It’s extremely hard to raise kids in a nice neighborhood without generational wealth

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:7 pages in and everyone is contributing their own version of “screw you, I got mine” while ignoring OP was focused on those under 35 buying $2-3M homes.

We get that many of you saved aggressively and traded up between mid 30s to 50s. You all keep repeating the same story that ironically was only possible for most of you because of unprecedented property appreciation in this country since 2008. Yet you all think you’re brilliant for benefitting from a macroeconomic trend.

How many PP’s bought a $2-3M home under 35 with kids without parental support or a trust in the DC area?

My 28-year-old son and his 27-year-old wife just purchased a $2M home in McLean with $1.2M down and an $800K mortgage. He graduated in 2020 and is currently working as a senior software engineer for Amazon for a cool $350K/year. His wife graduated in 2021 and is currently working for Google for a cool $300K/year. They got married in 2020 and lived with my wife and me for five years to save the $1.2M down payment (with some luck in the stock market) prior to purchasing the home. They plan on paying off the mortgage in the next two years. It is not that difficult.

Do you have a guest house? It would be a cold day in hell that I would agree to live with my in laws or future daughter or son in law. Share a kitchen, family room, and laundry room? Have sex with them down the hallway?

They lived in our guest house, which features a full kitchen, family room, and laundry room. Fortunately, we spend our winters in Florida and Vietnam and travel extensively between spring and fall, so we really only saw them during the summer. FWIW, I get along great with my daughter-in-law; she has actually been my younger daughter's best friend since first grade.

This is the funniest possible contribution to try to negate the premise that you need generational wealth to pull off what your son and DIL pulled off. "You don't need generational wealth! Just live for five years rent free in your parents' guest house with a full kitchen, family room, and laundry room, conveniently located near your top-3%-salary duel jobs! It just takes those kind of 'good decisions,' not generational wealth!"

I mean, if this is a troll it's why trolling was invented. Chef's kiss.

Exactly! You can save $1.2m by 28 if you and your spouse live with mommy and daddy for years.

[Anonymous]

We bought in a nice part of Bethesda when we were both under 30.

[Anonymous]

Where did you get the idea that it was supposed to be easy?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where did you get the idea that it was supposed to be easy?

I see

Nice neighborhood are not for everyone

[Anonymous]

My spouse and I are both children of immigrants who came here with nothing in their pockets. There were times when our parents didn't work and we lived frugally. We went to public schools with gangs and pregnant kids in middle school. But we both went to college and law school, took out loans, studied our butts off, and took grueling jobs at law firms before going to public service. We bought a fixer upper in Bethesda and had kids and there were months when we were didn't save anything between mortgage, student loans, daycare, fixing a car etc. Finally loans get paid off slowly, no more daycare, and we sold and bought a mcmansion. Looking back, I agree it was very hard to get here and one bad decision or misfortune along the way could have prevented all of this. It is ABSOLUTELY easier to reach this outcome if you grew up wealthy - from nice low poverty schools, fancy expensive summer camps, tutors, lessons, and soccer coaches, to networking for internships, and parental help on weddings and down payments and college help (basically everything we are now doing or will do in the future for our kids). I haven't even mentioned systemic discrimination in society!

All that said I know plenty of folks with the same story and they don't live in Bethesda-type neighborhoods and they are lovely and doing fine financially. We chose to participate in this rat race but it's not for everyone and that's totally fine too. I sense some folks feel this specific lifestyle is a right. In reality, it took a perfect storm of luck and an exhausting amount of 'grind' that many people (rightly) choose to skip in favor of balance. It's okay to admit that this level of success isn't just handed out—but it isn't the only way to live well, either.

[Anonymous]

“If you don’t own a lambo by age 25, you need to have a serious conversation with yourself” - gen z tiktok influencer

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where did you get the idea that it was supposed to be easy?

I see

Nice neighborhood are not for everyone

"But I deserve to live there! To be amongst my people!"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where did you get the idea that it was supposed to be easy?

I see

Nice neighborhood are not for everyone

"But I deserve to live there! To be amongst my people!"

And, "everybody else who has done better than me in life benefitted from generational wealth! It's not my fault I don't earn much. It's not my fault I opted for a worthless educational credential. It's not my fault I don't want to work too hard. It's not my fault I had a bunch of kids early in life and can't easily support them. It's not my fault I don't prioritize saving and investing over self-indulgence because, you know, YOLO, etc".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:^raising not aiding

What is the great neighborhood?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where did you get the idea that it was supposed to be easy?

I see

Nice neighborhood are not for everyone

"But I deserve to live there! To be amongst my people!"

And, "everybody else who has done better than me in life benefitted from generational wealth! It's not my fault I don't earn much. It's not my fault I opted for a worthless educational credential. It's not my fault I don't want to work too hard. It's not my fault I had a bunch of kids early in life and can't easily support them. It's not my fault I don't prioritize saving and investing over self-indulgence because, you know, YOLO, etc".

Sure, you alone are the reason for your wealth

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nearly everyone making enough to buy in McLean or Bethesda is 35+ and probably 40+. By then you can barely even have kids. If you’re of actual child bearing age you’re probably too broke to comfortably raise a family. Every couple I’ve known who has a SFH in a good zip code and has kids before 30 in this area comes from a UHNW family and buys a house that is 10-20x their annual salary. How many folks under 35 are actually buying 2-3M houses completely on their own without generational wealth? It’s not zero but pretty damn close.

Yes, it is easier to do things when you've money but instead of resenting your broke parents or neighbor's loaded parents, go make your own money before you've kids so you can buy all the goodies you want for them and leave generational wealth for your grandchildren as well. We all resent privileged people with inheritance of wealth and beauty but as majority, we are the ones who put them on pedestal and copy them.

[Anonymous]

Is the generational wealth canard passé yet? What will be the next excuse of the envious and lazy?

[Anonymous]

We are very happy, safe, and having a good time in our 800k neighborhood in Fairfax county. There are sidewalks, pools, tennis courts, places to walk and ride bikes to. Neighborhood kids are not overly spoiled. Neighbors probably have more pickup trucks than McLean but I see that as a plus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where did you get the idea that it was supposed to be easy?

I see

Nice neighborhood are not for everyone

"But I deserve to live there! To be amongst my people!"

And, "everybody else who has done better than me in life benefitted from generational wealth! It's not my fault I don't earn much. It's not my fault I opted for a worthless educational credential. It's not my fault I don't want to work too hard. It's not my fault I had a bunch of kids early in life and can't easily support them. It's not my fault I don't prioritize saving and investing over self-indulgence because, you know, YOLO, etc".

Sounds like the wealth version of George Carlin’s take on drivers. Anyone driving slower than me is an idiot and anyone driving faster is a maniac.

[Anonymous]

Why do you care, OP? The Post just had a great article on large houses and how they aren’t making folks happier. Connection between family members and neighbors does as does spending time together in common areas. I live in Bethesda in a more modest house and we love our neighborhood because of the neighbors, and that’s in spite of the ones either obvious generational wealth.