Hi, I'm an incoming A0 at the Mumbai Office of a "T1" law firm — a position I worked very hard to get, coming from a lower middle class family based in a T3 city. While I was initially hoping to finally put my hair down and indulge myself just a little thanks to a 'well-paying' job, I've just recently gotten down to budgeting and it seems that I'll be nearly broke for the most of it. Here's my list of approx expenses and how they fit into my salary: [please, for the love of God, someone tell me that I'm missing something]

~45k seems like a conservative figure for basic expenses for all T1 people in Lower Parel ([rent on a room within 3-4km from office + rent on furnishings=33-38k] + cook[4-5k] + groceries[3-4k] + maid[~2k] + auto/cab fares[3-8k])

~15k will go into term + health insurance premiums (also including health insurance for my sr citizen parents)

~10k will go into additional expenses (membership at a gym not too far away + finally buying better formals; for now I'll be joining with old formals bought from DMart & street shops)

~8k for the education loan

~12k I'll have to send home

Which leaves less than 20k overall. Now, within that I'd have to save at least 8-10k and invest another 5k, which, in the best case scenario, leaves drumroll less than 5k for any occasional going out or vices or any form of indulgent gifts to myself.

[I do understand that I'm still v lucky to have a 'prestigious' job in this market — but the fact that these positions are deemed so coveted by so many CLAT aspirants and law students across the country is just...so mind-blowing to me because given the inflation and real estate disaster that is South Bombay, I really don't see the point of an actual middle class person putting in so much hard work only to barely keep up the finances!]

So, am I missing something, or do all T1 A0s hailing from ordinary families similarly end up struggling with finances regardless of their merit, accomplishments, and hard work!?

Parents in my case are self dependent. Leaves me with ballpark of 70k in expenses. Not going for health insurance in the starting few years. Didn't opt for gym and do home workouts with decent running. Your budgeting is flawed otherwise too. Don't live in Lower Parel? Leave near grant road Mumbai or any cheaper areas. You'll save and can save much more.

Your cash component in hand you're showing as 1,10000. Year end you'll also find ITR to get back the TDS.

Basically anybody with reasonable to above average expenses can save 5-7/8 lakhs in this year's salary. With the revised salary bands can even save 7-10 lakhs as A0. Stay a little conservative for the first few others. But formals from Pentaloons or Westside, don't buy the latest iPhone and invest wisely. It's not as bad as you're thinking of portraying. Also try consulting your seniors who you are closer to. Goodluck and pay off that debt asap. Never good baggage.

70k!? Brother, OP's "flawed" budgeting would have lesser expenses than you if they were also privileged enough to have "self-dependent" parents. But because they don't, not only do they have to send the money home and pay off an education loan, but also health insurance for the parents becomes a necessity because they can't afford a health crisis to put a dent in their finances. So if you remove those expenses, OP seems to be spending just 55k rather than your 70k — who needs a lecture on budgeting now?

And also? Obviously everyone is going to get tax returns, I don't even see how they're relevant. And most importantly, I found housing in Grant Road and it's still costing around 30k for a half-decent room in a bare minimal house, and if you add cook, groceries & maid charges, that does end up coming near about 40k.

It may serve you well to touch grass and acknowledge your privilege before comparing your finances with others.

The commentator did acknowledge their privilege and then provided the advice that was sought. If your point is that no one except people with OP's exact circumstances or worse should speak then OP will be left with a smaller pool of advice. Resenting and dismissing helpful people who have more will get you nowhere.

same, 35k in Delhi Lol. And I am managing rent, cooking my own food and running in the metro for gym. I was also hit by Covid-19, since I am a 2021 passout. Market mai switch karna easy nahi hai itna, and I also had those fancy T-1 assessment internships which went to shit because of Covid-19. Parents are self-dependent and I don't have health insurance. I have to ask my parents for expenses at times, it is NOT easy. Please look around before you complain about all this, and I am still grateful because I know people who are making 15k a month or not getting paid for months.

I think you're spending a lil extra on rent+ furnishings. You could stay at a pg for a while? If you do not have the money backup why spend so much? You'll get a pg for around 20k or try comparison on the location. Look for something near the new metro stations or something like that. There are ways to compromise for a while atleast until you're done paying your education loan. You're right, there is barely anything left...but see we are all trying to make our ends meet somehow...good luck mate, you'll do well.

OP here, let me clarify this: If you're counting the head of 'basic expenses' (inclusive of cook + cleaning person + groceries) as total 30k, that would imply that rent for a room + furnishings cost something around 20k — if you find something like that in South Bombay, then either you're a real estate maverick who shoulshou take masterclasses on this — or you're just unaware and lying.

And no, single occupancy PGs don't really exist anywhere within 7-8km from my office, because the ones that do are taken all the time: trust me, I've tried. And no, I don't want to share a room — I didn't top my university & get through to supposedly one of India's best law firms just to end up having to compromise on having even a very basic lifestyle. Mind you — if my parents had the money to afford even the minimized costs after the scholarships, I'd be comfortably sitting at an established EU college for an LLM. This isn't supposed to be a personal finance post, it's a post about how the economics of dreaming big in law can't be equated to these supposedly T1 law firms anymore, given the insane real estate crisis and inflation. The point I'm making is —with peanuts in pay hikes over the past 10 years, this can't be the dream job that the lower middle class youngsters take CLAT for!

Salary is something which has always concerned me. People Glorify earning 1 lac per month but it's really not a big deal. It doesn't make sense.

Earning 1 lac in mumbai equals to making 45k in T-2 city. The percentage of expenditure towards rent and transport will be the same between these individuals.

Law firms have turned blind eye towards inflation. T-1 pay more but it isn't any good. Things only get better when you become SA. Don't expect anything before. Like Sharan says 35 lpa is bare minimum to live in Mumbai.

Entry of foreign law firms can only save us now. Firms like hsf or a&o needs to enter and pay at least 22 lpa.

Buddy, there's something called promotion. The reason why corp law is said to be high paying is not because of just fresher's salary. With time, your expenses will not increase (at least in the initial few years) as sharply as your salary.

Chill out, it will be alright.

Tell me you're not from Mumbai without telling me you're not from Mumbai!

The 38k is the highest figure and inclusive of all basic expenses: cabs, cook, groceries, maid, and basic furnishings — all of those other things combined will take you at least 10k, no doubt about it. And if you avoid having a cook and eat out, it'll not only be probably more expensive but also riskier because ill-health has its own set of expenses.

That said, coming to rent — you can't find a single room, regardless of how basic it is, in South Bombay for less than 20-25k — unless you actually go & live inside a slum, which I'd actually considered for a little bit. That itself takes you to 30-35k, and if you take a place for 30k, you're probably gonna be living farther from office and farther from a railway station too. Add to that leaving from office post 11:30 when the local trains become infrequent, and you're stuck with hefty cab fare costs. There's no metro in the entire South Bombay.

This is no classy or grand lifestyle that I'm talking about. People who've looked for rental accommodation in 2024 will be able to tell you that South Bombay has seen a 30-40% increase just this year itself — the room that my senior got for 28k fully furnished is currently going for 35k semi-furnished.

And no, I refuse to share a room because I value my privacy. The primary point here isn't about my personal expenses; it's that a job that puts you in a struggling position such as this can't be the driving force behind children from ordinary middle class families taking up CLAT!

So what other job do you suggest middle class kids do? The job market in engineering is equally bad, trust me. Nearly my entire family and my exes are all engineers. Unless you get into an IIT, which is 100x harder than getting a decent stream at an average engg college, which is 40-50x harder than CLAT (assuming one doesn't take science in +2, which makes +2 itself a whole lot easier), AND you top your classes and extracurriculars, no one makes higher pay. Average engg kids make 12-14 LPA starting and the best of the BBA/BCom kids make about the same, in hand after inflated salaries. Please don't get me started on medical now, that's a whole other ballpark. The whole country has an insane surplus of labour at all skill levels. If your lifestyle is unsustainable, please cut down, save up and migrate.

Control your lifestyle inflation. You're an AO and you have expenditures lined up like that of a Partner. Get a roommate, take public transport, do some of the household work yourself and sit on the floor (Japanese style) to save on furniture. You can also limit your insurance exposure at this stage.

It’s becoming harder and more expensive for EVERYONE to live in India nowadays, because of the high income tax burden and rising inflation. It’s just disgusting that no IT relief has been given in the past decade.

The reason people are investing in stock markets is because of desperation rather than greed. People desperately need more money and this is the only legal way.

Before people rush into saying, "hey, we've been there; not as bad as that", hear me out. Mumbai rents have seen a 30-50% rise in the last two-three years, when compared to pandemic & pre-pandemic times. Some studies also attribute this to the slowing of construction activities in that period. So, overall, while rents have straightforwardly doubled from 10 years ago, most firms like CAM, SAM, Indus etc have seen a minor pay hike of ~20%. So unless you're from the batch of 2023 or 2024 and have lived in Mumbai, you did not, in fact, have it this bad. CAM not making any pay hikes even now is just abysmal, and I can only hope that this post serves as a caveat to incoming batches — unless you stand your ground and openly tell them that you'll be opting for other firms because they don't pay as much, this won't change.

Your budgeting is kind of screwed up. Here are some suggestions:

1. Renting: Look at other areas for renting out an apartment. Don't automatically jump into buying furniture and appliances, if you are getting a semi-furnished/ unfurnished flat. Rent it out for a couple of months. Divide your such expenses to over a year. Maybe, look at options where you first stay in a PG like some mentioned earlier, and then if you really want your own space, get flatmates/ or even share your room.

2. Additional Expenses: REDUCE them. You don't need to spend 10k on a gym membership. It is possible to work-out at home. For your work-wear, stick to pantaloons or maybe even H&M for now. Get 4-5 good shirts, and 3-4 trousers and maybe 1/2 blazers. Invest in decent+ good quality pieces that can be mixed and matched.

3. Transportation: To travel to work, either check if your firm provides you with the option to pool otherwise, use public transportation. There's always metros or even good buses.

4. Health Benefits: Talk to your workplace and ask if they provide any sort of health benefits. While this may cover yours, look for and compare decent plans for your parents. Do the grunt work.

5. 60-30-10 Rule: I don't know, if this will help, but use the 60-30-10 rule. It saved my life and I earn WAY lesser than you while living in a pretty expensive city myself. (While I am struggling, it somewhat helps.) 60% for all your necessities, 30% for your wants and 10% for savings, investments and emergency funds. Adjust it to suit your own requirements.

Personal finance is, well - personal.

I’ve been through this phase, and I seem have to similar thought process as you OP - so I will try and share some helpful tips.

Yes, in a big city, 1 lac is nothing. Like you I had only calculated MY living expenses, and I was under constant mental pressure that even after getting placed in a Tier 1 firm, I couldn’t save enough or live a decent life. (To others - What is enough, what is decent life - very subjective)

Single occupancy - I valued my privacy and I didn’t want to compromise on this. In Mumbai this was my biggest fixed cost expense. Most people who are suggesting to share a room - either have no idea about the kind of shitty PG and rooms offered by brokers, or are ones who are still in college phase and don’t know how to live like a decent adult. I’ve lived with those “chill” guys and it was one of the worst experiences of my life - constantly ordering Blinkit and Swiggy, packets strewn everywhere on the floor, food parcels on sofa, dress always smelling. Thankfully, I was able to move out in 2 months.

Side effects of staying in decent place with high rent: On weekends you will try not to go out, as you are already paying so much in rent, you want to mentally justify spending more time there, as on weekdays you hardly stay at home + cost of going out in Mumbai is expensive

When your local colleagues suddenly ask you to tag along on a Friday night to a fancy restaurant, you will start questioning your budget calculation or outright refuse at the cost of appearing rude.

You will try to cut down on food/ going out because the fixed cost of EXISTING in Mumbai is already so high - this will take a toll on your mental health as you really need to go out after a hectic week at work.

TIP 1 - As unreasonable as it sounds, please don’t try to SAVE in your first 4-5 months. You are living on your own and managing everything on your own, you will have lot of unexpected expenses - if you try calculating all of them, you will be extremely stressed.

TIP 2 - The 60-30-10 rule or other finance frameworks of saving - THEY DONT WORK in Mumbai. It’s a good starting point to think about expenses, saving and leisure, but if you try to save like that, you’ll end up in a slum, and there will other headaches you don’t want to deal with. You’re in a new city, your focus should be on getting a stable base and excelling at work.

TIP 3 - Most financial influencers/ well wishers will start giving advice about saving. But here is a more important pre condition - LEARN TO SPEND first. Yes, you need to spend a bit to understand what your needs and wants are. You’re in a new city, and you need to spend money on new things to gain exposure. Else you will be stuck trying to budget everything and not go out of your comfort zone. You’re in Mumbai, you want to attend the comedy nights at Juhu, attend the Steps carnival in Bandra, visit Subko for a coffee session, expand your social circle or even travel to a free art exhibition in Sassoon Docks - things you probably wouldn’t do back home. You will probably over spend n first 2-3 months, but soon you will rein yourself in and get a sense of your actual spending pattern.

All the best! Hope Mumbai is kind to you.

Why do you need to live in lower parel? Stay in Bhakti park or parel with a flatmate or two. You can also look in Mahalakshmi or Prabhadevi. Chembur also is an option is you can drive and have parking. You should aim for 25-30k renting a full furnished apartment with flatmates. Share your groceries, maid and cook salaries. 12-15k should be enough. You don't need a gym membership - you can do home workouts with apps which are just as good. With the home loan and amount to send at home, you are still at 50k. You won't have a lot of time to go out anyway so cap that to maybe 5-6k. Also, you choose cheaper and affordable haunts. Rest of the expenses you are listing out are one time expenses.

Live within your means and be smart about your choices. I lived with a roommate (roommate NOT flatmate) for the first two years in Mumbai, travelled in trains or shared taxis, ate dubbas and only went to free/cheap clubs if at all. Shopped from budget places and rarely went on vacations. And I always had enough to save. My starting salary was less than one third of what you are probably making. There is no reason to want to live a lavish lifestyle from the jump.

I come from a middle class family in Delhi and have joined a "T1" as well. You're thinking on the right track. The stress of a T1 doesn't seem to be worth it only for the sake of keeping up with the finances. Literally everyone in my position is trying to figure a way out. However, the ones really sticking with it are people from t2-t3 states or the ones that are relatively more patient. I guess everyone's just doing what they think best

> 10k will go into additional expenses (membership at a gym not too far away

What is this gym membership for 10,000/month? Last time I check, Anytime Fitness ANNUAL membership was 24,000 including taxes. You can obviously go to less fancy gyms which will be like 1000/month.

Brother, you can easily get a 1bhk apartment in LP/Prabhadevi/Dadar for 25-30k, and furnishings cost around 10k at the max. Either you're stupid or someone is clearly making you look stupid, bot gonna lie buddy. Then cab expenses can be sorted down to NIL, if you pick up a habit of walking, but I understand cause of the rains, not going to blame you, but you really should get your finances sorted out. These comments on law firms should increase salaries make sense, but really man you should take a look at yourself. I'm just like you, but I save over 60k+ a month, living in LP by splitting an apartment so it’s possible.

Ho, OP here. If you plan on calling me stupid because I can't find a 1BHK in apartment in Prabhadevi for 25k-30k, how about you touch some grass and actually call up a broker or go out there and see the prices? Here's my guarantee: if you can find a 1BHK apartment in 25-30k in Prabhadevi, I'll 100% buy it AND give you the brokerage. No? Then go read some actual news about the rent hikes and stop trolling people.

hi op, i'm in a similar position to you and i relate to this! i'm sending home twice as much as your (loan + sending home) amount, and i also chose to live in a single room over a pg even though the wise things to do (at least according to the people on this thread) would be to live in a pg. I feel you completely, it's okay to want to live in a decent place and not share a room after struggling/being broke/in debt throughout your life. i don't have much advice or anything to offer (just joined the "smaller platform" three weeks ago as an A0) but i see you and what you're feeling is valid. Like some others have said, our salary will grow over time. Things will get better. Don't compare yourself to your friends who come from well-off families, things will seem gloomy in comparison. Remember you're at someone's dream job! this gets better with time, i'm told. On the bright side, we're really appreciative of the small joys. good luck to you <3

It sounds like you were good at studying and landing a job but this is only the beginning. Now you need more hard work, patience and hustle. Comparing yourself with the more fortunate will not help you. You need to set goals and figure out how to get there given your circumstances. I would say that if you are able to send money home, pay off a loan, save and still have a daily life comparable to your colleagues, you are being paid very well. With work, patience and hustle, that will increase.

Over time you will figure out whether moving a different part of Bombay or a another city will help you but right now, you are already doing the best you can do. Your only options are minor changes to save money.