I think you have, by far, the cheapest daycare in Southern Maine assuming that is the retail rate and isn't being subsidized. My sister-in-law is about to pay well over double that so I'll tell her to consider looking one town north instead of one town south.

And this is an actual daycare that the public could utilize? I'm right next door to Brunswick and everything in Freeport and Yarmouth is $275/wk on the low end.

Every parent here would love to know where.

$38K on a 10-year plan is going to be a hell of a lot more than $300/mo. Considering two incomes are almost a requirement now to buy a house, unless your partner came from money they will likely have student loans of their own. We waited until our late 30s to have children because of this. Both of our parents had children in their early-to-mid 20s.

I'm not the one downvoting you by the way.

Where do you live in Maine? That could explain a lot here. We didn't have a choice of medical insurance plan so we have what we have. That's something else that is the norm.

The gaslighting comment isn't implying you're lying about finances, it's about you dismissing what is very clearly the norm as if it isn't the norm.

The average is around $40,000 which is about what both my wife and I had. I lived at home until I was 28 (I'm 40 now) and paid them off. Most people I know that graduated in the last 10 years have ~$1000/mo student loan payments. Your story and my story are not the norm. The difference here is I'm aware of that fact.

They are either trying to gaslight people or are just out of touch.

They also likely didn't budget $7750 to max out an HSA account. Without that we'd be in perpetual medical debt.

Maybe in 2005. I'd wager the average student loan borrower today is paying back at least $600/mo on the 10 year plan. Two borrowers? Double it, obviously.

As for childcare, others clearly disagree with you there too. Just look at the OP.

$300/mo for student loans? $1000/mo for daycare? And you say I'm the one throwing out unreasonable numbers?

What's the average rent for 2 and 3 bedroom apartments in Cumberland county? Can you even find a house for under $250,000 in the area? With today's mortgage rates, a $200,000 mortgage, assuming no PMI, will cost as much as a $325,000 ($400,000+ house) mortgage cost in 2020. I really don't think you grasp how much things have changed in the last 10 years. We bought our first house in Portland for under $125,000 when interest rates were just over 3%. Our mortgage was $400. It was a 3/1 that was well over 100 years old. That same house today would cost $350,000 which would be an $1800+ mortgage without PMI. The rent would likely be $2500/mo. It's pretty much the same story all over Cumberland county. How is a family just starting out, that has no equity and has student loans, supposed to make that work - especially if they don't have family nearby that can help with childcare?

It really isn't. Try to have kids and buy a house in Southern Maine in the 2020s. You can do it with less but you'll either be house poor, not saving for retirement, and/or not have any expendable income.

You realistically need a $150,000 household income to have kids in Southern Maine unless you have retired parents that can assist and/or bought a house before housing prices more than doubled over the last decade.

Most Pre-K is only ~3 hours a day. 8:30 - 11:20 or 12:30 - 3:15.

That's what the guidance on Maine.gov states, yes.

The relief is available whether or not Maine income tax is owed. Those with no taxable income may check Box A and complete lines 1-13a on the front of the Maine Individual Income Tax Form  1040ME and complete Schedule PTFC/STFC. 

1040ME - https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.maine.gov%2Frevenue%2Fsites%2Fmaine.gov.revenue%2Ffiles%2Finline-files%2F21_1040me_dwnldff.pdf&data=05%7C01%7CKelsey.Goldsmith%40maine.gov%7C1f2a2e0a68a444252c3408da27bd0bba%7C413fa8ab207d4b629bcdea1a8f2f864e%7C0%7C0%7C637865990160852629%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=hLx3kX0fkgAJ9L8VE2f5GRRqMLn1wxi%2FimGNJFK8MG4%3D&reserved=0

Schedule PTFC/STFC - https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.maine.gov%2Frevenue%2Fsites%2Fmaine.gov.revenue%2Ffiles%2Finline-files%2F21_1040me_sched_pstfc_dwnldff.pdf&data=05%7C01%7CKelsey.Goldsmith%40maine.gov%7C1f2a2e0a68a444252c3408da27bd0bba%7C413fa8ab207d4b629bcdea1a8f2f864e%7C0%7C0%7C637865990160852629%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=Jds0hMnKKA7vIn5YRMXh0KHFDtX%2BNST9S4kbdA%2Fq1qc%3D&reserved=0

The area off of Jenkins Road seems to lose power the most.

Thanks for the info. I might dip my toe into this over my next vacation!

That's intriguing. Are they fairly easy to roast? Any good sources of green beans? Tandem is about $10/lb but maybe there are bulk discounts to be had somewhere?

Brett Davis - EXP Realty

Yes, solar. Obviously that project had a cost to it, but the last two massive increases have rapidly accelerated our payback period.

Fresh beans, a quality grinder, and pour over brewing makes a much better cup of coffee than Dunkin or Starbucks. We could buy much cheaper beans, but we both love our coffee.

We pay about $75/mo for coffee for two people. Granted, we don't go to Dunkin or Starbucks or anything like that. We order beans in 5 lb increments from places like Tandem, Speckled Ax and Onyx. We store them in the freezer in mason jars to keep them fresh.

We pay $13.73/mo for electricity.

I guess coffee wins.

You're supposed to hit it.

Atlantic Fence Company

http://www.atlanticfenceco.com/

Papermill trail? We live on the Lisbon side of Durham and go there sometimes.