Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You guys are lucky you don't have student loans - our household student loans are around $900k/month. Makes a SERIOUS dent. And where are all of these 2k and under mortgages? My mortgage is for about $420k and monthly payments including taxes, insurance, etc. are just under $3k.

The key for us is that we bought in 1997. We have added to the loan for one major renovation, but we currently owe <$200k due to timing and over paying.

By over paying I mean we prepay some of the mortgage each month.

Okay, maybe since you bought in 1997 you are close to retirement and that's why you do this. But it's a terrible idea when interest rates are so low. Almost any decent investment is going to give you more than prepaying a mortgage at this point.

I'm only in my 30s, though, so clearly if you're at the end stages of working (say 50s or 60s) and can't take risks by investing your money elsewhere, this would not be the case.

We are 15 years away from retirement. The reason we prepay is that house assets are different from savings assets when colleges look at the parent's ability to pay. They allocate 10% of parents assets to college costs. Each year. So if you don't want all your savings to be decimated every year for four years- you prepay and do ROTH as much as you can.

Yes. We are a family of 3 living on $5k/mo with $2800 mortgage.

Not comfortably but we could scrape by.

We live pretty comfortably on less than $5,000/mo take home (taxes, retirement and insurance taken out). 2 adults, 1 kid in public school.

Rent: $2300
Cell phone, internet: $150
Aftercare/Camp: $250
Utilities: $150
Transportation (one paid off car, daily metro fare, gas and car insurance): $250
Student loans: $300
Food: $600
Medical (meds mainly): $100

We don't save as much as we'd like, but we're comfortable. We have everything we need and a lot of what we want. We vacation 3-4x/yr, but to Maine and Florida with family or camping in NC, we're not going overseas.

I'd LOVE to have an additional $2500+/mo and a lower rent/mortgage.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You guys are lucky you don't have student loans - our household student loans are around $900k/month. Makes a SERIOUS dent. And where are all of these 2k and under mortgages? My mortgage is for about $420k and monthly payments including taxes, insurance, etc. are just under $3k.

The key for us is that we bought in 1997. We have added to the loan for one major renovation, but we currently owe <$200k due to timing and over paying.

By over paying I mean we prepay some of the mortgage each month.

Okay, maybe since you bought in 1997 you are close to retirement and that's why you do this. But it's a terrible idea when interest rates are so low. Almost any decent investment is going to give you more than prepaying a mortgage at this point.

I'm only in my 30s, though, so clearly if you're at the end stages of working (say 50s or 60s) and can't take risks by investing your money elsewhere, this would not be the case.

I would feel very solid and maybe a little decadent on that. We are a family of four on about 5k net.

Is this a trick question?

What are you spending your money on if you can't live on that amount (yes, even in this area)

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I find this hard to believe. We have no debt except for our mortgage. I'll breakdown our expenses:

Income: 7800/month
Expense:
1850 = mortgage + tax
600 = all insurance (life, house, car)
350 = cell phone + cable
400 = house utilities ( average) for water, electricity, trash, heat
1000= food
---------
4200 subtotal

I haven't yet added gas, stuff for the house (like cleaning supplies), clothing, etc.. and activities for the kids - which can be a fair amount. Maybe your kid has no activities?

If we don't have any extra expense, like doing stuff on the house, going out, or travel, then we can save about 1500.

OK
2000= mortgage, tax and insurance
$600 YEAR car insurance (home insurance is in mortgage, work provides life, and health was already deducted)
$66 cell phone, no cable
$200 utility
$500 food
Equals 2750 a month

I also think you have no kids. But OP does. So apples to oranges comparison. Wait till you have kids, then check your finances again.

AGREE. Also, sounds like they live in a cheap place (condo, maybe). And no transportation expenditures at all? That sounds like an oversight (unless said condo is walkable to everything, but then it wouldn't be $2000/month).

This PP obviously doesn't have kids, so their situation is not at all applicable to OP's. Kids are expensive little critters, even when they are out of expensive care and into publics (heck, the food budget alone goes up exponentially by then, let alone activities, etc).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You guys are lucky you don't have student loans - our household student loans are around $900k/month. Makes a SERIOUS dent. And where are all of these 2k and under mortgages? My mortgage is for about $420k and monthly payments including taxes, insurance, etc. are just under $3k.

Wow almost a million a month in student loans.

What kind of HHI can afford 900k a month in student loans?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You guys are lucky you don't have student loans - our household student loans are around $900k/month. Makes a SERIOUS dent. And where are all of these 2k and under mortgages? My mortgage is for about $420k and monthly payments including taxes, insurance, etc. are just under $3k.

The key for us is that we bought in 1997. We have added to the loan for one major renovation, but we currently owe <$200k due to timing and over paying.

By over paying I mean we prepay some of the mortgage each month.

Anonymous wrote:You guys are lucky you don't have student loans - our household student loans are around $900k/month. Makes a SERIOUS dent. And where are all of these 2k and under mortgages? My mortgage is for about $420k and monthly payments including taxes, insurance, etc. are just under $3k.

The key for us is that we bought in 1997. We have added to the loan for one major renovation, but we currently owe <$200k due to timing and over paying.

Anonymous wrote:You guys are lucky you don't have student loans - our household student loans are around $900k/month. Makes a SERIOUS dent. And where are all of these 2k and under mortgages? My mortgage is for about $420k and monthly payments including taxes, insurance, etc. are just under $3k.

Wow almost a million a month in student loans.

You guys are lucky you don't have student loans - our household student loans are around $900k/month. Makes a SERIOUS dent. And where are all of these 2k and under mortgages? My mortgage is for about $420k and monthly payments including taxes, insurance, etc. are just under $3k.

Well being that my net monthly take home is just under $4,000, you bet your ass I could! Where do I sign up? God, that sounds so luxurious!

Anonymous wrote:Anyone who cannot live on $3K monthly excluding PITI has serious money management problems.

Yes, this includes two children in public school.

The PP was claiming that they were living on $1600 (now changed to $2000) a month, taking nice vacations, and buying expensive furniture. To me, that seems like a stretch, even without childcare costs.