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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]
OP here. This has been such a huge help! Amazing the great advice that comes from these boards.  I feel galvanized to make some progress on my debt from med school…the thought of getting out from under these loans while DD is still young (and thus freeing up funds for our house/her college/my retirement) is really exciting. Housing and childcare costs will evolve over time, and I will have to re-eval when she starts pre-school (we are not in bounds for public preschool but are for pre-K). That said, here is our new budget:

•	Rent: $2850/mo 
•	Nanny: $2400/mo 
•	Student loan: $3500/mo 
•	IRA contribution: $458.33 (to max out annual contrib of $5500 for tax purposes)
•	529: $120/mo to match Dad’s contrib
•	House down payment: $600/mo
•	Comcast: $100/mo (cable and internet; I could probably cut cable) 
•	Cell: $107/m0 
•	Car insurance: $171/mo 
•	Pepco: $75/mo 
•	Groceries, entertainment, travel, gas: About $800/mo

Total: $11,181.33/mo

This leaves a monthly cushion of $818.67 (not much). But at this rate, I can pay off that loan in 5 yrs and 7 mo, with an estimated interest cost of $17,929 (at my current monthly payment of $1100/mo, it would take me 22 yrs and 1 mo, with an interest cost of $75,764, so this saves me $57,835.). Then if I continue to save at that rate for another 4 mos, I can get to $100,000 in the home down payment fund, which will give me a 20% down payment for a 600K house (this would have to be in the Midwest). Next, throw the savings toward DD’s college fund (I’ll have 10 years to get her 529 up to speed before she starts her freshman year) and ramp up my retirement savings.  It will take discipline to stay on this budget as DD gets older but I think that’s what we have to do.

How does that look? Doable?
[/quote]

I think this looks very doable, OP. I'm one who advises paying your student loan off ASAP - I know others think you should prioritize investing given the low interest rate, and I do understand that argument, but you will already have $23K annually in retirement savings in the stock market, which may or may not continue the rapid growth we've seen in recent years. Meanwhile paying off your debt is a sure thing and I think you'll sleep better when that balance is lower. Even cutting it in half would be huge.

You may also want to think about putting some of your $50K savings into the market - maybe $10K so you can buy Admiral Shares of a Vanguard balanced fund (I like Wellington) and then add half of your $600 monthly home savings there. Obviously there is risk with a 5-year timeline for buying, but inflation is a risk too.

In 5 years you will feel as though you've received an enormous raise (your DD will be well into school then too, which will cut your childcare costs unless you go private) and you will be in great shape to catch up.

You seem disciplined enough to make this work. Good luck![/quote]

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