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Woe is Mits. His 500k in retirement accounts, if true, makes me feel really sorry for him. How much equity do you have on the condo? I do feel bad though as he once mentioned his wife is unemployed by her own volition.
Where do you get the idea that I have $500k in retirement accounts? I actually posted how much I have in another thread, and it's nowhere near 500k.
Status:
"Let this year be over..."
(set 22 days ago)
Location: Where my bills arrive
19,219 posts, read 17,091,524 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by i_love_li_but
renting? Oh noes! Renting is anathema to him for sure. He owns a 2-br apartment out in suffolk county. He is not looking to go back to renting, but rather to move up to a 3-br house to put his 2 future perfect children in. Wifey is 35 though so they better get crackin' on at least filling bedroom #2 of the apartment with 1 of those kids asap ...
Where do you get the idea that I have $500k in retirement accounts? I actually posted how much I have in another thread, and it's nowhere near 500k.
My apologies. 350+? My only advice would be to bite the bullet and sell the condo, make wifey get a job, purchase a reasonable home in your hometown and enjoy the rest of your days. Nobody will feel bad for you as you have had significant advantages that most of us have had to slave for.
To be honest, there is no one size fits all number, since it depends on personal circumstances. I am 34 (about the same age as the OP) and I have about $155,000 in my 401K, about $65,000 in a rollover IRA (from a previous job's 401K), and about $70,000 in a Roth IRA, plus I have an ESOP (not sure offhand how much I have there). One may think I'm in the 90th percentile for my age, based on posts here. The truth is, I can currently save a lot of money, despite my low income (by LI standards), since my wife and I have no children yet, and we live very inexpensively, and we both lived with our parents until we were married. But once we have kids and a single family house, it will no longer be possible to live as inexpensively as we currently do, so I won't be able to contribute much, if at all, to my 401K. So my balance isn't as high as it might seem.
By my count, that's $290K + an ESOP of indeterminate value. I guess we all have different estimates of "close," but I certainly wouldn't call retirement savings of at least $300K "nowhere near" $350K. Then again, I can find homes that are affordable in Nassau County with decent schools that are a reasonable commuting distance from NYC, while you just can't seem to. Guess it's all relative.
And as for advantages, let me list them:
1. Supportive, loving family.
2. (By your claim) Happy marriage.
3. A Master's from MIT, one of the most widely-recognized, well-respected schools in the country.
4. Your wife has a PhD - a level of education that almost no one attains.
5. A home that you own (I know, I know, it's "not big enough" for you and your hypothetical children, but I know plenty of renters who would be happy to own a home).
6. A job that, by your own admission, offers superior benefits, and enough of a salary that you're able to "currently save a lot of money."
That sounds like a lot of advantages to me, but again, I guess it's all relative.
(And to everyone other than MITs, I promise I'll lay off the MITs vortex now. I just can't take the blatant misrepresentation.)
By my count, that's $290K + an ESOP of indeterminate value. I guess we all have different estimates of "close," but I certainly wouldn't call retirement savings of at least $300K "nowhere near" $350K. Then again, I can find homes that are affordable in Nassau County with decent schools that are a reasonable commuting distance from NYC, while you just can't seem to. Guess it's all relative.
And as for advantages, let me list them:
1. Supportive, loving family.
2. (By your claim) Happy marriage.
3. A Master's from MIT, one of the most widely-recognized, well-respected schools in the country.
4. Your wife has a PhD - a level of education that almost no one attains.
5. A home that you own (I know, I know, it's "not big enough" for you and your hypothetical children, but I know plenty of renters who would be happy to own a home).
6. A job that, by your own admission, offers superior benefits, and enough of a salary that you're able to "currently save a lot of money."
That sounds like a lot of advantages to me, but again, I guess it's all relative.
(And to everyone other than MITs, I promise I'll lay off the MITs vortex now. I just can't take the blatant misrepresentation.)
By my count, that's $290K + an ESOP of indeterminate value. I guess we all have different estimates of "close," but I certainly wouldn't call retirement savings of at least $300K "nowhere near" $350K. Then again, I can find homes that are affordable in Nassau County with decent schools that are a reasonable commuting distance from NYC, while you just can't seem to. Guess it's all relative.
And as for advantages, let me list them:
1. Supportive, loving family.
2. (By your claim) Happy marriage.
3. A Master's from MIT, one of the most widely-recognized, well-respected schools in the country.
4. Your wife has a PhD - a level of education that almost no one attains.
5. A home that you own (I know, I know, it's "not big enough" for you and your hypothetical children, but I know plenty of renters who would be happy to own a home).
6. A job that, by your own admission, offers superior benefits, and enough of a salary that you're able to "currently save a lot of money."
That sounds like a lot of advantages to me, but again, I guess it's all relative.
(And to everyone other than MITs, I promise I'll lay off the MITs vortex now. I just can't take the blatant misrepresentation.)
In the vortex, those advantages don't count for much.
Remember, if he has to work in NYC, he will have no choice but to live in a burnt-out shell in the South Bronx and work everyday from 7 am to 5 pm (or even later if the boss says so) with lousy benefits! Those advantages are MEANINGLESS when it comes to that!
Who's asking you to lay off? I think this is turning into one of those car wreck fascination topics like cops, teachers, property taxes, etc. ...
I'm really very sorry I returned to this forum. It seems nothing has changed.
I guess you'll have to seek out validation for your life choices elsewhere. Good luck!
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Renting is anathema to him for sure. He owns a 2-br apartment out in suffolk county. He is not looking to go back to renting, but rather to move up to a 3-br house to put his 2 future perfect children in. Wifey is 35 though so they better get crackin' on at least filling bedroom #2 of the apartment with 1 of those kids asap ...
