NP here.

Living in NoVa, the car thing is really, really tough. That's one of MMM's key points. Me and DH are definitely "car clowns."
Car costs are killing us here, even having paid-off cars. Public transportation not an option for DH, or for me since we have to tag team.

We are able to do some things:
Renting the cheapest acceptable place. Plan to buy because we plan to be here long term, and having a paid-off house is valuable in retirement. Long term, you'd have to be truly saving a lot of money renting to make renting the better option. Rents go up, up, up every year. A mortgage payment will stay the same and then when you are done you'll have something to show for it.
Eating at home, and packing picnics for outings, attending potlucks with friends. Hello H Mart, and Aldi! And not eating a lot of meat.
Buying kids clothes at resale - though mine are young now and don't care, I can see how this will become more difficult.
No gym membership or any of that foof.
Public school.
Kids have been raised to not expect new toys, latest video games, etc. They don't even ask for it and entertain themselves just fine.
I am low maintenance and always will be - jeans & T shirt lifestyle, unless I land a job that requires more.
But again, the cars are killing us!
We could move closer in but the difference would be made up in more rent or a higher mortgage payment.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We decided to rent a cheap apartment and not have kids. No debt, maxed out 401k. It's amazing. We want for nothing and feel rich and free.

Well that's silly. Real estate can be a great investment and by renting you are just throwing money away.

My house is down 150K from what I bought it for in 2005; probably 250K+ corrected for inflation. Real estate isn't always the wise decision.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:08:15, your real estate comment is exactly what everyone complains about here. Your $1m starter home is not mustachio, it's a huge problem in this area.

Not PP, but my $1M home in DC cost me $140K. (It's not worth $1M yet, but by the time I'm ready to cash out, I wouldn't be surprised if it is.)

PP was projecting the future value of her home, which she clearly purchased for much less.

This is 08:15 and yes we paid much much much less than $1m for our home. We are lucky to have bought at the right time, as are most other people who bought pre 2003 or so. For someone whose hhi is under $100k and doesn't already own or have a big down payment, it's very tough. But for all the people on this board who moan about not having enough with a $400k hhi, they have real choices.

Anonymous wrote:08:15, your real estate comment is exactly what everyone complains about here. Your $1m starter home is not mustachio, it's a huge problem in this area.

Not PP, but my $1M home in DC cost me $140K. (It's not worth $1M yet, but by the time I'm ready to cash out, I wouldn't be surprised if it is.)

PP was projecting the future value of her home, which she clearly purchased for much less.

08:15, your real estate comment is exactly what everyone complains about here. Your $1m starter home is not mustachio, it's a huge problem in this area.

The people who say MMM isn't really retired or it's not a good idea to invest lots of resources into a career that will ultimately be short haven't really read MMM and are missing the message. His point is not to retire to sit on your ass or play golf. The point is to get to financial independence as soon as you can so all your life decisions can be made about what you really want and what makes you happy, NOT based on money. If what truly makes you happiest is working hard in a paying job then by all means you should do that.

Getting back to OP's question, I think there are several aspects of life in DC that make it well suited to living the mustachian life.
-Many free museums, concerts, and other cultural, educational, and recreational activities.
-many beautiful parks, gardens, beaches, mountains, etc relatively close by make it easy to spend time outdoors
-walkable neighborhoods and public transit make it feasible to not own a car or only have one car.
-abundance of grocery stores and markets make it possible to comparison shop and get the best deals on the foods your family eats most. I love Aldi!
-since DC is a big tourist destination, we have had good luck swapping our home for vacations, thus saving tons of money on hotels.

Obviously, one of the big issues in this area is housing since it is so expensive. I agree with the poster who said to get by with as little housing as you can. We are still in our "starter" house long past the point where we originally thought we would. But we really can't afford to move up, or at least we can't afford to and still save a significant percentage of our earnings. At this point we plan to stay in this house as long as we can, possibly until the kids are out of high school, then move to a much lower cost of living area. At that point our starter house is likely to be worth $1 million or more, so that will be a nice addition to our stash. Which is another perk of DC life: while real estate is expensive, if you buy at the right time in the right area and get lucky with appreciation, you can make out very well when it's time to cash out.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We decided to rent a cheap apartment and not have kids. No debt, maxed out 401k. It's amazing. We want for nothing and feel rich and free.

Well that's silly. Real estate can be a great investment and by renting you are just throwing money away.

Don't just mimic something your parents told you.....

Not all real state is a "great investment".

Real estate can appreciate at a far slower rate than other investments. I have many friends who bought during the bubble years on zero or next to nothing down loans and are just now putting teeny tiny amounts toward their principal. Paying interest on a loan is not an investment. Real estate can depreciate.

Renting isn't throwing money away. Renting pays for a place to live.

Live below our means. Marrying low-maintance spouses each handy with household tools. Keep the car until it absolutely dies.

Here's one NO one knows about: $10/month wireless internet access to DC residents -- free if you're low income

http://www.everyoneon.org/welcome

Anonymous wrote:I have one kid, no car, live in a condo, cook a lot etc. I like his frugality tips.

As an economist, however, I don't really think you need to follow his whole program. His retirement savings goal seems very low in a world where he and/or his wife could make it to age 90. Also, here in DC, many people like their work, and some people have really vital jobs. In the case of doctors, medical researchers, etc., it makes little sense to invest in lengthy educations and not use them for long. Society would also be a worse place if such people lived the MMM life.

MMM is an extremist. I don't think most of his readers will actually follow in his footsteps. But he does inspire people to think outside the box of keeping up with the Jones' while working for 40 years, which is a good thing IMHO.

I have one kid, no car, live in a condo, cook a lot etc. I like his frugality tips.

As an economist, however, I don't really think you need to follow his whole program. His retirement savings goal seems very low in a world where he and/or his wife could make it to age 90. Also, here in DC, many people like their work, and some people have really vital jobs. In the case of doctors, medical researchers, etc., it makes little sense to invest in lengthy educations and not use them for long. Society would also be a worse place if such people lived the MMM life.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:He's like that guy who goes to Disney and makes a free salad out of the condiment bar at the burger place. He thinks he is pulling one over on the establishment, but really he kind of sad.

Or the guy who orders water with lemon and put sugar in it.

Eh. I disagree. I think he's gone on record for not giving up his red wine and other sundries he enjoys. He's a modern evolved cheapskate.

Anonymous wrote:He's like that guy who goes to Disney and makes a free salad out of the condiment bar at the burger place. He thinks he is pulling one over on the establishment, but really he kind of sad.

Or the guy who orders water with lemon and put sugar in it.

Anonymous wrote:He's like that guy who goes to Disney and makes a free salad out of the condiment bar at the burger place. He thinks he is pulling one over on the establishment, but really he kind of sad.

Or the guy who orders water with lemon and put sugar in it.

He's like that guy who goes to Disney and makes a free salad out of the condiment bar at the burger place. He thinks he is pulling one over on the establishment, but really he kind of sad.