Did I miss something?
They’ve living off of the 150K business loan, which is meant to set up the business, right?
What money are they going to use to set up the business?? And why is there such a huge delay for the business to open? Also, what kind of clinic requires less than 150K in set up costs???
I feel like something is seriously missing here.
Confused?? Join the club, man!
The 150k loan is *technically* a loan for them to open the business, but it’s a loan from his father. They are using about $75k to build out their office space (that construction process has just started so I’m assuming that number will climb, as it does with most construction projects), and another $30-40k for equipment, etc. Apparently when they sat down to discuss this loan and sign on the dotted line, they decided that even though they thought they’d only need around $110-$120k to start the business, they realized that they wouldn’t be working for (at that time, three) but now seven months, so they “decided to take out more than they needed to accommodate for living expenses.”
The business was delayed opening because my BIL didn’t get the scores needed to practice in the state they moved to. Of course, they didn’t wait to get his scores back before signing the lease for the office space and hiring a contractor, etc. So basically now there’s all this work going into building out the space and it’s set to be done in March, which is when they were originally supposed to open, but now he has to re-take his boards in May. He won’t get the results until July, which means that’s the absolute earliest they can open.
There’s also still the possibility he won’t pass in May but, true to form, they’re not even considering that. No contingency plan.
So, as far as the money: they get $150k dropped on them, expect to spend $120ish on the office opening, and see the other $30k as money to live on until they start bringing in the big bucks (presumably the second they open.) That means rent, Whole Foods shopping trips, gym memberships, blah blah blah. Oh and also, using it to make payments on his student loans when those start rolling in.
If you’re thinking that sounds like a super bad idea, SAME!
Yeeeaaaahhh...
That’s about what I thought was going on, except I couldn’t figure out the 7 month delay. Failing the boards finally fills in the missing piece. Clinics are costly things to build, but they don’t take more than a few months even if they’re highly technical.
Well, either they’re totally screwed or your BIL is pretty confident that the Bank Of Dad will provide.
I’ve known plenty of spoiled brats with equally lofty and unrealistic plans who have been so emboldened by the certainty that their parents can and will bail them out that they don’t hesitate to fling themselves face first into the sharp blades of financial risk with the fantastical promise of extraordinary pay off.
I mean, why bother having back up plans or moderating your spending if the wellspring of parental money never runs dry?
If that isn’t the case then...well...that will make Christmas interesting...
Well, that's the other thing, he didn't really FAIL the boards. He passed the boards with the score needed to be considered passing at the national level, but apparently certain states have additional scores that need to be achieved in order for you to practice in THAT state. The state they moved to has a score almost 100 points higher than the "pass" score recognized nationally.
If it were me, I probably wouldn't have picked a state where that was a requirement and then started building out my office space before I even got those scores back. Feels like a pretty big roll of the dice.
I should also add, I do adore my sis and BIL. He isn't a spoiled brat, and he is super laid back about material things... he wears super old clothes, drives a 1980 Suburban that's paid off (and he doesn't want to get rid of it), and I'm pretty sure he wouldn't care if they lived in a hut on the side of the road. His only financial idiocy is coming from this opening of the practice, and he's had so much confidence pumped into him by that program I talked about that he truly feels like it cannot fail.
My sis is also not into clothes shopping, she currently drives a paid for car and doesn't care about getting a super nice vehicle, she spends zero money on things like haircuts and manicures and stuff like that. HER financial vice is the food/personal care. She's vegan, only wants to eat organic everything, only buys organic personal care products, etc etc etc.
I personally spend way more money than they do on entertainment and stuff... I go out for drinks semi-regularly, eat out a handful of times a month, go to concerts and take trips and stuff. They don't do any of that crap, which is why it's such a confusing situation... it's like they're hemorrhaging money and have basically nothing to show for it other than a fridge full of organic food. Of course, I also have a good job with a good salary. They have no jobs with no salary.
I think they're probably best described as "head in the clouds" rather than spoiled brats. They were both lucky to come from families that provided them with super comfortable lives growing up, and they've become accustomed to that comfortable lifestyle without understanding
how you achieve that lifestyle comfortably. They don't know how much they should be spending on rent, so they don't understand why $2k a month is too much. They truly, genuinely believe that the minute the practice opens they are going to be making money, and quickly, and lots of it. They have basically put all of their trust into 2 things: the word of the leaders of my BIL's program, and God.
As for the commenters saying they're feeling anxious reading this... yeah, you can imagine how me/my parents feel WATCHING this unfold in real time.
And to the commenter who asked how she turned out so differently than me: she was always very different than me, even as children. I am a worrier and she is not. I am a planner and she is not. I would rather sell my home and move into a box on the street rather than ask anyone for help, and she has no qualms about taking a handout or asking my parents to chip in on gas and groceries, etc. I have contingency plans for my contingency plans, and she doesn't even have regular plans to make contingency plans for. I put my faith re: finances in numbers and math, and she puts her faith in a higher power (not that there's anything inherently wrong with that, but when you're talking money, it wouldn't hurt to pray AND make yourself a spreadsheet.)
But you know, different strokes and all that. It's what makes the world go 'round. It's also what makes me drink.