Living On $230K A Year In West Chicago, Illinois | Millennial Money 

Alex Sanchez earns $230,000 a year as an overhead lineman for the electric utility company of the Chicagoland area. In addition to his base salary of approximately $120,000 he earns a $10,000 annual bonus and is on track to earn over $200,000 with overtime included. He also has two side hustles to help pad his savings account and investment portfolio. Here's how Alex makes and spends his money.
This is the latest installment of Millennial Money, which profiles people across the U.S. and details how they earn and spend their money.
Read more about Alex's budget breakdown here: cnb.cx/2m2QVuS
A fan of the FIRE - financial independence, retire early - community, Alex would like to be a millionaire by 30. As a first-generation American he's planning to help his parents, who immigrated from Mexico and met in the West Chicago area, retire comfortably one day.
Sanchez says he grew up lower middle class, and while his parents provided everything he and his brother, Oscar, could need, they also often missed events, like his baseball games, because they had to work.
Investing and saving a significant portion of his income has become a way for Sanchez to ensure that he has the flexibility to choose how he spends his time. Should he have children of his own one day, he doesn't want to miss out on Little League for work. And he wants to make sure his parents aren't tied to their jobs forever.
Sanchez's income fluctuates depending on overtime hours and how much business his lawn-care company drums up. Since he dropped out of college he does not have student loans. The utility company he currently works for paid for his training as a lineman.
Sanchez owns three rental properties, including an apartment, a condo and a single-family house that he co-owns with his mother. The properties gross $3,825 per month, and he takes home $1,600 per month, after expenses like taxes and insurance. His mother makes $500 from the property she co-owns with him.
» Subscribe to CNBC Make It.: cnb.cx/2kxl2rf
About CNBC Make It.: CNBC Make It. is a new section of CNBC dedicated to making you smarter about managing your business, career, and money.
Connect with CNBC Make It. Online
Get the latest updates: www.cnbc.com/make-it
Find CNBC Make It. on Facebook: cnb.cx/LikeCNBCMakeIt
Find CNBC Make It. on Twitter: cnb.cx/FollowCNBCMakeIt
Find CNBC Make It. on Instagram: bit.ly/InstagramCNBCMakeIt
#CNBC
#CNBCMakeIt
#MillennialMoney
Living On $230K A Year In West Chicago, Illinois | Millennial Money