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move w kids temporarily to save money?


norudder

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I've been living in a 2br apartment with my 7 & 9 yo daughters for almost 3 years now. Each year rent increases a bit and Im pretty much paycheck to paycheck. Is small,there's no yard the walls are thin. But its clean, modern, utilities included, and 3 miles down the road from their dad who I coparent 50/50 with.

 

A relative has a guest house on their property they have offered to let us stay in rent free,utilities only. Its just 5miles from the girls dad in the opposite direction which is

great. I could catch up a bit and pay some debt,save for my own place. The catch is that they know they are looking to move in 18-24 months. Rentals in the area aren't cheap, I wouldn't get as good a deal on an apartment as I have now as close to their dad as I want to be. And there is no guarantee a house in my price range would be available either when the time comes. So I would be uprooting my kids knowingly that there would be yet another move in the future with a better quality of life until then but alot of uncertainty after that.

 

Do I make the move to take a breather and save some $ or stay put for stability and struggle while trying to improve income? Anything Im not considering ?

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I'd take the "free" place to live for the next 18-24 months. Save all of what you now spend on rent & then you will have nest egg when it's time to move. The owners may not move in that time frame & you can continue. Perhaps when the property is sold you can negotiate favorable rent to stay. Even one year of no rent would be a help if you faithfully save. If you fail to save, you will be screwed.

 

Meanwhile try to find ways to increase your income.

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I'd go with the free place. Look at it this way: if you set aside every month's rent that you would have paid, for 18 months, that will allow you to pay double the same rent for 18 months after that if you have to start renting again. Obviously that's an extreme example. Realistically, rents are not going to double in that time period, so you will be even better off.

 

If you choose to pay off debts instead, then that's less money you'll be paying out every month in interest in the future.

 

With that said, it's very important that you be aware of your own spending habits and ability to be disciplined. If you think there's a risk that you'll spend the saved rent instead of saving or paying off debts, then you could put yourself in a bad position when the free place ends. Only you know this aspect of yourself.

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  • 1 month later...

I'd go to the rent-free place as long as you don't anticipate any fallout with relatives about it. I look at it this way, you can save some money and so even though it will be hard paying rent again, you'll have a leg up. Also, most times moves turn out for the better, expand your horizons and sometimes your social life. You never know what good could come out of it. Who knows, maybe the relatives will even keep you in consideration when their time to move comes. Or maybe you'll meet a new roommate or friend. You're talking 2 miles and 5 miles, so even if you wanted to keep the kids in one school, you could drive them I imagine. Good luck.

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Nice offer from the relative. How well do you know them? Is the guest house on its own utilities? Condition? Empty right now? School district same, presuming not using ex'es address?

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Thanks for the input everyone. Moving in a few weeks. Overall pros outweighed cons. I know them well enough that we'll be able to communicate through any issues that arise and not damage our relationship. We are both coming from a place of good intentions. It's the same school district. Water is from a well, everything else is electric. It's not separate. We agreed on a low flat monthly rate that would cover it and average out. Even if they get a little extra I'm ok with that because it's still a great opportunity. My kids are looking forward to having own rooms and a mommy daughter dance party our first night to celebrate not having a downstairs neighbor anymore.

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