Anonymous wrote:Out of curiosity, if I am a single mom of one child, aged 50, making $125k, no other income or child support, homeowner, do I have any chance of getting financial aid at a private school?

Yes. I know a woman in a similar situation who gets financial aid. Not full aid, but enough so she can afford the school (which is not 30K a year to begin with).

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Anonymous wrote:Hey, I live in a townhouse and have zero desire to live in a SFH. In fact, some times I fantasize about downsizing to a condo... PP who thinks that the kid is going to need therapy because his parents lived modestly is very odd.

I think the couple is placing to much focus on their child and not enough on themselves and their own happiness. we are not talking about the kid NOT going to school. We are talking the kid going to public so his parents can live a life commiserate with their income. It is too much pressure on the kid.

Now I've heard everything. Sending your kids to the best school you can is "too much pressure"?

You are ridiculous. And yes, I think parents have a responsibility towards their children's education that is more important than living a "life commensurate with their income."

You know what I enjoy doing with my money? Educating my children. You make your choices, I'll make mine.

Anonymous wrote:Private has a big effect on your long term net worth. I would think twice if not already wealthy.

Agree. Has a huge impact on your life and is an unnecessary expense in most cases. It is a luxury.

Private has a big effect on your long term net worth. I would think twice if not already wealthy.

Out of curiosity, if I am a single mom of one child, aged 50, making $125k, no other income or child support, homeowner, do I have any chance of getting financial aid at a private school?

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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.

This is sad. You are going to die when your kid goes to college and is around other kids doing just as well and the parenrs are not living in a townhouse and driving older cars. Unless your children have learning disabilities or are genuiuses, you're sacrificing way too much. Your kid will probably end up talking to a therapist about it one day. My in-laws did something similar and now my husband realizes how foolish they were. His dad has had to work a few more years before retirement and for little to no benefit.

Not PP - but seriously you think my kid is going to end up in therapy because we live in a townhouse? Wow....

Not PP either, but both the thought that living in a townhouse is horrible and the fact that PP's husband is a mess because of it are both terrible. Says FAR MORE about the husband than anything...

I'm the PP and we live in a rowhouse! I only said that because it is clear the pp lives in a townhouse and drives old cars to send their kid to private school. My husband isn't a mess but more realizes his parents should have saved their money and sent him to public school. I simply wouldn't let my children 100 percent dictate how I live my life. When your kids grow up, they can spend all of their money on education if they wish.

Nice try. You're still a judgmental lunatic with a wuss for a husband.

Why is my husband a wuss for thinking his parents made a financial mistake? What the heck?

What is the difference between a row house and townhouse? It's practically the same thing!

OP with your income you are technically able to afford $70,000 in after-tax tuition dollars per year. Remember that this figure will increase year after year, as tuition continues to rise.

You appear to have a preference for a private school education, and it will require you to prioritize some things over others, but you can afford it.

OP again: we're also at mcps in one of the smallest elem schools in the district and kids have no special needs and are very adaptable... so, private would be a total luxury.

Anonymous wrote:OP here:

so, it seems like many feel we should automatically be able to afford private and that only "priorities" set us apart. we don't take extravagant vacations or drive amazing cars. we do have a nice house that we moved into this year (from a townhouse).

it seems we prioritize saving. it is important to us to pay for college and to have a 6-month cushion in case of whatever badness could befall. we also put away towards retirement.

i guess we should take another look at our numbers.

What is your monthly mortgage?

OP here:

so, it seems like many feel we should automatically be able to afford private and that only "priorities" set us apart. we don't take extravagant vacations or drive amazing cars. we do have a nice house that we moved into this year (from a townhouse).

it seems we prioritize saving. it is important to us to pay for college and to have a 6-month cushion in case of whatever badness could befall. we also put away towards retirement.

i guess we should take another look at our numbers.

Anonymous wrote:wife went back to work after SAHM for 15 years, and a lot of sacrifices. tuition is just part of the equation, remember to add the social aspect of it, field trips, ski club, dance..(if u have a DD, this gets expensive, etc)..

Working = sacrifice

wife went back to work after SAHM for 15 years, and a lot of sacrifices. tuition is just part of the equation, remember to add the social aspect of it, field trips, ski club, dance..(if u have a DD, this gets expensive, etc)..

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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.

This is sad. You are going to die when your kid goes to college and is around other kids doing just as well and the parenrs are not living in a townhouse and driving older cars. Unless your children have learning disabilities or are genuiuses, you're sacrificing way too much. Your kid will probably end up talking to a therapist about it one day. My in-laws did something similar and now my husband realizes how foolish they were. His dad has had to work a few more years before retirement and for little to no benefit.

Not PP - but seriously you think my kid is going to end up in therapy because we live in a townhouse? Wow....

Not PP either, but both the thought that living in a townhouse is horrible and the fact that PP's husband is a mess because of it are both terrible. Says FAR MORE about the husband than anything...

I'm the PP and we live in a rowhouse! I only said that because it is clear the pp lives in a townhouse and drives old cars to send their kid to private school. My husband isn't a mess but more realizes his parents should have saved their money and sent him to public school. I simply wouldn't let my children 100 percent dictate how I live my life. When your kids grow up, they can spend all of their money on education if they wish.

Nice try. You're still a judgmental lunatic with a wuss for a husband.

Why is my husband a wuss for thinking his parents made a financial mistake? What the heck?

Our family income is about $300k and 1 private school tuition is not hard at all. We will be at 2 in a few years. We both started saving for retirement very young, and we also paid off our mortgage after about 10 years. People should by all means try to maximize their retirement and college savings, but this talk about maximizing the inheritance to the kids is not advisable. Inheritances are taxed at quite a high rate and usually are not going to the children until they are in their 40s or 50s or more. Most older parents try pretty hard to parcel out the money so it's useful to their kids before they die (and not taxed so high) by doing things like funding education.

I think about these decisions in terms of long-term desires. In 30 years, will it matter to my child that they lived in a 1500-sq-foot house instead of a 3000-sq-foot-house? Will it matter if we had an old Honda or a new Mercedes? Probably not. It's really a case by case basis whether it will matter to them that they went to a private school; it all depends on the school. They will probably also still remember travel or other enriching activities that money could buy. So that's how we prioritize what to spend.

Anonymous wrote:

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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.

This is sad. You are going to die when your kid goes to college and is around other kids doing just as well and the parenrs are not living in a townhouse and driving older cars. Unless your children have learning disabilities or are genuiuses, you're sacrificing way too much. Your kid will probably end up talking to a therapist about it one day. My in-laws did something similar and now my husband realizes how foolish they were. His dad has had to work a few more years before retirement and for little to no benefit.

Not PP - but seriously you think my kid is going to end up in therapy because we live in a townhouse? Wow....

Not PP either, but both the thought that living in a townhouse is horrible and the fact that PP's husband is a mess because of it are both terrible. Says FAR MORE about the husband than anything...

I'm the PP and we live in a rowhouse! I only said that because it is clear the pp lives in a townhouse and drives old cars to send their kid to private school. My husband isn't a mess but more realizes his parents should have saved their money and sent him to public school. I simply wouldn't let my children 100 percent dictate how I live my life. When your kids grow up, they can spend all of their money on education if they wish.

Nice try. You're still a judgmental lunatic with a wuss for a husband.