What price range should we be going for?

PeanutMama

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 6:34 pm

Please be super clear and simple because I get overwhelmed lol.

As y’all know we are looking to move to a bigger 2 bedroom place. Somewhere comfortable for 2-3 children and 2 adults to walk around comfortably.

Most places we looked at are in the 2200+ range (my husband said we can afford up till 1800-2100 at the most) with no utilities included a month

I’m at home with my son and currently expecting BH my second child (please don’t attack, we wanted this baby mutually but I’ll be taking a 3-5 year break after this one before we try for more) so I’m not working at the moment.
My husband makes 700 a week working in a store so 7x4 would be 28 so he would be making 2800 a month I think. My math is terrible lol so please correct me if I’m wrong.

He’s planning on becoming a driver so he can spend more time with us and be a father to his children, but I’m not sure how much a frum male driver can earn a day or a week or a month.

Maybe after birth I’ll start working again at one of those special needs places since it’s the only “official” job I’ve had and am really well at. I am rusty so I may need to be trained again.

We spend around 150 ****im not sure tho. This is a guess. But we do go to the grocery every day to restock on milk and eggs and bread daily**** a week on the very basics (bread, milk, eggs, potatoes, onions, oil, aluminum pans, freezer food mostly pizza, pasta, tomato sauces, cheese, shabbos meat, shabbos beans, shabbos fish. Once a month I buy a pack of bones and chicken legs and soup veggies and make about a months worth of soup for shabbos and put that in the freezer.)

If I do shabbos shopping at KRM I spend around 50-80$ on shabbos stuff and household stuff (detergent, toilet cleaner, fabric softener, that kinda stuff.)

Gas and electric is on the cheaper side now (25-40 gas and electric idk about. My husband deals with both bills.) and we do have air conditioners in our windows, and as y’all know the air conditioning sucks out all our earnings in the summer. Once we paid 538 one month and we said never again!

My husband also got credit cards to build his credit and of course we have the monthly payment thing to do on that too. We hardly use them, only when we absolutely need it like when we’re out of $ to pay for groceries.
I think we should cancel these credit cards so we can save $ but again we hardly use them and we haven’t use the credit cards in a month or so.

I hardly buy clothing anymore these days since BH I have enough even tho it means wearing the same shirt and skirt every 2-3 days and my son BH has more than enough. Someone from our shul gave us pesach Yom tov money and insisted we spend it on clothing and food, so we brought stuff for the summer, but most went to pesach food and pesach house stuff. It was given to my husband so I’m not sure how much he got but based on the things we got for pesach (toaster oven, food processor, counter covers, random dishes, matzah, food etc) I assume he got a lot.

So basically I’m just wondering if we can afford to get a 2200 place without utilities. And if not what price should we be looking for. And also how much do frum drivers earn.

We don’t have wic and section 8 and all that stuff.
We currently pay 1600 a month for a tiny 2 bedroom apartment. Gas and electric and heat are separate

amother

Ivory

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 6:38 pm

is the 2800 pretax or post tax?
It sounds like unless you have savings to run through or someone helping, you can't afford much more than you are now.
Your best bet:
Look at your bank account at the end of the month and see how much extra you're putting away each month- that's how much you can afford your rent to go up.

PeanutMama

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 6:48 pm

🙈idk. I’m just adding up the 700$ my husband gets weekly in a check as payment. With the stimulus check added I’m not sure, it’s confusing. I’m horrible with numbers lol but I guess I’ll speak more to my husband. But he’s the type to say we have a million dollars and tells me not to worry about it.

But what I do know is that we got a letter in the mail from IRS saying our tax return should be around 4300 I’m not sure of the final number.

My husband wants to get a car first so he can become a driver for people in bp or something. He said there’s a place where you can get a down payment and pay monthly but idk I think we’re better off just buying a used old car.

PeanutMama

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 6:49 pm

Ah. I remember now.
So every week until my husband gets another 700 we are left with 80-120$ at the end

amother

Khaki

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 6:51 pm

No I don’t think you can afford it.

(I’m saying this as a family of 4 BH in 550 square feet. I know it’s not ideal but it’s what the can afford. I think you’ll need to make a smaller space work for you, too)

amother

Ivory

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 6:53 pm

Hashem_n_Farfel wrote:

Ah. I remember now.
So every week until my husband gets another 700 we are left with 80-120$ at the end

Then you can’t afford more than you are if that’s all that’s left at the end of the week. You’re living paycheck to paycheck.
It’s time to work on maximizing the space you have.
Tell us a bit about what parts of your current apartment / life style are making you feel like you need to move and we can try to make it work. (Living in a tiny 2 bedroom basement with a second on the way so I get it)

amother

Magenta

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 6:58 pm

I am assuming that if he come home with $700 and you are getting a tax refund, that that is after taxes.
If you have ~100 dollars left at the end of the week, you in theory could spend an extra $400 a month in rent, BUT realize a larger place will cost more to heat and air condition and have higher utility bills. Additionally, with a baby you will have added diaper costs (I don’t know if you also need to pay for formula). And many other expenses.
I would recommend staying where you are if you can. If you need to move, spend as little more than what you are currently paying as you can.
Wishing you much mazel and hatzlacha.

PeanutMama

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:05 pm

No we don’t have no one helping us, it’s just us.

How do people with children with no family do it?
I’m honestly really nervous now about having a large family. My husband has a lot more emunah than I do and is the type to say we’ll be okay we have a million dollars etc.
I guess based on what we have now I think we can only afford one kid.
I would love to find a job to help along but I’d be stressing about where to send my son to.
And probably most of my paycheck would go to the playgroup or babysitter
My husband would have to mamash swallow his pride before getting food stamps and all that stuff.

Leahh

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:07 pm

You really can't afford to pay any more than you're currently paying unless you increase your income.
You're going to have to start paying tuition and if you get a job childcare will cost too.
You really don't have anything extra.
Good luck!

amother

Ivory

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:08 pm

Hashem_n_Farfel wrote:

We live in small apartments until we work our way up to a higher income. We get no financial support. We both work full time (with degrees) bringing in about 3,000 a month each, but my husband’s job has opportunity for growth for the next few years. I spend about $1,000 per month (per kid) on childcare. So the question is if you could reasonably bring in more than that. You could also work on cost cutting (no disposables, cheaper food etc) or move to a cheaper neighborhood.

amother

Bronze

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:10 pm

Hashem_n_Farfel wrote:

My husband would have to mamash swallow his pride before getting food stamps and all that stuff.

If you are eligible, there is nothing to be ashamed of signing up for it.
He can't put his pride before his family's needs.

stillnewlywed

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:16 pm

You can't afford more than you are paying now. If you would consider moving Lakewood apartments are less than $1600 for 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartments with washer/dryer, dishwasher, 2 sinks, large LR area.
The only way you can make it work currently is if you find a job where you will bring in at least 1k a month after child care.

PeanutMama

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:17 pm

We have a dinette table that takes up a lot of dining room space. It seats 6 people and that’s our only table.
We got that plus our beds from a gemach before our wedding, the rest of the household stuff like the towels, dishes, food processor, and toaster oven was from another gemach

amother

Lilac

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:19 pm

Are you planning on sending your son to playgroup next year?
If so, would you babysit someone else's baby and your baby in their home and if yes, how much would you charge for that?

amother

Violet

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:20 pm

OP, is it an option for your husband to look for a better paying position? With the expenses of a new baby, it doesn't seem like you can afford more than you're paying now.
Also, there's nothing to be embarrassed about taking food stamps and programs, you need it. It's meant for people that need it.

PeanutMama

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:21 pm

Yes hopefully after I give birth to this baby I’ll start working again. The hours in the special needs place I used to work at is not really mommy baby friendly. I’d have to go from 3-10 or 12-8
But I think we would both have to work to be able to live in a home and not worry about how high the air conditioning bill is gonna be.

Last edited by PeanutMama on Wed, Apr 14 2021, 8:42 pm; edited 1 time in total

SuperWify

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:26 pm

I really think you should go on food stamps and wic. You are living very tightly. Dh is working as hard as he possibly can so there is no shame in accepting it. Your family has to eat. Being worried out about money all the time is very stressful.
You are also eligible for healthcare as well.
Please look into them.

amother

Floralwhite

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:28 pm

Your husband can supplement to his current job by doing bus routes for Cheder and school.
He can do a 7:00 bus route in the morning and a 5:00 bus route in the afternoon or whatever would fit into the schedule.
The schools pay nicely for bus drivers.
He can also do this as a full time job.
Most Chedarim have bus routes running from 6:00 AM-10:00 AM and from 2:00 PM-7:00 PM.
They usually pay per route.

You should also get food stamps and WIC.
Everyone has them in our community.
There is nothing to be ashamed of.
Frum life is expensive.

amother

Ivory

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:33 pm

Hashem_n_Farfel wrote:

One table is reasonable. Whoever’s telling you you need a kitchen table and a dining room is just putting pressure on you. We have a dining room table that seats 6 in our kitchen/dining room/ living room. A couch. A desk. A rug with toys all over. Our room has 2 twin beds and a dresser. Baby’s room has a crib, dresser, bed, changing table and boxes of toys out of rotation. Kid managed to play in the living room and running through any space she finds.

HeartyAppetite

Wed, Apr 14 2021, 7:36 pm

amother [ Floralwhite ] wrote:

I was going to say exactly this.
I think some cheders pay $500 a week per route.
Also definitely go on food stamps and WIC. It’s their for exactly this reason.