{"items": [{"author": "Phillip", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668347818492", "anchor": "fb-668347818492", "service": "fb", "text": "From a tax point of view you will need to step carefully. You are only allowed to deduct 50% of your income for tax purposes, and that is only with certain charities. Others are only 30% of your income. While I am aware of this trap, I don't have any experience with it, since only one of my clients exceeds 10%. In addition, make sure you get documentation for any donation over $250.", "timestamp": "1405522652"}, {"author": "Benjamin", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668348626872", "anchor": "fb-668348626872", "service": "fb", "text": "I'd be very interested in which Charles you identify as effective and why.", "timestamp": "1405523229"}, {"author": "Jeff&nbsp;Kaufman", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668351376362", "anchor": "fb-668351376362", "service": "fb", "text": "@Benjamin: Figuring out charity effectiveness is really hard: you need in-depth investigation into both the intervention the charity works on (ex: distributing bednets) and the charity's implementation of it.  I think GiveWell is currently the best organization working on synthesizing the available information into concrete charity recommendations.  For an example of their research, you might find their writeup of GiveDirectly interesting: http://www.givewell.org/inter.../top-charities/give-directly", "timestamp": "1405525171"}, {"author": "David", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668377129752", "anchor": "fb-668377129752", "service": "fb", "text": "You cite the potential for programmer earnings to drop in the future.  Would you still encourage the average EA to get into programming (and what kind of caveats would you add if any)?", "timestamp": "1405541632"}, {"author": "David", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668377184642", "anchor": "fb-668377184642", "service": "fb", "text": "Also, what kind of savings account do you use?", "timestamp": "1405541675"}, {"author": "Jeff&nbsp;Kaufman", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668395068802", "anchor": "fb-668395068802", "service": "fb", "text": "@David: \"would you still encourage the average EA to get into programming?\"<br><br>Yes. Risk of decreasing earnings is common to all high earning careers, as whatever is currently driving up the wages could fade.", "timestamp": "1405552986"}, {"author": "Jeff&nbsp;Kaufman", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668395358222", "anchor": "fb-668395358222", "service": "fb", "text": "@David: \"what kind of savings account do you use?\"<br><br>Our savings are currently about 2/3 index funds and 1/3 cash at 0.95%. I don't make any claims as to optimality, though.", "timestamp": "1405553148"}, {"author": "Boris", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668415408042", "anchor": "fb-668415408042", "service": "fb", "text": "&lt;3 &lt;3 &lt;3 :)", "timestamp": "1405562842"}, {"author": "Topher", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668416366122", "anchor": "fb-668416366122", "service": "fb", "text": "Jeff: Wow, that's great! I'm curious, though, what you're paying in rent, with only 6% going to spending. Personally, I wish I wasn't paying so much in rent so that I could give more, but I worry about that turning out to be penny wise and pound foolish in the long run\u2014hurting my productivity with a commute, or in the extreme case moving somewhere with much worse job opportunities.", "timestamp": "1405563625"}, {"author": "David&nbsp;Chudzicki", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668419754332", "anchor": "fb-668419754332", "service": "fb", "text": "Chris, for somewhat older data there's this: http://www.jefftk.com/p/spending-over-time", "timestamp": "1405566511"}, {"author": "Topher", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668420697442", "anchor": "fb-668420697442", "service": "fb", "text": "Thanks, David. Wish I knew how to reduce my rent as a techie in the Bay Area.", "timestamp": "1405566912"}, {"author": "David&nbsp;Chudzicki", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668422279272", "anchor": "fb-668422279272", "service": "fb", "text": "You'd probably be right not to optimize for rent too much.  In tech jobs at least, salary variation can very easily dominate rent variation by a lot.", "timestamp": "1405567969"}, {"author": "Ben", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668427992822", "anchor": "fb-668427992822", "service": "fb", "text": "Chris: one potential thing to do is a group house, if you don't live in one already; these are also good on other dimensions than cost IMO. Also cohabiting cuts costs a lot, though that's not very actionable advice. If I made as much as Jeff did I'd be paying something like 2% of income in rent.", "timestamp": "1405571150"}, {"author": "Topher", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668428501802", "anchor": "fb-668428501802", "service": "fb", "text": "Ben: What does \"group house\" mean in this context? Note that I'm working in SOMA, meaning dodging the commute (I can bike to work in 15-20 min) may have been even more expensive for me than other places in the Bay Area.", "timestamp": "1405571525"}, {"author": "Ben", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668430133532", "anchor": "fb-668430133532", "service": "fb", "text": "A house which contains you and also a bunch of other people you're neither related to nor romantically involved with. Usually containing 5+ people and in a house rather than apartment building. Advantages over apartments include lower cost, living with awesome people, and often a more pleasant landlord.", "timestamp": "1405573004"}, {"author": "Topher", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668430687422", "anchor": "fb-668430687422", "service": "fb", "text": "Why would that be cheaper? Unless they're typically farther away from stuff.", "timestamp": "1405573725"}, {"author": "David&nbsp;Chudzicki", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668430792212", "anchor": "fb-668430792212", "service": "fb", "text": "Uses less space per person, and most people don't want it.", "timestamp": "1405573906"}, {"author": "Jeff&nbsp;Kaufman", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668442508732", "anchor": "fb-668442508732", "service": "fb", "text": "@Chris: \"Why would that be cheaper?\"<br><br>Fewer kitchens, bathrooms, living rooms.  Here are the average costs per bedroom for different sized apartments in the Boston area, using the data that backs www.jefftk.com/apartment_prices<br><br>studio: $1,426 (n=1531)<br>1br: $2,058 (n=2441)<br>2br: $1,272 (n=2560)<br>3br: $977 (n=1546)<br>4br: $866 (n=685)<br>5br: $806 (n=200)<br>6br: $745 (n=41)", "timestamp": "1405598129"}, {"author": "Jeff&nbsp;Kaufman", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=668446251232", "anchor": "fb-668446251232", "service": "fb", "text": "@Chris, Ben, David: expanded these numbers into a post: http://www.jefftk.com/p/how-much-cheaper-is-group-housing", "timestamp": "1405602287"}, {"author": "Kenny", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/114009563726046237939", "anchor": "gp-1405703684641", "service": "gp", "text": "Wow. I can't fathom how you can possibly do this. Where do you live? My housing costs alone are roughly 20% of my pre-tax income.", "timestamp": 1405703684}, {"author": "Jeff&nbsp;Kaufman", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/103013777355236494008", "anchor": "gp-1405744569080", "service": "gp", "text": "@Kenny\n\u00a0We live in one of the light green areas on this map \nhttp://www.jefftk.com/apartment_prices\n and are paying ~$500/month as a couple for a room in a shared house.", "timestamp": 1405744569}, {"author": "Kenny", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/114009563726046237939", "anchor": "gp-1405783895259", "service": "gp", "text": "Ahh.", "timestamp": 1405783895}, {"author": "Seth", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/668335588002?comment_id=784657677602", "anchor": "fb-784657677602", "service": "fb", "text": "Jeff&nbsp;Kaufman You inspired me! Here at Apple we have a company match up to $10,000 per year, only enacted after Steve Jobs died.", "timestamp": "1462321658"}]}