Coming to Chicago...Please HELP

[ratnakarpagar]

Dear Friends,

this is a very formal request please help.

I am currently working in india.

I have a job oppurtunity to work in Chicago, IL of USA. i need the following information:

1. Can you please tell me about the total cost of living in chicago or suburb nearby chicago per month?? I want a safe place where i can live with my family without any hassles.
2. Can you tell me about the tax deductions in chicago, IL?? suppose im earning 72k USD per year, then how much will i be taxed?? and how much net USD will be left in my hand??

Please do the needful since my H1B visa is already in petition.

thanks and with regards;
ratnakar pagar

[Bevdeforges]

Congratulations (oh, and welcome to the forum)! Those H1B visas are in great demand these days - having someone to petition for you is a big plus.

I used to live in Chicago, but I'm sure the cost of living has increased a bit since I was there. One nice thing about Chicago is that there is a wide range of places to live - from the city center to the far western suburbs. Public transportation is better than in many large American cities, so you can actually use the trains to commute to work - even from the far western suburbs.

For income taxes, you have both State and Federal to consider - but the precise amount you pay depends on your family situation and other factors that can get complicated. As a very general rule of thumb, we used to use a figure of about 30 - 35% for the various withholding taxes taken out of your pay by your employer - but even at that, you still have to settle up on your state and federal taxes at the end of they year.
Cheers,
Bev

[TheFiveJs]

As far as housing, you can go to Apartments for rent: Apartment Guide, your free apartment finder for apartments/flats for renting or you can go to REALTOR.com - Real Estate Listings & Homes For Sale for single family and multi family homes you purchase.

[synthia]

Try asking your company what your takehome pay will be for a single person with no extra exemptions. I've done that for interstate moves and the human resources people would give me an estimate.