Figuring Out How Much This Is Going to Cost

[Green Doc]

---

Members do not see this ad.

I need a little help in figuring out how far in the hole I'll be in four years. I keep hearing outlandish figures like $500K, and think to myself, "Self, that certainly isn't going to be me." Am I tragically and comically wrong? Can anyone with a little more financial savvy help me out?

So, my school is ~$41K. Expecting a near max on the amount of subsidized loans I can take out ($8500), and the rest in unsubsidized Stafford loans, we're looking at $32,500 in unsubsidized loans. At 6.8, this will add $2210 in the first year. Is a flat $2210 added on year after year, or is this where the dreaded term "compounded" comes into play; that is, am I going to be adding another $2,210 to the second years' tuition, or will I be adding $4,570 (6.8% of ($65,000+$2210)) In this way, will my out-the-door expense be $172,840 or $187,654?

I understand that this is not taking into account cost of attendance increases, living expenses, books, supplies, etc. I'm just trying to get the bare minimum estimation, and an idea of how interest works.

On a side note, the aggregate maximum of Stafford loans available for med students has been increased from $184K to $224K as of, like, yesterday. This will not, unfortunately, also be increasing the subsidized loan amount available. It appears this will benefit those with large outstanding undergraduate and master's loans.

 

[ATrain]

Hello future classmate!

Are you accounting for all four years, or just the first two? I know my total package (which of course does include supplies, living expenses etc...) comes to just over $68K. From my very rough calcs, when we throw in rising cost of tuition and living, plus interest accrued through residency, I think we can round that up to about $75K a year X four years ~ $300K. Again, very rough, but that is the waty that I am thinking about it for now.

I now yield the floor to people who know more about this stuff and will probably correct me....

 

[ringtail]

This conversation is for your school's financial advisor. They are obligated to produce some sort of "school cost estimate, living expenses, gas, etc."

Talk to them first.

 

[Green Doc]

Are you accounting for all four years, or just the first two? I know my total package (which of course does include supplies, living expenses etc...) comes to just over $68K. From my very rough calcs, when we throw in rising cost of tuition and living, plus interest accrued through residency, I think we can round that up to about $75K a year X four years ~ $300K.

No, all four. I think cost-of-living loans is going to be the biggest additional expense, and I'm hoping to keep that to a minimum. I know, for example, that my uncle lived on peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches pretty much all four years of med school. Sounds fun!

With all the additional costs, I'm hoping to keep this endeavor within the $250-$300K range, so I think that your calculations are on par with mine.

 

[Green Doc]

This conversation is for your school's financial advisor. They are obligated to produce some sort of "school cost estimate, living expenses, gas, etc."

Talk to them first.

No way, I will always seek out conjecture, hearsay, and rumor, before resorting to the "facts."

Shame on you.

 

[ATrain]

No way, I will always seek out conjecture, hearsay, and rumor, before resorting to the "facts."

Shame on you.

My kind of guy/gal! 😉

 

[GreenShirt]

You can get a rough estimate by adding your tuition and living expense budget and multiplying by four. Although, you tuition will probably increase every year and you can minimize loans by living frugally. As for interest: yes, any accrued interest that is not paid off by the time repayment begins will be compounded into your principal with most loans, so it behooves you to pay off that interest before then.

Finally, our FA office says that we will pay back $3 on every $1 we borrow. This sounds high to me, but if true $300,000 in loans will mean you'll be spending $900,000 overall on your education 🙂eek:😱😱).

 

[ATrain]

You can get a rough estimate by adding your tuition and living expense budget and multiplying by four. Although, you tuition will probably increase every year and you can minimize loans by living frugally. As for interest: yes, any accrued interest that is not paid off by the time repayment begins will be compounded into your principal with most loans, so it behooves you to pay off that interest before then.

Finally, our FA office says that we will pay back $3 on every $1 we borrow. This sounds high to me, but if true $300,000 in loans will mean you'll be spending $900,000 overall on your education 🙂eek:😱😱).

I wonder if they are taking inflation into account on that. $900,000 in 20 years probably translates to about $500,000 in today's dollars (or less)....not that you would likely take 20 years to pay, plus your principle would decrease with each payment, but you get the idea

 

[ATrain]

This is a pretty good site for free financial calculators:
http://www.dinkytown.net/

 

[scdocusc]

this is kind of off subject. Does anyone know if your deferred undergrad unsub. loans still accumulate interest in medical school? I'm trying to figure out if it's possible to prevent this. Thanks. By the way. Being from south carolina medical and dental school tution here is out of this world. It's actually cheaper for me to go to school out of state now.

 

[ATrain]

this is kind of off subject. Does anyone know if your deferred undergrad unsub. loans still accumulate interest in medical school? I'm trying to figure out if it's possible to prevent this. Thanks. By the way. Being from south carolina medical and dental school tution here is out of this world. It's actually cheaper for me to go to school out of state now.

I believe the interest does in fact accrue, and that this is the difference between an unsub. loan and a sub. loan. I think it is actually still charged on a sub. loan, but it is paid by the gov't while you are in school so it does not accrue.

 

[metalmd06]

has anyone been able to come up with a good overall budget that they can share?

 

[bliksem]

Interest from subsidized loans are paid by the the government while you're in school. All other loans are compounded. You can save a ton if you can pay the interest portion every month. That would be a big IF. If you're lucky, have your spouse/family pay the interest portion every month. I think it's a few hundred bucks each month.

In th end it's doable, or else med school wouldn't be this competitive. 😀

 

[bliksem]

has anyone been able to come up with a good overall budget that they can share?

Might be best to ask people in the Osteo or Residency forum.

 

[rockchalkjdoc]

I wonder if they are taking inflation into account on that. $900,000 in 20 years probably translates to about $500,000 in today's dollars (or less)....not that you would likely take 20 years to pay, plus your principle would decrease with each payment, but you get the idea

Exactly why I plan on taking the full 30 years to pay my loans back. I would hope that through investing the money I make will become worth more than the money I owe. (If that at all makes sense)

 

[GreenShirt]

has anyone been able to come up with a good overall budget that they can share?

Your budget will vary substantial depending on where you live. Your school's FA office should provide you with an estimated budget.

 

[scpod]

this is kind of off subject. Does anyone know if your deferred undergrad unsub. loans still accumulate interest in medical school? I'm trying to figure out if it's possible to prevent this. Thanks. By the way. Being from south carolina medical and dental school tution here is out of this world. It's actually cheaper for me to go to school out of state now.

Why do you think I declined to go to MUSC and USC? I'm living in sunshine here 😀.

I don't know of any way to stop interest from accumulating unless you consolidate. However, you'll have to start re-payment on a different schedule if you do that now.

The key to keeping your debt down is to realize that you aren't spending your own money in med school; you are spending borrowed money. If you spend $5 on a latte at Starbucks you are really spending double that at least. Save it and drink coffee at home. Every dollar of loan money you waste is amplified enormously by the time you repay it. Remember, you don't have to take out the max in loans every year. If you can live on less, then you should try to do so if you can.

I don't recommend it, but I have a job teaching A&P in the evenings that pays me a little over 20 grand a year. I take out about 12 grand over my tuition costs in loans. I can afford a really nice place to live on that and I bought another car last year. After 2 years of med school I've only borrowed about 78 grand and I live pretty well. I have a lot less social time than everyone else because of the job, and not as much time to study, but I'm doing fine in school.

Splitting living costs with roommates or family is also a great way to save. Most of the students I know who live alone have to cut back pretty drastically at the end of the semester as money starts running low. Privacy is good, but if you can save just $500 a month by having a roommate you'll save 25 grand over the course of 4 years. To me, it's well worth it. Plus, shope around for a place to stay. That's where the biggest expense really comes from and there are a lot better places available right now from private owners than you'll find at a lot of apartment complexes. Get a real-estate agent, start looking at the local papers, look at Craigslist.com...etc. to find a really good deal. You might be surprised.

 

[Obnoxious Dad]

First of all SCPOD is absolutely correct. A dollar saved is truly a dollar earned. Get roommates or even better go in on a house with a bunch of people. You are going to be living in the library anyway. Eat as cheaply as good health will alow. If you can do without a car for the first two years, do it. I am sure that some of you are sick of hearing this from me but if you heed this advice you won't be sorry!

I won't go through all of the gyrations but basically Subsidized Staffords will not accrue interest until you finish your residency as long as the cards fall correctly. Therefore, for every dollar per year you borrow under subsidized Staffords you will owe $4 at the end of residency. These loans are capped at $8,500 per year.

Interest on unsubsidized Staffords accrues interest from disbursement and at 6.5% per year you will owe approximately $5.82 at the end of a four year residency for every dollar per year you borrow. These loans had been capped at $32,000 per year but the amount available may be going up.

Interest on Grad Plus accrues interest from disbursement and at 8.5% per year you will owe approximately $6.60 at the end of a four year residency for every dollar per year you borrow. These loans make up the difference between cost of attendance and Staffords.

The punchline is that if you have a cost of attendance of $59,500 per year you will owe about $345,000 at the end of a four year residency.🙂

 

[ATrain]

First of all SCPOD is absolutely correct. A dollar saved is truly a dollar earned. Get roommates or even better go in on a house with a bunch of people. You are going to be living in the library anyway. Eat as cheaply as good health will alow. If you can do without a car for the first two years, do it. I am sure that some of you are sick of hearing this from me but if you heed this advice you won't be sorry!

I won't go through all of the gyrations but basically Subsidized Staffords will not accrue interest until you finish your residency as long as the cards fall correctly. Therefore, for every dollar per year you borrow under subsidized Staffords you will owe $4 at the end of residency. These loans are capped at $8,500 per year.

Interest on unsubsidized Staffords accrues interest from disbursement and at 6.5% per year you will owe approximately $5.82 at the end of a four year residency for every dollar per year you borrow. These loans had been capped at $32,000 per year but the amount available may be going up.

Interest on Grad Plus accrues interest from disbursement and at 8.5% per year you will owe approximately $6.60 at the end of a four year residency for every dollar per year you borrow. These loans make up the difference between cost of attendance and Staffords.

The punchline is that if you have a cost of attendance of $59,500 per year you will owe about $345,000 at the end of a four year residency.🙂

Where do you get these numbers from? I get $1.92 for every dollar at 8.5% over eight years...

 

[Obnoxious Dad]

Where do you get these numbers from? I get $1.92 for every dollar at 8.5% over eight years...

If you borrow $10,000 the first year after four years at 8.5% it grows to $13,859 at graduation. If you borrow $10,000 the second year after three years at 8.5% it grows to $12,773 at graduation. If you borrow $10,000 the third year after two years at 8.5% it grows to $11,772 at graduation. If you borrow $10,000 the fourth year after one year at 8.5% it grows to $10,850 at graduation. This sums to $49,254. This total will accrue interest during residency at 8.5% per year and total $68,258 at the end of four years.


I should have said 6.8 times annual borrowing. Close enough since I won’t be the one in debt! Ha Ha🙂

 

[ShyRem]

MS Office Excel has an amortization template you can use for repayment costs. I'd do this sitting down with a stiff drink in hand.

Your UNECOM tuition is $42K and change (for 2008-09 attendance year) - your cost of attendance brings the total to about $62K or so. Depending on your living situation, some folks do quite well on half their COA, borrowing about $52-55K. Most folks end up using the entire COA due to wanting to travel and see family, get away from med school, conferences, books, living, food, entertainment, etc. If you have a family you will need every penny they allow you.

I just figured out my loan repayment - and just about had a heart attack. I'll be doing all I can to live modestly for a few years after I get out of residency so I can pay back my loans ASAP.

 

[VALSALVA]

Finally, our FA office says that we will pay back $3 on every $1 we borrow. This sounds high to me, but if true $300,000 in loans will mean you'll be spending $900,000 overall on your education 🙂eek:😱😱).

That's probably an exaggeration. The sum balance of what I owe today is approx $215,000. All consolidated at good rate. Sallie Mae is kind enough to show you what you'll pay in total based on your current re-payment plan. When I begin repayment in 2010, I'll pay a total of approximately $370,000 on a 20 year plan. So that's less than 2:1 repayment. Not bad versus the estimate you were given.

 

[Obnoxious Dad]

MS Office Excel has an amortization template you can use for repayment costs. I'd do this sitting down with a stiff drink in hand.

Your UNECOM tuition is $42K and change (for 2008-09 attendance year) - your cost of attendance brings the total to about $62K or so. Depending on your living situation, some folks do quite well on half their COA, borrowing about $52-55K. Most folks end up using the entire COA due to wanting to travel and see family, get away from med school, conferences, books, living, food, entertainment, etc. If you have a family you will need every penny they allow you.

I just figured out my loan repayment - and just about had a heart attack. I'll be doing all I can to live modestly for a few years after I get out of residency so I can pay back my loans ASAP.

I would second ShyRem's strategy about living frugally and paying all unsubsidized loans off ASAP. You really don't know what will happen with physician compensation after graduation. I have heard all of these theoretical arguments about returns in the stock market and 401K's blah blah blah. However if compensation collapses and you are stuck with a large nondischargeable loan your backside will be hangin' out there. Pay your debts as fast as you can.😡

 

[VALSALVA]

MS Office Excel has an amortization template you can use for repayment costs. I'd do this sitting down with a stiff drink in hand.

Your UNECOM tuition is $42K and change (for 2008-09 attendance year) - your cost of attendance brings the total to about $62K or so. Depending on your living situation, some folks do quite well on half their COA, borrowing about $52-55K. Most folks end up using the entire COA due to wanting to travel and see family, get away from med school, conferences, books, living, food, entertainment, etc. If you have a family you will need every penny they allow you.

I just figured out my loan repayment - and just about had a heart attack. I'll be doing all I can to live modestly for a few years after I get out of residency so I can pay back my loans ASAP.

No worries. Begin talking to financial planners when you start residency. If your future program is worth its salt, I'll bring in financial people for seminars, conferences, etc. It's been my experience that approx 8-9/10 financial people agree that paying your loans off ASAP is NOT the fiscally responsible thing to do if you can find ANY safe investment that collects more interest than you are paying on your loans.

Example: Paying minimums on your loans (30 year plan) which are at 4.0% consolidated. Taking the extra capital that you would have otherwise used to pay toward your loans and invest in a conservative mutual fund that gets 6-10% depending on the year. Plus, investing in funds that accrue interest and grow year by year do best the earlier you invest.

All of that is to say that paying off your loans ASAP is financially intuitive for those of us "non-business" people but unwise according to the people we hire to grow our money!!!!

 

[MJB]

I'm trying to trick myself into thinking that since we chose to "purchase" our house to live in while in school I'm at least not totally throwing away the money we spend on living expenses and putting money into the house.

My only hope is that the Knoxville market stays around 5% appreciation/year for newer houses while we're here. That would help immensely.

After just getting yet another "award letter" (Congratulations, we're gonna loan you 55 grand at 6-8.5% juice for the next 35 years) today, I had to take a real quick pause.


And they wonder why some docs might worry about money.

 

[Green Doc]

That's probably an exaggeration. The sum balance of what I owe today is approx $215,000. All consolidated at good rate. Sallie Mae is kind enough to show you what you'll pay in total based on your current re-payment plan. When I begin repayment in 2010, I'll pay a total of approximately $370,000 on a 20 year plan. So that's less than 2:1 repayment. Not bad versus the estimate you were given.

THANK you! Methinks 3 to 1 is a bit exaggerated as well.

 

[Obnoxious Dad]

No worries. Begin talking to financial planners when you start residency. If your future program is worth its salt, I'll bring in financial people for seminars, conferences, etc. It's been my experience that approx 8-9/10 financial people agree that paying your loans off ASAP is NOT the fiscally responsible thing to do if you can find ANY safe investment that collects more interest than you are paying on your loans.

Example: Paying minimums on your loans (30 year plan) which are at 4.0% consolidated. Taking the extra capital that you would have otherwise used to pay toward your loans and invest in a conservative mutual fund that gets 6-10% depending on the year. Plus, investing in funds that accrue interest and grow year by year do best the earlier you invest.

All of that is to say that paying off your loans ASAP is financially intuitive for those of us "non-business" people but unwise according to the people we hire to grow our money!!!!

I am a CPA and a graduate of a top 30 MBA program and I can tell you that I know more about money than most of the yoyos who pass themselves off as financial planners. These people want you to buy mutual funds due to commissions, marketing fees etc. They generally know zero about income taxes but a lot about salesmanship.

Because of the non-deductibility of student loan interest at higher income levels you need to compare the after tax returns of the funds planners peddle to you with the nominal rates of interest on your student loans. If you reduce the after tax return on these funds by 40% including state taxes how do the two compare? Are these so called planners distinguishing after tax from pretax rates of return?

You also need to consider that the interest savings on paying off your student loans is a SURE THING! There is no doubt that you will get a return on principal paid that equals your interest rate. Is your investment in the stock market a sure thing?

One other factoid is that 4% loans have gone the way of $1.50 gas. Can anyone borrow at 4% now?

 

[ATrain]

I am a CPA and a graduate of a top 30 MBA program and I can tell you that I know more about money than most of the yoyos who pass themselves off as financial planners. These people want you to buy mutual funds due to commissions, marketing fees etc. They generally know zero about income taxes but a lot about salesmanship.

Because of the non-deductibility of student loan interest at higher income levels you need to compare the after tax returns of the funds planners peddle to you with the nominal rates of interest on your student loans. If you reduce the after tax return on these funds by 40% including state taxes how do the two compare? Are these so called planners distinguishing after tax from pretax rates of return?

You also need to consider that the interest savings on paying off your student loans is a SURE THING! There is no doubt that you will get a return on principal paid that equals your interest rate. Is your investment in the stock market a sure thing?

One other factoid is that 4% loans have gone the way of $1.50 gas. Can anyone borrow at 4% now?

I was thinking I would take out the amount "awarded" in my letter, and hold my disbursement in an interest bearing checking account. The account would not completely offset the interest I am paying, but I can try my best to live on a frugal budget and always pay back some at the end of the year if I end up not needing as much.

 

[VALSALVA]

I am a CPA and a graduate of a top 30 MBA program and I can tell you that I know more about money than most of the yoyos who pass themselves off as financial planners. These people want you to buy mutual funds due to commissions, marketing fees etc. They generally know zero about income taxes but a lot about salesmanship.

Because of the non-deductibility of student loan interest at higher income levels you need to compare the after tax returns of the funds planners peddle to you with the nominal rates of interest on your student loans. If you reduce the after tax return on these funds by 40% including state taxes how do the two compare? Are these so called planners distinguishing after tax from pretax rates of return?

You also need to consider that the interest savings on paying off your student loans is a SURE THING! There is no doubt that you will get a return on principal paid that equals your interest rate. Is your investment in the stock market a sure thing?

One other factoid is that 4% loans have gone the way of $1.50 gas. Can anyone borrow at 4% now?

I can. I'm consolidated at 3.75%. If I make 30 on-time payments in a row it goes to 3.5%. Once I get to 60 on-time payments, it goes to 3.25%.

Thanks for the other info.

 

[ShyRem]

If the loan consolidation rates are that low when i'm out, I'll invest and pay the loans off the at the regular rate (heck, even bonds pay you 5.25% in the market). But the 6.8% I'm at now is a kick in the butt to pay them off early.

 

[VALSALVA]

If the loan consolidation rates are that low when i'm out, I'll invest and pay the loans off the at the regular rate (heck, even bonds pay you 5.25% in the market). But the 6.8% I'm at now is a kick in the butt to pay them off early.

Is that 6.8% a fixed consolidated rate? If so, that's unfortunate. I locked in my interest rates about a year ago.

 

[DrMidlife]

I don't think we'll be seeing sub-4% rates again for another 30 years. Consolidation rates are around 7% right now.

It's a recession...

 

[TexasTriathlete]

This **** comes and goes. I'm more interested in going back to $1.50 gas.

 

[Thantis]

You can keep your $1.50, because I want my $ 0.72 gas back (although fairly short-lived for span of several months).

 

[ShyRem]

6.8% is what the plus loans are going for now. Ugh.

I consolidated my undergrad loans at 2.75%. I won't be paying those off early if I can otherwise invest and make money. My med school loans on the other hand.. we'll just have to see.

 

[fabu1ous]

6.8% is what the plus loans are going for now. Ugh.

I consolidated my undergrad loans at 2.75%. I won't be paying those off early if I can otherwise invest and make money. My med school loans on the other hand.. we'll just have to see.

Wow! My undergrad loans are rediculous-- at 8.25%! And to think they're going to just sit there... and grow... and grow... and grow... and this is before med school 🙁.

 

[fabu1ous]

On a side note, the aggregate maximum of Stafford loans available for med students has been increased from $184K to $224K as of, like, yesterday. This will not, unfortunately, also be increasing the subsidized loan amount available. It appears this will benefit those with large outstanding undergraduate and master's loans.

Hmmm, where did you read this? I was a little concerned myself when going over financial aid, that if my total costs for school are ~$50k, over 4 years thats $200k, what about my undergrad loans? Would I have to take out private loans to make up the difference?

 

[Green Doc]

Here. . .

http://www.nasfaa.org/publications/2008/rnloanlimit031408.html

And talking to my FA office, which confirmed that this has already gone into affect.

 

[yaba]

Suppose my tuition is 34,000 a year, what is the maximum I can pull out to live off of on top of that a year? Just want to start invisioning my one room shack 😳

 

[ShyRem]

yaba, that depends on the COA set by your school. Check with your financial aid office.

 

[yaba]

Okay so I figured that after tuition the cost of living in Florida is about 23K. Does this sound about right because after rent, food, and car this doesnt leave much left to do anything. To clarify, Im not looking to make it rain at the club but geez thats like roman noodles, no cable, might as well not have a lamp because I cant afford to turn it on type budget.

 

[Kateb4]

Okay so I figured that after tuition the cost of living in Florida is about 23K. Does this sound about right because after rent, food, and car this doesnt leave much left to do anything. To clarify, Im not looking to make it rain at the club but geez thats like roman noodles, no cable, might as well not have a lamp because I cant afford to turn it on type budget.

I am looking at the budget for LECOM-B for next year, and they allow about $21,000 for your living expenses. This is for 10 months, since you have the next summer off. So, really that breaks down to $2100/mo. If you share a house/appartment you can spend $500/mo there, with utilities maybe 700-800/mo. Then food is $100/week/person, and a car maybe another $500 with insurance.(note: these are comfortable estimates, you can easilly live on much less than 100/week food and a cheaper car). Still all of that adds up to $1600, so you still have money left over for other bills like cable, cell phone, gas, etc. You can work over your first summer if you need to make more money, or stretch this budget by cutting back, getting another roommate, etc. It is do-able, but really depends on your current situation. Are you going in with credit card debt that you need to pay on, or savings that you can suppliment your loans with? Do you have others that you will need to help support?

I wouldn't worry about the ramen noodles. As long as you aren't looking to drive a new Mercedes and live in luxury you'll be comfortable enough.

 

[LauraDO]

I am looking at the budget for LECOM-B for next year, and they allow about $21,000 for your living expenses. This is for 10 months, since you have the next summer off. So, really that breaks down to $2100/mo. If you share a house/appartment you can spend $500/mo there, with utilities maybe 700-800/mo. Then food is $100/week/person, and a car maybe another $500 with insurance.(note: these are comfortable estimates, you can easilly live on much less than 100/mo food and a cheaper car). Still all of that adds up to $1600, so you still have money left over for other bills like cable, cell phone, gas, etc. You can work over your first summer if you need to make more money, or stretch this budget by cutting back, getting another roommate, etc. It is do-able, but really depends on your current situation. Are you going in with credit card debt that you need to pay on, or savings that you can suppliment your loans with? Do you have others that you will need to help support?

I wouldn't worry about the ramen noodles. As long as you aren't looking to drive a new Mercedes and live in luxury you'll be comfortable enough.

Where are you seeing $21K, I see $11K?

 

[LauraDO]

Hmmm, where did you read this? I was a little concerned myself when going over financial aid, that if my total costs for school are ~$50k, over 4 years thats $200k, what about my undergrad loans? Would I have to take out private loans to make up the difference?

Yes this is true the total you can borrow from the government has gone up to $224 K, very helpful for many of us, who have already taken out loans

 

[Kateb4]

Where are you seeing $21K, I see $11K?

10,100 Room, 4500 board, 2954 Transportation, 2770 Other (OK, so it's 20,324)

 

[LauraDO]

10,100 Room, 4500 board, 2954 Transportation, 2770 Other (OK, so it's 20,324)

oh wow! guess I wasn't looking at anything other then Room. That is great!

 

[fabu1ous]

Did I mention my childcare expenses are going to be ~$1000 a month? 😱 That's only for a three year old (2 days at daycare, 3 days with grandma/grandpa), and an after school program for my daughter. Shoot, I might be better off getting a live-in nanny...

 

[Kateb4]

Did I mention my childcare expenses are going to be ~$1000 a month? 😱 That's only for a three year old (2 days at daycare, 3 days with grandma/grandpa), and an after school program for my daughter. Shoot, I might be better off getting a live-in nanny...

You should do a nanny, don't know about the live-in thing though. We have had a nanny for the last few years while I've been finishing my undergrad, and I swear it's cheaper. She is here when we need her, and I don't have to waste all of that time in the morning getting them up and ready to go out to childcare. I just let her get them out of bed and ready. I don't know if the Florida rates will be the same as the Chicago area, but I'm sure that I pay less than if I had my three in daycare.

Or, I have heard good things about AuPairs, but I just don't like the idea of another person living with us.

It is completely different when you are budgeting for a family. I'm really hoping to live off of my husband's salary out there, but I think that we're just going to take out the full loan amount to pay for the childcare and gas for my husband to commute!

 

[LauraDO]

I'm really hoping to live off of my husband's salary out there, but I think that we're just going to take out the full loan amount to pay for the childcare and gas for my husband to commute!

I am hoping to live off of your husband's salary too!

 

[TexasTriathlete]

Me too.