Family of Four on 90k - An Upper Middle Class Existence

[Anonymous]

I think upper middle class existence is not quite the right description for your lifestyle, but I guess you did admit that you don't have the same world views as the schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The concept of upper middle class is pretty vague and economists and sociologists look at it differently. It usually refers to well-educated professionals with graduate degrees and comfortable incomes secure from economic down-turns. Economists like to emphasize the security from the business cycle. Sociologists like to emphasize skills, education and patterns of behavior. What they agree on is that it isn't about absolute income. While a small business owner or sales executive may earn more than a doctor or lawyer, they are generally not included in the upper middle class concept because those occupations don't necessarily carry the same social status and influence or cultural attributes. Academics are almost always included in the definition, even though they may make very little (adjuncts!). Historians like to point out the unique role that the upper middle class has played in social movements.

Bottom line - money isn't everything. Autonomy, security, and education are better indicators of who is in the upper middle class than income alone.

+100000

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Miserable dcum posters love to descend on threads that have a positive message and try to rip it apart.

Why are you ladies so miserable with life?

This is OP, signing off.

Your OP called everyone pathetic. Where is the positive message in that? You kinda opened yourself up for this.

+1. OP take some responsibility. You set the tone. You didn't post here saying, hey, I have some helpful info...

If you folks who make less than 100k can please post your budget, your expenses, and how you just make it work, it would be really helpful.
Don't just post that you live so well on 100k and not expect people to try to do the math.
If you have a super low mortgage, how did you do that?

I already posted all this info a few pages back. I'm happy to answer your questions if you have any.

In one posting or in dribs and drabs across multiple pages? Can you clean it up and summarize, as well as explain non-normative mortgage or childcare expenses or the neighborhood where homes are cheap and the schools are good?

[Anonymous]

In 2015, can you buy a SFH or a condo in a decent neighborhood with good schools, pay for quality childcare for two kids and pay of student loans for 2 people and still feel you are living an upper middle class existence (which includes saving for retirement, saving for college and a vacation or two per year), on 90K?

Without help from parents or having a trust fund?

I think not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In 2015, can you buy a SFH or a condo in a decent neighborhood with good schools, pay for quality childcare for two kids and pay of student loans for 2 people and still feel you are living an upper middle class existence (which includes saving for retirement, saving for college and a vacation or two per year), on 90K?

Without help from parents or having a trust fund?

I think not.

Don't forget student loans

[Anonymous]

So for two years we got by on roughly $120 for a family of four (well- kind of) and here's how it looked:

Monthly net of $10k

$1000 hc premiums and expenses
$3500 mortgage/piti
$2000 Uncle Sam
$400 ds speech therapy
$150 gym memberships (not quite but want to keep Mary easy)
$150 travel ($1800 year for 2 trips - 3 plane tickets each trip- to see family)
$500 cable, cell phones, internet, gas/electric
$1000 - food, medicines
$200 - gas
$300 - car insurance
$200 - eating out
$400- 401k
$200- kids clothes, bday parties, parking tickets, wine

No childcare for my dd bc dh was unemployed. My parents paid for my older child to go to preschool (which he had started before dh became unemployed). I think we were still upper middle class because we ate out occasionally, had gym memberships, went to a nice preschool, and we lived in a nice townhouse that had a good public elementary (not that we could use it yet--- and the middle school no way). And we had help for preschool costs to the tune of $10k.

Not at all sustainable for us. No college savings in there. Thank goodness dh is no longer unemployed!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Miserable dcum posters love to descend on threads that have a positive message and try to rip it apart.

Why are you ladies so miserable with life?

This is OP, signing off.

Your OP called everyone pathetic. Where is the positive message in that? You kinda opened yourself up for this.

+1. OP take some responsibility. You set the tone. You didn't post here saying, hey, I have some helpful info...

If you folks who make less than 100k can please post your budget, your expenses, and how you just make it work, it would be really helpful.
Don't just post that you live so well on 100k and not expect people to try to do the math.
If you have a super low mortgage, how did you do that?

I already posted all this info a few pages back. I'm happy to answer your questions if you have any.

In one posting or in dribs and drabs across multiple pages? Can you clean it up and summarize, as well as explain non-normative mortgage or childcare expenses or the neighborhood where homes are cheap and the schools are good?

14:31 on page 7. Also a follow up on p8 with suggestions of how you can do the same today.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So for two years we got by on roughly $120 for a family of four (well- kind of) and here's how it looked:

Monthly net of $10k

$1000 hc premiums and expenses
$3500 mortgage/piti
$2000 Uncle Sam
$400 ds speech therapy
$150 gym memberships (not quite but want to keep Mary easy)
$150 travel ($1800 year for 2 trips - 3 plane tickets each trip- to see family)
$500 cable, cell phones, internet, gas/electric
$1000 - food, medicines
$200 - gas
$300 - car insurance
$200 - eating out
$400- 401k
$200- kids clothes, bday parties, parking tickets, wine

No childcare for my dd bc dh was unemployed. My parents paid for my older child to go to preschool (which he had started before dh became unemployed). I think we were still upper middle class because we ate out occasionally, had gym memberships, went to a nice preschool, and we lived in a nice townhouse that had a good public elementary (not that we could use it yet--- and the middle school no way). And we had help for preschool costs to the tune of $10k.

Not at all sustainable for us. No college savings in there. Thank goodness dh is no longer unemployed!!!

If you have $10k net each month you are earning a LOT more than $120k a year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So for two years we got by on roughly $120 for a family of four (well- kind of) and here's how it looked:

Monthly net of $10k

$1000 hc premiums and expenses
$3500 mortgage/piti
$2000 Uncle Sam
$400 ds speech therapy
$150 gym memberships (not quite but want to keep Mary easy)
$150 travel ($1800 year for 2 trips - 3 plane tickets each trip- to see family)
$500 cable, cell phones, internet, gas/electric
$1000 - food, medicines
$200 - gas
$300 - car insurance
$200 - eating out
$400- 401k
$200- kids clothes, bday parties, parking tickets, wine

No childcare for my dd bc dh was unemployed. My parents paid for my older child to go to preschool (which he had started before dh became unemployed). I think we were still upper middle class because we ate out occasionally, had gym memberships, went to a nice preschool, and we lived in a nice townhouse that had a good public elementary (not that we could use it yet--- and the middle school no way). And we had help for preschool costs to the tune of $10k.

Not at all sustainable for us. No college savings in there. Thank goodness dh is no longer unemployed!!!

If you have $10k net each month you are earning a LOT more than $120k a year.

LOL. This is fake my friend. This person is making it all up. And eating out occasionally and gym membership makes you UMC?

[Anonymous]

Pp... I'm a moron. Sorry. $10k gross.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Miserable dcum posters love to descend on threads that have a positive message and try to rip it apart.

Why are you ladies so miserable with life?

This is OP, signing off.

Your OP called everyone pathetic. Where is the positive message in that? You kinda opened yourself up for this.

+1. OP take some responsibility. You set the tone. You didn't post here saying, hey, I have some helpful info...

If you folks who make less than 100k can please post your budget, your expenses, and how you just make it work, it would be really helpful.
Don't just post that you live so well on 100k and not expect people to try to do the math.
If you have a super low mortgage, how did you do that?

I already posted all this info a few pages back. I'm happy to answer your questions if you have any.

In one posting or in dribs and drabs across multiple pages? Can you clean it up and summarize, as well as explain non-normative mortgage or childcare expenses or the neighborhood where homes are cheap and the schools are good?

14:31 on page 7. Also a follow up on p8 with suggestions of how you can do the same today.

oh the urban pioneer who won the housing bubble lottery; any plans to cash in your ticket and diversify your wealth before dc economy drops further? do u even have kids or did u win charter school lottery too?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Miserable dcum posters love to descend on threads that have a positive message and try to rip it apart.

Why are you ladies so miserable with life?

This is OP, signing off.

Your OP called everyone pathetic. Where is the positive message in that? You kinda opened yourself up for this.

+1. OP take some responsibility. You set the tone. You didn't post here saying, hey, I have some helpful info...

If you folks who make less than 100k can please post your budget, your expenses, and how you just make it work, it would be really helpful.
Don't just post that you live so well on 100k and not expect people to try to do the math.
If you have a super low mortgage, how did you do that?

I already posted all this info a few pages back. I'm happy to answer your questions if you have any.

In one posting or in dribs and drabs across multiple pages? Can you clean it up and summarize, as well as explain non-normative mortgage or childcare expenses or the neighborhood where homes are cheap and the schools are good?

14:31 on page 7. Also a follow up on p8 with suggestions of how you can do the same today.

and again no one is going to see appreciation even 1/4 of what you saw b/c it was a historical housing bubble couple with 9/11 spending in DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So for two years we got by on roughly $120 for a family of four (well- kind of) and here's how it looked:

Monthly net of $10k

$1000 hc premiums and expenses
$3500 mortgage/piti
$2000 Uncle Sam
$400 ds speech therapy
$150 gym memberships (not quite but want to keep Mary easy)
$150 travel ($1800 year for 2 trips - 3 plane tickets each trip- to see family)
$500 cable, cell phones, internet, gas/electric
$1000 - food, medicines
$200 - gas
$300 - car insurance
$200 - eating out
$400- 401k
$200- kids clothes, bday parties, parking tickets, wine

No childcare for my dd bc dh was unemployed. My parents paid for my older child to go to preschool (which he had started before dh became unemployed). I think we were still upper middle class because we ate out occasionally, had gym memberships, went to a nice preschool, and we lived in a nice townhouse that had a good public elementary (not that we could use it yet--- and the middle school no way). And we had help for preschool costs to the tune of $10k.

Not at all sustainable for us. No college savings in there. Thank goodness dh is no longer unemployed!!!

you are making it but just barely and only with 10k student from parents.

soon you will need 4 plane tickets to visit family.

you only saving 1/4 of what you could in 401k

no budget for home maintenance or repair which can be substantial.

your problem (like all of us and what op and many pps discount) is the cost of housing and childcare
if you could get mortgage down to $1600 (on like a $300k property) you would be fine.

maybe op can loan you her time machine to go back to 2002 and house shop with her DH?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think upper middle class existence is not quite the right description for your lifestyle, but I guess you did admit that you don't have the same world views as the schools.

Sounds very umc to me. It definitely isn't middle class..and they are in top quartile for income. How is that not umc!?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where do you live? When did you buy?

Bought in 2009. DH bought a townhome in 2002, rode the appreciation, and put money into our current place.

That is very lucky timing. Where do you live?

Lucky how? Living wisely and taking advantage of market conditions is hardly luck.

Are you serious? You were lucky enough to marry someone who purchased pre bubble. You didn't "time the market". I'm slightly older than you and was one year into my job in 2002. It takes time to save up a down payment. By the time we did, we were screwed market-wise. You're acting as if you waited it out to purchase at the right time. You were lucky.

Same situation here. I'm 35 but feel like I was born 10 years too late for this area- by the time I finished grad school, paid off undergrad loans and married my DH, we were already priced out of much of the DC market with ok schools that didn't offer a bad commute to both our jobs.. My DH will sometimes lament how he didn't buy a condo in the early 2000s but even though he was in a much better financial position to do so at the time it was still a risk as a single person and he's conservative by nature.