How a Grad Student Couple Lived Within Their Means -

[intirb]

https://chroniclevitae.com/news/1082-how-a-grad-student-couple-lived-within-their-means

Basically an article about the people behind this site: http://evolvingpf.com/about-us/

[CommonCents]

And $50k ($25k*2 it sounds like) in stipends in a cheap COL area is a hella a lot more than I ever had!

I find it hard to believe that people in grad school would need to be told to live with roommates.  (When in school, that's what one just does!)  They would have done better by selling one (if not both) cars as well.  I never owned a car while in college or grad school.  I don't see how CSAs fit in the same category as haircuts or clothes, or why they'd save $600 a year on cameras.  $420 on groceries is crazy for 2 people.  But I guess, at least they're trying?

[forummm]

It's great that they were able to save (unlike so many others). But I agree that they had lavish income for grad students. I was able to save about the same amount as just a single person with a lower stipend in a VHCOL area. Partly because I spent so little and partly because I worked other jobs.

[nereo]

i'm glad to see an article highlighting how individuals can save money even while in graduate school, but I can say from personal experience that this is far from a rare phenomenon.  Stories of incredible student loan balances have become common place, but many individuals manage to go through graduate school with no loans at all, often even saving money.  We did exactly this, on stipends there were slightly less.
Graduate school is one brilliantly mustachian sector of our society where it's still acceptable (and even somewhat expected) to have hand-me-down mismatched furniture, live with roommates when you are 30 and make meal plans based on the cost-per-serving.  we've used it as a shield against consumer criticism ("oh, well you're still a student, that's why you don't own a new car or eat out at trendy restaurants") but when you spend so many years in graduate school doing this the mustachian patterns become ingrained.

[Gin1984]

What about this one?
http://gradmoneymatters.com/inspiring-stories/student-landlord-ginger.html
Buying a duplex on a one grad salary.

[clarkfan1979]

After 7 years of grad school, I lived on about $20,000/year. This included me paying $1500/year in student fees. Tuition is free, but not fees. I also paid $1500/year on student health insurance. As a result, $17000/year was spent on the rest.

My stipend was only $15,000/year, so I averaged $5,000/year in student loans. I graduated with about $35,000 in student loans from grad school. If I found MMM sooner, maybe I had a shot at no loans, but I am pretty happy with the whole experience, including the loans.