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The only reason I am considering this offer is the thought that it would be easier to laterally move to better law firms after a year or two if I work in Mumbai.
Any opinion on this is welcome.
Rent a good 2BHK for 40-45k/month around Andheri. Share it with a flatmate, your rent will be 20k. If you want to cut corners, share it with 3 flatmates, your rent will be 10k/month.
Utilities, Electricity, Internet, etc - 5000/month
Local train pass - 755/month
Maid- 3000/month (divided by 2 or 4 flatmates)
Rest is discretionary, you could subscribe to a dabba for 5k/month or drop 5k on a night out. Your call.
Unless you have better offers, take this, get some PQE. It's doable, been there done that.
While I agree that there are a lot of people who earn way less than 6lpa and survive in Mumbai, there is no doubt that it is still a hard way to live.
I am an associate who earns 6lpa right now, and here’s a break-down for anyone who is interested:
Renting:
A 2bhk flat in a location like Andheri (flat condition being suitable) costs a total of around 60-70k (you can get cheaper flats in the range of 50-60k for sure, but the conditions of those be a heavy compromise)
So, even taking a lower estimate of 60k, and say you share it with 3 other people (which is sometimes a problem in itself), your rent would come out to be 15k.
Food:
This is major consideration and you end up spending more than you think. Cooks take a minimum of 2k per person (monthly) for cooking one meal a day, however if you want two meals, they settle around 3-3.5k per person (monthly).
Lets assume you settle for the one meal option, that 2k, then you add groceries, which would be around 2-2.5k per person. So that’s a total of 4.5k.
For your other meal, you can get a tiffin service for lunch or step down from your office to eat, either will cost you a minimum of 3k a month.
So food comes to a total of 7.5k. (don’t hate me, its just my experience)
Utilities:
Electricity, gas (lucky if you get a pipeline connection), wifi, other stuff you may require for functioning (soap etc.) amounts to yet another of 3k a month, its better to assume that it would be around 4-5k depending on your actual expenses (electricity bills are way higher in summers/monsoons)
So for utilities, it’s a total of 4k.
Transport:
Locals, metros are cheap, and so are autos and cabs (if you have to take for short distances or sharing basis).
A fair total for your transport needs would be 2k.
That’s your basic survival stuff accounted for, which comes to a total of 15k+7.5k+4k+2k = 28.5k
That’s the bare minimum, and sadly I have never achieved that. My expenses (minus the money spent on fun stuff) has always been around 32-34k, because you always end up needing to spend on one thing or the other.
Even so, getting 45k in hand, and limiting your expenses to 32-34k leaves you with a solid 11-13k in hand for saving, or spending (your choice)
Conclusion:
6lpa is a good base to survive, but as you grow, so do your expenses (remember that 32-34k figure I gave, its 44-45k now for me). So while you’ll be fine with 45k initially, you’ll soon want another 15-20k, but that’s all up to you. I have less, and that makes me want to push for more rather than tone down my lifestyle and investments, but some may tone down their lifestyles and save more.
P.S.
If you share a room, you’ll want your own space, which means your own room, which means double the rent.