My wife and I moved to a small town in the midwest so she could attend a Nurse Anesthesia program. We're both city people and are very ready to move. She graduates in a few months and we have two job options for her (I work remotely so either location works for me). OPTION A: Move to a different small town for a job with an amazing salary and low cost of living, sign on bonus, retention bonus, etc. This town would be an improvement from where we are currently. OPTION B: Move back home to a larger city with an average salary, high cost of living, no bonuses.
We're both city people but taking the job in the small town would absolutely change our lives. Considering the larger salary and lower cost of living, it essentially pays 40% higher than option B. We'd be able to pay off all of our debt (6 figures) in less than 3 years, not considering unforeseen events. We're both older millennial / young Gen X so mid-life is essentially here. Also, we just began the IVF process so my wife can have a successful first pregnancy. The first round alone costs $20k, which we took out a loan for.
Option B is doable, but we'd be looking at paying off debt for 5-7 years, without unforeseen expenses. We would have about half of the monthly cash flow as Option A but day to day life would be better in terms of energy and activities available.
I grew up poor so I'm used to sacrificing short term satisfaction for long term happiness, but my wife is so burned out on this town and her school program that, while she understands my argument for being debt free, she's afraid she'll hate the day to day in another small town. I feel buried under our debt and feel like paying it off would make life so much more enjoyable. We'd be able to maintain an amazing quality of life without stressing about money (within reason) which is something I haven't felt since I was a kid. I also spend more time learning about the current climate and what challenges we all face. I think getting out of debt is a huge win.
What are your thoughts on moving to a small town with less to do so that we can shave years off the time it takes to become debt free?
Submitted August 12, 2020 at 09:32PM by joeybagofdonuts80 https://ift.tt/2XXS9rz
