the apartment

[bgb805]

I always found it not very believable that a single mother working in a department store could afford a 2 bedroom apartment like that. She most likely would make minimum wage, MAYBE a couple dollars more per hour if she's been there for several years. Also, the majority of people who work in a department store do not get 40 hours a week. Although in the film, they made the apartment building look like it was the "not so good part of town" by how they did the exterior shots, but the interior apartment is nice. Too nice for someone making minimum wage to afford all by there self. I don't know, maybe back in the 1980s (adjusted for inflation) renting an apartment was not as expensive. Maybe back then apartment complexes didn't require tenants to make 3x the rent in monthly income?

I know some other people on here have suggested that maybe Andy's father had good life insurance or perhaps had good savings. Well, maybe. But why would Karen be so strapped for cash to buy Andy that Good Guy doll from a peddler?

[Spanky]

This is an issue among many, many movies. Single woman working low wage job has some decent apartment in the middle of a big city.

To your point about how people thing Andy's father left them something, maybe like he owned that apartment somehow? That's all I can think at the moment.

[Dragon Prime]

As you said... the 80's.

Easily the decade of our economic height. I mean there was so much money to go around it was ridiculous and things were still cheap.

So it is possible that she could have afforded that apartment.

[Gee]

I still think that apartment is being paid for with the help of the insurance money from Andy's dead father. Maybe he died at work and Karen gets compensation.

[smngry]

Maybe Andy's dad had a good job and bought the property. Karen received it when he passed away and had to find a job to support weekly bills etc