Saving for a House / Grad School

Take your current savings, put it in a CD if you don't want any risk. If you're ok with some risk, put it in an index fund. If you're somewhere in between, split it up however you see fit.

Don't buy the car.

You'll regret it.

Get a loan for grad-school. Student loans have pretty low interest and you can put them in deferment virtually forever. Also why not work and go to grad school? My graduate (MSM) degree was infinitely easier then my undergrad (BS/CS). My employer paid 100% of it including my books. I took 2 classes per semester including summers.

what's your area? (grad school)? let me guess, not science/engineering.

Quote from dealgate : Get a loan for grad-school. Student loans have pretty low interest and you can put them in deferment virtually forever. Also why not work and go to grad school? My graduate (MSM) degree was infinitely easier then my undergrad (BS/CS). My employer paid 100% of it including my books. I took 2 classes per semester including summers.

I agree with this. Why not get paid to go to school? 10k/semester is pretty nice!

Quote from dealgate : Get a loan for grad-school. Student loans have pretty low interest and you can put them in deferment virtually forever. Also why not work and go to grad school? My graduate (MSM) degree was infinitely easier then my undergrad (BS/CS). My employer paid 100% of it including my books. I took 2 classes per semester including summers.

Grad school student loans are 6.8%

Quote from PiratesSayARRR : Grad school student loans are 6.8%

Yep.

Not to mention that part of the Congressional budget agreement passed over the summer included ending subsidized loans as of July 1, 2012...

Choose whether you want a house or grad school more. There's no way you could be in grad school and not working and afford a mortgage.. or at least without saving an astronomical amount beforehand. I wouldn't advise taking on significant student loans. Really consider if the grad school is critical to your career at this point. I'm 23 (assume we're near the same age) and figured that it's just not worth it for me right now. The $85k it would cost me, I'll probably see a $5k increase to my annual salary. I think I can get that if I take the time I would spend in class and studying and apply it to my current job. But if you do go for it, work at the same time so you get the $10k from your company. Paying 6.8% interest on that $10k for 15 years adds up quite a bit.

That's just my opinion though. I'm on the fence with grad school. I see the benefits, but I see the price tag as well. I'd rather have a house than a graduate degree (assuming you have a good job currently, of course). If you apply the time spent studying/in class to your current job, I see no reason why that wouldn't help you excel in your career just as much.

Quote from vaultaddict : Don't buy the car. You'll regret it.

Yeah. Save up some money (your expenses are minimal now, so this shouldn't be tough), and buy a used Nissan Altima or Hyundai Elantra (http://www.edmunds.com/car-review...-cars.html). Go for something that's a few years old, with not a ton of miles on it.

You'll save a ridiculous amount of money (especially considering you won't have to finance it, which will also save you a ton of money), and the resale value will stay a lot closer to what you paid for it.

Then you'll also have more money to invest, so instead of paying interest on a car loan, you'll actually make money on whatever you saved by going used instead of new.

Sorry. should of put MBA, but yea most def. a home will come after MBA. The only reason Id say that the $10k from my company is out of the question is because Id probaby be going out of state.

Quote from alvinmathew88 : Sorry. should of put MBA, but yea most def. a home will come after MBA. The only reason Id say that the $10k from my company is out of the question is because Id probaby be going out of state.

Would you buy that house in the school state, or the job state? If the school state, have you thought about finding a full time job there that could offer the same thing?

I'm going to school part time b/c my work pays for it, and it's totally worth it in my opinion. At the same time, I could understand wanting to get it done and over with too!

But in general, I agree with waiting on the house, as that would be a major burden without a steady income. I actually +1 the idea of a new car though...it seems like used cars are WAY too expensive for what most of them are (especially within the last 3ish years). (this is also assuming you're planning on keeping this car for a while, like, 7ish years).

Save for a house and go to grad school later in you career. I'm 25 got a great job out of school and would hire someone with a stronger work background over a MBA at your age... I am only speaking for the IT field from experience.

Quote from zarfus : Would you buy that house in the school state, or the job state? If the school state, have you thought about finding a full time job there that could offer the same thing? I'm going to school part time b/c my work pays for it, and it's totally worth it in my opinion. At the same time, I could understand wanting to get it done and over with too! But in general, I agree with waiting on the house, as that would be a major burden without a steady income. I actually +1 the idea of a new car though...it seems like used cars are WAY too expensive for what most of them are (especially within the last 3ish years). (this is also assuming you're planning on keeping this car for a while, like, 7ish years).

I currently reside in Texas and I only plan on buying a home in Texas.

Quote from Mswol767 : Save for a house and go to grad school later in you career. I'm 25 got a great job out of school and would hire someone with a stronger work background over a MBA at your age... I am only speaking for the IT field from experience.

Im currently 23, and this is my first full-time job (Financial Analyst). I plan on going for an MBA around ~26 or 27, if and when I decide to pursue it.

So my question is how do people manage to save so much money? What areas did they cut? Any and all suggestions are welcomed.