Would You Go $50,000 In Debt on Purpose?? - UPDATE IN THE OP

[karina5]

I'll try to sum this up and make it short and sweet:

DH and I have one child, and this is the only kid we're having (at least that's the plan). DH has about 2 more years of Nursing school and then he'll have his Bachelor's and become a nurse, and if you've seen the outlook for nurses, will quite easily get a well-paying job. DH is currently not working and can't due to his school schedule.

I am currently our breadwinner. I work at a job I cannot STAND. I won't go into the details but it makes me physically ill and I have lost waay to much sleep at night and cried way too many tears over this job. Plus, my boss is looking for a reason to can me as I can't ever make her happy. Ever. It does not pay a lot of money - we are scraping by - but the benefits, such as health insurance, are great, and it still pays the mortgage.

I also suffer from mommy guilt. It breaks my heart that I am working during my only child's young years, and I miss him so much. When I get home from work we are all maxed out, and I want more time with him.

So my good friend put together this "plan" where I would quit my job, just temp here and there to make a bit of cash, and for the most part become a SAHM who works on the side.

It basically entails us going into about $50k in debt for the final 2 years that DH is in school, through combination of student loans and/or second mortgage. When he gets out, DH will be making a decent living and we can start to pay off the debt.

So.....would you quit your job and do it???

(btw, I am cross-posting this in Frugality and Finances, I thought it might be an interesting topic here since it has several aspects to it).

**************************************

UPDATE: I got fired this afternoon. Not a complete shock really. I don't think I can fake being content when I am clearly not. My boss was the type where if you did 99 things right and 1 wrong, the 1 is what you would hear about. Not once did was I given any positive thanks or recognition from boss. It still sucks though, and I am pretty upset.

So we may not have a choice now and may *have* to go in debt. I had already (just barely) started job hunting and I will probably have to take a pay cut but that way we may only have to go $20,000 in debt instead of $50,000. I don't know what we'll do yet since I'm not thinking very clearly.

[abac]

Yep, I would. But then, I'm more about peace and happiness than I am about money. As long as I can pay my bills, I don't mind being in debt, especially if it means being home more often.

Enough is abundance to the wise.

[babygrant]

Personally I wouldn't go into THAT much debt on purpose.

[polyhymnia]

I might, depending on the type of loans they were. If you qualify for something like a subsidized stafford loan and maybe perkins loans (also subsidized), then YES.

I firmly believe educational loans (WITHIN REASON!) are okay debt to have, and it sounds like it would be beneficial to all of you.

If you did this and you could be primary caretaker for your child, is there any chance your DH could accelerate his education and finish in 1 or 1.5 years instead?

[karina5]

Originally Posted by babygrant

Personally I wouldn't go into THAT much debt on purpose.

Yeah, I'm having a hard time with it, but trying to be more open to the idea.

Just out of curiosity, how much debt WOULD you go into (if you can put an estimate on it)?

[babygrant]

Originally Posted by karina5

Yeah, I'm having a hard time with it, but trying to be more open to the idea.

Just out of curiosity, how much debt WOULD you go into (if you can put an estimate on it)?

Honestly, I don't know. We do have debt (much smaller than $50,000) and it SUCKS.

Maybe I would cut back the hours at work to just pay the mortgage and stuff, then pick up a paper route I could do with the kids and do some mystery shopping I could do with the kids. Minimize the hours at the job you hate. Could you start watching some kids at your house?

[jazzharmony]

In your situation, YES.

[karina5]

Originally Posted by crayolaab

If you did this and you could be primary caretaker for your child, is there any chance your DH could accelerate his education and finish in 1 or 1.5 years instead?

Hmmmm, that's a good question. He is already taking a full load since DS is in daycare FT. I'm guessing the answer is "no" and that he is taking as much as he can. But I would have to double check w/ him.

DH is like me...he is not "thrilled" w/ the idea of that much debt, but he feels so bad at how much I hate this job and how sad I am that I'm not w/ DS more. So he's trying to look at this idea a little more objectively, too.

[karina5]

Originally Posted by babygrant

Maybe I would cut back the hours at work to just pay the mortgage and stuff, then pick up a paper route I could do with the kids and do some mystery shopping I could do with the kids. ?

It is a salaried job and thus, this is not an option. Plus, I forgot to mention that I live where the economy SUCKS so there are not even very many jobs out there. I could probably find something very low paying, however.

[J-Max]

We did (well almost that much)

It was 3 years ago and to start a business that will hopefully payoff on the long run. We knew it was a lot, but DH has a very good, very stable job and it will take us about 10 years to pay it off. We have a small amount of cc debt, but no housing cost, so we figured it acceptable.

So, to me it is worth it.

[Demeter9]

We essentially did go into about that much debt to have our babies. We are essentially at an equity of zero after we take into consideration everything. The tide turns in the second half of this year where we start paying down what we've accumulated in debt.

I think you need to look at your goals VERY carefully. You don't want to rob your children's futures to have privilege today.

[karina5]

Originally Posted by Demeter9

You don't want to rob your children's futures to have privilege today.

Can you elaborate on this part?

[JessicaS]

I would try and start looking for another job before quitting the one you have currently.

[MeepyCat]

I think that there are solutions to the problems you list that don't involve $50K of debt. For which it may be tough to find lenders.

Bad jobs can be like abusive relationships. They suck, they hurt you and make you ill, but paradoxically, they provide security (benefits), so it's hard to leave.

You hate your job and you think your boss wants to fire you. You should look for a new job. A job you don't hate in and of itself will have a bunch of benefits. You will still be working, but you will not be expending energy to protect yourself from your evil boss, so you will have more energy. You will, we hope, cease to suffer from stress-related illness. Your new job will have to be one you like, and that will mean that searching for it may take time. That's okay. But you should start looking. You could even quit and temp while you search.

Temping offers no benefits, but it is a flexible schedule, and if you hate an assignment, you don't have to stay.

[karina5]

Originally Posted by MeepyCat

I
You hate your job and you think your boss wants to fire you. You should look for a new job.

.

Actually, I am looking for a new job. But it took me so long to get my current job due to the economy here, so this makes me nervous. Plus I was registered at every temp agency in town when we first moved here, and I barely got anything. I have never lived somewhere where there is such a cruddy job situation. :

[jazzharmony]

If you are paying for day care have you crunched the numbers to see how much of your paycheck is left and whether you could avoid daycare costs AND be with your child? There are ways you could earn money from home, part time, etc.

I personally would go into a pretty hefty amount of debt if it meant being with my child full time.

[rabrog]

Not all nurses make a bundle. It totally depends on where you live as to the demand and how much they are willing to pay. Also depends on what area of the hospital you are willing to work. Want to work ER or OR? Want to work in a smaller town where no one else wants to work? You can make more money in those instances. Or if you want to move to a big city (Phoenix, Atlanta, etc.) you can make good money there, too because they do need nurses.

My first answer to your question, knowing what I know about nursing right now was "hell no I wouldn't do that." This is first hand information (or would it be secondhand? My mom's a nurse, stepdad's a doctor...I get info from them and their network of friends who work elsewhere in the country).

I can give you more details, PM me if you want more info. I was going to post it but I can already see where it would hijack your thread if I did that.

Jenn

[Iris' Mom]

I took on much, much more to go to law school. I think for education it is very much worth it. But, of course there are risks involved, so it makes sense to be looking into other jobs. You could also consider something like babysitting/child care that might allow you to earn some money and eliminate child care expenses.

[bri276]

yes, I would do it. In fact, I basically have done it.

let me tell you something- NO job is worth that kind of stress. it is not only affecting you emotionally, but in the long run, it has a negative effect on your immune system.

I worked in a place where my boss treated me for the most part like the gum on her shoe. I was GOOD at my job, and she was simply ignorant, controlling, and never wanted to admit to making a mistake, so she'd blame everything on me (considering I was the only one in the office, it was easy!) I developed eczema for the first time in my life while working there, crying at night, living in fear every day. Finally, something happened one day that was the final straw, and I left and never looked back. She continued to call my cell phone for months, begging me to come back!!! Yeah right lady, clean up your own mess!

We do struggle so that I can be at home. But I know we have the rest of our lives to make up for it- we do have a strong 401K, and we're not going to be stupid about it, as I'm sure you won't be either. Listen to your SOUL. Maybe it will tell you to stay home, maybe it will tell you to simply get a different job- but I really doubt it will tell you to live under this type of abuse.

[townmouse]

Originally Posted by jazzharmony

If you are paying for day care have you crunched the numbers to see how much of your paycheck is left and whether you could avoid daycare costs AND be with your child? There are ways you could earn money from home, part time, etc.

I personally would go into a pretty hefty amount of debt if it meant being with my child full time.

Also, if we are talking about the preschool years only, can Dh put off the second half of his education and become the crappy job breadwinner? Then, when ds goes off to kindergarten, you work and DH finishes school.

(I don't know what colleges allow, just trying to think outside the box.)

There must be some way to do this than going into that kind of debt.