Washington Post---"Squeaking By" on $300,000? This is "Journalism?" (Reston: coupons, buying a home)

[novaslasher]

I thought it was interesting to read about another segment of society (the affluent) and how they define hardship. I admit the Costco "Recession Party" turned my stomach, but other then that it wasn't too over-the-top given that these people are corporate executive types.

The real lesson here, is how difficult it is for people to downgrade their lifestyles when circumstances call for it. Granted she had a divorce and home sales are bad, but this lady can't seem to face giving up her luxuries beyond a few token efforts (giving up some of her clothes shopping, resisting buying a cutting edge cell phone for her middle school daugher, etc). Even though most middle class folks have less luxuries than the affluent, I think most of us would have a tough time downgrading our homes or cutting back lifestyle as well. Medical costs, job loss, and divorce (and resistance to downgrading lifestyles to match loss of income) are big reasons people get swallowed by debt. That's true for the affluent as well - even Hollywood millionaires can go bankrupt if their income doesnt match expenses.

[VRE332]

Originally Posted by mdcrim

She could take her $75000/ year child support, quit her job, move to a lower COA area and not have to work. She could raise those kids herself. That's an idea!

good idea mdcrim.... she could also find a new husband in 3 seconds! They can move into some section 8 housing, clip coupons, take a part-time job at wal-mart and still be ahead of the game.

[springfieldva]

I kind of feel bad for that woman in the story. She's living in that big, beautiful house with a (possible/probable?) cracked septic line in the basement. It could cost thousands to repair, so she keeps putting it off and living with the smell. That can't be a very good feeling.

[Yankeesfan]

Not surprised that her husband divorced her. And she "had" to buy a new black sweater for the party even though she has a huge designer wardrobe, and "had" to buy bracelets even though she undoubtedly has a extensive jewelry collection, but then she asks the painter, who makes way, way less than she does, if she can put off paying him?

I enjoyed this article. As Car54 said, it's journalism, people like this do exist.

[live_strong28]

Originally Posted by Yankeesfan

Not surprised that her husband divorced her. And she "had" to buy a new black sweater for the party even though she has a huge designer wardrobe, and "had" to buy bracelets even though she undoubtedly has a extensive jewelry collection, but then she asks the painter, who makes way, way less than she does, if she can put off paying him?

I enjoyed this article. As Car54 said, it's journalism, people like this do exist.

Too tough to speculate on why they divorced, but as with many living up that lifestyle, the hubby probably traded in for younger, blonder.

$75k/year is the cost of doing business.

[Yankeesfan]

Yeah, he may be worse than she is.

[athousandlogins]

Originally Posted by mdcrim

She could take her $75000/ year child support, quit her job, move to a lower COA area and not have to work. She could raise those kids herself. That's an idea!

In her shoes, I don't think I'd choose to stay in that particular house. But I see her point that it wouldn't be easy to sell it in this market. And I can also really see her point that she doesn't want to pull her kids out of their school and away from their friends.

But even if she managed to slash her cost of living, I don't see the logic in quitting her job. Child support is a temporary thing - as soon as those kids turn 18, she doesn't get a dime from her ex anymore. Then what? She'll be in her 50s with a huge gap in her resume, nobody will want to hire her. How is she supposed to pay the bills then? She obviously has some investments, but we've seen just how quickly and unexpectedly those can go south.

The BEST BEST BEST gift a parent can give their children is to plan well for their own old age. For her to just up and leave her job at this point would totally abdicate that responsibility.

[SteelCityRising]

My main point wasn't to sound jealous. My main gripe with this article is that a supposedly well-educated and intelligent business professional (whose daily job responsibilities likely entail overseeing budgets) truly has very little, if any, idea on what it means to truly sacrifice in order to keep herself afloat financially at home. Someone else in this thread was befuddled when I said I live "comfortably" on a $41,000 salary. Other than an occasional splurge for something tasty I just save money at the stores by clipping coupons, buying generic brands, using "bonus cards", etc. to get my refrigerator half-full for the upcoming week and occasionally hit up dollar stores as well for some staples. I eat a sandwich, banana, yogurt, and bottled water everyday for lunch while working. My dinners are mostly whatever frozen dinner happens to be on sale in any given week. I often skip breakfast. I own a fuel-efficient car and try to walk wherever I can to save money (hence my frequent spats on this forum about the sprawling environment of much of NoVA that makes this such a difficult feat for those of us outside the Beltway). For "fun" I come onto this forum, walk over to Barnes & Noble and read, "gawk" at stuff I wish I could afford at Best Buy, go running, etc.---I don't need to head to Reston Town Center every other night and kvetch about work with co-workers as we drown what ails us in expensive mixed drinks. My life may not be glamorous, but yes, you CAN live at least a semi-comfortable lifestyle as a single person in most of NoVA on a salary in the $40,000 range. It just boggles my mind that someone earning $300,000 annually who lives in a county not much more affluent overall than Fairfax County could have the audacity to whine about "struggling" and "sacrificing" when she is STILL living the sort of lifestyle many of the working poor could only dream of someday (and will sadly die without ever experiencing).

At least the Ashburn couple, while also clueless about TRUE budget-crunching, was a bit easier for most of us in Northern Virginia to relate to. If this woman's 12-year-old son is whining that he wants this or that, then why not instruct him to go mow some of the lawns in the neighborhood? He'd probably do it for a relatively low price, which would serve two purposes---giving this woman's fellow "struggling" neighbors a welcome reprieve from their landscaping bill while also teaching her son a bit about the value of a hard-earned dollar so he'd have a bit more respect for the hard work his mother does and be more judicious in asking for money. I grew up without having many of the same "perks" many of my peers had, but I still feel as if working full-time through high school and college permitted me to become MUCH more marketable and well-rounded in the long-term than those whose only real experience with "fiscal restraint" is not getting a pedicure or buying an Audi A6 instead of an Audi A8.

[live_strong28]

Originally Posted by Yankeesfan

Yeah, he may be worse than she is.

She looked pretty good for her age though.

[The Dissenter]

Originally Posted by Denton56

Her life crashed because of a divorce! It was NOT the economy. I wish the writer of the article had made that distinction.

I was somewhat sensitive to the woman's financial problems, for only one reason, she had three children. Losing their father is devastating to children. Their family broke up. I can understand why she wouldn't want to upset their life even more by making them to move to a new neighborhood, new schools, etc. Having their nanny leave would be equally upsetting to the children, plus those kids are not old enough to be left on their own.

I'm sorry but these children are not too young to learn life gets hard and you cant always have the best and have to sacrifice from time to time.

I've been through 3 divorces, moved from a nice SFH to a so-so apartment due to money, went from private to public schools, moved during HS, had my father come in and out of my life all before i turned 16. These things are devastating but they have made me a strong person. You can't really protect your kids from real life.