SOLUTION: Help please, using substition i keep coming up with equal answers on each side of the equation and I am stuck. I can't figure out what I am missing. Thanks. This question is o

Question 189708This question is from textbook Algebra I
: Help please, using substition i keep coming up with equal answers on each side of the equation and I am stuck. I can't figure out what I am missing. Thanks.
This question is on a chapter review and is similar to question 34/35 on page 380 of Algebra 1 (ISBN 0-07-869680-1).
Mike makes $500 per month plus a commission of 3% of the total sales he makes. Zach makes $700 per month plus a commission of 2.5% of the total sales he makes. What is the total sales each must make to have the same salary? How much will eash person's salary be at that time?This question is from textbook Algebra I

Answer by jonvaliente(64) (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
Let x=total sales each person must make
Mike's salary = 500 + 0.03x
Zach's salary = 700 + 0.025x
500+0.03x=700+0.25x
Subtracting 500 from each side, we get:
500-500+0.03x=700-500+0.025x
0.03x=200+0.025x
Subtracting 0.025x from each side, we get:
0.03x-0.025x=200+0.025x-0.025x
0.005x=200
Dividing both sides by 0.005, we get:
0.005x/0.005=200/0.005
x=40000
Therefore Mike and Zach needs to make $40,000 in sales so they get equal salaries.
To check:
Mike's Salary = 500 + 0.03(40000)=500 + 1200=1700
Zach's Salary = 700 + 0.025(40000) = 700 + 1000=1700