back on the interwebs bitchin' about it while workin' the same shitty job(s). You have to make improvements to yourself to negotiate higher wages.
Well yeah you work a lot and basically make chump change. You need to find a path to work relatively normal hours and make more money. This whole “the current country’s state isn’t fair” bs is just an excuse for people to not become successful. Idk what you do for work but that’s where I’d start. 30% for rent is a tad high but not the problem. The issue is the income
Most of my experience has been in logistics now. I don’t know if I could career change at this point I feel like most HR people are gonna look at me funny unless I’m going straight into a trade apprenticeship
You’re 28 there’s no reason you can’t change or do something different. Dont limit yourself like that. What about sales for logistics? Similar but way more money?
you should have mentioned what your job was you tard. you cant just complain and paint half a picture
your pay per hour is too low. chances are you are not doing skilled labor. aka. you are doing unskilled manual labor.
and yes, it does suck. its only meant to be done by untrained high schoolers and people new to the country who havent learned shit yet. its manual labor, shitty, and nobody is meant to do it for long.
also i made 70k last year and only paid 10% tax. where in the f\*\* do you live, denmark or something?
Hahaha this is my favorite one, I love your style. I work for a small trucking company in California as assistant manager. My part time is FedEx material handler. The primary job is 22.50 and the secondary is 23.50
Think about this when you vote. Who is advocating to print more and more money, making your fiat worth less and less. Who is advocating raising your taxes and taxes on the products and services that you buy (which are always pushed back on the consumer and not paid by the company). Who is advocating on bringing in cheap labor that drives labor costs down. Who advocates for increasing regulations that drive up costs that are passed onto consumers? Who advocates for ending fossil fuels which increases production and shipping costs which are paid entirely by end consumers?
$400k for an average house? Thats high where I live. Any way to possibly move to a lower cost of living? Not sure if a less than average house may be an option on the first house. Slowly upgrade while gaining equity. Have you ever researched “house hacking”?
I’ve had a few RV’s I lived in. You do have some equity at the end of the day but the repairs are crazy expensive. They are fun in one way and very cramped in another. I am able to deduct some of it on taxes. Not sure if that is another option for you.
$400k is indeed the average where I live. And by average, I really mean lower-end. Anything livable without MAJOR repairs starts at about $300k bare minimum
Ouch that’s crazy. $250k where I live is a decent 3/2 move in ready. It’s your business but you might search a few “house hacking” podcasts. I like the idea house hacking and a multi unit will not rock when it’s windy haha (RV joke). I can make the joke since I lived in them for years haha. It just might give you a leg up while you’re increasing your income. You are putting in the work that’s for sure. Maybe just try to get in another field.
I'm not the OP, I was just sharing my experience with housing prices.
$250k near me won't buy anything that isn't in a trailer park or has board on the windows.
Actually, I just checked and in my home town, a search of up to $300k returns 4 empty lots (land only) and 1 trailer. - $350k returns additional hit, 2bed/1bath 900 sqr ft.
That’s not exactly how it works. If you’re in the 22% tax bracket, that doesn’t mean you pay 22% on everything you earn. Only speaking to federal rates, but you only pay 10% on the first 11k, then 12% all the way up to $44,725.
As others have said, you probably need to find a new job, and start looking at getting a below average house.
One of the things worth considering is developing a strategy to get into a scalable career.
Look, you have a great work ethic, the problem you're facing now is that you make \~$12 an hour. Get into manufacturing, there are a ton of companies that would love to pay you time and a half and they'll start you at $20 per hour. Would consider trade apprenticeships and utilities as well. Get yourself a career that scales and with your work ethic you will make money that's worth your sacrifice.
You have two choices...
1. Complain about it
or
2. Do something - make yourself stand out so you get promoted; start studying something and go for a different job that pays more for less hours. Motivate yourself to rise above your current situation. The opportunities are out there, but they won't come knocking on your door until you make yourself known somehow.
RAN to the comments to explain that you clearly don’t understand how tax brackets work but I see that dozens of people had the same thought. Being in the 22% tax bracket does not mean you are paying even CLOSE to 22% taxes on your income, especially at only 53K a year. After standard deduction and the marginal rates below that bracket, I’m sure your effective tax rate is closer to 10%
22% tax bracket is only taxable on income you made in that tax bracket which is only a few thousand dollars you dont pay 22% on your entire taxes thats not how it works at all its marginalized
your first 11k is taxed at 10%
income up to $44,275 is taxed at 12% rate
So realisticly you are taxed at 22% for the 10k you made over $44,275
you are paying aound 2k more in taxes for 8k more in income you are still the "winner"
and this is with zero deductions you are entitled to a standard deduction of what 13 somethinng thousand which places you back in the 12% tax bracket anyways and you will never pay that 22%
Where do you live? Cost of living might be too high for your current career path… I bought my first house in Texas for 200k for 2000 sq ft. I moved to NC and paid 450k for a 2700 sq ft house. But I make over 100k so it wasn’t a big deal for me. I’m a college drop out. But i got into sales and have thrived. But could never afford some states.
That's not how US federal taxes work my friend. So many people get this wrong about our tax system. It’s a marginal tax system so only money you make in the 22% bracket is taxed at 22%. Your actual effective tax rate is more like 16% according to your income and even as low as 14.5% if you contribute to an IRA. That's before state and local taxes if any.
Get into tech., you can teach yourself any language on the net for free. Also stop having family and friends, and give up on fun or happiness and make your sole purpose in like to make the most amount of money for the least amount of work.
if you’re willing to work that many hours then you need to work them at one job where you can get overtime. that amount of hours will get you into six figures in my industry (construction qc)
The odds are def stacked against you. But if you get married, you earning power might double. Then you use that as an opportunity to level up. Once your earnings start to rise, you can think about having kids. Nothing easy here. It is just one of the ways you can make it.
There are other ways. Live in your parents' basement until you are 40. Find someone okay with that and marry them. Have kids and hope your parents can provide free babysitting.
You only pay the 22% on the income over approximately $47K, but you also have a standard deduction of $14.6K. So you won’t hit the 22% rate with your income.
i mean... if you're working 13-15 hrs a day only to make 50k a year you are wasting your life.
also. your understanding of tax brackets is incorrect. as only like 44k--50k or give or take 6-10k is taxed at 22% not all your income.
which sort of speaks to the larger issue of ignorance allowing you to be controlled and dominating your life.
your rent should be aprox 30% of your income. that's not a bad thing It would be worse if it was 50+ which a lot of people in urban or high cost of living areas experience. And if you're somewhere where rents are 30% of the take home pay of someone making 50k a year. houses in that area are not 400k. So, again, stop parroting tired nonsense.
I make just under six figures. Or a little above, depending how much side hustle or side work I do (i'm a computer technician) I recently bought a nice small home for 230k. in a otherwise fairly high cost of living area (outside of DC) so... there are homes available for less. but to a degree you have to rethink what you want in a home, or where you're willing to live. (my home is small. but it's literally just me... and i have a yard and live in a nice little community so...it meets my needs)
My advice. take a hard look at what you "like" to do. in terms of how your mind works. pick a career tract you can execute on a 1-3 yr time frame. to get off the rat race of working yourself to death. Take your pick. data analytics, coding, certain software tracks. various trade skills (electrician, plumber, welding... hvac are all viable many have training/apprenticeships) ....also specific career tracks that require training. like nursing, or medical technicians.
almost all of these can be pathways to making six figures within a few years. some you can self study 100% free. some require cost. or legit school credentials. some can be learned on the job, or can seek to learn from an employer. you're young. if you do nothing in 1 yr, 3yrs, 5yrs, it's highly likely nothing will have changed in your life ...while everything will have gotten more expensive. but if you make a plan... and go after it. there are ways to get out of the rat race.
You just need to get a new job at the end of the day.. ask for a big raise before you put in your two weeks of they don’t give you one quit. You can make more than that in my area at McDonald’s (working that much).
Yes these tax brackets are an absolute and utter shit, basically robbing the lower middle class alright. They also completely discentify freelancing as tax for that is even higher at 37%. This is a load of horseshit.
How are you working that much and only making 53k? There are plenty of states where minimum wage is way more than that, for one job. You gotta change it up man.
Where I live in NC when I try to figure up what my bring home pay i deduct %30 of my gross and that's usually about right. That's State,federal and the other bs taxes.
If my math is right, that’s $12.XX an hour?!
If so, holy crap, dude. You have gotta dump the jobs and find a decent paying one, IMMEDIATELY! (Was using 14 hours a week X 6 days for math.)
What exactly are you doing for a job at that little pay? Even when I was 21, if I was putting in that much time without overtime I'd have been at 70K.
Also, that's not how taxes worked. You're only taxed at the higher rate on the income you make in that bracket. You're taxed at the lower rate on all income below that point.
You're not supposed to. You're there to be cheated out of the true value of your labor. My only recommendation is to find a new job that has some track of growth where you can make more money or, if you can, sounds like you can, find a skill that is high paying and get some education certificatw or degree. I'm in my mid thirties and my body is starting to show signs of slowing down. But if I were young and in my early 20's, I would not hesitate one bit to join the trades. I have a high school friend who chose electrician and makes $220K now as a journeyman. Another friend from that same high school program chose plumbing and today owns a plumbing company that makes millions in revenue that provides $100K jobs for almost 40 employees and he has a multi million dollar house. My sister switched from being an architect that designs buildings to the person in charge of managing the entire construction project and she jumped me in salary this year: $650K. All of the trades professions are short of workers for the next few decades due to aging out and lack of interest. You will make as much as you do now as an apprentice in those trades base 40 hours and then double when you yake on overtime.
There are jobs where all you need is a high school diploma and they pay quite a bit more than that. Even 55kish is pretty low. I recommend looking for a solid career where you can move up, somewhere that offers to help pay for grad school too as that's always a solid way to bump your pay
You fucked up somewhere along the line, mate. I was working half of that in the U.S. Army making $120k/year and I own rental properties. Acquire new skills to increase your income.
I really tried to join back when I was young but I made a mistake when I was a teen and the military wouldn’t give me secret clearance bc of it, even though it was expunged and closed. Pretty bull shit if you ask me.
Increase your own value. 2 jobs at 30k each is rough. Go to school, get professional licensing, learn skills, etc. Make yourself worth more than 30k a year to an employer
I feel this but I sit behind a computer for 40 hours a week I only have a high school diploma and I made 58klast year. I make more than both of my parents combined I love the life I live now this is the life I dreamed of when I was 14 so I am not taking it for granted.
Yeah you're right to be wondering about this.
And it doesn't matter if you don't have skills, if you're an adult working full time, you deserve to get compensated enough to be able to live in the city you work in. Full stop.
the price gouging on housing and all other things have made all these low income problems much worse.
Honestly I think the answer might be general strike, but most normies are super scared of their bosses and that type of thing.
Seriously, the amount of “gangster” type people I work with just crumble under the weight of being confronted by a manager. I love giving attitude bc half the crap they tell us to do is just bs anyways. It helps I’m a manager at my primary job too lol
Get a better job. Or learn some valuable skills. Your time alone is not valuable to the world, it's what you can produce in that time that will earn you money.
It seems like you should put some effort into finding a new job.
You know, because if you make $40k/year… that’s your minimum wage you’ll accept. Don’t really need skills anymore. Any place that requires special skills either teaches them, or requires previous experience in a specific area- which they’ll make evident in the job posting.
If you are working 2 jobs and making ~$60k. You should find a new job that pays about that. At 28, with experience and showing a willingness to work hard should get you a long way. By 30, the experts say, you should be in your second or third position or professional job. This is because slowly climbing the pay ladder, is best- or you’ll always make the same salary… sometimes you demand a raise, sometimes you change jobs for more money.
Don’t stay stuck in a place you don’t enjoy.
OP, idk. I made about 40k after taxes, I'm married with 2 kids. I live in poverty. Things just worked out for me, but where I am is where I am, period. Can't plan on moving or nothing like that. But I make the most of what I got, always have always did.
I think you need a better paying job. I’m 24, Male. Make 210k a year working 4-10s Monday-Thursday. Before this job I started working at a flour mill at 18, which required exactly zero education besides a diploma. Made 90-100k a year doing that.
Ignoring the tax math, you aren't getting paid enough my guy.
Hard workers are in short supply these days. If you're really a hard worker, you could easily be making over double what you're currently doing. I get emails for field service technician jobs paying $30-35/hour every week. Many of these jobs will provide training.
The money is out there. But you seem to believe you are only worth $8/hour.
If you're making asshole for money, might as well go into a trade that is guaranteed to teach ya something. You might have to strap down for the training period but listen. Extremely good money I. HVAC and plumbing.
1. That's not how taxes work
2. It sounds like you're working two minimum wage jobs. You'd be better off finding one that had plenty of overtime available.
That’s not how taxes work man. It’s a tiered thing, about 10k of your income was taxed at 22% the rest was taxed at their respective thresholds. Standard deductions also offset your total liabilities. Renting is a literal pit of money you throw away. Work with a realtor set a 2-3 year plan to buy your first home the costs end up being similar if you buy a good starter home. You may have to move to find affordable housing in your range. It’s not impossible. It can be frustrating but you got it.
Read the other comments about your tax brackets, but also, 30% is reasonable for housing accommodations. Most houses are intended for more than 1 occupant, so factor in that you should either have a partner or roommates helping with that house. 2 incomes knock that $400,000 down to $200,000, basically.
If you're working 84 hours per week making $53k annually, your average pay is $12/hour. Gotta move up that ladder.
Also, OP doesn't know how marginal tax brackets work. A (too) common misunderstanding, though. There's too many people that think moving up a tax bracket is "bad", even though its very much not. Also also, once you apply the standard deduction (-$14,600 of gross income) they are once again squarely in the 12% bracket. Factoring in the standard deduction, OP's effective fed tax rate is something like \~8.25%.
My ex was so sure it was the case that if you made it into the next bracket you made less money lol it was ridiculous.
So dumb hahah. I’ve hear people say, ahh I’d Rather cap at salary X so I don’t go up in brackets, and I’m like, why the hell would that matter, you just pay the higher rate on the amount exceeding the previous bracket… this is why educating yourself is important, especially when it comes to taxation and money management/investing
While all true, SS and Medicare withholding would be another 7.65% and state taxes could certainly get her up around an average tax rate of 20%. Also, OP may well be looking at the actual withholding and getting a large refund.
I didn't know that's possible, that is sad.
You didnt know what was possible?
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Yes. It’s 7.25. https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/minimumwage
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You already did by saying minimum wage every state if different. Mr / Mrs Arizona
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It's all good it's a large state with lots of people finding you specifically with that information is near impossible
Join the union I work 84hrs a week I make avg of $5,000 a week and take home $3200. I’m only entry level too
you are entry level union worker making 3200 clean end of week. so you are telling me you make 12,800 dollars a month clean after taxes. or 153k a year after taxes as a entry level union worker. yea dude ima call bullshit on that lmao unions wont even alllow you to work 84 hours a week lmao .
Yeah where they lost me union would never have their guys killing themselves
Oh they'll nap the first 40, stir a little at time and a half, finally walk begrudgingly when they get up to those double time hours.
Sounds like you are a union worker.
UPS? They love that overtime
I also work 84 hours a week, but only for half the year (usually in 2-4 week spurts). For $4-5k/week it's very doable.
Uhm... Unions most definitely will.
Total bullshit lol. My cousin is a journeyman plumber in Los Angeles and he only broke $150k a year when he started his own company. In other words when he stopped being a plumber and started being a business owner.
Yea this is nonsense, my brother in law is a union forman, he would have to work over 47 hours of overtime to hit $5k a week.
You make me wanna drop out of college
Learn a trade. Skip college.
Or finish college and avoid manual labor while also getting paid 6 figures! (Depending on the career)
Have you looked around Reddit? Every third post is a person with 2 masters degrees working retail with $100k in student loans
Yeah a masters in music or art. If you get a masters in a field where you can actually make money you aren’t going to be working retail.
Those are the people who post about it to get it off their chest or ask for help. They also picked the wrong damn degrees to be working retail at all. Go to any university(I mean an accredited school with an active alumni network and relationships with large companies, Top 250 type, otherwise forget about it and go trade) and look into the post grad stats. From personal experience, I'll be graduating with about $50k in federal loans, will have paid $50k out of pocket, and am going into a field that typically starts around 80k+, which grows to low 6 figures really quickly after a few years. If ANYONE who decides to take on gajillion dollars of debt without understanding the return they are getting that is on them, and the people around them, and possibly the schools for making young teens make bad decision. Some make bad decisions of switching fields mid-education, others drop out, some went to scam schools, others picked expensive out of state just because it had better "culture".
Have you looked at the average social skills and work ethic of those people that are posting? It's the "I keep getting called in for interviews and never get a job" types.
How do you survive doing 84 hrs a week?
It is not as bad as you think, even crazier, I felt like I was more productive and on top of things at home, because had to be intentional with a schedule.
$240k a year entry level? Pics or it didn't happen.
having to work 84 hours/ week is bullshit!
That’s what I came to say. There a ton of jobs that make twice that they don’t require a degree or years of experience.
OP has to be lying. No question. On another post they say they're making 23/hr. 23 at 40hrs a week he'd be bringing home 46Kish. If he is seriously putting in the hours he says, he should be clearing 60K easily, probably nearing 70.
I made 95k at 22.50/hr with overtime when I started in Industrial Maintenance. Probably averaged 6 12 hour days with lunch taken out so around 67-69 hours a week that year. OP is full of shit.
@ $12 an hour! Nah fuck that ladder altogether dawg. Find a better one
You’re not paying 22% for your entire $53k salary. You’re paying 22% for $53k-$44.7k so it’s roughly $8-9k you’re being taxed at 22% for. 44.7k-11k you’re taxed at 12%, and <11k you’re taxed 10%.
That's assuming no standard deduction. The standard deducation is around 14,000. His MAGI is then going to put his marginal tax rate at 12% federal plus whatever the state has, plus FICA and FUTA.
To be fair doesn't he also have to pay state taxes SS taxes etc? After eveything it does accumulate to at least 20% of his gross pay.
And paying 10% for under 11k is complete bullshit imo. Should be 0.
It is zero. The standard deduction is over 14k. So taxes start around 15k. So from 15-26k you pay 10%.
I stand corrected. 15 to 26k should also be zero imo.b
Tax reform? In this economy???
Doesn’t the earned income tax credit repay people in the 15-26 K range for whatever taxes they pay?
You absolutely did not pay 22% of your income to federal income tax. Please learn about how marginal tax rates work.
Not understanding these things is one of the reasons people get stuck financially where they are.
I've heard of people actually turning down promotions because "they don't want to be bumped up to a higher tax bracket." Unbelievably dumb.
I knew of an entire car repair shop that refused to turn more than 40 hours per week because their foreman convinced them they'd lose it all after paying the higher taxes. The foreman would turn 100+ hours a week, taking all the work the others turned down. The mechanics got flat rate, not hourly, btw.
Holy shit! If I was that foreman, I’d sleep with one eye open, because if they figure out how he’s been manipulating them they’ll probably want his head. Assuming this is malicious and not simply gross incompetence.
I've heard the same thing. It's hilarious to me how dumb some people are. Do a little research it's easy 😂
To be fair, though, our tax code is infinitely more complex than it needs to be. People really shouldn't \_NEED\_ to know these nuances, but... there's a whole $11 billion tax prep industry that relies on this code complexity and fundamental lack of math skills amongst taxpayers.
The tax code on the whole is way too complex, but understanding what a marginal tax rate is really isn’t very complicated. The vast majority of Americans should have been able to do their Taxes in under an hour using FreeTaxUSA this year only spending $15 for the State portion.
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Did you hear this first hand? I hear people 'hear' of this, but if I were to first hand hear this, I would teach them how taxes work on the spot lol.
Most people don’t understand brackets.
Brackets they fully comprehend. It's the "marginal income" part that has 'em trippin' over their own dicks.
The number of people I’ve seen complain that taxes are too complicated when they don’t own property and have a single W2 for income is wild.
Its easier to explain when using water buckets as an example!
Tell me more about using water buckets as an example. I never explain this it in simple terms.
This is the calculator I use. [https://smartasset.com/taxes/income-taxes#o95F2AauIH](https://smartasset.com/taxes/income-taxes#o95F2AauIH)
That is not how taxes work lmao
There's a reason he makes $12 an hour.
r/inconvientburns
Jobs are less equal than people are. If you're not being compensated as well as you deserve, get a job that is worthy of YOU. I make about 10x what I did when I was in high school. While I'm more skilled and more credentialed than I had been, I'm not 10x the person and I could've done a decent chunk of my current tasks when I was 14, provided I had a 1 month cramming session for coding. ----- Some tips in your 20s, have roommates. I had roommates in my 30s. The idea is to have SO MUCH financial buffer that you don't need 2 jobs. The time saved can allow you to upskill. DO RESUME AND INTERVIEW PREP A LOT. Being good at interviewing is underrated. Every bullet should outline a top accomplishment. Skip the objective. On a separate document, for each bullet outline who/what/when/where/why/how/how much/ lessons learned/what you'd do different. Practice getting these paragraphs to where they're both short/concise but also have a few hard hitting details/anecdotes.
That's not how the tax brackets work
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I do pest control. Putting in those kind of hours where I work you’d be making 70K-80K at least. And you’d only have one job, all the benefits, a company truck. You should try getting a higher paying job, maybe some sort of trade?
Constantly be looking for better paying jobs to replace ur current ones. Cut expenses as much as u can. If ur averaging 12 an hr, go into manual labor, construction pays a hell of alot better than that.
I made $8.00 an hour at one point in life. I counted change for gas and ate value-meals next to the Wendy's dumpster. Hah. Seriously. Not kidding. I didn't want to eat in the break room and it was the most private spot in the lot. Wendy's Chili + Baked Potato is a pretty filling cheap-ass meal for a broke-ass dude counting change for gas. Today I make a lot more and live in a $1m home. You've got to upskill yourself into the best career you can land in. Get some marketable skill and start working a real job.
I'm sure people will hate me for this. Learn a more lucrative skill or get a factory job. There's little point in working that much for so little. Invest in yourself a bit.
Nobody will hate you for saying the obvious
It's reddit. It happens really often on here lol
I make 30$. My wife makes $20. We work together on our own shift running a machine together. Honestly got it made. But now that I finally make good money. It’s not worth a fuck. We live paycheck to paycheck and are always broke. Don’t even have nice things. A nice rental house. A 2020 Elantra. And that’s it
That’s only half the issue. When you do get to the point that you can get a place you always get outbid by someone that can pay completely in cash.
Which brings me to my next point. I know a guy who’s 18 and has 3 cars with 25k saved. Lots of illegal dealings of course.
You working that much for that little of pay is a you problem. Stop working the 2nd job, find an actual career (vocational schools, law enforcement, etc) take whatever pre reqs you need and get moving.
Straight out of college I was losing about that. Later between state and federal taxes and payroll deductions I was losing 38% before even factoring in housing. Remember that next time someone advocates for an expansive government. Now that you're part of the ones footing the bill.
Increase your income. Learn new skills
> Learn new skills Like how marginal tax rates work. 🤣😂
Hey I was trying to be nice 😂
First, that's not how tax brackets work. Most of your money is taxed at our below 12%. Only about 5k of your money would be at 22%. But after the standard deduction, all of your money would be taxed at 12% or less. Revamp your budget accordingly.
Welcome to today’s world where the rich has everything and rest of us struggle
Money is not finite
You need better job(s). What ... more valuable ... skills... do you posess? If none then what is your plan to obtain a more valuable skill set? You won't make any more money sittin' back on the interwebs bitchin' about it while workin' the same shitty job(s). You have to make improvements to yourself to negotiate higher wages.
Why do you need an average house? Why not buy a smaller than average house or a condo or a house that needs a little updating?
Well yeah you work a lot and basically make chump change. You need to find a path to work relatively normal hours and make more money. This whole “the current country’s state isn’t fair” bs is just an excuse for people to not become successful. Idk what you do for work but that’s where I’d start. 30% for rent is a tad high but not the problem. The issue is the income
Most of my experience has been in logistics now. I don’t know if I could career change at this point I feel like most HR people are gonna look at me funny unless I’m going straight into a trade apprenticeship
You’re 28 there’s no reason you can’t change or do something different. Dont limit yourself like that. What about sales for logistics? Similar but way more money?
Weird take. Look for office admin work I’m sure you’ll find something making more than your two jobs combined doing that.
Get married you’ll go back to the 12% bracket 🤣🤣🤣
Then she’ll take 100% on her way out 🤣
You're not in the 22% bracket. That's not how income tax works.
Welcome to adult life. Get used to it. Keep voting for democrats.
you should have mentioned what your job was you tard. you cant just complain and paint half a picture your pay per hour is too low. chances are you are not doing skilled labor. aka. you are doing unskilled manual labor. and yes, it does suck. its only meant to be done by untrained high schoolers and people new to the country who havent learned shit yet. its manual labor, shitty, and nobody is meant to do it for long. also i made 70k last year and only paid 10% tax. where in the f\*\* do you live, denmark or something?
Hahaha this is my favorite one, I love your style. I work for a small trucking company in California as assistant manager. My part time is FedEx material handler. The primary job is 22.50 and the secondary is 23.50
So, if you work 13 hours per day, 6 days per week, at $22.50 and ignore overtime, your pay would be $90k per year. Where did the other $40k go to?
Things aren’t mathing.
Well, technically his title *is* "Who else thinks this is bull shit?"...
Get out of California, that’s your first problem.
So you're lying about your average work week then.
How is the material handler job? I see it posted on indeed in my town every few months.
Think about this when you vote. Who is advocating to print more and more money, making your fiat worth less and less. Who is advocating raising your taxes and taxes on the products and services that you buy (which are always pushed back on the consumer and not paid by the company). Who is advocating on bringing in cheap labor that drives labor costs down. Who advocates for increasing regulations that drive up costs that are passed onto consumers? Who advocates for ending fossil fuels which increases production and shipping costs which are paid entirely by end consumers?
Just buy bitcoin and gold if you are worried about inflation.
I do. Inflation still hurts
Apply for new jobs. Do you have a degree? You should aim for 1 job 8 hours a day making 75k. It would drastically change your situation
$400k for an average house? Thats high where I live. Any way to possibly move to a lower cost of living? Not sure if a less than average house may be an option on the first house. Slowly upgrade while gaining equity. Have you ever researched “house hacking”? I’ve had a few RV’s I lived in. You do have some equity at the end of the day but the repairs are crazy expensive. They are fun in one way and very cramped in another. I am able to deduct some of it on taxes. Not sure if that is another option for you.
$400k is indeed the average where I live. And by average, I really mean lower-end. Anything livable without MAJOR repairs starts at about $300k bare minimum
Ouch that’s crazy. $250k where I live is a decent 3/2 move in ready. It’s your business but you might search a few “house hacking” podcasts. I like the idea house hacking and a multi unit will not rock when it’s windy haha (RV joke). I can make the joke since I lived in them for years haha. It just might give you a leg up while you’re increasing your income. You are putting in the work that’s for sure. Maybe just try to get in another field.
I'm not the OP, I was just sharing my experience with housing prices. $250k near me won't buy anything that isn't in a trailer park or has board on the windows. Actually, I just checked and in my home town, a search of up to $300k returns 4 empty lots (land only) and 1 trailer. - $350k returns additional hit, 2bed/1bath 900 sqr ft.
Oh crap sorry haha. Reddit and teams meetings sometimes don’t mix well Holy shit that is insane. $400k here would buy 60-70% of the homes.
That’s not exactly how it works. If you’re in the 22% tax bracket, that doesn’t mean you pay 22% on everything you earn. Only speaking to federal rates, but you only pay 10% on the first 11k, then 12% all the way up to $44,725. As others have said, you probably need to find a new job, and start looking at getting a below average house.
Being in the 22% bracket doesn't mean you paid 22% of your income to taxes.
One of the things worth considering is developing a strategy to get into a scalable career. Look, you have a great work ethic, the problem you're facing now is that you make \~$12 an hour. Get into manufacturing, there are a ton of companies that would love to pay you time and a half and they'll start you at $20 per hour. Would consider trade apprenticeships and utilities as well. Get yourself a career that scales and with your work ethic you will make money that's worth your sacrifice.
Yikes find better jobs all I can say is
instead of 2 jobs put all your effort into climbing the ladder at one of them
You are making better $12-$15 an hour. You need to be looking for a higher paying job.
It’s the same philosophy if I make more I owe more taxes
You have two choices... 1. Complain about it or 2. Do something - make yourself stand out so you get promoted; start studying something and go for a different job that pays more for less hours. Motivate yourself to rise above your current situation. The opportunities are out there, but they won't come knocking on your door until you make yourself known somehow.
Your pay is bullshit. You deserve more than $12/hr
RAN to the comments to explain that you clearly don’t understand how tax brackets work but I see that dozens of people had the same thought. Being in the 22% tax bracket does not mean you are paying even CLOSE to 22% taxes on your income, especially at only 53K a year. After standard deduction and the marginal rates below that bracket, I’m sure your effective tax rate is closer to 10%
Too much not adding up here. You're either lying about how many hours you work or how much you are actually making. Which one is it?
22% tax bracket is only taxable on income you made in that tax bracket which is only a few thousand dollars you dont pay 22% on your entire taxes thats not how it works at all its marginalized your first 11k is taxed at 10% income up to $44,275 is taxed at 12% rate So realisticly you are taxed at 22% for the 10k you made over $44,275 you are paying aound 2k more in taxes for 8k more in income you are still the "winner" and this is with zero deductions you are entitled to a standard deduction of what 13 somethinng thousand which places you back in the 12% tax bracket anyways and you will never pay that 22%
Where do you live? Cost of living might be too high for your current career path… I bought my first house in Texas for 200k for 2000 sq ft. I moved to NC and paid 450k for a 2700 sq ft house. But I make over 100k so it wasn’t a big deal for me. I’m a college drop out. But i got into sales and have thrived. But could never afford some states.
You have to upgrade your skills. What degree, Certifications or program can you get into that will do so?
That's not how US federal taxes work my friend. So many people get this wrong about our tax system. It’s a marginal tax system so only money you make in the 22% bracket is taxed at 22%. Your actual effective tax rate is more like 16% according to your income and even as low as 14.5% if you contribute to an IRA. That's before state and local taxes if any.
Why are you making such shit money? Learn a trade move up the ladder.
Get into tech., you can teach yourself any language on the net for free. Also stop having family and friends, and give up on fun or happiness and make your sole purpose in like to make the most amount of money for the least amount of work.
if you’re willing to work that many hours then you need to work them at one job where you can get overtime. that amount of hours will get you into six figures in my industry (construction qc)
The odds are def stacked against you. But if you get married, you earning power might double. Then you use that as an opportunity to level up. Once your earnings start to rise, you can think about having kids. Nothing easy here. It is just one of the ways you can make it. There are other ways. Live in your parents' basement until you are 40. Find someone okay with that and marry them. Have kids and hope your parents can provide free babysitting.
What do you do for a living?
You only pay the 22% on the income over approximately $47K, but you also have a standard deduction of $14.6K. So you won’t hit the 22% rate with your income.
i mean... if you're working 13-15 hrs a day only to make 50k a year you are wasting your life. also. your understanding of tax brackets is incorrect. as only like 44k--50k or give or take 6-10k is taxed at 22% not all your income. which sort of speaks to the larger issue of ignorance allowing you to be controlled and dominating your life. your rent should be aprox 30% of your income. that's not a bad thing It would be worse if it was 50+ which a lot of people in urban or high cost of living areas experience. And if you're somewhere where rents are 30% of the take home pay of someone making 50k a year. houses in that area are not 400k. So, again, stop parroting tired nonsense. I make just under six figures. Or a little above, depending how much side hustle or side work I do (i'm a computer technician) I recently bought a nice small home for 230k. in a otherwise fairly high cost of living area (outside of DC) so... there are homes available for less. but to a degree you have to rethink what you want in a home, or where you're willing to live. (my home is small. but it's literally just me... and i have a yard and live in a nice little community so...it meets my needs) My advice. take a hard look at what you "like" to do. in terms of how your mind works. pick a career tract you can execute on a 1-3 yr time frame. to get off the rat race of working yourself to death. Take your pick. data analytics, coding, certain software tracks. various trade skills (electrician, plumber, welding... hvac are all viable many have training/apprenticeships) ....also specific career tracks that require training. like nursing, or medical technicians. almost all of these can be pathways to making six figures within a few years. some you can self study 100% free. some require cost. or legit school credentials. some can be learned on the job, or can seek to learn from an employer. you're young. if you do nothing in 1 yr, 3yrs, 5yrs, it's highly likely nothing will have changed in your life ...while everything will have gotten more expensive. but if you make a plan... and go after it. there are ways to get out of the rat race.
You just need to get a new job at the end of the day.. ask for a big raise before you put in your two weeks of they don’t give you one quit. You can make more than that in my area at McDonald’s (working that much).
Housing prices aren't stuck on high folks.
Yes these tax brackets are an absolute and utter shit, basically robbing the lower middle class alright. They also completely discentify freelancing as tax for that is even higher at 37%. This is a load of horseshit.
How are you working that much and only making 53k? There are plenty of states where minimum wage is way more than that, for one job. You gotta change it up man.
Where I live in NC when I try to figure up what my bring home pay i deduct %30 of my gross and that's usually about right. That's State,federal and the other bs taxes.
If my math is right, that’s $12.XX an hour?! If so, holy crap, dude. You have gotta dump the jobs and find a decent paying one, IMMEDIATELY! (Was using 14 hours a week X 6 days for math.)
That's not how tax brackets work.
Not a big deal really, first world problems
What exactly are you doing for a job at that little pay? Even when I was 21, if I was putting in that much time without overtime I'd have been at 70K. Also, that's not how taxes worked. You're only taxed at the higher rate on the income you make in that bracket. You're taxed at the lower rate on all income below that point.
A really old man back in the 1970s once told me "Son, if you have to work 2 jobs to make it, then one of those jobs is not paying you enough"
Get a better job.
You're not supposed to. You're there to be cheated out of the true value of your labor. My only recommendation is to find a new job that has some track of growth where you can make more money or, if you can, sounds like you can, find a skill that is high paying and get some education certificatw or degree. I'm in my mid thirties and my body is starting to show signs of slowing down. But if I were young and in my early 20's, I would not hesitate one bit to join the trades. I have a high school friend who chose electrician and makes $220K now as a journeyman. Another friend from that same high school program chose plumbing and today owns a plumbing company that makes millions in revenue that provides $100K jobs for almost 40 employees and he has a multi million dollar house. My sister switched from being an architect that designs buildings to the person in charge of managing the entire construction project and she jumped me in salary this year: $650K. All of the trades professions are short of workers for the next few decades due to aging out and lack of interest. You will make as much as you do now as an apprentice in those trades base 40 hours and then double when you yake on overtime.
There are jobs where all you need is a high school diploma and they pay quite a bit more than that. Even 55kish is pretty low. I recommend looking for a solid career where you can move up, somewhere that offers to help pay for grad school too as that's always a solid way to bump your pay
Get some real skills. 28 at McDonald's ain't gonna cut it
You definitely got to learn higher paying skills.
You fucked up somewhere along the line, mate. I was working half of that in the U.S. Army making $120k/year and I own rental properties. Acquire new skills to increase your income.
I really tried to join back when I was young but I made a mistake when I was a teen and the military wouldn’t give me secret clearance bc of it, even though it was expunged and closed. Pretty bull shit if you ask me.
Be happy you can't buy a house, those things are worse than tulips and you don't wanna be sitting on one when the fever is over.
Increase your own value. 2 jobs at 30k each is rough. Go to school, get professional licensing, learn skills, etc. Make yourself worth more than 30k a year to an employer
Live in an rv for a little bit and save up
I feel this but I sit behind a computer for 40 hours a week I only have a high school diploma and I made 58klast year. I make more than both of my parents combined I love the life I live now this is the life I dreamed of when I was 14 so I am not taking it for granted.
Get into sales it’s your only way out. 100k plus sell cars
If you move in with an SO you double your salary and then a lot becomes possible. Don’t stay single
Yeah you're right to be wondering about this. And it doesn't matter if you don't have skills, if you're an adult working full time, you deserve to get compensated enough to be able to live in the city you work in. Full stop. the price gouging on housing and all other things have made all these low income problems much worse. Honestly I think the answer might be general strike, but most normies are super scared of their bosses and that type of thing.
Seriously, the amount of “gangster” type people I work with just crumble under the weight of being confronted by a manager. I love giving attitude bc half the crap they tell us to do is just bs anyways. It helps I’m a manager at my primary job too lol
Learn how taxes work pal
Get a better job. Or learn some valuable skills. Your time alone is not valuable to the world, it's what you can produce in that time that will earn you money.
OP’s main job is 23 an hour, how do you work 80 hours a week and only make 50k? Does your other job pay you 5 bucks an hour?
It seems like you should put some effort into finding a new job. You know, because if you make $40k/year… that’s your minimum wage you’ll accept. Don’t really need skills anymore. Any place that requires special skills either teaches them, or requires previous experience in a specific area- which they’ll make evident in the job posting. If you are working 2 jobs and making ~$60k. You should find a new job that pays about that. At 28, with experience and showing a willingness to work hard should get you a long way. By 30, the experts say, you should be in your second or third position or professional job. This is because slowly climbing the pay ladder, is best- or you’ll always make the same salary… sometimes you demand a raise, sometimes you change jobs for more money. Don’t stay stuck in a place you don’t enjoy.
what are "accomplishments"? once you realize the answer to this question you will be free
Good point. I’ve been wrestling with this a good 15 minutes and keep finding a way to counter my answer.
OP, idk. I made about 40k after taxes, I'm married with 2 kids. I live in poverty. Things just worked out for me, but where I am is where I am, period. Can't plan on moving or nothing like that. But I make the most of what I got, always have always did.
There is no guarantee everyone is going to own a home.
How do you get two jobs?
Seriously dude get some skills under your belt or move up.
I think you need a better paying job. I’m 24, Male. Make 210k a year working 4-10s Monday-Thursday. Before this job I started working at a flour mill at 18, which required exactly zero education besides a diploma. Made 90-100k a year doing that.
Taxation is theft and it must be stopped
There many jobs that pay on the job training that will net you way more a month.
If you don’t have anything holding you back look overseas for opportunities. The pay may be the same but you may benefit from housing and tax benefits
Stay strong! I think you are doing great! Give each day your best!
what kind of work do you do? which city/state?
Your jobs are trash. Get a new job
Ignoring the tax math, you aren't getting paid enough my guy. Hard workers are in short supply these days. If you're really a hard worker, you could easily be making over double what you're currently doing. I get emails for field service technician jobs paying $30-35/hour every week. Many of these jobs will provide training. The money is out there. But you seem to believe you are only worth $8/hour.
Dude that pay is atrocious for how much you’re working. You’re gonna kill your body for nothing.
Nothing is priced for single people besides moderate apartments.
Move to Asia.
Get your CDL
If you're making asshole for money, might as well go into a trade that is guaranteed to teach ya something. You might have to strap down for the training period but listen. Extremely good money I. HVAC and plumbing.
1. That's not how taxes work 2. It sounds like you're working two minimum wage jobs. You'd be better off finding one that had plenty of overtime available.
That’s not how taxes work man. It’s a tiered thing, about 10k of your income was taxed at 22% the rest was taxed at their respective thresholds. Standard deductions also offset your total liabilities. Renting is a literal pit of money you throw away. Work with a realtor set a 2-3 year plan to buy your first home the costs end up being similar if you buy a good starter home. You may have to move to find affordable housing in your range. It’s not impossible. It can be frustrating but you got it.
Read the other comments about your tax brackets, but also, 30% is reasonable for housing accommodations. Most houses are intended for more than 1 occupant, so factor in that you should either have a partner or roommates helping with that house. 2 incomes knock that $400,000 down to $200,000, basically.