Job offer. Pay estimate?

dansamy · Sep 17, 2013

Depends largely on the tax rates & your other deductions. I'm guessing about 2800/month.

Calculate your monthly gross. Then, Google a calculator to determine your net income.

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llg, PhD, RN · Sep 17, 2013

I am thinking your net is going to be significantly under $3000 -- though it will depend on so many factors that it is hard to say. For example, are you assuming that you will not be working any extra nights? In other words, your totals for the month will be 36 hours of nights, 36 hours of weekends, and 72 hours of straight weekdays? That may not be how it actually works out. You should confirm that with your employer.

Also, what will they deduct for benefits? Health insurance? Dental insurance? Retirement? etc. The Human Resources Department or Nurse Recruiter should be able to give you those figures.

When I do the math, I estimate a little less than $3000 take home (based on my experience making a yearly salary of $53,000 my first year living in Virginia many years ago) -- and that's not counting much for deductions such as insurance and retirement. Be sure to leave some room in your budget for those things, as well as for unexpected expenses. You can always benefit by having a little extra cash at the end of the month -- and that's much better than running short. If I were you, I would build my budget on $2500 per month and then have the potential to be pleasantly surprised when I had some cash left over at the end of the month.

dansamy · Sep 18, 2013

Yeah. My $2800 estimate used very conservative estimates for insurance & retirement.

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GabyRn · Sep 18, 2013

Thank you, ladies! I dont anticipate needed health insurance, but youre right about retirement. I file my taxes as single/0 so my taxes tend to be higher.

llg, PhD, RN · Sep 18, 2013

You're welcome. I have moved around the country a lot in my career and been in your situation many times. I try to be very conservative with my budget at first to be sure not to over-spend. Then, after I have lived in a place for a few months, after I see how the money is working out ... I adjust my budget based on the new information. I find that I am usually able to increase my savings rate and build up cash reserves a little more quickly than expected because I have established a relatively frugal lifestyle in those first few months. When I get a raise, most of it goes into savings (or debt repayment) rather than "fun stuff" -- though I keep a little of it out of savings to accommodate inflation and a few fun things.

Over time, that approach has helped me build up a strong financial foundation of savings for short term, medium term, and long term goals. As a single woman with no kids, I have put myself through graduate school twice with only a minimal student loan ... bought a water-front condo ... and expect to have about $1.2 million in retirement funds when I retire in a few years.

I don't know how old you are or how much financial experience you have ... but you are certainly being wise to estimate your take-home pay and make a budget for yourself. Good luck to you! ... And welcome to Virginia!