Income, Expenses and Banking

Income
Salaries of postdocs (as also professors) vary a lot between different departments. As of 2015 the average annual postdoc salary was:


 * Physics: $45,000
 * Chemistry: $48,000

Which gives about $3,750-4,000 per month before taxes. When you start paying your taxes expect that your net pay will be 75-80% of that.

Monthly expenses
You can expect to spend anything between $3,000 if you are single to $7,600 if you have a family with kids. Clearly the income is comparable, and sometimes exceeds the expenses. If you have even one kid who goes to a private childcare, you have to have a working spouse to balance the budget. I suggest using a money management software. A very useful and free webapp to plan your budget is Mint. Here you can manage all your accounts and credit cards in one place.

Bellow are is a list of monthly expenses (as of 2015):
 * 1) Housing: $2000-2500
 * 2) Childcare before Pre-K (Age <4y): $2000 / child
 * 3) Food: $350 / per person
 * 4) Healthcare: Standard: $240, Health Saving Account (HSA): $65
 * 5) Utilities (Gas / electricity, Water): $80
 * 6) Internet: $50
 * 7) Cell Phones: $35 / per line

Banking
In US 1 of every 13 households is unbanked which means it does not have a bank account. This means that parts of the financial system rely on checks and money orders. For example, you'll have to pay your rent by checks (even to Columbia) as also your childcare. Some banks allow to setup an automatic scheduled check mailing for free.

A money order is an alternative to cash. Basically you exchange cash by an open check for a nominal fee of a few dollars. This can be done at the post office or some grocery shops.

To setup your first bank account in US you will need to have one or more of the following:
 * 1) A balance statement (in English) from your foreign bank.
 * 2) A letter from your adviser stating that you are going to be paid XXX salary and you are in good financial situation.
 * 3) Deposit a few thousands dollars ($5-10K) at opening.

You should ask for a bank account which does not have any maintenance fees. Normally it will be enough to have a balance of $1,000 to sustain this situation. There are two accounts: checking account - this is the account you use on an everyday basis, and savings account - an account which caries a small interest.

Important points

 * 1) Normally you are not allowed to have an overdraft on your bank account.
 * 2) Keep your banking account number in a secure place. A person who knows your banking account number and your bank branch (routing number) can withdraw funds from your account!
 * 3) Debit cards have no liability insurance. A person in possession of your card and your PIN code can easily empty your account.