[Inspired by Peacefulgirl]-Transfered to stop confusion- tink2dw's budget woe's

[floridagirrl2]

Originally posted by chrisnjessie
I don't have a whole lot to offer as far as suggestions, but I did want to point out one thing. While Lisa Loves Pooh is correct that there are 2 year RN programs, there's a little difference in the 2 and 4 year ones. The 2 year will make you an RN and you will be able to work as an RN, but the 4 year gives you a BSRN, which is what is required if you're looking to go into nurse management or work as a school nurse. My MIL is an RN, while DH's stepmother has a BSRN, and they have totally different career paths that they can take because of it. LOL! Not a major issue when it comes to the budget, but just something to keep in mind for future plans.

Not to drift too far off topic, but I think this depends on your geographic location. When I worked in public health as an RN, several of the managers had only associates or diploma degrees.

As an associate degree RN, I have worked in research, a birth-to-three developmental program in which I was trained and certified to perform developmental evaluations of newborns, public health, case management, and other settings that people typically think of as open only to BSN RNs.

I now have a bachelors degree in another health care profession (occupational therapy) and I definitely agree that a bachelors is worth pursuing. However, for people who cannot afford to go to school for 4 years, or who do not have a 4-year college/university nearby, an associate degree RN program can be a wonderful thing!

 

[MrsPete]

Lights -- these cost very little. Yes, every little bit counts, but it makes sense to start with the big leaks and move on to the small leaks. We replaced our bulbs with the new flourescents! They're expensive, but they last forever and take less electricity.

Trash -- I know what you mean about it being more expensive to haul it yourself. My mother has to pay a per-bag drop-off fee, which is outrageous. Ours is paid through taxes, so there's no incentive for us to look for savings here!

Jobs -- Most people have quite a bit of fat in their budget that can be cut -- you don't seem to have much; therefore, it makes sense for you to look at bringing in more money rather than spending less. If your husband could go back to school to become an RN he'd increase his salary substantially. Plus, if he and your daughter are both in college, they'll both qualify for more financial aid.

2nd jobs -- They're not just for the young and energetic! Maybe a seasonal job could get you "out of the hole".

Selling house -- How does this help your daughter through college? Are you looking at using equity? Your home might have cost 76,000, but I'm betting that was a while back. If you were to sell today, you'd certainly net a profit.

I'm not familiar with Rainbow grocery stores, but I agree with you about coupons. I can do better by buying store brands, skipping convenience foods, and NOT spending 1.50 on the Sunday paper. Most people can cut something off their grocery bill. Have you looked at your beverage costs? Between sodas, juice, milk, and alcohol, beverages are driving up many people's grocery bills -- and most of them are just extra sugar and calories that we don't need. Be especially wary of single-serve drinks; they cost significantly more than large containers.

Yard sales -- Yeah, we don't make tons on yard sales either for the same reasons you listed. We don't change our decor often. We don't have bunches of impulse buys lying around the house. We tend to buy kids' clothes used, so by the time they're outgrown, they're not in top condition and we donate them for the tax break. (It doesn't make sense to buy expensive kids' jeans for one season because they can be sold later for pennies on the dollar!)

50% of your income is going to your mortgage! WOW! THIS is your problem area! That's what you call house-poor; your house is making you poor! I think the experts recommend no more than 25-30%. I would recommend that you look into some way of bringing down your housing costs. You said you're looking at refinancing, so I assume that your interest rate is high right now; that's a step in the right direction. Do you have an extra room that you could rent to a college student?

 

[tink2dw]

ajksmom, mrsbornkuntry, Lisa loves Pooh, simonmunro,-
Dd did the financial aid thing and we are awaiting her results they should be in this week or next. Praying it's good!! But they said we were in a GRAY AREA??????

ajksmom- Dh is nearing a retirement formula that could make it better for him to get out.

Lisa loves Pooh- RN route- NO WAY!! My friend has been waiting for 4 years to get into any RN Nursing school anywhere in the west!! Due to Pres. Bush's nursing insentive rules!! Finally she got excepted 150 miles from home, in another state! She goes to school there mon., tue, wed, travels home thurs. to work her job fri. and sat., and Sunday she gets to see her kids, a jr. in high school and a freshmen in high school. Then drive back sunday night to get to college in time for mon. classes!!!

House- We bought cheaply[$76,000]. Our next door neighbor[they bought for $100,000.]tryed to sell their home for $145,000. They started last spring and just took it off the market last week Unsold. There are many houses for salein this area, but none are selling.

MrsPete, Lisa loves Pooh- refinancing - We are going to refinance this November to lower APR and the payment. We will finally qualify for the lowest APR rate 1.50% and cut our payment by $500.00 dollars. which should help to cut payment to about 1/3 of income.

 

[Puffy2]

Yes, what is your morgage percentage rate? Depending on current rates, you might want to look into refinancing like that other poster said. This could lower your monthly payments.

If your husband has an LPN, he might be able to do a "bridge" program and get his RN. I've seen programs that last 3 months to a year for this (probably a year). First , he should check with his employer to see if this would give him a raise after he gets his RN . Some hospitals even PAY for the schooling. Not sure if these programs are available everywhere, but we do have them here in Georgia.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Originally posted by tink2dw
House- We bought cheaply[$76,000]. Our next door neighbor[they bought for $100,000.]tryed to sell their home for $145,000. They started last spring and just took it off the market last week Unsold. There are many houses for salein this area, but none are selling.

Ouch--we have similar problems--but it is b/c people are getting greedy on the sale price--but property is lacking where I live, so I guess we're lucky. AS long as you are refinancing, but not taking out equity (or at least too much), then I guess you'll just have to stay put.



QUOTE]Originally posted by tink2dw
MrsPete, Lisa loves Pooh- refinancing - We are going to refinance this November to lower APR and the payment. We will finally qualify for the lowest APR rate 1.50% and cut our payment by $500.00 dollars. which should help to cut payment to about 1/3 of income. [/QUOTE]
:thewave:
That's awesome--sounds like you are "stuck" for just a little more than a month--and that will improve your payment to income ration into a more appropriate zone. Get that budget into a more workable amount--and then if you can "spare" the $50 or so per month, you can start saving for that Disney vacation It might take you a while though. I don't know what the present ratio of how much your home should cost, but when we bought in 1999, it was recommended that the sale price not exceed 2 1/2 times your income. Doesn't help you much now--but good to know in the future if you do look elsewhere.

 

[tink2dw]

I don't think that I would ever BUY [I might rent.] here in the Portland area,again.

My perfect scenario would be to live somewhere that the cost of living was LOW,the cost to rent was LOW,and the cost to get to WDW was really LOW!! Do you think they would mind much if I moved......






....into the castle

??

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Originally posted by tink2dw
I don't think that I would ever BUY [I might rent.] here in the Portland area,again.

My perfect scenario would be to live somewhere that the cost of living was LOW,the cost to rent was LOW,and the cost to get to WDW was really LOW!! Do you think they would mind much if I moved......






....into the castle

??

As silly as that sounds--have you seriously considered relocated to a lower cost of living area all together? Of course moving might be a pain in the neck, but with a nursing shortage--hubby is sure to find better pickin's elsewhere.

They do have an apartment in the castle, but I am sure they would charge High season rates

 

[tink2dw]

Have you seriously considered relocated to a lower cost of living area all together?

Oh Yes!! My perfect scenario would be to live somewhere that the cost of living was LOW,the cost to rent was LOW,and the cost to get to WDW was really LOW!!

But Where is that?? I have used a career calculator for every state. Only 1 or 2 showed as much as Dh makes now[our states minium wage law is $7.05],none show any higher wages. And I haven't found a source for low cost of living per state,per area, yet??

 

[tink2dw]

We got word of Dd's Pell grant amount. Call me !

Only $266. towards $841. tution[nothing for books] for 1 term[of three]. And she is on "the wait list" for Some work study sometime in the middle of Nov.??

I have so little money just now this seems like a merger drop in the bucket of college moneies that are required from me?

Yes, I'm grateful for any help and I'm very thankful

WoW, I was hoping for more help than that?? What happened to the Pixie Dust on this one??

Guess I had on wacky glasses

 

[floridagirrl2]

tink2dw, not sure if this is still true, but when I was in school, if you agreed to take part of your financial aid as work-study, you would be guaranteed not to receive the full amount of grants and loans you were entitled to.

I declined to sign up for work study because I already had a good part-time job that paid more than a work-study job would pay. Therefore all my financial aid came in the form of grants and loans.

Not sure if you prefer the idea of a work-study job to taking out long-term, low interest loans, though. Still, you might want to consider appealing the award or at least talking to a financial aid counselor to figure out why your daughter didn't qualify for more grants.

 

[tink2dw]

floridagirrl2- Thank-you for the info!! We will try that!!

 

[robsmom]

As I have read this I keep thinking that the key to your situation has to be related to your house/mortgage, since you say it is 50% of your income. The house was $76,000. Even if you borrowed all of it, I can't figure out how you could save $500 a month by refinancing. A 30 yr mortgage on $76,000 at a terrible rate like 8% is only slightly more than $500 a month total. What is your current rate? Do you have a home equity loan that makes your loans more than the $76,000. Many people pay for college using home equity loans so my 1st suggestion would have been to go this route, but I am not sure in your case that the numbers make sense.

 

[HenDuck]

I don't know if anyone else suggested this (because I didn't read through all the posts) or if it's even feasible, but how about taking in a renter for short period of time? 6 months maybe?

It might get you "over the hump".

I recently did a bare bones budget because my DH's income is variable and I needed to know what was the minimum we needed to function and what was "essential" and what was a luxury. Boy was I surprised!

We really have a lot of stuff that we don't need.

I know you pared down your budget, but I bet you could do a little better taking some of the advise given here.

It really takes honest scrutiny. It's a good exercise.

Good luck!

 

[MrsPete]

It's been years since I paid any attention to financial aid for myself, and my daughters are years away from it; therefore, my information could well be outdated. Still, here's my advice:

Don't worry about the lack of work-study jobs. It's minimum-wage work in the college offices. I did it my first couple years of college because I didn't have a car, so my part-time job options were limited to on-campus venues. If your daughter has transportation, she could make much more money waiting tables, etc.

Have you or your husband considered going back to school? If you do, you'll have TWO STUDENTS applying for financial aid, and your numbers will jump significantly. Community college would count.

I would strongly advise her to stay away from student loans. It's better to work hard now, drop to part-time status if necessary, but graduate with a blank slate! I know lots of people who feel very trapped by those student loans.

 

[tink2dw]

Mrs.Pete. - Dd doesn't have a car or any job experience. One Good thing about Oregon is that min. wage is $7.05 so a work study job would be a good thing for those reasons.

And waiting tables these days pays way less than min. wage due to owners not paying what you make in tips.