Can These Pop Culture Icons Actually Afford Their Home in 2019

About:

As the head of the family, Homer and wife Marge have three children together; Bart, Lisa and Maggie. Homer, as the family’s main provider, works at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant as the Nuclear Safety Inspector. Homer is portrayed in the show as a walking American working-class stereotype: he’s obese, rude, sometimes incompetent, very lazy, dim-witted, hot-tempered and addicted to beer, fatty food and watching TV. However, while Homer is all of these things, he does care about his family (even if he appears not to at times); he often tries his hardest to be a decent man and is fiercely devoted to his family, especially when someone in the family needs him. Despite living a fairly simple life, Homer has experienced a number of remarkable experiences most people would only dream of, including going to space, climbing the tallest mountain in Springfield by himself, fighting former United States President George H. W. Bush and even won a Grammy Award as a member of a barbershop quartet; the Be Sharps.

Average Salary in 2019:

According to the show, Homer earns a weekly pre-tax take home of $479.60, which works out to be $11.99 per hour. Which when based on a 40 hour work week, earns a total of $24,395 per year, which when adjusted for inflation is around $39,732 per year.However, as we’re looking to find out if the Simpson family could make it in the real world; we’re using real world averages for his earnings, which are actually much higher than his in-show earnings. Nuclear Power Plant Safety Inspectors earn an average annual wage of $65,856 per year, which works out at roughly $51,588 annually after tax, or $4,299 per month.

AVERAGE SALARY FOR THIS POSITION (POST-TAX): $51,588 ANNUALLY OR $4,299 PER MONTH

House Address

The Simpson’s home address is 742 Evergreen Terrace, Springfield, USA.

House Details

The Simpson’s home is a two-story detached house, measuring approx. 2,200ft². with;

• – Garage
• – Attic
• – Basement
• – Living Room
• – Sitting Room
• – Dining Room
• – Kitchen
• – 4 Bedrooms
• – 2 Bathrooms
• – Rumpus Room
• – Sauna

Area

The home is a work of fiction; Based on Springfield, Oregon.

Average Cost of Similar/Same House:

According to Zillow, as of April 2019, the median average house price in Springfield, Oregon for a 4 bedroom house is $324,000, so we’ll take this as the average price of a similar sized home in the area the show was based on. According to the same source, the median rent price for Springfield as of April 2019 is $1,297 per month.

Utilities for a House this Size:

According to Numbeo, the average monthly energy bill in Springfield, Oregon was $101.69. This figure is for the utilities (electric, heating, cooling, water and garbage) of a 1 bedroom apartment at around 85M² (914ft²) apartment. So, we’re just going to increase this amount by 140.7% (As the Simpson home is 140.7% larger than the one bed, 914ft² apartment) to get $244.76 per month.

Deductions from Wages:

According to Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator, the Simpson’s family of 2 adults and 3 children, would also spend (monthly) around $930 on food, $1,615 on child care (however, we can ignore this because Marge is a stay-at-home mum), $1,224 on transportation, $943 on other necessities (Which when living with Homer is likely a lot less than he actually spends on other “necessities”) and $1,150 on health care. All of this comes in at a total of $5,862 per month.

The Simpson’s outgoings breakdown as follows;

total deductions: $5,862 per month

Costs Breakdown:

Monthly Total: – $1,489.76

*As Marge is a stay at home mum (Except for a few episodes), we’ve removed child care from the Simpson’s monthly outgoings.

In Reality, Can the Simpsons Afford Their Home?

Well, realistically, without making any changes to income or out-goings, the Simpson family would be unable to continue living at 742 Evergreen Terrace. With an income of $4,299 per month, and out-goings of $5,788.76 per month, the Simpsons should realistically have gone bankrupt a while ago, and would likely be unable to afford ANY home within Springfield.

However, the Simpson home is rented from their extremely kind, understanding, Christian neighbour Ned Flanders. Let’s just imagine that Homer could persuade Ned to let the family live rent-free, the family would still be unable (just about) to make ends meet with their total out-goings still sitting at $4,491.76 per month (just $192 over their monthly budget).

Although, let’s not forget who we’re talking about here. Homer doesn’t exactly tend to think things through, and almost never consults his family about any decisions he’s making, and so we wouldn’t be surprised to see him cut costs in any and all places possible. We imagine that he’d be more than happy to stop paying for healthcare – “That’s a problem for future Homer” (knocking their outgoings down to $3,341.06 per month), and would be even less surprised if he opted to cut transportation costs by selling one of the family’s two cars (further knocking their outgoings down to $2,729.06).

While this entire cost cutting exercise would be a little over the top for the average person, Homer isn’t the average person, which is why cutting these costs seems almost normal for his character. In the end, with these reductions in out-going, the Simpsons family would be able to make ends meet and keep their home at 742 Evergreen Terrace, with $4,299 of income and now only $2,729.06 in out-goings, meaning they’d even be able to afford to pay poor Flanders his rent!

In reality, without any lifestyle changes, The Simpson Family would NOT be able to afford his home.

Realistic Home:

While Homer might be willing to cut costs when and where required, without a thought, life isn’t always that easy. In an ideal world, Homer and the family would recognise the situation they’re in, and would make arrangements to cut costs sensibly, from areas of their life that don’t have any detrimental impact.

Real estate agents recommend that your rent costs no more than 1/3rd of your monthly earnings. As Homer earns $4,299 per month (after tax), this means that the maximum rent price he and the family should realistically be looking at is $1,433 per month. Meaning they’re more than able to afford the average rent prices in Springfield, Oregon, the real problem in their life is getting in control of their outgoings.

With their current outgoings, the Simpson family wouldn’t be able to afford to live anywhere as their monthly income, only just covers food, transport, healthcare and other necessities; leaving them with just $52 per month for rent and utilities. However, if Homer and the family were able to get their out-goings under control, and sticking with no more than 1/3rd of income being used for rent, the family could afford the following home in Springfield, Oregon:

https://www.zillow.com/homes/for_rent/58378978_zpid/0-374067_price/0-1433_mp/featured_sort/44.114027,-122.891607,44.010781,-123.076143_rect/12_zm/964e75cee5X1-CR1ibgkmo2td20u_vx0sv_crid/

Sources:

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About:

Ross Eustace Geller is a palaeontologist and has a Ph.D. from Columbia University. He was raised in Long Island, and is the elder brother of Monica Geller. Ross and his family are all Jewish and see themselves as at least cultural Jews, with Ross taking a more active role in wanting to teach his son, Ben, about the faith.

Average Salary in 2019:

University Professors earn an average annual wage of $63,316 per year, which works out at roughly $46,035 annually after tax, or $3,836.25 per month

Average salary for this position (Post-tax): $46,035 ANNUALLY or $3,836.25 per month

House Address

Ross’ home address is 19 Grove Street, New York, NY, USA

(We’re using Ross’ third apartment for this as he spends more episodes living at this residence than at any other within his time on the show.)

House Details

Ross’ home is a two bedroom apartment, measuring approx. 796ft².

Area

The home is a work of fiction; Based on Springfield, Oregon.

Average Cost of Similar/Same House:

According to Zillow, as of April 2019, the median average house price in New York City for a 2 bedroom apartment is $1.2M, so we’ll take this as the average price of a similar sized home in the area the show was based. According to the same source, the median rent price for New York as of April 2019 is $2,468 per month.

Utilities for a House this Size:

According to Numbeo, the average monthly energy bill in New York was $142.95. This figure is for the utilities (electric, heating, cooling, water and garbage) of a 1 bedroom apartment at around 85M² (914ft²) apartment. As Ross’ apartment is actually 12.9% smaller than the 1 bed, 914ft² apartment, we’re going to reduce this $142.95 by 12.9%, to get $124.51 per month.

Deductions from Wages:

According to Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator, as Ross is only responsible for himself, and has no dependants (We’re not including his children as he doesn’t have sole custody over them, however we imagine his outgoings to be even more expensive than we’ve determined as Ross would likely aid his own children where possible) he would also spend (monthly) around $314 on food, $435 on transportation, $738 on other necessities and $425 on health care. All of this comes in at a total of $1,912 per month.

Ross’ outgoings breakdown as follows;

total deductions: $1,912 per month

Costs Breakdown:

Monthly Total: – $1,095.51

*As Ross isn’t the sole custodian of his children, we’re not including child care costs in his monthly outgoings.

In Reality, Can Ross Afford His Home?

No, without any changes to income or out-goings, Ross would simply be unable to afford to continue living in his two-bedroom apartment at 19 Grove Street. With an income of $3,836 per month, and outgoings of $4,931.51 per month, Ross should have realistically been kicked out of his apartment for falling behind on rent payments a while ago. However, all is not lost for Ross, as he would easily be able to afford a smaller apartment within New York, as it’s only his rent payment causing him to go over budget.

In reality, without any lifestyle changes, Ross would NOT be able to afford his home.

Realistic Home:

Ross is a smart guy, there’s no denying that, after all he does have a PhD in Palaeontology. A smart guy like Ross would likely recognise his financial situation way before it spiralled out of control, and would likely have made prior arrangements in case such a thing happened.

Real estate agents recommend that your monthly rent costs no more than 1/3rd of your monthly income. As Ross earns $3,836 per month (after tax), this would allow him a maximum rent price of around $1,278.66 per month.

With his current outgoings, Ross would be able to downsize into a smaller apartment, with almost no trouble at all, as his monthly income of $3,836 per month more than covers food, transport, healthcare and other necessities, leaving him with around $1,924 per month to pay rent and utilities – both of which would cost much less than they currently do if he lived in an appropriately sized apartment. However, sticking with his current out-goings and no more than 1/3rd of income being spent on rent, Ross would be able to afford the following apartment in New York:

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/Finley-Ave-Staten-Island-NY-10306/2084227476_zpid/

Sources:

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About:

Philip is a caring, loving, encouraging, protective, honourable, independent, lion-hearted, zany, educated, kind-hearted, emotionless, patient, humble, instructive, and level-headed man. Vivian is usually the only person that can make Phillip relax when he loses his cool. He is a very strict man, but a great father and husband. Even though Phillip tends to lose his temper fairly quickly, he means well deep down, and he loves and cares deeply about his family.

*We haven’t included Will Smith, as he’s a surrogate son/marital nephew.

Average Salary in 2019:

Federal Judges earn an average annual wage of $83,560 per year, which works out at roughly $68,176 annually after tax, or $5,681 per month.

Average salary for this position (Post-tax): $68,176 ANNUALLY or $5,681 per month

House Address
The Banks’ family live at 251 North Bristol Avenue, Los Angeles
House Details
The Banks’ home is a huge 5 bedroom, 5 bathroom mansion, measuring approx. 6,438ft²
Area
The house is located in Bel Air, Los Angeles, California.

Average Cost of Similar/Same House:

According to Zillow, as of April 2019, the median average house price in Los Angeles for a 5 bedroom house is $1.46M. According to the same source, the median rent price in Los Angeles is $3.500 per month.

Utilities for a House this Size:

According to Numbeo, the average monthly energy bill in Los Angeles is $145.86 (Source – https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/in/Los-Angeles). This figure is for the utilities (electric, heating, cooling, water and garbage) of a 1 bedroom apartment at around 85M² (914ft²) apartment. As the Banks home is 604.4% bigger than the 1 bed, 914ft² apartment, we’re going to increase this $145.86 by 604.4%, to get $1,027.44 per month.

Deductions from Wages:

According to Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator, the Banks family of 2 adults and 4 children (We’re not including Will, as he isn’t biologically their child). Would also spend (monthly) around $1,240 on food, $1,223 on child care (Nicky & Ashley), $1,239 on transportation, $1,400 on other necessities and $1,067 on health care. All of this comes in at a total of $6,169 per month.
The Banks’ outgoings breakdown as follows;

total deductions: $6,169 per month

Costs Breakdown:

Monthly Total: – $5,015.44

In Reality, Can Phil Afford Their Home?

Once again, the real world is proving too much for our fictional characters, as yet another one finds them self unable to rent their current home in 2019. Without any changes to income or outgoings, Phil and family would likely be seeing the last of their gorgeous 5 bedroom mansion. With a monthly income of $5,681, and outgoings of $10,696 per month, the family should be suffering from more problems than just Will’s antics.
However, the Banks family are an extremely smart bunch; with one or two exceptions, and we’d imagine that while their monthly income and outgoings don’t match up, they likely have a large amount of money saved up for a rainy day, which could explain how they are able to continue living in their Bel Air mansion.
We also imagine that while Philip is currently financially responsible for Carlton & Hilary, they’d be able to head out into the real world and find their own line of work, pulling the Banks outgoings further down, and making their home much more affordable.
In reality, without any lifestyle changes, the Banks family would NOT be able to afford their home.

Realistic Home:

While most of the family might be able to find areas of their lavish lifestyle that they can cut costs from, it isn’t always that easy in the real world, sometimes, despite everything you do, you just can’t make ends meet.
Real estate agents recommend only spending around 1/3rd of your monthly income on rent each month. With Philip earning $5,681 per month (after tax), the recommended rental price the family should realistically be looking at is around $1,893.66 per month, leaving them WAY short of the average rental price in Los Angeles. With their current outgoings, the Banks family would have to downsize drastically to make ends meet, with food, transport, child care, healthcare and other necessities using up $6,169 of their $5,681 income, meaning that even without rent and utilities, the family would likely still be looking to downsize. With a little financial planning, the family would be more than capable of reducing their outgoings, and sticking with no more than 1/3rd of income being spent on rent, the family would be able to afford the following home in Los Angeles:
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/3826-1-2-Homer-St-Los-Angeles-CA-90031/20637119_zpid/
Sources:

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About:

Dr. Sheldon Lee Cooper, B.S., M.S., M.A., Ph.D., Sc.D., is a Caltech theoretical physicist who formerly shared an apartment with his colleague and best friend, Leonard Hofstadter. Originally from East Texas, Sheldon started college at the age of 11, receiving his first Ph.D. at the age of 16. Sheldon was involved in numerous experiments as a “wunderkind”, such as his plan to provide free electricity for his hometown by building a nuclear reactor – a plan stopped by government pen pushers claiming it’s illegal to store yellowcake uranium in a garden shed. Proudly geeky, he has no qualms about speaking Klingon, wearing vintage t-shirts sporting superhero logos, or spouting various historical and cultural anecdotes.

Dependants:

Spouse: Amy Farrah Fowler
Children: N/A

Job Role:

Caltech Theoretical Physicist

Average Salary in 2019:

Theoretical Physicists earn an average annual wage of $126,943 per year, which works out to be roughly $86,706 annually after tax, or $7,225.50 per month.

Average salary for this position (Post-tax): $86,706 ANNUALLY or $7,225 per month

House Address
Sheldon’s home address isn’t known, although it is known that he lives somewhere in Pasadena, California.
House Details
Sheldon shares a 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom apartment, measuring approx. 840 sqft.
(We’re using this apartment as he spends the majority of the show living here).
Area
The apartment is located in Pasadena, California.

Average Cost of Similar/Same House:

According to Zillow, as of April 2019, the median average house prices in Pasadena, California for a 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom apartment is $689,000. According to the same source, the median rent price in Pasadena is $2,690 per month.

Utilities for a House this Size:

According to Numbeo, the average monthly energy bill in Pasadena is $102.60 (Source). This figure is for the utilities (electric, heating, cooling, water and garbage) of a 1 bedroom apartment at around 85M² (914ft²) apartment. As Sheldon’s apartment is 8.1% smaller than the 1 bed, 914ft² apartment, we’re going to decrease this $102.60 by 8.1%, to get $94.29 per month.

Deductions from Wages:

According to Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator, as Sheldon has no dependants, he would also spend (monthly) around $287 on food, $793 on transportation, $546 on other necessities and $262 on health care. All of this comes in at a total of $1,888 per month.
Sheldon’s outgoings breakdown as follows;

total deductions: $1,888 per month

Costs Breakdown:

Monthly Total: + $2,343.21

In Reality, Can Sheldon Afford Their Home?

Who’d have thought it, Sheldon Cooper, boy-genius, knows how to handle his money – Okay, yeah, we saw that coming too! Without any changes to income or outgoings, Sheldon is more than capable of affording his outgoings, and can comfortably continue living in his apartment, while also being able to save a healthy amount each month. With a monthly income of $7,225.50 per month, and the outgoings of $4,882.29, Sheldon is more than comfortable saving himself $2,343 per month.
In reality, without any lifestyle changes, Sheldon WOULD be able to afford his home.

Realistic Home:

Sheldon would be more than capable of continuing to live in his current 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom apartment, while also being able to save himself quite a lot of money each month – If anything, he can actually upgrade to a nicer apartment as he finds himself ending each month with $2,343 in his pocket!
Real estate agents recommend only spending around 1/3rd of your monthly income on rent each month. With Sheldon earning $7,225.50 per month (after tax), the recommended rental price the family should realistically be looking at is around $2,408.50 per month, leaving him them slightly short of the average rental price in Pasadena, California. With his current outgoings, Sheldon would likely be able to afford to stay in his current apartment as his outgoings are so low compared to his earnings. Food, transport, healthcare and other necessities would use up $1,888 of his $7,225.50 income, meaning Sheldon would have $5,377.50 to pay rent with. However based on the recommended 1/3rd of income for rent Sheldon should downgrade to an apartment with slightly lower rent and would be able to afford the following home in Pasadena, California:
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/125-N-Allen-Ave-APT-225-Pasadena-CA-91106/20869794_zpid/
Sources:

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About:

Walter Hartwell White Sr., also known by his clandestine pseudonym “Heisenberg”, is the main protagonist of Breaking Bad. He was a chemist and a former chemistry teacher in Albuquerque, New Mexico, who, after being diagnosed with Stage 3A inoperable lung cancer, started manufacturing crystal methamphetamine to both pay for his treatments and provide for his family in the event of his passing. He is the central character of the series, and is portrayed as a protagonist, antagonist and antihero. As the series progresses, Walter gradually becomes darker and takes on a more villainous role. Walt was once a promising chemist who, in graduate school, contributed research to a Nobel Prize-winning experiment. After graduate school, he co-founded the company Gray Matter Technologies with his friend Elliott Schwartz and his then-girlfriend Gretchen. Walt abruptly left the company and sold his financial interest for $5,000 – As of 2010, the company has a net worth of $2.16 billion, making Walt’s original share worth around $720 million.

Average Salary in 2019:

In the show, Gus Fring pays Walter and Jesse $3,000,000 for 3 months of meth cooking. In this time they’re able to produce 2,400 pounds of meth, which sells for $40,000 per pound, totalling a grand $96,000,000 street worth. Based on this, we’re going to presume that Walter would be able to produce at least 800 pounds of meth per month (2,400/3=800), and based on a selling price of $40,000 per pound, we’re going to estimate that Walter would be capable of an income somewhere around $384,000,000 per year, or $32,000,000 per month. Obviously, Walter isn’t likely to pay tax on any of this money, however, let’s hypothetically say he would to keep it fair. After tax, Walter’s $32,000,000 per month becomes a much lesser, but still impressive $17,906,373.30 per month.
*We have no idea how much 99.1% chemically pure crystal meth is worth, so we’re using the in-show valuation.

Average salary for this position (Post-tax): $17,906,373 per month

House Address
Walter’s home address is 3828 Piermont Dr, Albuquerque, NM 87111.
House Details
Walter’s home is a modest 3 bedroom,  1 bathroom measuring approx. 1,910ft².
Area
The home is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Average Cost of Similar/Same House:

According to Zillow, as of April 2019, the median average house price in Albuquerque, New Mexico for a three bedroom house is $203,000. According to the same source, the median rent price in Albuquerque is $1,325 per month.

Utilities for a House this Size:

According to Numbeo, the average monthly energy bill in Albuquerque is $138.94 (Source – https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/in/Albuquerque). This figure is for the utilities (electric, heating, cooling, water and garbage) of a 1 bedroom apartment at around 85M² (914ft²) apartment. As Walter’s home is 109% bigger than the 1 bed, 914ft² apartment, we’re going to increase this $138.94 by 109%, to get $290.38 per month.

Deductions from Wages:

According to Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator, the White family of 2 adults and 2 children, would also spend (monthly) around $739 on food, $1,213 on child care, $1,141 on transportation, $650 on other necessities and $808 on health care. All of this comes in at a total of $4,551 per month.
Walter’s outgoings breakdown as follows;

total deductions: $4,551 per month

Costs Breakdown:

Monthly Total: + $17,900,206.62

In Reality, Can Walter Afford Their Home?

Absolutely, but then again, did you expect anything different? After all, Walter is producing Blue Sky – crystal methamphetamine known for being 99.1% chemically pure. Without making any changes to his incoming and outgoings (Although we’d recommend getting out of the meth business before season 5), Walt can afford his home 10 times over. With a monthly income of $17,906,373 per month, and the outgoings of $6,166.38, Walt can even afford to massively upgrade on his current home.
In reality, without any lifestyle changes, Walter WOULD be able to afford his home.

Realistic Home:

Obviously in the real world, we’d imagine Walter would have been caught a long time ago, but for consistency, let’s say his “job” isn’t illegal and highly dangerous, and that the immediate danger of being killed isn’t lurking over him. With an income of just under $18M per month, Walter probably feels massively out of place in his modest 3 bedroom home, spending next to nothing in order to continue living there.
Real estate agents recommend spending no more than 1/3rd of your monthly income on rent. With an income of $17,906,373 per month (after tax), this would mean Walt should be looking to spend no more than $497,399 per month on renting a home. It’s not often someone has $5,968,791 per month to spend on rent, which is why there are absolutely no homes within Albuquerque that sit anywhere near this price. Based on the current market, Walter could afford the following home in Albuquerque (With quite a considerable chunk of cash left over to buy up pretty much any property he wants):
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/5500-Mansfield-Pl-NW-Albuquerque-NM-87114/71837032_zpid/
Sources:

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