A Week In Bay Area, CA, On A $1.3 Million Joint Income

📋 The basics

• 💰 Salary: $1.3 million (joint income including base, stock, and bonuses)
• 📍 Location: Bay Area, CA (currently in Seattle for a remote work stint)
• 🏠 Net Worth: $2.8 million ($1.8M in investments, $1M in home equity)
• 👤 Occupation: Housewife
• 👫 Household: Me (37) and my husband, L.

💸 Monthly expenses

• 🏠 Mortgage: $8,000 (we overpay to kill the $900k balance faster)
• 🚗 Car Loan: $396.80
• 🔌 Utilities: $525
• 🛡️ Insurance: $1,104 (Home, Car, and Health)
• 📺 Subscriptions: $103 (Hulu, Disney+, Netflix, Apple One, Spotify, Peloton, Prime)
• 🌳 Yard: $100
• 💳 Credit Card Fee: $37.50 (Chase Sapphire Reserve)

🧐 The bigger picture

This week was a bit of a whirlwind since we are currently staying in Seattle while L. works remotely. Being in a temporary spot always makes me spend more on food and random excursions. We are in a very fortunate position with L.'s tech income, which allows us to be aggressive with our mortgage while still having a massive "fun" budget. I try to be mindful, but the Bay Area (and Seattle) prices are just reality at this point.

The week was a mix of high and low. We spent $166 on three crab legs and some salmon at a fish market (total sticker shock), but then we split a $9 Jimmy John's sandwich for lunch the next day. I also did some serious damage at Mario's, a high-end department store. I walked out with a Brunello Cucinelli sweater and Valentino boots that cost more than some people's cars. It is a weird life where I tip a street performer $3 but then drop nearly $4k on an outfit in the same afternoon.

🏁 Final thoughts

Total spending for the week: $5,590.78.

Most of that was the shopping spree, but our "normal" spending on food and coffee is still pretty high. We eat out or grab specialty coffee almost every single day. I know the $1.3M income is a huge privilege, and I try not to take it for granted, even when I am complaining about the price of gourmet popcorn at a museum. We are focused on hitting that $0 mortgage balance, but we definitely are not depriving ourselves in the meantime.