I like this number as well....A minimum of 225,000 miles
I like this number as well....A minimum of 225,000 miles
2016 M3 is pretty affordable for what you get. What's that run, $40-45K depending on options/miles? Totally practical, IMO if you are a city dweller.When I purchased my 1988 M6 it wasn't a wise financial decision, but I drove it for three years and I loved every minute. If I'd waited until now to buy one it would cost me north of $100k for an equivalent car. Right now I'm looking at a 2016 M3. Impractical?
I sure hope so!
2016 M3 is pretty affordable for what you get. What's that run, $40-45K depending on options/miles? Totally practical, IMO if you are a city dweller.
If I lived where that car would work, it would be really hard not to snag one. I'm still scared of euro cars after 100k miles though, so I dunno. RCF might be more my thing.That's ballpark; the BMW center I worked at is only about 25 minutes away and they treat me very well with regards to BMW Club discounts, etc.
I don't see my kids doing military--one is disabled, the other, I just don't see it in the cards. Not sure how it'd be cheaper to send them off to college--I mean, right now they live rent-free at home, it's not like I'm going to move to a smaller house so as to reduce my mortgage payment once they are out (I do have high hopes of repurposing their rooms into offices!). And some things are just cheaper in bulk.Kids can join the military or take out loans/get scholarships/pay for most of their own college. It shouldnt cost much to the parent vs what they cost you just staying home at present. Heck, I cut my dad a $5k check for the classes and books he helped me with over my 4.5 years a d we just called it good, as i also worked and covered a fair bit of my living expenses, which if I'd just stayed home would have been the same anyways.
Kids can pay just like you did. You earned your life, enjoy it! Let them figure it out.I don't see my kids doing military--one is disabled, the other, I just don't see it in the cards. Not sure how it'd be cheaper to send them off to college--I mean, right now they live rent-free at home, it's not like I'm going to move to a smaller house so as to reduce my mortgage payment once they are out (I do have high hopes of repurposing their rooms into offices!). And some things are just cheaper in bulk.
Wife and I borrowed for college, and we just assumed that our kids would have to too. Just did not put enough thought into it. We should have paid off our college debt, then maxed out retirement, then figured out how we could pay for college--then determined if we could have kids. Coulda shoulda woulda. Hindsight is always more clear than foresight.
I'm not so sure about that. When I was 18--I was dumb as a brick. And I did not have good peers to copy in terms of financial things. Hence my string of mistakes. [I know that is blame-shifting, I'm not trying to, but one does feel a need to examine their mistakes and find root cause.]Kids can pay just like you did. You earned your life, enjoy it! Let them figure it out.
JC for 2 years. I worked for companies that paid part of my tuition. There are all kinds of scholarships. It can be done.I don't see my kids doing military--one is disabled, the other, I just don't see it in the cards. Not sure how it'd be cheaper to send them off to college--I mean, right now they live rent-free at home, it's not like I'm going to move to a smaller house so as to reduce my mortgage payment once they are out (I do have high hopes of repurposing their rooms into offices!). And some things are just cheaper in bulk.
Wife and I borrowed for college, and we just assumed that our kids would have to too. Just did not put enough thought into it. We should have paid off our college debt, then maxed out retirement, then figured out how we could pay for college--then determined if we could have kids. Coulda shoulda woulda. Hindsight is always more clear than foresight.
Oh definitely--I would not be where I am today had I not gone. Not only that, but a number of extra-curricular activities greatly grew me too--I can't imagine how I would have turned out if I had to work while in college. Might have been good, might have been bad, might have been indifferent. Dunno. I plan to wait and see on my kids. I certainly can't afford a pair of six figure educations, so in a sense they are on their own--and I plan to argue with them if I sense that they are cavalierly taking on undue debt.JC for 2 years. I worked for companies that paid part of my tuition. There are all kinds of scholarships. It can be done.
College saved my life.
Good luck.
"Iraq or Scholarship. Figure it out." was my guidance. I applied for both. Overall ASVAB was in the low 90th percentile, and scholarship covered everything but my books, and knocked my college dorm down to $120/mo+utilities split 4 ways. I chose college. Kinda regret it, but, hey, it's a "grass is always greener..." type deal. Dad kicked in enough money to help cover my car insurance and I worked to pay for my rent, utilities, and books. Last 2 years of college I got a stipend from my then to be, future employer that covered my books and 1/2 my tuition, leaving about $1K/semester due. My Dad kicked me cash now and then, paid for insurance, doctor's bills, that sort of thing (about like if I were still home), and I cut him a $5K check (his amount) shortly after graduating to cover debts. Now, I buy him random cool stuff and it makes him smile, as well as him knowing he can come vacation at my house on the river and use my private range any time he wants, when he wants to get away from it all. I made sure his investment was returned to him both monetarily, per his valuation, as well as socially, by the above. He supported my college en-devours without really understanding them, except to randomly ask "Are you doing okay? passing? On course?" Guidance was internal, as part of my early Montessori education and how I was raised led me to be.I'm not so sure about that. When I was 18--I was dumb as a brick. And I did not have good peers to copy in terms of financial things. Hence my string of mistakes. [I know that is blame-shifting, I'm not trying to, but one does feel a need to examine their mistakes and find root cause.]
I do want my kids to have "skin in the game" when it comes to college. But how to guide (if not push) them into wise decisions... I haven't a clue. Making every decision for them is as unwise as giving no advice whatsoever. Personally I don't think my life is a good example for them to follow: I should not tell them "do it the way I did it" because I did it wrong. I'm not sure where they are going to turn to for good examples of how to do it.