lochdaz-of-blantyre

Ok...so i've had the offer from my existing firm to transfer internally to our NY location. They've offered $165k. My question is...how can i work out what I'd have in take home given that my wife would not be working (or at most part time) and we have 1 child (18months).

The expat package isn't great but does offer me healthcare however I'd be responsible for dependents. They'll find and pay for housing for 3 months. Cover all visa/immigration costs. Honor my UK holiday allowance and provide $5k towards relocation costs.

We are looking to get at least 3bed (prefer 4 bed) home in commuting distance so NJ or upstate NY. Can anyone give me an idea of your annual utilities costs for a home of that size, house insurance etc?

I have a meeting in NY with our HR people but wondered if any of you could offer some advice.

Thanks so much in advance.
Daz

Ozzidoc

Which visa will you be on? I'm assuming L1.....wifey can't work if you are onan H visa.

robin1234

The median salary for a teacher (that is, someone with a master's degree and a teaching certificate) in New York City is less than $60,000. So, I'm guessing you can live comfortably on $165,000.

neil

Our NJ 4 bed house - gas/elec averages approx. $280 a month; our home insurance is over $1300 a year (but is an old house, so would probably be cheaper on a new house; plus may be lower depending on the coverage levels you opt for).

Other utilities will depend on where you are too. Our rubbish collection is included in our taxes but in some areas it won't be; water is provided by our town - it's metered and we pay an average of about $100 a quarter.

For other things: phone - best bet is something like Lingo for less than $30 a month including calls to UK; Verizon DSL internet - $30 a month. Cable or satellite will vary from about $40 a month to over $100 depending on what channels you want. Property taxes (if you're buying a house - not clear from your post) will depend on area and can vary from $3000 a year (in a very cheap area) to huge amounts in some areas - figure an average around $8000.

Bill_S

The following is a very rough guide.

165k is in the 28% federal bracket. Therefore subtract 46,200.

That salary is above the FICA social security limit, so you subtract the maximum of 6,324.

Medicare rate is 1.45%, so subtract 2,392.50

New York State tax rate for that salary 6.85% (very rough estimate), so subtract 11,302.50.

Total tax so far is 66,219.00 bringing net pay to 98,781.00. Using neil's rough guess of property tax, your take home pay would be in the neighborhood of 90,000 per year.

Please note that I've deliberately ignored any deductions or adjustments, I just wanted to give you a ballpark figure. FWIW that's a very good salary by anyone's standards, and if you don't go overboard you should be able to live comfortably. By going overboard, I mean feeling rich and winding up with a million dollar house, two big and expensive cars, big boat, child in expensive private school, and no money left over at month's end.

I'm sure if I made any math errors somebody will be along to correct me

neil

I think I remember there being an NYC income tax on top of the state one.

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dof/html/pdf.../pit_rates.pdf

Bill_S

You're right, there is. But since the OP mentioned commuting, I assumed he wouldn't be living in NYC proper.

Ozzidoc

Is the NYC income tax based on residence or employer location?

Bill_S

The table neil linked to refers to residents. I don't know if you take a tax hit for just working in NYC. Rete might know, if she's reading this thread.

neil

Maybe you don't. I thought you did end up paying because I was told you can take a pay stub to the NYC library and join even if you don't live in NY as long as it shows an NYC work address. I assumed this was because you paid city taxes, but I may well be wrong.

Jerseygirl

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dof/html/ser...s_income.shtml

Duncan Roberts

I'd be more worried about that than the tax. Depending on the situation and what life throws at you, paying for private healthcare for your dependents could be very costly.

robin1234

Also, if you live in Yonkers you pay Yonkers tax in addition to NYS tax.

Bill_S

I hope he'll be able to add his family members to his employer's plan (at his expense). The cost for doing that ought to be less than obtaining completely separate coverage for them.

MsElui

oh - i hadnt caught that - I would negotiate with the employers with a minimum acceptable offer of having all the family (current and potential kids) included in the health insurance. the rest i could live with. if feeling lucky could ask for a flight home for the family per year (but you would need to be jammy to get that lol)