I wouldn't do it.

3 mos. is a minimum cushion, I don't think you're really solid til you have 6 at least... that's a shitload ($7k) to be locked into every month.... just IMO.

Yes. Our HHI is a little over 300K and our payment is $5200. It's not a problem and we're comfortable. Just a heads up, most people who respond to threads about finances are extremely fiscally conservative and will almost always say whatever you want to do is unaffordable.

Yes, 4900 per month on 350k of gross income should be fine. Could be less if you get a 10 yr ARM, or I/O for financing.
Get a good tax advisor too, so you're doing everything to maximize your disposable income and savings.

Anonymous wrote:How hard would it be to maintain if one of you both was unable to work? All other expenses included and additional expenses added, would you end up losing your home?

and by this logic, single people should not buy homes...

How hard would it be to maintain if one of you both was unable to work? All other expenses included and additional expenses added, would you end up losing your home?

Pay off your car first.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our HHI is $450K. Our mortgage payment is $5K/month (15 year and we have 75% equity in the house) and we spend $5K/month in childcare (3 kids). We have no debt and we max out on 401Ks, 529s, etc. We do save in addition to that, but we don't have much left over. Our vacations are funded by airline/hotel points and shopping is all at Target and Costco.

Wow. Our HHI is $435K and we save about 35% of our net income.

Wow. So not helpful to the conversation. Do you have an answer to the question? Or do you just want to brag about how much your husband makes?

Wow. It is relevant because they are way reaching. LOL I make $250,000 of that $435K.

Anonymous wrote:You'll be more than fine. Seriously.

DH and I make combined around $250K. Have 2 kids in daycare - $2800/month - and pay around $4500/month for a mortgage. And we still max out our 401(k)s and save in 529s and an emergency fund. And travel, gamble and take vacations. We have no other debt, and paid off our student loans years ago.

I can't get over how conservative some folks are here. My philosophy is to be prudent, but have fun living while you can!

How old are you and what's your net worth?

Anonymous wrote:those who contribute to 529s, could you share with me how much per kid per month?

OP, we have a HHI of 300K. Our mortgage including tax is ~4000. Max on retirement. Kids in daycare. No outstanding debt. We have left-overs at the end of the month. Right now, I'm just wondering how much I need to save for 529s without being outrageous.

$300 per kid per month.

There are online calculators to help determine how much to save based on public/private and how much you have already saved. We did one and it said that for a 3 yo to save for a private education we'd have to put away $600/month.

Anonymous wrote:those who contribute to 529s, could you share with me how much per kid per month?

OP, we have a HHI of 300K. Our mortgage including tax is ~4000. Max on retirement. Kids in daycare. No outstanding debt. We have left-overs at the end of the month. Right now, I'm just wondering how much I need to save for 529s without being outrageous.

For one kid, we've been saving $1000/month. That's based on projected cost to attend a four-year private college about 16 years from now. Our second is on the way any day now, and we're trying to decide whether we drop it to $500 per kid for a couple of years ( basically until we pay off our law school loans--$1200/month) or make cuts elsewhere to do $2000/month. I think we'll split the $1k between the kids for the next 2.5 years. Should note that we don't have any childcare expenses. I think we save at the high end? DH and I both were fortunate enough to have our parents pay for our college, so we're trying to do the same for our kids. We prioritize it over other things and consider it a necessary expense, not an optional thing. Not trying to brag or make others feel bad about saving less--just explaining why we're saving so much (or what I think is a lot compared to some of our friends). I know plenty of people who went to college on full loans and worked their way through school, and they are often even more successful than friends who had it all paid for by their parents.

Anonymous wrote:Prepare for the rain because not every day is sunny. What would happen if one of you lost your job, got sick, couldn't work for whatever reason? What if property taxes on this house go up substantially in the next 3-5 years?
What I'm wondering is- what kind of cushion do you have to prepare for any of these things happening?

I had the same thought - OP says she has 3 mos of living expenses as a cushion. Given the high mortgage they are contemplating, that's not enough. Not even close.

Anonymous wrote:those who contribute to 529s, could you share with me how much per kid per month?

OP, we have a HHI of 300K. Our mortgage including tax is ~4000. Max on retirement. Kids in daycare. No outstanding debt. We have left-overs at the end of the month. Right now, I'm just wondering how much I need to save for 529s without being outrageous.

Given your HHI (too high to qualify for financial aid), and given what college costs now (a lot), I think it is hard to save too much.

Our kids are 14 and 11 and we have a combined total of $300K in their college funds.

those who contribute to 529s, could you share with me how much per kid per month?

OP, we have a HHI of 300K. Our mortgage including tax is ~4000. Max on retirement. Kids in daycare. No outstanding debt. We have left-overs at the end of the month. Right now, I'm just wondering how much I need to save for 529s without being outrageous.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our HHI is $450K. Our mortgage payment is $5K/month (15 year and we have 75% equity in the house) and we spend $5K/month in childcare (3 kids). We have no debt and we max out on 401Ks, 529s, etc. We do save in addition to that, but we don't have much left over. Our vacations are funded by airline/hotel points and shopping is all at Target and Costco.

Wow. Our HHI is $435K and we save about 35% of our net income.

Wow. So not helpful to the conversation. Do you have an answer to the question? Or do you just want to brag about how much your husband makes?

seriously. Yes, they a lot of money. But they could also be dead tomorrow and all the money will be meaningless. I never get bragging about how much money one saves. Save enough to be reasonably prudent for retirement and college and then LIVE for the present! Or reduce your hours/change jobs and work less. The bragging is lost on me. I actually feel sorry for the compulsive savers.