Reply to If private school is a financial stretch for you, has it been worth it?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Our oldest of 3 is in a wonderful independent school for kindergarten. Or middle child is in preschool at a top school discussed on this Board. Our youngest is still a baby.

Our kindergartener is a hesitant and sometimes anxious kiddo and has been doing really well at his school. He's really thriving. We love our preschool and have seen both kids thrive there. We've never experienced public school so we have nothing to compare to but our oldest in particular is the kind of kid that I think could get lost in a big public school.

That said.... the price of all of this is pretty crushing. Our income is in the $500K range and the cost of 3 kids in private school for 15 years each (including preschool, before college) is kind of mind blowing. I believe these are special schools that will be great for my kids and it's been my approach to do everything I can to support their development.... but I also feel really, really tired and like we are always striving for something more... and that this private school choice leaves us no space to do less intense jobs or take some time off if we need it. (I am admittedly feeling professionally burnt out right now and started a new job without taking some much-needed time off because we couldn't afford the lack of income.) I'm just not sure if it's worth it. We aren't behaving irresponsibly by making this financial commitment but we absolutely are not saving much beyond retirement.

For those who are making good income but not uber wealthy / in a situation where money is no object -- and are toward the end of the journey, would you make the choice again?

Please don't pick apart if we should feel this way based on the income we are bringing in. That's not the point. The point is that we do feel stretched and I am surprised by the emotional toll of it. I feel tired and I don't really want to feel this way for the next 20 years. But I also know that my kids are my world and I would regret it if it pulled them out of an excellent environment and then saw them struggle so that my life felt easier. [/quote]

OP, it is a hard choice. We have three kids, HHI of $600K, and opted for public. We weighed the decision heavily particularly since I did private school from K-12 which was so impactful on my life. I wanted the same for my kids. BUT, my parents were not able to pay for all of my higher education, as a result, and those loans were crushing. I often wonder where I'd be had my parents saved their $ on private and applied to my college career.

I will say that the decision to keep my own kids in public has made a huge difference in our quality of life. I do not stress about money. I save a ton. I will fully fund their college and grad schools. We spend a lot on music lessons, travel sports, math enrichment, language, domestic and international travel, eating well, and upgrades to our home. The kids are AAP and have done great in public. Ye, there are things that I'm not happy about but realize that there would likely be things in private that would drive me mad.

They also have a ton of neighborhood friends, which has been a godsend. They walk themselves to play dates, walk with friends to school, ride bikes around the neighborhood, and essentially manage their own social lives. I rarely drive them to anything outside of sports.

I don't knock the private experience at all. It is great for some. However, we weighed all the factors heavily and opted for public. I was very nervous about it having never experience public school before. I am very comfortable financially and can give the kids whatever they need. It's a load off[/quote]

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