Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I think the OP doesn't realize SD schools are mostly below average. If you have the opportunity to put your kids in a better school system, you do it. SOmetimes you can't and you hope they make it. Like i said, sometimes parents make sacrifices for their children.
Anything can happen in life, but I'd rather my children attend schools where it's an almost certainty they move onto college and so on. And are well prepared. Some of that is parenting. But it's far easier if you live in an area where most kids have two parents who give a damn about their kids. Compared to living in an area where you hope your kids wind up with that one good teacher and you hope your kids don't fall into the wrong crowds. And you hope your kid gets into a university. There are far to many schools in San diego where the kids are left to fight for themselves in a way. And that's never a good thing in the long run.
When you hope your kid is the exception who made it to college, you're going to have to live with the fact you choose yourself over them in almost every single way. Some people have no issues with that. Others do. That's all a part of life and children.
It's not just about money. It's about making sure they have a head start in life. If that means a smaller house in a better school system, so be it. If it means you live a little further from work, so be it. If it means after school activities and weekend activities that become a part of your life, so be it.
If the OP husband becomes a guy who is set on making partner later in life, he's going to be a guy who is rarely around. That's just the way it is if he were young. It's going to be even harder at an older age and him competing with people a decade younger than him who think their crap don't stink. So that means the OP either has to be the one who sacrifices for her children or her children are going to be part of the crowd you hope turns out ok. And it seems you both are in a hurry to do it all because you're not in your twenties. My advice is be careful what you wish for. Having children isn't just about you finding a nice house you like in San diego.
OP, do you plan to cash flow your husband's law school expenses, or will he have GI funding to assist? If you plan to pay for law school, renting may be the best option for you during the three years it takes for him to finish school. Sounds like you could sell you home up north or use your cash and pay for law school outright. Either way, I would recommend not strapping yourselves up with a big student loan debt, especially if you decide to purchase a home in SD.
His income potential will definitely increase after school, but he may have better job opportunities outside of SD. You may wish to purchase the SD home after he secures employment in the area. You've been a homeowner for so much of your adult life already, but three years of renting is really not that long, especially since it sounds like you generally like the area in which you are presently living, and his housing stipend will easily cover it.
OP, do you plan to cash flow your husband's law school expenses, or will he have GI funding to assist? If you plan to pay for law school, renting may be the best option for you during the three years it takes for him to finish school. Sounds like you could sell you home up north or use your cash and pay for law school outright. Either way, I would recommend not strapping yourselves up with a big student loan debt, especially if you decide to purchase a home in SD.
His income potential will definitely increase after school, but he may have better job opportunities outside of SD. You may wish to purchase the SD home after he secures employment in the area. You've been a homeowner for so much of your adult life already, but three years of renting is really not that long, especially since it sounds like you generally like the area in which you are presently living, and his housing stipend will easily cover it.
This is the other factor not brought up. SD isn't a hot bed for thousands of high paying jobs. So any decent lawyer or young lawyer from some T1 law school who wants to live and work in SD, is going to be the competition. Along with all those already here. There just aren't a ton of huge law firms with thousands of people and jobs.
So what happens if he gets an offer someplace else that is far more than he would in SD ? Or even worse, he goes through law school and realizes he doesn't really want to be a lawyer or he doesn't want to be one of those partner lawyer types who make the big bucks. I know a few people who are patent attorneys. They make good money, but they aren't close to making what some of the lawyers who spent years trying to become partner make. And it's an entirely different kind of ball game. I know one guy who is treated like a second class citizen because he is just a patent attorney. He's smart, makes good money, but he never needs to go to court or trial, never needs to be one of the more charismatic types. Good for him as it's not his personality, but he's started to wish he went into another career at this point.
That's the thing about any career, it all depends on your opportunities, personality, experiences, and more. There are many people who finish law school and never even pass the Bar or they do, practice for a few years, and then decide it's not for them. Making big bucks will require a different kind of personality than a guy who is happy with ok money, but being home with family. But the payoff isn't what was expected if you go into it thinking Partner type of money.
And I honestly think San Diego is a type of place where you move after years of experience, networking, etc. Maybe you came from a huge firm in some other big city and now don't want to work as much. Or you don't need to be in another city anymore. I think the expectation shouldn't just be that after 3 years he'll be making big bucks in SD. That might not be the case at all or he might land a job up in LA or back in SF. Then what?
I may be the Pollyanna here, but I think that a career does not make the person successful or not, it is the person who makes the career successful, it does not matter if they are a million lawyers, if a person is wiling to get out of their comfort zone and be different.
I base my belief on what I see and live. I am surrounded by friends who were not born with a silver spoon who have built incomes of $500,000 all the way to seven figure per year and many are in professions that supposed to be crowded, but they are just more creative, it does not have anything to do with working harder, but it is working smarter. And the secret word is "leverage"
For what I see, your husband seems to be a a real go getter, so he seems to have a brilliant future.
And on the topic of buying, I think I would still buy now in a good enough area and when your future kids grow and are close to the school age, then you can buy in a better area using whatever equity and savings you have built after 3-5 years.
...If you plan to pay for law school, renting may be the best option for you during the three years it takes for him to finish school.....
I believe there are tax implications for buying/selling a primary residence, and having to pay tax on the sale. I believe the limit is two years for buying a replacement primary residence to avoid owing the tax. Depending on the amount of money involved, this is also a consideration.
I also wanted to give some more kudos to my hubby. He is sort of a Renaissance Man. He has two degrees, one in Criminal Justice/forensics and another in Chemistry. He is also a certified tax preparer. He's the smartest cop I know.
I think we'll be fine career-wise. We've both worked really hard to get where we are at today in terms of career. I have my master's degree and he'll have his JD. I can't imagine we'll end up in a situation where we would not be able to buy a house. The question is, should we buy next year or wait? Our discussion yesterday was he still is not sure if we should buy or wait. He wants to make a practical decision.
The other thing that you should probably consider is that he may not like law or being a lawyer. You mentioned all of these degrees that he has. I've owned several companies and I've had many many employees. Some incredibly smart people.
Some had many degrees. But here's the rub. It doesn't really matter how many degrees you have. Some people that I've met and hired had multiple degrees and multiple careers but the thing of it was whatever they studied they really didn't have any interest in it or they weren't very good at it. Or both.
I'm certainly NOT saying that is the case with your husband but I've seen that before with many people with multiple degrees. Many of them just lose interest quickly in whatever they were studying or whatever their latest degree was in. So you need to think of that aspect as well.
Being a lawyer today isn't the same as several years ago.
OP, do you plan to cash flow your husband's law school expenses, or will he have GI funding to assist? If you plan to pay for law school, renting may be the best option for you during the three years it takes for him to finish school. Sounds like you could sell you home up north or use your cash and pay for law school outright. Either way, I would recommend not strapping yourselves up with a big student loan debt, especially if you decide to purchase a home in SD.
His income potential will definitely increase after school, but he may have better job opportunities outside of SD. You may wish to purchase the SD home after he secures employment in the area. You've been a homeowner for so much of your adult life already, but three years of renting is really not that long, especially since it sounds like you generally like the area in which you are presently living, and his housing stipend will easily cover it.
The GI bill will cover his tuition 100% plus a housing stipend of $2300 per month. There is no cap on that. He can use his whole GI bill for Law School. We will just have to pay for books. We have no other debt except for our current mortgage. I received grants to go to school and the small student loan I did have to get has already been paid off.
If the OP husband becomes a guy who is set on making partner later in life, he's going to be a guy who is rarely around. That's just the way it is if he were young. It's going to be even harder at an older age and him competing with people a decade younger than him who think their crap don't stink. So that means the OP either has to be the one who sacrifices for her children or her children are going to be part of the crowd you hope turns out ok. And it seems you both are in a hurry to do it all because you're not in your twenties. My advice is be careful what you wish for. Having children isn't just about you finding a nice house you like in San diego.[/quote]
He does not plan on "becoming partner." He is not an arrogant, selfish guy that only cares about money. He cares about justice. He cares about making a difference. He plans to have a private practice or just be an attorney working in a law office. He works in an exteremely political environment now, where rank is everything. He has maintained his sense of self. He is not defined by his career, but what he does for others. He is the most selfLESS person I know.
I am not sure where I came off that I had to have a fancy house. I think the budget we are considering is more modest for the area. My co-worker is looking to buy a house in the $700k range. Our financial situation is very similar. I prefer to not over-extend ourselves. If we are looking in the UTC/Bay Park area for housing, it will be a smaller, older home. We are okay with that.
There's nothing wrong with a smaller and older home. Personally, I'd prefer one of those houses to some generic McMansion with no character in generic suburbia.
And don't EVEN try the well, wait til you have kids line on me. Baloney. My brother has a daughter, I've got lots of friends with kids, and most of them have avoided the generic suburbia route.
I may be the Pollyanna here, but I think that a career does not make the person successful or not, it is the person who makes the career successful, it does not matter if they are a million lawyers, if a person is wiling to get out of their comfort zone and be different.
I base my belief on what I see and live. I am surrounded by friends who were not born with a silver spoon who have built incomes of $500,000 all the way to seven figure per year and many are in professions that supposed to be crowded, but they are just more creative, it does not have anything to do with working harder, but it is working smarter. And the secret word is "leverage"
For what I see, your husband seems to be a a real go getter, so he seems to have a brilliant future.
And on the topic of buying, I think I would still buy now in a good enough area and when your future kids grow and are close to the school age, then you can buy in a better area using whatever equity and savings you have built after 3-5 years.
Thank you. I sort of feel like I have no support around here.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
