Live for free w/an hour commute? Or pay rent and no commute? - Page 2

[Ola_]

You'll still have to pay your mortgage though so I'd be looking into the tenant situation.

[lilyka]

also make sure your tennants rent covers increased taxes and repairs etc. it is not enoughto just cover your current mortgage.

[Fuamami]

Originally Posted by Smokering

Free rent, are you kidding? TOTALLY go for the free rent! Think of how much a week's rent is, divide it by 10 (assuming your DH works five days a week, so two hours travel a day). Think of it as him "earning" that much by sitting in traffic for an hour - probably not bad. I guess petrol costs mess with that analogy a little, though. Still, petrol can't cost more than rent, right? It sounds like a great opportunity!

OK, by this equation, contrasting it with the $800/month offer we have in town, dh would make $19/hour for his commute, before paying for gas. Hmm. Interesting way to look at it! The gas cost drops that quite a bit, though. I'll have to figure that out. Later!

[Right of Passage]

I just did this! We now live rent free an hour away from DH's job, but there were night while living in the city it was still an hour trip (living 15 minutes away) due to traffic. There are a few times he takes a hour and half but the savings and ability to get out of debt are well worth it.

[*bejeweled*]

I would not move into the free house because of the reasons listed below. I value stability and that situation seems very unstable. It also seems like it would be hard on your kids.

Originally Posted by skreader

Moving into the "free" house would not be a good idea because.

1) It's very far from your husband's work (what if gas goes up in price again this summer) & you mentioned having to switch schools - so it would be hard for your kids.

2) It would isolate you from your friends & community

3) It makes you dependent on your relatives for the free housing, which can often lead to uncomfortable family dynamics.

4) It would be an unstable situation, because you might have to "skedaddle" if your relatives sell the place/

[*bejeweled*]

Oh yeah, and I really believe that nothing in life is "free".

[zebra15]

I would move..

[lakeruby]

Definitely do it!! I would. As many pp have said, you can always move later. I bet you will love having a garden space and lots of room. It sounds wonderful! Maybe you could get housecleaning clients in this new area? Living rent free (and renting your old place), even for just a few months, would allow you to pay down your CC bill and build some savings back up, even with the added gas money. I doesn't sound like a great situation for the long-term, but for a while it seems like it would help.