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.

[BlueDevil,DNP, DNP, RN]

Never borrow money to pay for a depreciating asset.

[calinicumurse]

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

[Not_A_Hat_Person, RN]

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?

[FlyingScot, RN]

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.

Did you actually read my post? No where in it did I tell her to only spend 120k on a house or to buy a Subaru or a sailboat. What I gave her were examples of how I am able to live comfortably on the salary for my part of the country by using good judgement when it comes to money. I never told her not to rent a nice apartment. I didn't even tell her not to get a Mini. I just said wait until you an afford it while still putting money in savings. I gave her sound financial advice born from many years of experience and fiscal responsibility. People get themselves into real trouble with the "I want it now" mentality." Why do you think there are so many foreclosures these days? Or how about bankruptcies and student loan defaults? Because people don't think about tomorrow when it comes to spending money today. Everybody told her she could live comfortably on her salary...including me.

[sallyrnrrt, ADN, RN]

This post should be a sticky.

amen!, right on