What YOU Make!

PEOPLE WILL ASK you how much you pay in rent. They’ll tell you the kinky sex positions a girlfriend enjoys. They’ll even reveal creepy shit about their aging parents that you never even wanted to know. But they won’t tell you how much they earn. It’s the last taboo in New York. So of course, we want to know.

We surveyed friends and people on the street and while they stood in long fast-food lines (thanks Shake Shack). We exploited social networks (both real and online). We badgered publicists. We even called in a few favors. One young reporter worked hard on the case—plying gas station clerks, bodega types and tattoo artists—but they weren’t giving it up. “It’s far harder to get this info than I thought,” he wrote. “Never been turned down so much in my life.” No kidding. One White Castle cashier berated him for asking and told him to email corporate. Sheesh. Ever think for yourself?

But we kept at it. Not so we can exploit or mock anyone. The fact is, we have just weathered the worst recession in our lifetimes. And even though people are slowly finding employment and new opportunities, they will most likely suffer some sort of professional and financial atrophy no matter how hard they work. In his recent story in The Atlantic, Don Peck put it in bleak terms: “The worst effects of pervasive joblessness—on family, politics, society—take time to incubate, and they show themselves only slowly… If it persists much longer, this era of high joblessness will likely change the life course and character of a generation of young adults—and quite possibly those of the children behind them as well. It will leave an indelible imprint on many blue-collar white men—and on white culture.”

So, we took the pulse of the city and highlighted how a swath of New Yorkers are living. We discovered that quite a few people are making their peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to bring to the lunchtime grind. Or they are so busy working that they “don’t have time to spend money.” Really? And then of course, there are the numerous ways people scam the city to get free meals, free drinks or free rent. But for every person making under 20 grand a year, we would happen upon a lawyer or corporate drone who sounded a little sheepish for feeling secure and well-compensated. Can you blame them? We wanted to understand how people are making it (or not making it). And despite all we found, one thing made us relieved: No one sounded hopeless. ------

Tom Mylan, 33, Williamsburg

Butcher

“I make about $10 an hour working the kind of crazy job I have (about 70 hours a week). You can do the math. “I don’t eat and get most of my booze for free (thanks Brooklyn Brewery!)

Frank, 22

Social Worker

$32,000

“I save money by grocery shopping at Trader Joe’s, cooking dinner at home, packing lunch every day and rarely taking cabs.”

Stephen X., 31, Harlem

Project Manager at a marketing company, part-time bakery employee

$85,000

“I was a bit of a credit card nut when I first moved to the city 10 years ago. An older gay friend gave me this sage advice that turned me around: ‘There’s nothing sexy about being broke.’ Since then, I’ve shut down all my cards, have aggressively paid them off (only have six months left to go) and live a cash-only lifestyle. I have a good job, but I also supplement my income by working at Big Booty Bread Co. in Chelsea on Saturdays. It provides a break from my normal job and also puts some extra dough (no pun intended) in my pocket every week.”

Glen P., 24, Brooklyn

Children’s Athletic Coach at Community Center

$25 an hour per class; $15 an hour observing the gym

“Your rent is supposed to be one third of what you make, but for me it’s about one half the amount. When the rent check is due on the first of the month, it gets cleared and I only have about $50 in my account and I have to build back up again. I don’t have much of a cushion. In addition to my community center work, I have some families that I baby-sit for. I’m making just enough that I’m not asking my parents for help or anything. It just means that I’m dead broke all the time.”

Wayne W., 26, Queens

Bank Account Administrator

Approx. $45,000

“I hate my job, today’s economy is not helping anybody in our age group and it’s extremely hard to survive. But for some reason, it gets done. I live at home with my parents and help pay bills, but I do not receive support from anyone but myself. Putting myself in a state of mind to save money has been the biggest challenge. I have started an E*trade account and made some extra cash for myself down the road, but don’t think I am a millionaire.”

Gray C., 26, Chelsea

HR Secretary (weekdays); Restaurant Host (weekends)

Approx. $40,000

“I work six days a week, sometimes seven, yet never seem to have money. But don’t feel too bad for me: I do tend to go out to eat every night, whether it be Subway or some overpriced Italian place on Eighth Avenue—not to mention I drink more martinis than anyone ever should during a week’s time. It’s all worth it though, at this point in my life anyway. I finally moved to the neighborhood I want to live in after living in Central Harlem for three years, but it’s two guys in a one-bedroom in Chelsea. The living room has been turned into a bedroom. Perfect for someone who’s just sleeping there, but much to small to host a get-together.

Eliza, 23

Assistant Buyer for a fashion retailer

$45,000

“I walk as much as possible instead of taking cabs or the subway. I also bring my lunch to work every day instead of eating out. I dine out at restaurants with friends no more than once a week and make a strict monthly budget for myself—and stick to it!”

Marin R., 34, New Jersey

Homemaker/Novelist

I save our family about $600 a month by not working.

“As an MBA-toting, CFPgathering working girl, I made about $40,000 last year working as a Casualty Adjuster at Mercury Insurance Group. The company sucked me out of precious time with my child (pictured at right). More importantly, I was only taking home a net total of $2,400 per month. Out of that income, $1,500 went to childcare, leaving us with $900 of durable income. If you take into account gas, lunch money and the cleaning people who kept the house dirty, it was actually costing us about $300 per month for me to work. Two incomes for us wound up costing money, even in these difficult economic times. So in January I quit to take care of my family and to pursue my dream of publishing a novel. We now live off of my husband’s salary and have more money in the bank because of it. Also, an agent is looking at my novel. Bottom line: better not to be a slave to the bottom line. Whether it is an insurance or credit card company, it will take your money and your spirit and leave you with less to show on your bank statement.”

Joanna Angel, 29, Brooklyn (and part-time in L.A.)

Performer, Director and Producer for BurningAngel Entertainment

“I guess I have to keep something secret, but I do make money. My advice: Film yourself getting fucked in the ass on camera on a very familiar Brooklyn rooftop, put it on the Internet, then once it is live throw parties at bars to celebrate your anal, um... exposure.”

Tim G., 30, Brooklyn

Architect

$55,000

“I bring lunch to work every day, and cook most nights.”

Michael F., 27, Manhattan

First-year law associate

$115,000

“I got lucky because my dad helped me with tuition for law school, so I only have a little bit of loans to pay off. But it’s nice: I get to do things I couldn’t before, like go to friends’ expensive charity events.”

Carl, 34, Brooklyn

UPS delivery guy

$80,000

“I get by OK: I don’t have kids. If I had kids, it would be another story, I can tell you that.”

Thomas, 23

Education H.R.

$42,500

“I only go out one or two nights a week. I buy groceries once every two weeks, and then eat stuff like cheese and crackers every night.”

Jessica L., 34, Manhattan

Corporate Lawyer

Base salary of $250,000 (plus optional bonus)

“My first job out of college was in publishing making $25,000 and then $29,000 a year respectively. After two years I went to law school, paying for some of it with a leftover CD that had been saved for my education, some of it by working as a summer associate at a large corporate firm, by working as a research assistant for two out of the three years of law school, and by earning merit-based scholarship money. I still had a small loan at the end of school which I paid off within the first year out. I have worked as a lawyer for seven years for a large corporate firm and for the federal court system. My first job out of law school at a corporate firm paid $125,000 and I made approximately $100,000 a year when

"I left the firm after three years to work for the federal government. I later re-joined the firm after my stint with the government. When I started making $125,000 right out of law school, I was not sure how I would even spend it all, but money is insidious: the more you have, the more you seem to need. Now I feel very comfortable, but am careful to save a lot because of the current bad job market for lawyers. It’s also hard to feel wellcompensated when the bankers on the deals I work on make multiple millions a year!”

Alan H., 27, Hamilton Heights

Graduate Teaching Fellow, Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism

$40,000

“So my teaching fellowship is about twothirds of my income, which is obviously not enough to live on, so I supplement that by doing any freelance work I can get. I’ll produce commercial videos. I’ll create websites. I’ll also try to do freelance journalism, but there’s just not enough time—and it doesn’t pay anything. Video production is about $40-hour.

“Because I live in Hamilton Heights, the rent is really cheap. I live in a fourth floor walk-up, have three roommates (with one bathroom). Financially, I don’t feel stretched because my rent is so cheap. I also don’t feel stretched because I don’t have time to do anything fun. I work at least 12 hours a day, and I don’t really go out—ever. So there’s not really time to spend any money.”

Kathleen O., 26

Public High School Teacher

Approx. $65,000

“I’m a high school teacher, have two volleyball coaching jobs and I work a bit on the side after school. I have a decently priced apartment and did not have to spend money on college loans due to a full academic scholarship. I only spend when I can and never buy what I can’t pay off right away in one payment.”

Maya Edelman, 29, Windsor Terrace

Animator

Approx. $18,000

“Most of my money goes to art supplies and cigarettes. Other then that, I eat a lot of sandwiches, do things that cost nothing, mend my clothing. I’m a fan of movie nights and big potluck dinners, which are cheap. And packing lunches helps a lot.”

Toni A., 35, Staten Island

Vice President of Claims

$75,000

“Even in bad economic times, the insurance industry booms. Because it is a necessary evil, there are always jobs. Luckily, I have been able to stay with the same company—which is just over the Outerbridge and 20 minutes from my home—about 10 years. Recently, I was able to purchase my first home in Staten Island—taking advantage of the housing bust—at a price that wouldn’t have been conceivable two years ago. Even though I had to put some work into it, it’s still much cheaper than paying rent and the interest from my mortgage is tax deductible. Even with economic woes, there are still jobs to be had and bargains to be bought.”

Lindsey L., 26, Queens

Freelance Yoga Instructor

$19,000

“Just started as a freelance instructor this year (mostly at a studio in the Upper East Side), and it’s totally different than working for a corporate studio— which I learned when I got my tax information. I survive by working seven days a week and subbing every class I can get.”

Caroline P., 26, Brooklyn

Medical Student at NYU

$18,300

“I get a stipend from my parents and from my student loans. What I hate is that it makes me feel like I’ve regressed since I first graduated from college and had a research job.”

Sarah J., 25

Junior Art Director at an advertising agency

$35,000

“My salary is extremely low for my position, but I think it’s helped me avoid multiple layoffs. I do sporadic freelance work, and I live with roommates in a cheap loft space that didn’t have doors on the individual rooms when I moved in. I also have my parents’ credit card in case of emergencies, but I’ve only used it to buy train tickets to visit them.”

Becka W., 25, Bushwick

Web Designer

$65,000

“I save on rent by living with my boyfriend and living in Bushwick, but still we pay a good amount. He makes more than me, so he pays all the bills, while I buy groceries and dinners out and stuff like that. But we split rent evenly. My mom pays my cell phone bill, but that’s all the help I get from my family.”

Tom T., 27, Manhattan

Middle School Health Teacher

$45,000

“I do a lot of bartering! I use free health services from www. rockdovecollective. org and currently receive acupuncture in exchange for Spanish lessons. I receive some meals from a member of a community time bank, and I participate in co-counseling, which is a type of peer counseling exchange .”

Mary Laura Brown, 29, Bed-Stuy

Designer

$48,000

“In an aggressive attempt to pay off debt and save for a rainy day, I’m currently trying to live on half of what I take home. It means always having meals planned out and bringing bothlunch and dinner with me to work, since I never get home in time to have dinner there. Also, I utilize Netflix and the public library for movies. My advice is to use what you already have before buying anything new. If I don’t love it, I don’t buy it. And I learned to utilize leftovers—and head to Red Hook for a day when I think I need to go on a vacation.”

Nate Dorr, 28, Windsor Terrace

Research coordinator

$37,000 (or about $17.78/hr)

“I rarely buy clothing (each year a few pairs of jeans, one pair shoes, lots of T-shirts), so most of my paycheck goes to rent, phone, student loans, MetroCard and food. I eat cheese, bread, pasta and veggies at home or eat cheaply on the go—like falafel, halal carts and pizza. I almost never pay more than $20 in any one restaurant; I don’t drink a lot in bars, and I avoid expensive cocktails. The rest of the money goes to movies and cheap concerts. I think being busy with personal art, video, music and photography projects saves me a lot of money by filling up all my time and motivating me to stay in when I can. Also, going to free art shows and concerts with $2 PBR helps save money.”

Patricia Zalewski, 24, Queens

Visual Merchandise Coordinator

$40,000

“The city is bittersweet, but there are a lot of things to do that are super cheap, like art openings every Thursday in Chelsea. Free wine is a bonus. I guess it’s a good thing that I work so much because it is less time for me to spend my money. I also save money by making lunch and dinner and only going out to dinner on average twice a week. I don’t go shopping that much and, when I do, it’s always a bargain. I only buy things I need and splurge once in a while. I love living in Queens! I hang out at my apartment and neighborhood a lot rather than going to the city and being tempted by all the fabulous things you can buy. The hard part is getting my friends to visit since they think it’s a foreign country.”

David Callicott, feel like 28 (but actually older), Prospect Heights

Candle Man

Approx. $0

“I don’t make much. As in: nothing. We just launched GoodLight this month, a natural candle company, and I haven’t seen a paycheck yet. I spent all of 2009 writing the GoodLight business plan and searching for investors, neither of which paid. I survived by not paying rent and laying off the diamonds and Gucci purchases. That required leaving NYC and extra-bedroom-surfing across America—mostly California and Colorado. I kept food costs down by eating lots of eggs, and kept alcohol costs down by mostly drinking water. I made some cash working the occasional odd job, but I also have some rental properties in Telluride, Co., that help keep me afloat. I came back in December to prepare for the launch, and was kindly allowed to stay in my business partner’s parents’ Uptown studio while they were out of the country for the winter. Now I’m in Brooklyn, but I’ve got affordable rent—and I’m still eating lots of eggs.”