150K HHI. Two kids in private for a total of $40K per year (financial aid). We live nicely. I think the key is our $1K/mo. mortgage and two paid for cars (each 10 years old). Zero parental backup, FTR.

$250k HHI, both working
2 in private
Student loans still getting paid
Saving for retirement (average) and college (enough to help)
Average mortgage for HHI
cars are always paid in cash and are currently an '03 and '08 Ford
Not much travel
Buy mostly what we want, within reason
Totally doable

Anonymous wrote:HHI $150k. We live in a townhouse in the suburbs, drive older cars, and do not feel the need to impress anyone with anything. We have one in private at $30,000/year and we're doing just fine. It's all a matter of priorities.

+1 Us too! No FA needed if needs are prioritized.

Anonymous wrote:Tuition at most non religious schools is more like $30-40k per child.

There are cheaper options though.

OP, I can relate.

We have a HHi of 375K, after taxes it's around 250K. We were not fortunate to buy a house pre-bubble so our mortgage on our modest home is still a big chunk.

I have 2 kids with multiple LDs and really want to be able to put them in a privates school that can better support their needs and their education, but at 35k+ per kid it's seems tough to swing.

We will not put as much as necessary into our retirement and not enough into their 529s either.

OP here:

my DH and i have been discussing this issue at great length, which is why i posted. we have no debt. we save a lot, my personal opinion is that people who go private just don't save as much as we do. i don't know what is "better" - investing in your kids via a private education or passing on an amazing inheritance, but i know that the "what ifs"keep DH up at night.

we had a brief health scare that put him out of work for 9 weeks and that was very sobering.

Anonymous wrote:Much lower HHI with a small house in a non-fancy area. You can do it on your HHI if it is a priority. I am not saying that it should be, plenty of good less expensive options, but you can do it for sure if you don't have an insane mortgage or debt load.

What is a "non-fancy area"?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op, don't do it. Save so that your kids & grand kids can inherit something! It's really foolish to put your family in a precarious financial situation....what if one of you lost a job, got cancer, etc.

what are you talking about?! people around here truly think this HHI is normal....its not normal and OP has nothing- zero-zilch to worry about in retirement. and that is not what she was asking!

Um hello, they don't make enough to afford private AND save enough for a rainy day. It seems nutty to pay for private unless you are making 700k+

I tend to agree with you. We make about $500k HHI and am really struggling to justify $35k on one child for private. Yes, on paper it is easily paid for at this income. But what about the "what ifs of life?" Those are the things that keep me wondering.

Exactly. 35k*10yrs= 350k per child that they will never inherit. I think people get caught up in peer pressure surrounding private and dispense with common sense. What if law firm shrinks, or some other unforeseen debacle. If I were from a truly wealthy family I would go private, but with multiple kids and a 600k income - it just doesn't seem prudent. I think that over the long haul our kids will be better served by attending a good public and having more family wealth.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op, don't do it. Save so that your kids & grand kids can inherit something! It's really foolish to put your family in a precarious financial situation....what if one of you lost a job, got cancer, etc.

what are you talking about?! people around here truly think this HHI is normal....its not normal and OP has nothing- zero-zilch to worry about in retirement. and that is not what she was asking!

Um hello, they don't make enough to afford private AND save enough for a rainy day. It seems nutty to pay for private unless you are making 700k+

I tend to agree with you. We make about $500k HHI and am really struggling to justify $35k on one child for private. Yes, on paper it is easily paid for at this income. But what about the "what ifs of life?" Those are the things that keep me wondering.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op, don't do it. Save so that your kids & grand kids can inherit something! It's really foolish to put your family in a precarious financial situation....what if one of you lost a job, got cancer, etc.

what are you talking about?! people around here truly think this HHI is normal....its not normal and OP has nothing- zero-zilch to worry about in retirement. and that is not what she was asking!

Um hello, they don't make enough to afford private AND save enough for a rainy day. It seems nutty to pay for private unless you are making 700k+

Anonymous wrote:HHI $150k. We live in a townhouse in the suburbs, drive older cars, and do not feel the need to impress anyone with anything. We have one in private at $30,000/year and we're doing just fine. It's all a matter of priorities.

Ditto except we were lucky enough to buy a house in a desirable location back in 2000. It is tough, especially the "extras" - kids on financial aid get them but we don't. School is mainly wealthy or financial aid, very few $150k or so households I think. We saved and invested before having kids, using that money now for tuition.

Anonymous wrote:The better question is where is your money going. $400k/yr is $33k/month. How much is your mortgage? How much are you putting in retirement, college savings, general savings? If you don't have debt payments, where are you putting the money?

You forgot about taxes.

Anonymous wrote:Op, don't do it. Save so that your kids & grand kids can inherit something! It's really foolish to put your family in a precarious financial situation....what if one of you lost a job, got cancer, etc.

what are you talking about?! people around here truly think this HHI is normal....its not normal and OP has nothing- zero-zilch to worry about in retirement. and that is not what she was asking!

$100k. Townhouse + FA + 1 car + generally modest living. We do save, although obviously less than if we weren't paying for school. Totally worth it to us.

It's about priorities.