Can a registered nurse live comfortably with their salary?

I live in California. I'm not talking mansion with nice cars and buying anything I want. Just some middle class apartment and a car like a mini cooper or something. I'm just wondering. I'm working to get my BSN right now, and I know I shouldn't be thinking too far into the future, but I just want to know that when/if I eventually get a job, will I be able to live comfortably? I'm single, no kids, just me and a friend being room mates. (she's also working towards her BSN). We wouldn't care for vacations or anything like that, just hanging out around the city is all I can think of as relaxing. Nothing big.

I was wondering the same thing. I just graduated from a BSN program in Alabama, and I would really like to purchase a new or slightly used Acura TSX. I start my new job on the Cardiothoracic ICU in September, so I was planning on buying one in November/December.

For p.m. shift new grads here in Alabama, the after-tax take home pay is roughly $2300 per month. My rent, groceries, cable, power, gas, insurances, etc. all adds up to about $1400, leaving me $900 each month to play with. After the down payment and my trade-in, the monthly note for the Acura is going to be around $275.

So, even after the new/used car payment, I can still save $600ish each month. And that's without any PRN shifts on another unit, or overtime.

My only concern is that I am going back to CRNA school in 3 years (the nurse manager at the CICU asks that his employees dedicate 2 years of service to him before he will write a letter of rec. Meaning I wouldn't start the program until I've worked for 3 years). Anyways, I would either have to use my savings to pay off the car before I begin the CRNA program, or continue making the payments during the program. I've had my current car since I turned 16, which was 7 years ago. So I would really like to reward myself for my academic accomplishments.

Thoughts??

Specializes in Peds/Neo CCT,Flight, ER, Hem/Onc.
I was wondering the same thing. I just graduated from a BSN program in Alabama, and I would really like to purchase a new or slightly used Acura TSX. I start my new job on the Cardiothoracic ICU in September, so I was planning on buying one in November/December.

For p.m. shift new grads here in Alabama, the after-tax take home pay is roughly $2300 per month. My rent, groceries, cable, power, gas, insurances, etc. all adds up to about $1400, leaving me $900 each month to play with. After the down payment and my trade-in, the monthly note for the Acura is going to be around $275.

So, even after the new/used car payment, I can still save $600ish each month. And that's without any PRN shifts on another unit, or overtime.

My only concern is that I am going back to CRNA school in 3 years (the nurse manager at the CICU asks that his employees dedicate 2 years of service to him before he will write a letter of rec. Meaning I wouldn't start the program until I've worked for 3 years). Anyways, I would either have to use my savings to pay off the car before I begin the CRNA program, or continue making the payments during the program. I've had my current car since I turned 16, which was 7 years ago. So I would really like to reward myself for my academic accomplishments.

Thoughts??

I sure as heck hope that your budget includes 10% of every paycheck going into savings or a retirement account.

Yes. Like I said, after all my bills, groceries, car payment, insurance, etc.. I will still have $600 left to save. If I only work one overtime shift each month, I can save $900. Which adds up to about $32,000 total at the end of the 3 years. I could use part of that to pay off what's left of the car loan before I begin grad school.

Also, I forgot to mention that I don't have any outstanding student loans. My father was in the armed forces, so my college work was paid for.

Do you think the new car is a bad idea?

Specializes in Peds Medical Floor.

Just wanted to say don't count on the OT shift. I just got off of orientation at my new job. I took a PT job because that's all I could get. The floor hasn't been full since I started and there is NO OT. When you budget, budget what you are guaranteed, not what you hope to pick up.

Thanks! Yeah, I'm not expecting to be able to get any overtime until I've been working for a few months. And I'm also going to get a PRN job! :-)

Specializes in Hospice / Ambulatory Clinic.

Definately try and find a gently used car say 1-2 years old so your not paying full price. Having said that both my husband and I bought our cars brand new which worked out to be a good thing because we've been able to keep them 11 years and 8 years with no break downs. (One american made and one japanese made so quality goes both ways) So if your planning to keep your car a loooong time then sometimes paying the extra for new makes sense since 3 years on a car when you buy it is 3 years less it's going to last you.

Yeah I'm certainly leaning towards a certified 2012. And Acuras are very reliable, so I'm pretty comfortable with purchasing a used one. Even with buying a certified 2012, the price drops by about 3-4K.

Specializes in Hospice / Ambulatory Clinic.

The dealer models are the best. My husband bought one of his cars that way. A "year old" car that had less than 200miles was used to test drives only

Specializes in FNP, ONP.

Never borrow money to pay for a depreciating asset.

Short answer...yes. Longer more boring answer...while you won't get rich you can live quite comfortably especially if you avoid the major pitfalls of money management. First you have to learn and accept the difference between wants and needs. You want a Mini Cooper but do you NEED an expensive car? I want a pool in my backyard. I can afford it but I don't need it so...no pool. It would be a stupid use of my money. Credit cards are for emergencies and rare special occasions when you don't want to carry cash. If you do use a credit card to purchase something it should only be used if you have the cash in the bank to cover the purchase. Pay them off EVERY month! Seriously, credit cards are not invisible money. If you don't have it...don't spend it. Your first splurge on your first paycheck (contrary to what has been posted on other threads) should be an appointment with a financial planner. He/she can help you plan for paying off student loans but most importantly will train you to start saving for retirement now not when you're 40 and you realize at the rate you're going you will be living in a box eating dog food when you get old. If you start when you're young you should have plenty of money to live comfortably when you're old. Also, although heavily taxed that money will be available to you if something catastrophic happens. Mini Coopers are cute, but expensive. Make owning one a goal for the future and start planning for it now. Buy a car you can afford to pay off in 2-3 years (not 5 or more!). Drive it for 10 (believe me it goes by very quickly) and for the 7-8 years you own it free and clear put what you had been paying for a car payment into a special account. At the end of the 10 years you will have a really nice down payment plus the trade-in value of your car to buy an MC and still keep the payment within reach. You should not go into financial ruin for a car...it's just transportation. Apartments are great but eventually you might want a house. Think about this carefully when you start looking. Do you really need 4,000 sq feet of McMansion that you can barely afford. When I bought mine I was pre-approved for $400,000 but that absolutely does not mean I could afford a $400,000 house (a lot of house here in Ohio). The bank wanted to make money off of me but why should they get my hard-earned cash? I bought a small 2 bedroom house in a great neighborhood for less than $120,00 and I can comfortably make the payments. I have a nice car (Subaru Forester), I take 2 vacations a year, have all the stuff I need and all the toys I want (bikes, small sailboat, kayak) while still maintaining a robust retirement account and 3 YEARS of living expenses in savings (used to be one year but in this economy you just never know). I can buy all the clothes I want, splurge a little on things for the house, hire a personal trainer because I make good decisions on where my money goes in general. So if you're smart about you absolutely can have a nice lifestyle and, lucky you, you're just starting the great adventure. You have a lot of fun ahead of you.

Love this answer

Specializes in Hospice / Ambulatory Clinic.

Yeah but that answer really doesn't fit the OP's need or neighborhood. She lives in LA there is NOWHERE in LA you can buy for $120,000 (hard to find something for $400k either) so renting a nice apartment is probably as good as it gets. Also Mini Coopers aren't expensive, they really aren't. The OP was asking us if she will be able to buy the things SHE deems important. Maybe she doesn't want to drive a Subaru so she can afford a sailboat instead.

One of the great things about living in LA is the staycations you can take.

Anyways OP again my answer is yes a middle class apartment and a mini is possible but apparently everyone things you have fancy tastes.

Specializes in Geriatrics, Home Health.
Don't leave money on the table. Take full advantage of your employer's 401 K match.

What is this "401(k) match" of which you speak?

+ Join the Discussion