Coming to Terms with Full Pay

[Anonymous]

It’s maddening that there isn’t a cost of living adjustment. Families who earn $250k in rural America will be feeling much more abundant than families living in metro DC or the Bay Area or NJ…where that’s considered penny-pinching income.

[Anonymous]

Badge of honor!
Be proud proud.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s maddening that there isn’t a cost of living adjustment. Families who earn $250k in rural America will be feeling much more abundant than families living in metro DC or the Bay Area or NJ…where that’s considered penny-pinching income.

Didn’t someone say OP is 85th percentile in DC? I don’t think a COLA would help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"affluent" households as those who either earn at least $210,000 or have a net worth of about $1.8 million, a level that places them above 90% of U.S. households.

It’s crazy that $200k is the cutoff amount Hopkins, Duke, the Ivies, etc picked for providing free tuition.. that’s top 10% of the US.

Why not help some $300k donut holes?

Oh no, the people making $300k are suffering so, so much. They are truly such a sympathetic group that public opinion absolutely adores, right?

[Anonymous]

You live in DC? Apply to the UCs and UMich / Wisconsin. In state tuition!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s maddening that there isn’t a cost of living adjustment. Families who earn $250k in rural America will be feeling much more abundant than families living in metro DC or the Bay Area or NJ…where that’s considered penny-pinching income.

At virtually ever private school that offers significant need-based aid, the aid offices use cost of living tables to determine EFC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You live in DC? Apply to the UCs and UMich / Wisconsin. In state tuition!

That is a a myth. DC TAG provides for $10K/year toward the different between IS and OOS tuition. The difference is generally a lot more, particularly at the UCs, Michigan, and VA schools.

[Anonymous]

We’re having our kids apply to schools that we can afford with the money we’ve saved. This is life.

This means our in-state flagships. We are not taking out Parent Plus loans. We have a set amount we will cash flow. If they apply to schools beyond what we will pay and can get merit to make up the difference, that’s great.

They will not take out their own loans. They absolutely will not go into debt for undergrad. They can work, if course, to offset some expenses.

This is non-negotiable.

[Anonymous]

I'm so sick of the lack of sympathy people have on this board for people who seem to be doing the right things.

The mom who works to help save up for college is penalized, while the SAHM's family gets financial aid. And the response is, "well, quit your job then!"

Or, "Move out of DC!" (This is a DC site. Take your hate elsewhere) Or "Don't marry another Fed!"

These are all hard-working people realizing the game is rigged. It should be okay to hate the game, but you insist on hating the people trying to play fair.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm so sick of the lack of sympathy people have on this board for people who seem to be doing the right things.

The mom who works to help save up for college is penalized, while the SAHM's family gets financial aid. And the response is, "well, quit your job then!"

Or, "Move out of DC!" (This is a DC site. Take your hate elsewhere) Or "Don't marry another Fed!"

These are all hard-working people realizing the game is rigged. It should be okay to hate the game, but you insist on hating the people trying to play fair.

I've never heard any of this on DCUM. People are just honest, in that, you are not some sacrificial lamb, because you have an upper middle class salary and can afford college, but chose to live above your means. I am sympathetic to recently upper middle class families, but often, there are people complaining on here who've made HHI of $300-500k for the past 8 years and expect the rest of us to cry about their difficulty with a budget.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So I started checking the net price calculators. We are both feds and have been for 20-plus years, with plenty of promotions. Own our little rowhouse. Almost paid off. 20 years of TSP. 2 kids, strictly DCPS. Old car, limited spending, lots of savings. No medical bills.

We’re gonna be at max for ability to pay even though we aren’t living in champagne and caviar. Right?

I just need to count my blessings right? We’ve had stability and ability to pay even if we aren’t living high on the hog. People with more precarious lives deserve the lower price. Right?

I guess merit aid is possible - first kid did great on PSAT. But we’re still likely to just pay full freight even then because if he applies to a reach school EA or ED we’ll say yes, right?

Don't know your budget, but each of our kids were given a budget of $50k/yr. Both applied instate, but primarily OOS publics and privates where they could get merit and regional universities that had a smaller price tag. It's possible to send kids to school and not fork over $95k/yr.

[Anonymous]

With the rate that tuition has increased beyond the rate of inflation at the top tier schools, I don’t see value in sending kids there unless they are incredibly mature and pursuing a profession that will give them a high ROI on the money, or if you’re a gazillionaire who can easily afford it. For the rest of us, far better to target public schools or schools that provide generous merit aid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm so sick of the lack of sympathy people have on this board for people who seem to be doing the right things.

The mom who works to help save up for college is penalized, while the SAHM's family gets financial aid. And the response is, "well, quit your job then!"

Or, "Move out of DC!" (This is a DC site. Take your hate elsewhere) Or "Don't marry another Fed!"

These are all hard-working people realizing the game is rigged. It should be okay to hate the game, but you insist on hating the people trying to play fair.

I've never heard any of this on DCUM. People are just honest, in that, you are not some sacrificial lamb, because you have an upper middle class salary and can afford college, but chose to live above your means. I am sympathetic to recently upper middle class families, but often, there are people complaining on here who've made HHI of $300-500k for the past 8 years and expect the rest of us to cry about their difficulty with a budget.

Telling people on a DC site that they're stupid for living in DC is practically a pastime here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm so sick of the lack of sympathy people have on this board for people who seem to be doing the right things.

The mom who works to help save up for college is penalized, while the SAHM's family gets financial aid. And the response is, "well, quit your job then!"

Or, "Move out of DC!" (This is a DC site. Take your hate elsewhere) Or "Don't marry another Fed!"

These are all hard-working people realizing the game is rigged. It should be okay to hate the game, but you insist on hating the people trying to play fair.

I've never heard any of this on DCUM. People are just honest, in that, you are not some sacrificial lamb, because you have an upper middle class salary and can afford college, but chose to live above your means. I am sympathetic to recently upper middle class families, but often, there are people complaining on here who've made HHI of $300-500k for the past 8 years and expect the rest of us to cry about their difficulty with a budget.

Telling people on a DC site that they're stupid for living in DC is practically a pastime here.

I've never seen that on the college threads.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm so sick of the lack of sympathy people have on this board for people who seem to be doing the right things.

The mom who works to help save up for college is penalized, while the SAHM's family gets financial aid. And the response is, "well, quit your job then!"

Or, "Move out of DC!" (This is a DC site. Take your hate elsewhere) Or "Don't marry another Fed!"

These are all hard-working people realizing the game is rigged. It should be okay to hate the game, but you insist on hating the people trying to play fair.

Can you stop blaming SAHMs for your big tuition bills?