There is no way Murray made more than an Associate Producer like Mary or am I way off base here?

he probably got paid twice as much because he was a man.

he probably got paid twice as much because he was a man.

That, plus Murray was older and had time to save up a nest egg. Also, Mary may have been living in a pricier neighborhood than Murray (it was a neighborhood of parks and Victorian mansions; Murray's neighborhood seemed more downscale). But I don't recall Mary ever struggling to pay her rent. When was that revealed? By the sixth season she was able to move into a larger apartment, so it seems she was doing okay.

And Murray was there longer before Mary came on board. So he probably had more time to save money. Plus, he probably had a writing/journalism degree from school, when Mary didn't. Mary was a complete novice when Lou took a chance on her.

Did Marie work?

Well, Murray may have made more than Mary.

Lou, even though the quintessential curmudgeon, could be warm and sensitive toward women. But he could also be pretty sexist; it's quite possible Lou paid Murray well, so Murray might have made as much (or even a little more) than Mary. Remember how angry Mary gets when she found out the guy in the position before her made $50 more? And Lou's response: he was a man and had a family to support.

However, for the sake of argument, even if Murray did make a high salary, there was his family, meaning not a whole lot leftover for a mortgage. Maybe he or Marie had inherited some money that they used for the down payment/to help with the mortgage. Or as someone else said, Marie worked, although I saw no evidence of that I can recall.

So the question is an interesting one Brian.

Then again, this is TV so anything goes, even if it seems illogical, unlikely or farfetched.

Then again, this is TV so anything goes, even if it seems illogical, unlikely or farfetched.

Again, I still don't see anything illogical because there doesn't seem to be anything special about the neighborhood Murray lives in. His house looks extremely middle class to me, whereas the neighborhood where Mary lives seems rather pricey. The homes are old Victorians, which gives me the impression she lives close to the center city, a fact that would indicate higher rents. Murray seems to be further out in the suburbs where homes would be cheaper. Where I live, apartment rents near the center city are higher than home mortgages 20 miles out in the suburbs. And again, when was it mentioned that Mary was struggling to pay her rent? And if she was struggling, why would she have moved into a bigger apartment in S6?

There was an episode when Mary found the rent in her first apartment had gone up and she had to ask Lou for a pay rise.

Murray did struggle too,remember he joked about struggling with money and said "...and last night,I held up a liquor store".

Murray was probably like a lot of people,he got by,barely,he wasn't totally happy with his job,he saw shallow,less talented people like Ted and Sue Ann making more money than him.

I think one of Murray's best episodes was in season 6,when he became producer on Sue Ann's show,he was making more money but was miserable,

I love it when he plants her on that cake,Sue Ann deserved it!

Murray scrimped and saved and took sack lunches to work, while Mary blew her paychecks on clothes.

The income issue was addressed right off the bat. It was established even in the first episode that the associate producer position Mary was offered paid something like $10 less per week than the secretarial job she originally wanted. Which to me clearly indicates that the job was a lot of work for very little pay and no glory. Also I agree with LittleRickyII that there was nothing special about Murray's neighborhood. Combined with the fact he was a man and had much seniority over Mary, it totally adds up and doesn't seem illogical at all.