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Learning, Sharing, and Teaching => Ask a Mustachian => Topic started by: Skalm on August 09, 2015, 10:00:43 PM

Title: Is moving in with another couple a good idea to get through school faster?
Post by: Skalm on August 09, 2015, 10:00:43 PM
24 and 22. Combined net pay of $27k/year. I work at a university and get significant tuition reductions for myself and my wife, among other benefits (free gym, good health insurance, free bus passes, pension plan). We both work full time.

She is looking at a two-year program, but she's concerned that she won't be able to handle full time school and full time work. I make $15k/year, plus whatever we can finagle out of financial aid without taking out loans, in hopes that she can drop to on-call and go to school full time, get that program finished, get a job that pays $35k, and then I can quit and go to school full time.

Most significantly to this decision is that our rent will go from 25.8% of monthly takehome pay to 48%, which is high.

We have an option to move in with some friends this winter to a larger 3br apartment and pay 38% of take home pay (with only my income), along with savings on utilities and internet, and less wear and tear and gas on her car.
My wife will probably also be able to pick up a few hours here and there if she drops her job to on-call, which will help. If we move in with the friends, our budget is doable, but we won't have our fat savings rate anymore, which makes me nervous.

We have assets, a car worth $2800 and about $2k in liquid cash, increasing by $800/month. I have $5k in student loans that can be deferred as long as I want with 0% interest, and $4k in a motorcycle at 3% interest, that I'm debating on selling.

What we're thinking of doing is that she skips this semester and continues to work full-time, we save everything we can so that we're comfortable with the move, she quits or drops to on-call, gets in full time with her program, and knocks it out.

The alternative would be to go to school part time, take about twice as long to finish, but remain fairly stable in our entry-level jobs.

Budget (Parentheses are changes if we move in with friends)

Rent - $595 ($450)
Electric - $60 ($35)
Phone - $60 ($30)
Internet - $40 ($25)
Groceries - $250
Fuel - $80 ($30)
Insurance - $100 ($50 if I sell the bike)
Debt minimums - $104 ($0 if I sell the bike)
Allowance - $100 (would drop if wife dropped job)
Savings - $800 (would drop if wife dropped job)

Is this manageable or a good idea? Thanks for reading!
Title: Re: Is moving in with another couple a good idea to get through school faster?
Post by: Joel on August 09, 2015, 10:15:14 PM
What kind of pay increase can she expect? It might be worth taking on loans to not delay getting into a job that pays more. As long as you are responsible with the debt you are taking on, i think it could be worthwhile.
Title: Re: Is moving in with another couple a good idea to get through school faster?
Post by: abhe8 on August 09, 2015, 10:49:32 PM
Sell the bike, move in with friends, both go to school and work part time. It will suck, but you can do it. Think crunch time or live like no one else.
Title: Re: Is moving in with another couple a good idea to get through school faster?
Post by: Argyle on August 09, 2015, 11:19:24 PM
What kind of two-year degree is she going for?  What kind of salary does the intended career pay, and what are the job prospects?  I ask because I see a lot of people paying a lot of money for degrees that they hope will be credentials ensuring a better job, but which turn out to be big debts with not a lot to show for it.  If she were to work her way up in a career that didn't require an extra two years of schooling, they'd be paying her while she learns on the job.  That's an important option in saving real money.  More schooling is not just the price of tuition; it's the opportunity cost of losing out on two years of full-time income.  (You're right in thinking that full-time work and full-time school are too much.)
Title: Re: Is moving in with another couple a good idea to get through school faster?
Post by: K-ice on August 09, 2015, 11:54:51 PM
It's a good way to save money. I did it for 1y.

Kind of an odd scenario, we started out as roommates but became 2 couples within about 1month.

Lots of awkward moments where we just tried to stay out of each others way.

There were no major fights, & we weren't great friends before, but we never really spoke after.

If you are OK with that then I would go for it.

Title: Re: Is moving in with another couple a good idea to get through school faster?
Post by: Skalm on August 09, 2015, 11:56:20 PM
What kind of pay increase can she expect? It might be worth taking on loans to not delay getting into a job that pays more. As long as you are responsible with the debt you are taking on, i think it could be worthwhile.

We can cash flow school, I pay $65 per semester for 9 credits, she pays $50/credit hour, and we get it all back at tax time, I think. She's making $9/hour now, average pay for mechanics, which is what she's going for, is $15/hour.

What kind of two-year degree is she going for?  What kind of salary does the intended career pay, and what are the job prospects?  I ask because I see a lot of people paying a lot of money for degrees that they hope will be credentials ensuring a better job, but which turn out to be big debts with not a lot to show for it.  If she were to work her way up in a career that didn't require an extra two years of schooling, they'd be paying her while she learns on the job.  That's an important option in saving real money.  More schooling is not just the price of tuition; it's the opportunity cost of losing out on two years of full-time income.  (You're right in thinking that full-time work and full-time school are too much.)

I'm doing full time work and 9 credits a semester. She wants to be a mechanic, which is around $35k a year from what I can tell. We can cash flow school so there's no loans involved. We can look into some auto tech stuff that takes apprenticeships.