As a long time reader, but first time commenter, I've made an embarrassing number of terrible mistakes financially. If only MMM had existed back in my undergrad days, before I took out a mountain of grad school debt and made one increasingly bad decision after another.
In an effort to keep from making additional poor choices, I am appealing to the fine readers here to guide me in the right direction. I'm sorry guys, this is a long one....
Here is the rundown of my life thus far:
Debts: $52,202
-Student Loans (36,810)
-Car ($15,392)
Cash/Investments: 30,800
Net worth: -21,402
My work situation
Currently, I work as an independent contractor in an allied health field. I live in what I will refer to as Town A - a small town at least 2 hours away form all major cities and airports. I currently make $52 per hour with a $600 housing stipend for the months I am working. I work about 10 months out of this year. I expect to make about 85,000.
I negotiated a raise to a flat $60 per hour for next year. This should be $92,640.
My life situation
I am in my late-twenties. I married badly and did an even worse job of divorcing. My ex-husband didn't want me to work, so I didn't for quite some time. That was a mistake. I have a beautiful child that is just beginning to walk. That was most definitely not a mistake, but the timing probably could have been a little better. If your wondering, no, this is not the life I thought I would have but it's the life I do have and I'm trying to make the best of it.
I live half way across the country from my ex-husband and my family and have no real support network nearby, so that's not a factor in moving. I pay for a nanny which is exorbitant, but it's an expense I can live with. For personal reasons, I have not pursued child support and do not plan to any time soon. My goal at this point is to be (student loan) debt free and own some kind of property by the time I'm 30. Then I can start worrying about early retirement.
Recently, an acquaintance I had contracted with in the past got in touch and offered me a position in a larger city, but it would be about the same amount of money as I am making now and less than I plan to make next year. However, I am tempted to take the job for quality of life reasons. While there are perks to living in a small town (I can see my child everyday at lunch and I can make it to work in three minutes or less) it has major downsides. The town I live in is very conservative. It's been hard to meet people who share similar ideals or parenting practices. There are no mommy groups that I can find, no support groups for single parents, a single library, no museums, limited ethnic food options, and it is two hours to the nearest airport. Sometimes, I feel very isolated. One big perk, however is that it's actually hard to spend money and because of a recent influx of jobs, rental prices have skyrocketed while house prices have remained low.
After the offer from my former employer, I began exploring my options. These are what I have:
Option A: Suck it up and continue in town A. Feel lonely and isolated, but kick ass paying down debts and fixing the mistakes I've made. Buy a duplex or 4-plex for 150-175K, live in it and rent out remaining units at a possible profit of up to 1,000 per month. Gross 92,640. Move on next year and continue to rent out units through a property management company. Then sayonara Town A, Hello bright future!
Option B: Move to City B, a huge city I have lived in before and loved, but a city that holds a lot of painful memories. I cannot afford a property in a great neighborhood, but I might be able to afford a duplex/fourplex in a gentrifying area. Possible Duplex/Fourplex $250-350K and mortgage costs will hopefully be completely covered by tenants. Car dependency goes up somewhat. Expected income will be 87K-89.5K.
Option C: Move to City C, a mid-sized to large city that I have never lived in before, which is exciting - a chance to make some new memories. Duplex/Fourplex within walking distance to parks/cafes/groceries in an area that has already up and came: $250-330K and mortgage costs should be completely covered by tenants. Expected income: 83K.
Other than housing costs, cost of living will probably be about the same everywhere. When I get rid of the rent I am paying now, my average monthly expenses (car payment, Nanny, groceries, minimum student loan payment, occasional travel to see family at holidays, and occasional entertainment expenses (eating out, gifts, the occasional cup of coffee) should be about $2,700. I don't see that changing greatly in any of these cities.
My heart is telling me to start over with Option C - you know, those usual justifications that your heart makes: you deserve to live in a beautiful old house, you deserve to meet people who might share your ideals, you deserve to have more than one library, you deserve to eat Indian food!
But my head says, Shut up heart, you don't know what you're talking about, we could make more money here and then we could stand a chance of retiring at 40! Pick Option A you nitwit!
And my stomach just sort of recoils at picking Option B and driving past all those places I used to frequent with the person I though I would be growing old with, even though realistically I know it's a a good compromise and may be the best decision.
So in the effort of not continuing on the same trajectory of following my heart and making impulsive, willy-nilly, piss-poor choices, I need some wisdom and advice from some strong-stomached, level-headed, heartless(?) Mustachians. How much is quality of life really worth? Please help!