HHI 200K - how much house can/should we afford

[Anonymous]

OP - Look farther up 270 at houses in the Wooten HS district. Good schools, more house for the money. Probably a longer commute but might be worth the trade off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP - Look farther up 270 at houses in the Wooten HS district. Good schools, more house for the money. Probably a longer commute but might be worth the trade off.

Wootton is not cheaper than WJ

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - Look farther up 270 at houses in the Wooten HS district. Good schools, more house for the money. Probably a longer commute but might be worth the trade off.

Wootton is not cheaper than WJ

In the price range OP is discussing, it is. Wootton is cheaper per square foot than WJ; its just that the typical house is larger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm the same boat as you, OP only with a little less money to put down. We don't want to uproot the kids multiple times and don't want to commit to Silver Spring high schools (though the elementary schools seem fabulous). Though, I keep thinking, how bad can the middle and high schools be? Many of the neighborhoods are terrific, it's still a high income area, and there's lots of great, involved families. We're already paying $4,600 per month on mortgage + childcare and feel comfortable with that, though we are fairly frugral. We have good savings, no debt, and continue to save each month toward retirement, kids college, etc.

What makes you think that there is an issue with Silver Spring High Schools? Do you know of any high school in Silver Spring that does not get kids into top colleges and does not have lots and lots of kids going to the University of Maryland (which I wouldn't consider to be a top college, but which certainly provides a good education)? My daughter went to high school in Silver Spring and then to an Ivy League college.

Yes, there are more ESL kids and kids who come from families with lower levels of education in Silver Spring than in Bethesda and that pulls down some of the test scores, but there are also lots of kids from families with educated parents. Many of the ESL kids are very motivated and end up doing quite well.

If your child is motivated to work hard and do well in school your child can do very well in any high school in Silver Spring. If your child is not motivated, your child is going to have issues in high school no matter where your child goes. All the high schools in Silver Spring offer honors classes and A.P. classes. My daughter took the A.P. classes and got 4s and 5s on all her A.P. tests, indicating that the teachers were teaching exactly what they were supposed to teach in those classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm the same boat as you, OP only with a little less money to put down. We don't want to uproot the kids multiple times and don't want to commit to Silver Spring high schools (though the elementary schools seem fabulous). Though, I keep thinking, how bad can the middle and high schools be? Many of the neighborhoods are terrific, it's still a high income area, and there's lots of great, involved families. We're already paying $4,600 per month on mortgage + childcare and feel comfortable with that, though we are fairly frugral. We have good savings, no debt, and continue to save each month toward retirement, kids college, etc.

What makes you think that there is an issue with Silver Spring High Schools? Do you know of any high school in Silver Spring that does not get kids into top colleges and does not have lots and lots of kids going to the University of Maryland (which I wouldn't consider to be a top college, but which certainly provides a good education)? My daughter went to high school in Silver Spring and then to an Ivy League college.

Yes, there are more ESL kids and kids who come from families with lower levels of education in Silver Spring than in Bethesda and that pulls down some of the test scores, but there are also lots of kids from families with educated parents. Many of the ESL kids are very motivated and end up doing quite well.

If your child is motivated to work hard and do well in school your child can do very well in any high school in Silver Spring. If your child is not motivated, your child is going to have issues in high school no matter where your child goes. All the high schools in Silver Spring offer honors classes and A.P. classes. My daughter took the A.P. classes and got 4s and 5s on all her A.P. tests, indicating that the teachers were teaching exactly what they were supposed to teach in those classes.

Don't kid yourself, silver spring is in a much lower league than Wooten and WJ.

It's not just getting into college but having the skills to thrive and not struggle once enrolled.

[Anonymous]

What makes the schools better at WJ or Wooten - apart from the peer effect? Do kids from there do better in life?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wrong place to ask, OP. Everyone on here is freakishly conservative. You can't buy shit for 500k.

sort of

But we have 2 acres and are just north of Olney - Sherwood HS cluster.

I love my children's elementary school, and Farquhar is being renovated soon.

can't complain - purchased our home for $550k and we're slightly under $200K

Prior to that, we had a home for $500K in SS and paid for private.

It can be done.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I agree with PPs that have said DCUM posters tend to be overly conservative and would recommend you look elsewhere or do your own calculations to see what YOU are comfortable with - not that PPs are wrong or bad, but there are just so many variables and such a wide range of comfort levels it's hard to get advise here.

FWIW, our HHI is a little higher than yours (about 260K) and we have a 700k mortgage (yes, this is our mortgage, house was more like $1M). We are fully funding 401ks, saving for the kids college (we have 2), have an emergency cushion of about $50k and between one in daycare for one more year and aftercare for the other our monthly childcare expense is about 1700. We have no other debt (car and student loans paid off) and are living very comfortably... go out to dinner often, take modest vacations, fly to visit family out of state twice a year, etc...

PP would you be willing to share your monthly or annual budget? I don't see how you can do all this. I must be doing something wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm the same boat as you, OP only with a little less money to put down. We don't want to uproot the kids multiple times and don't want to commit to Silver Spring high schools (though the elementary schools seem fabulous). Though, I keep thinking, how bad can the middle and high schools be? Many of the neighborhoods are terrific, it's still a high income area, and there's lots of great, involved families. We're already paying $4,600 per month on mortgage + childcare and feel comfortable with that, though we are fairly frugral. We have good savings, no debt, and continue to save each month toward retirement, kids college, etc.

What makes you think that there is an issue with Silver Spring High Schools? Do you know of any high school in Silver Spring that does not get kids into top colleges and does not have lots and lots of kids going to the University of Maryland (which I wouldn't consider to be a top college, but which certainly provides a good education)? My daughter went to high school in Silver Spring and then to an Ivy League college.

Yes, there are more ESL kids and kids who come from families with lower levels of education in Silver Spring than in Bethesda and that pulls down some of the test scores, but there are also lots of kids from families with educated parents. Many of the ESL kids are very motivated and end up doing quite well.

If your child is motivated to work hard and do well in school your child can do very well in any high school in Silver Spring. If your child is not motivated, your child is going to have issues in high school no matter where your child goes. All the high schools in Silver Spring offer honors classes and A.P. classes. My daughter took the A.P. classes and got 4s and 5s on all her A.P. tests, indicating that the teachers were teaching exactly what they were supposed to teach in those classes.

Don't kid yourself, silver spring is in a much lower league than Wooten and WJ.

It's not just getting into college but having the skills to thrive and not struggle once enrolled.

What makes you think pp's daughter struggled in college?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm the same boat as you, OP only with a little less money to put down. We don't want to uproot the kids multiple times and don't want to commit to Silver Spring high schools (though the elementary schools seem fabulous). Though, I keep thinking, how bad can the middle and high schools be? Many of the neighborhoods are terrific, it's still a high income area, and there's lots of great, involved families. We're already paying $4,600 per month on mortgage + childcare and feel comfortable with that, though we are fairly frugral. We have good savings, no debt, and continue to save each month toward retirement, kids college, etc.

What makes you think that there is an issue with Silver Spring High Schools? Do you know of any high school in Silver Spring that does not get kids into top colleges and does not have lots and lots of kids going to the University of Maryland (which I wouldn't consider to be a top college, but which certainly provides a good education)? My daughter went to high school in Silver Spring and then to an Ivy League college.

Yes, there are more ESL kids and kids who come from families with lower levels of education in Silver Spring than in Bethesda and that pulls down some of the test scores, but there are also lots of kids from families with educated parents. Many of the ESL kids are very motivated and end up doing quite well.

If your child is motivated to work hard and do well in school your child can do very well in any high school in Silver Spring. If your child is not motivated, your child is going to have issues in high school no matter where your child goes. All the high schools in Silver Spring offer honors classes and A.P. classes. My daughter took the A.P. classes and got 4s and 5s on all her A.P. tests, indicating that the teachers were teaching exactly what they were supposed to teach in those classes.

Don't kid yourself, silver spring is in a much lower league than Wooten and WJ.

It's not just getting into college but having the skills to thrive and not struggle once enrolled.

I can guarantee that kids who successfully manage to navigate through a large, diverse HS like Blair will do MUCH better in life than coddled kids who had it easy at a W school.

savvy kids who weren't sheltered = success in my book

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm the same boat as you, OP only with a little less money to put down. We don't want to uproot the kids multiple times and don't want to commit to Silver Spring high schools (though the elementary schools seem fabulous). Though, I keep thinking, how bad can the middle and high schools be? Many of the neighborhoods are terrific, it's still a high income area, and there's lots of great, involved families. We're already paying $4,600 per month on mortgage + childcare and feel comfortable with that, though we are fairly frugral. We have good savings, no debt, and continue to save each month toward retirement, kids college, etc.

What makes you think that there is an issue with Silver Spring High Schools? Do you know of any high school in Silver Spring that does not get kids into top colleges and does not have lots and lots of kids going to the University of Maryland (which I wouldn't consider to be a top college, but which certainly provides a good education)? My daughter went to high school in Silver Spring and then to an Ivy League college.

Yes, there are more ESL kids and kids who come from families with lower levels of education in Silver Spring than in Bethesda and that pulls down some of the test scores, but there are also lots of kids from families with educated parents. Many of the ESL kids are very motivated and end up doing quite well.

If your child is motivated to work hard and do well in school your child can do very well in any high school in Silver Spring. If your child is not motivated, your child is going to have issues in high school no matter where your child goes. All the high schools in Silver Spring offer honors classes and A.P. classes. My daughter took the A.P. classes and got 4s and 5s on all her A.P. tests, indicating that the teachers were teaching exactly what they were supposed to teach in those classes.

Don't kid yourself, silver spring is in a much lower league than Wooten and WJ.

It's not just getting into college but having the skills to thrive and not struggle once enrolled.

There is more than one path to success.

I understand that those who lack vision and imagination cannot succeed unless they take the blandest and most coddled way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree with PPs that have said DCUM posters tend to be overly conservative and would recommend you look elsewhere or do your own calculations to see what YOU are comfortable with - not that PPs are wrong or bad, but there are just so many variables and such a wide range of comfort levels it's hard to get advise here.

FWIW, our HHI is a little higher than yours (about 260K) and we have a 700k mortgage (yes, this is our mortgage, house was more like $1M). We are fully funding 401ks, saving for the kids college (we have 2), have an emergency cushion of about $50k and between one in daycare for one more year and aftercare for the other our monthly childcare expense is about 1700. We have no other debt (car and student loans paid off) and are living very comfortably... go out to dinner often, take modest vacations, fly to visit family out of state twice a year, etc...

PP would you be willing to share your monthly or annual budget? I don't see how you can do all this. I must be doing something wrong.

I agree. Our HHI is a bit higher than 260k, and with maxing our retirement, saving for college and about the same in daycare but no debt, I do not see how we could carry a 700k mortgage. We have a 400k mortgage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I agree with PPs that have said DCUM posters tend to be overly conservative and would recommend you look elsewhere or do your own calculations to see what YOU are comfortable with - not that PPs are wrong or bad, but there are just so many variables and such a wide range of comfort levels it's hard to get advise here.

FWIW, our HHI is a little higher than yours (about 260K) and we have a 700k mortgage (yes, this is our mortgage, house was more like $1M). We are fully funding 401ks, saving for the kids college (we have 2), have an emergency cushion of about $50k and between one in daycare for one more year and aftercare for the other our monthly childcare expense is about 1700. We have no other debt (car and student loans paid off) and are living very comfortably... go out to dinner often, take modest vacations, fly to visit family out of state twice a year, etc...

We are similar, although our HHI is about 220k this year--fluctuates. We bought for $1.1, put down 20%, have no debt. It's pretty tight for us, although we have a live in nanny. And we have fully funded retirement accounts, largely funded 529s, pensions on the way, and will be headed overseas in a few years and will rent the place out. Our initial limit was 900k (more like the above poster), which would have been more realistic. But there was little available, and we ended up with a ridiculously great commute/school/neighborhood. This is only doable because of money we had put aside for unexpected costs and our friend the tax rebate. And we expect the income to rise. And the interest rate was great.

[Anonymous]

I'm the previous poster whose daughter went to an Ivy League college after going to high school in Silver Spring. She did fine in college. She graduated last year (in four years) and got a good job in her field. She thinks that going to high school in Silver Spring was an advantage: she learned to get along with people from a large variety of backgrounds and she thinks that has been a huge benefit that she got from her education.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm the same boat as you, OP only with a little less money to put down. We don't want to uproot the kids multiple times and don't want to commit to Silver Spring high schools (though the elementary schools seem fabulous). Though, I keep thinking, how bad can the middle and high schools be? Many of the neighborhoods are terrific, it's still a high income area, and there's lots of great, involved families. We're already paying $4,600 per month on mortgage + childcare and feel comfortable with that, though we are fairly frugral. We have good savings, no debt, and continue to save each month toward retirement, kids college, etc.

What makes you think that there is an issue with Silver Spring High Schools? Do you know of any high school in Silver Spring that does not get kids into top colleges and does not have lots and lots of kids going to the University of Maryland (which I wouldn't consider to be a top college, but which certainly provides a good education)? My daughter went to high school in Silver Spring and then to an Ivy League college.

Yes, there are more ESL kids and kids who come from families with lower levels of education in Silver Spring than in Bethesda and that pulls down some of the test scores, but there are also lots of kids from families with educated parents. Many of the ESL kids are very motivated and end up doing quite well.

If your child is motivated to work hard and do well in school your child can do very well in any high school in Silver Spring. If your child is not motivated, your child is going to have issues in high school no matter where your child goes. All the high schools in Silver Spring offer honors classes and A.P. classes. My daughter took the A.P. classes and got 4s and 5s on all her A.P. tests, indicating that the teachers were teaching exactly what they were supposed to teach in those classes.

Don't kid yourself, silver spring is in a much lower league than Wooten and WJ.

It's not just getting into college but having the skills to thrive and not struggle once enrolled.

LMAO. Tell that to my daughter, who has a thriving medical practice. She is an Einstein and Ivy League grad. Her brother, also an Einstein grad, was graduated summa cum laude from a highly competitive SLAC last year.