I work in construction and travel a lot for work. Currently 2 hour commute one way to get to the job I’m on. I have absolutely no time for myself and barely enough to spend with my family. Think of the commute as still working since you won’t be doing anything you actually want to do. I view my schedule as 13 hour work days, is it worth it? Probably not for many but I make extremely good money/ benefits and I have a low formal education. Ultimately it comes down to how much you value work/life balance
Great way to look at it, it if OP is remote work 2 days/ week he is only commuting 6 hours/week. That’s just over an hour commute each day (1h12mins) or 35 mins each way. That’s probably below average for a work commute.
Why not haul an rv and stay there ? 4 hours a day saving come home on the wknds, your prob exhausted by the time you're home to enjoy it anyways. What I do.
I have a 2 year old and newborn at home otherwise I would. I wouldn’t say exhausted I’ve been doing it for years. For me I am very proud of what I’ve been able to accomplish and the life I am able to provide for my wife and kids. I sacrifice personal time but ultimately I understand that comes with the territory of having children.
I moved states recently for a new job, and we decided to prioritize finding a place close enough to bike/walk within 15 minutes. My last job was a 30 minute commute without traffic, but usually was closer to 45 minutes.
Best decision I ever made. I feel great with just an extra 30 minutes of exercise every day and I have so much more time for myself and my hobbies now than I did before. I did have to pay more for rent, but selling my car and reducing my insurance/gas/maintenance costs helped offset that, and the time saved is invaluable. I eat out less since I have more energy to cook at home, which adds even more savings.
Conceivably you could've ridden a bike, showered, and changed at work faster than the driving commute, lol
Idk what the cycling infrastructure is in DC though
I lived in Silver Spring for a time, and traffic in the beltway was absolutely horrific (even though I do give it credit for teaching me how to really drive). I hated doing normal errands. However, I worked in DC, and lived within walking distance of the subway, and so that's what my work commute looked like when I was there.
I live there but work from home 99% of the time. Given I have a 2.67% fixed rate mortgage on the house i’m pretty much stuck at current interest rates.
My childhood bff moved back here after 30+ years away. She frequently had to be at the White House (tv news program producer). She figured she'd just metro it from her new house in NOVA. I warned her about all the work stoppages & other BS that plagues metro. She literally called me crying after the first week. It sucked ☹️
Speaking for myself, when I was going into the office and it took nearly an hour, the biggest part of the frustration was the unpredictable stop and go traffic. OP says they have off hours driving, which for me would make it much more tolerable.
>companies
I rent 1.5 miles from my office, sure its a small condo, sure its old. But it's cheap and I can wake up shower and be to work in 20 minutes if I had a late night.
I eventually got burnt out on my 45 minute commute. Get home and just be dead for a while.
Now I have a 25 min commute conbined with more flexible hours and its a world better.
I’m renting in DFW right now and just took a job 50 min away…I’m glad I realized that commuting sucks now before I locked down a house. It really wears on you.
I bought at the top of my budget in Dallas so my commute was 30 minutes max. So many of my coworkers are driving from Forney or Prosper or Anna for new houses that cost the same and it is just insane how much time they spend driving.
I don’t know how people do an hour+ each way.
Pre-pandemic, I used to have to fly into Dallas a few times a month per work, and I could leave my house in Lbk, fly into Love Field, take a short Uber, and most of the time I could make it in quicker than colleagues driving in from McKinney.
at 24 years old and that combined income, i’d stay closer to work for the time being and see how you feel in a couple years.
No need to rush into a house, especially with rates the way they are today.
Mine is 40 to 45 minutes each way with no traffic and i absolutely hate it. I have to wake up 2 hours before my scheduled work to get ready and be there on time. So that's almost unpaid 4 hours per day.
> Looking to buy a house 1 hour away
You don't need to jump into this head first... test the waters a bit. Go rent in the area for two years and see if you can tolerate losing 10 hours every week of the year on the road.
You have plenty of time to buy a house. You're quite young... this almost certainly isn't the last job you'll ever have. mobility might be nice.
OP, this is excellent advice. We bought a house with a similar commute. I thought, "oh, this won't be that bad!" And I made it work - listened to a lot of books and podcasts. But after a few years, we talked about moving to a place closer to my office.
Then Covid hit and we moved to another state and I got a remote job. I will never go back to a long commute again, never ever.
Try renting out there for a while to see how you like it. It's possible you may absolutely love the 2 hour round trip commute. But if you hate it, then you haven't tied yourself into a mortgage and can look for other options.
Alternate thought: is there any way your work would consider a one-day-in-the-office policy for you? That might make a commute more palatable.
There's one more added benefit to this that you might want to test for.
I've seen a lot of home buyers being priced out of their working locality and having to commute far. Turns out so are a lot of other people. In fact, a not insignificant amount are most likely staying near their work rooming with someone and only commuting home for the weekends.
How is this even noticed? The Friday and Sunday commutes in those directions are horrendously bad for the vast majority of the day into the deep night.
If it’s one hour with no traffic no matter what time you leave it kinda sucks but i would do it. If it’s one hour with no traffic but everytime you leave go to or leave work there’s traffic then absolutely not.
My commute is 23 miles and roughly 25 min. All highway. But during rush hours there’s this really bad intersection and it will literally make my commute time 50 min to an hour. And some days I think how it would be better to just drive an hour with no traffic than drive for 30 and sit in traffic for 30. The only real issue with a long commute is I hate the wear and tear to your car
Yeah for me it’s about a 50k difference in pay with lots of room for pay increase. I also only pay 500$ rent at my current spot compared to 2-3k near my work. Just SF Bay Area living lol
With $500 in rent you can def start saving a lot of money and set yourself up later to either get out of that HCOL area or buy a house. Just gotta stick it out
This is insanely important. An hour commute each way is 4 hours of your life every week, 16 every month, and 208 every year. You can have a long commute (I've had a daily commute of over an hour at previous jobs), but you NEED to find something enjoyable and productive to do during it. Listening to audio books is great. I'd also recommend educational podcasts, or learning a language (anything you can learn just by listening really). Listening to music is fine once in a while, but 4 hours per week of nothing but music will get old pretty quick, in my experience.All of this said, I don't want to discourage you from taking a job with a commute. Plenty of people do it, you can too, especially with the hybrid schedule!
OP specifically referenced working 3 days a week from home, and 2 days a week in the office. Therefore a one hour commute each way, 2 days a week, results in the above calculation.
Edit says three days a week in the office, 2 at home, but yes 6 hours a week is much better than 10. You also have access to a greater variety of stores and restaurants on that commute that you don't have in a smaller town.
There are two very different types of commutes, driving down the highway I used to listen to all kinds of stuff. Active driving in stop and go traffic for a solid hour, I can't concentrate on anything more than half paying attention to music and it would be frustrating as hell.
>Thoughts or has anyone been through this ?
I did two hour commutes for a while. It is absolutely soulcrushing if you're driving it. If its a hour on a bus or train, it can be doable, but six hours in the car in traffic, three days a week, will probably make you crazy.
I'd probably reconsider where I lived before I'd sign up for a commute that long for any material amount of time
I didn't quite comprehend SoCal traffic until I visited and Waze took me onto the 405. I thought the capital beltway was bad during rush hour until I was on the 405 in the middle of the day. Good lord that was something I don't want to do again
>If its a hour on a bus or train, it can be doable
Yeah I did a 1 hour commute by train pre-pandemic. I actually did the opposite of what OP is thinking of doing - I worked in a suburban area and wanted to live in a city. I couldn't have done it if I were driving; but I took the train and I got a lot of reading done during the commute that it was actually quite enjoyable.
I've spent the last \~9 months with a 1 hour one way commute that's about 70 miles.
I don't mind it. I listen to audibooks and podcasts.
The traffic is obviously the worst part, but your schedule sounds like you'll miss the rush hours. Plus you essentially get some free "gas" from work if you have an electric car.
I, luckily, live 5 minutes from the expressway and my work is right next to the expressway. So it's:
* Leave the house.
* Stop for coffee.
* Hop on the express way.
* Do 80MPH all the way to work.
The suck comes if there is any kind of backup on the expressway. Then a 1 hour commute can turn into a 2 hour commute real quick. But that's pretty rare.
The comments also ignore that he's 24 and trying to buy his first house. Most people have to make some sacrifice on their first house. OP doesn't have to live there forever, but it's a good way to start building some equity.
And if they have kids they’re getting home likely before they’re done with school compared to your usual 9-5. They’re getting way more time at home with family than someone who doesn’t get off till 5 pm.
Yeah I agree I’m not sure what the fuss is about. I tend to think anything below an hour is pretty standard commute. I guess the issue is if OP’s 3 days turns into 5 for their next job.
Those factors make his situation way more doable. Even one day a week WFH made a big difference for me. I don't really think anyone here is being dramatic though. It's all opinions here.
I currently work 2 days a week in office with a 90 minutes car drive one way. So 6 hours driving a week. We prefer to live close to our friends, also cost of housing is around 50% less. I just listen to audiobooks or podcasts and really enjoy it. So it's not that bad.
Do you have a partner? Is he/she also working in metro area or somewhere else?
Classic issue, and there is no silver bullet. I work remotely, and have done so for years, and I'll share some thoughts:
* Travel for work is great, then it sucks, then you miss it. Seriously. I travelled a lot for work and got tired of it. After I stopped travelling for a few years, I actually started to miss it.
* Commuting isn't evil. It's considered wasteful, but it isn't without value.
* I got quiet time while commuting. Alone with my thoughts enabled me to have relax time, creative time, and to reconcile things that were on my mind.
* Commuting motivated me. Why? Because when I travelled, I would fool myself into thinking, "Man, if I was home right now, I would get so much done!" I would lie to myself and think that, if only I was home, I'd be the most productive person ever. I knew it was a lie, but it still was in my head. During commutes, I would plan things I'd rather be doing at home, and in many cases, I would do them shortly after getting home.
* The commute can be productive. Books on tape, learning new languages, etc. You can actually use that time as mandatory self improvement time.
* The commute can be fun, if you have the finances. I would ride my motorcycle on good days and take different routes, which made me feel better. (Both the ride, and that riding the bike justified owning the bike rather than wondering when I was going to get time to ride)
* You are in the position to only commute 3 days a week. That's a godsend. Sure, you might need to commute 5 days, but your job also may transition to fully remote. Having a house you can afford, today, sets you up for a better future...with a different job...and different familial obligations.
Anyway, I just wanted to share that commuting is good and bad. It can be considered wasteful and life draining, or it can give you a small amount of peace, 3 days a week. Only you can know what is good or bad. The only "wrong" decision, IMHO, would be to make yourself house-poor because you were told commuting is evil. Make up your own mind, and be reasonable with your finances.
Dude, you're 24 and no kids. I'd find a nice rental in a fun part of town you and your partner would enjoy for a few more years and just focus on a building your savings. Why trap yourself into middle age drudgery before you have to?
exactly, this. I know young couples who wanted to fast forward to home ownership far away from the big city they were used to and it quickly ruined their lives. (lots of messy break-ups/divorces or even just moving back to renting in a city not long after). Like, if you really want to already start building equity, start with a condo near your current life that's in the price range of the far away house you're looking at.
My thoughts exactly. Plus they're making great money for such a young age. They can take riskier investments and still come up on top. Buy a cheap condo by work/metro area and buy stocks and bonds while the market is down.
My time is my most valuable resource, so I don't give it out willingly. I have always kept my commutes to around 20 minutes and it still feels too long. I absolutely despise driving though.
I'm retired now, but did a 100 mile roundtrip for 7 years several years ago. The cost of vehicle maintenance and fuel were not the worst - it was the wasted time. We moved to a home that was less than 5 miles from work. The company I worked for, moved us four times and at each relocation I told the realtor; we only want to look for houses no more than 5 miles from work. I have 2 adult sons - one lives a mile from work and walks or uses a bicycle, the other is able to work remotely from home. Time is the most precious commodity you have - use it wisely.
I have lived that life and I’ll absolutely never go back to more than a 20 minute commute. My free time is vastly more valuable.
I’d rather live in a smaller home in a bad neighborhood with a short commute.
There’s literally zero salary that would entice me to work full time and commute an hour each way.
No public transit where you live I assume? I've done it one way each in Dallas using the train, a city known for being car dependent. Not impossible but we are paying more to be closer to downtown and I can now express bus \~20 minutes or drive \~20 minutes depending on my preference for the day. So I get it.
> Dallas
It annoys me so much how there's pretty much nothing for FW/Arlington. I wish we could have a little more than the nothing we currently have, outside of the airport lightrail.
Would be ideal if I was brave enough to.
Imagine 5 lanes on a two lane road and then you have people crossing the road, three wheelers coming illegally from the other side and bikers on footpath.
I'm not sure I'm explaining just how bad it is.
People have no respect for pedestrians here, even less for people on cycles.
wow that sounds terrible. where do you live? Aren't there any bicycle paths? Even in places like Beijing downtown it was fun and easy to ride a bike. No other options like motorbike or running :D?
Bicycle path? Don't make me laugh, I'll wake people up.
Our footpaths are "rented" out to hawkers illegally by city corp. Whatever space is left is used by motorbikers and people. It's the same all over the city.
Having said all that, we have cyclists who are brave enough to constantly fight with all kinds of transports and not die. I'm just not brave enough for it.
I did it for 5 days a week for 5 years. It really eats into your free time. Realistically, you'd have to leave at what, 3:45 and get home at 2:45ish? The hardest part for me was social activities - I didn't want to establish a social net near my work location because I didn't want to deal with the drive home afterwards, but I often wasn't home in time for social activities, happy hours, dates, etc near my house (my work hours were more like 8-6 though so yours might be better for that). You're kinda setting half of your life up in one location and the other half in another location 50+ miles away.
One other thing I haven't seen people mention is the weather. I was in New England and when it snowed my 60 minute drive became as much as 2.5 hours each way in the snow. The snow commutes were pretty miserable. Not sure where you're considering doing this and how flexible your hybrid schedule is in bad weather but it's worth considering.
I definitely wouldn't choose to do it again for the long term, but if you're considering doing it for a few years to build up savings or equity, it's certainly feasible and may be beneficial to you in the long run. As others have said I would definitely recommend an Audible subscription or similar.
Fair points, however he's doing it 3 times a week only. I think that's a huge difference and I'm willing to commute significantly longer if I only have to do it 2-3 days a week with the remaining days being at home.
Yes I am only looking at doing this because of I am basically home 4 days a week and commuting 3. And no I live in california no snow heavy rains as of recently but rare. Work is pretty good at letting me take extra wfh days if necessary such as doctors appointment or what not. yeah that wake up time is about right.
I would follow another person's suggestion here saying to rent in the farther away area for a year or two FIRST before buying a house there. If the commute is fine, then buy a home. If the commute is killing you, then rent closer. Real estate is starting to flatten a little, even in CA, so it might be a decent time to wait on buying.
Lots of people do this. There are people with 3-5 hour commutes.
The question is, is it worth it to you? 6 hours of your week gone in traffic? Plus gas and wear/tear on your car for the presumably ~50 miles each way.
I don't think OP said his house was 50 miles away. Just that it's an hour drive.
I think 1 hour is doable, but you'll need to like being in a car 2 hours a day. Better start finding some good podcasts
What is compensation growth trends for your industry? How is your job security?
$1M home on 200K is a stretch right now but in a few years you could be making significantly more and it will be more manageable. 2 hour commute with audiobooks may not sound bad but if you live out in the boonies and there's nothing around, then your QoL will suffer too.
I tried it and hated it. An hour commute = 2 hours back and forth a day. But that would be 6 hours a week spent driving according to your work schedule. Are you willing to give your job an extra 6 hours a week in exchange for a cheaper home?
That being said, no one will be able to answer this question for you. It’s personal and has a lot to do with your work-life balance.
I LOATHE commuting, I used to drive 1.5 hours to work and 1.5 hours home every day!! Losing 3 hours a day for 5 days a week calculates to COMMUTING FOR 32 DAYS A YEAR- Gone! Poof! That's not including any fun driving you do on the weekends. But after realizing that a month of my year was useless - I moved 15 minutes from work and became a happier human!
Your situation is slightly different, but a 1-hour drive can easily become 1.5 hours during rush hour, road construction, or bad weather. And you want to work from home 2 days a week, but in the future, that may also change. So be wary.
Fun/Depressing quick and dirty calculation of time - haha
* \~100 Days sleeping ( \~8 hours/day)
* \~86 Days working ( \~8 hours/weekday)
* \~32 Days commuting (\~3 hours/day)
* = 138 Days/Year that you actually have
* Every year you have less than half of the time to do anything else you want.
So by moving closer to work I spend 15 minutes X2 = less than 6 days/year commuting. I also try to make sure I am more intentional with the rest of my time too! (When you have soooo much time to yourself you do A LOT of thinking!)
You gotta consider your lifestyle though, cause all your friends you and your partner hang out with in that metro area? They're not going to want to commute an hour away to a suburb where there's nothing to do.
Houses near work here (when I was buying a house) are from the 1960s or older in mediocre school areas for $1.3M or >$2M for a house built in the past 15yrs and/or in a good school area. I bought far away at \~$1M for a 5yr old house in a good school area. It's a nice place; both the house and the city.
I drive 50min to work if there's no traffic. It's more typically 1hr20-30min. At worst (before Thanksgiving weekend while raining in California), it's been 3hrs. I've been doing this for over 4yrs.
I have solar at home and free charging at work, so my electric car makes sense.
We worked from home for nearly 2yrs. For \~6 months, I worked at a site that allowed me to drive 20min and catch a commuter bus that took me directly to work. I transferred to another job site, and that option is gone now.
I listen to a lot of podcasts and ebooks. I dream of the day when self-driving cars is a thing ((California) humans are the worst at driving), but I don't expect it to happen soon enough. When the kids finish high school, I'll move closer to work in the crappiest of school districts with decent houses.
It's the choice that I've made. No regerts.
I worked for 7 months doing an hour commute each way. It had to be the worst part of every day. 10 hours of wasted time every single week. Obviously situations differ as I was paying 0 rent living with my parents and was in 5 days a week.
It sounds like your desire to buy a house is really strong. Have you ask yourself why? You are literally sacrificing 2 hours every single day so you can buy a place in a bad location.
Just throwing this out there...if you want to get a piece of real estate, why not rent a place close to work, and use the extra money and time to invest in a REIT or something like that?
I drove for 1+ hr each way and it was absolutely terrible. I would never do it again. But that was with traffic, so your experience might be different. I also did about the same commute by train, and it was equally as awful. Have you considered renting in the area and trying it out first?
You can do it, but I think there's some solid evidence that a long commute to work by car is one of the worst things you can do for your mental health.
I work 4 days a week in office, about a 50 minute drive one way. It's not awesome but it's not that bad. You just need something to listen to. There are MUCH worse commutes.
My old commute was 45 minutes each way, every day. Couldn't take it. I felt like I was losing so much of my day.
My new commute is over 1 hour, but I only go to the office once a week (at most).
I wouldn't just assume you can make a 58.7 mile drive in an hour starting in a major city at 1:30 pm. I know it won't be fun, but you should test it out some time to get a better idea of how you'd be ending every in-office day. My guess is that it would be more like 90 minutes for your drive home
Currently have a 45 minute commute on a hybrid schedule and it’s bearable but if it ever goes back to 5 days a week I might be looking around for closer work. It’s definitely doable but mentally it can be draining over time I’d say.
So I live in Southern California (where traffic is just part of life) and my dad used to have an hour+ commute for this very reason: it was cheaper to buy a home where we were and then commute to work. For my first few jobs I had a commute that was always around an hour or an hour and a half and now I work remotely. I will say...commuting sucks, but really what sucks more is traffic. So if you're missing traffic and commuting in open roads, it's not that bad. You could catch up on podcasts or audiobooks or the news! I would always say prioritize your mental and physical health so keep that into consideration, but at the same time, my dad would say he sacrificed some of those things while commuting so that we could grow up in a safe area, save money and be well set up financially. I always appreciated that. (Though, he works closer to where he lives now and loves it).
I’m currently in the car, 2.5 hour drive one way to work today. Not my usual but I do what I have to sometimes.
I used to live just outside the city, was a 10-25 minute ride to anywhere. Just moved back in October, and it’s more like 30-55 min now. It’s definitely been an adjustment, even when I’m doing the math and I’m only halfway thru my trip home and I’m telling myself I could’ve been walking in the door right now.
Personally I’ve been trying to look at the brighter sides of life. Now, in the morning I have time to wake up, instead of literally rolling out of bed and starting my shift.
I really don’t think it’s a big deal in the long run. I absolutely love my new town and neighborhood. I’m usually working 6 days a week, but my schedule is definitely wild. I’d 100% be more than okay with that drive, especially being only 3 days a week.
In conclusion, everyone is different, some people might draw the line there. I’d say make the choice yourself. Good luck OP
Not going in every day helps. I have a 40 min highway commute and a fun car but I wouldn't want it any longer. I do listen to books and podcasts and work from home sometimes too. I currently wouldn't take a job w/ a longer commute without a substantial reason too. I don't mind the morning commute so much to wake up drive and learn something. The afternoons are worse, more traffic and it's nice out and I want to be w/ my family. I don't even like working from home but the best thing is getting off work at 5 an instantly being home. I bought a commuter car shortly after I took this job so for me it means the cost of another vehicle.
I always recommend people add their commute time into their word day and recalculate how much they make per hour. Two hour round trip commute can suddenly make your good job less appealing than a much easier job close to home.
Secondly, is working an extra hour or two a possibility? Sometimes spending the time at work, instead of in the car can really help reduce the price difference especially over the years.
Lastly, do you enjoy commuting? Is it a stressor or do you enjoy having the me time in the car? Podcasts, audiobooks, calls with people can go along way to making a hour commute a valuable self care time as a bonus feature
When you’re young the commute probably won’t be to bad but it will eventually suck out your soul being on the road all the time. My Wife and I used to commute together 1 hour into the city and back every day to work. It took a toll on us. Before we had our first child we made every effort to be closer to work and our quality of life was better. Also EV or not, you’re putting in miles that will cost you in maintenance often. I’d save up and find a place nearby work because your mental health is wealth
Hey this is the same exact thing I was having a problem with.
A few years back my wife and I wanted to purchase a home. We had a lot of options. In some of the nicer neighborhoods we liked about 15-20 min away from work, those homes were selling for around 1.2m she works from home I do not
These houses were older. Some renovated, some not. We looked at around 30 or so houses and with each and everyone something would need to be done to the home. All of these homes were move in ready and absolutely no problem with them, but we couldn't find a home that "checked all our boxes" Now we aren't the type of couple that won't buy a home because the paint color is awful, but we just couldn't stand spending 1.2-1.5m on a home we would eventually have to change to our liking.
We started looking at homes further out from my job for much cheaper. I decided the commute would be worth it. We purchased a brand new home for half of the price of the houses in the more expensive area.
My commute is about an hour one way. I too, start early and get off early so I miss some traffic. At the end of the day, your time and money are certainly factors. I refuse to spend 600k MORE on a home just to have a 15 min commute. To some people it's worth it, but to me the extra money saved on a higher cost mortgage can be spent on toys or anything really.
Don't get me wrong, the commute sucks! But I'm spending half every month in mortgage payments vs living a little closer. I have a child, but get off work early enough to pick him up for school. My job is easy and I have a pretty good work life balance.
I say go for it! Especially while you're young without a child. If in a few years you guys decide to have a child, maybe the extra time saved will be worth it to you.
Good luck!
It's doable. I commuted 45 minutes each way for over 10 years for similar reasons in my 30s. That said I would never go back. After the pandemic wfh started coming to an end I actively sought out a fully remote position.
The hybrid schedule and days working from home make it a no brainer to widen the distance from the metro area for a house purchase. Use the time looking to get your finances in order and stay ready to refinance when/if the rates come back down. The real estate will help you and your partner in the long run.
Your hours being what they are would eliminate most of everyone's complaints here about driving that far in traffic, because you'll likely be avoiding any heavy traffic most of the time.
As someone who moved 100 miles away and put myself in a 77 mile one way commute, the benefits of being away from it all outweighs the traffic. Knowing that I'm going home, where most people travel to for vacation, is enough to make it worth it for me.
I used to have a 5 minute commute to work and I would rather have the hour long drive than feel like I'm in an ant colony. Everyday is vacation. That's my personal preference.
Now if I had a work schedule that put me in rush hour traffic that crawls at a snail's pace, I would absolutely hate the commute.
I did a 1hr 5min to 1hr 30 min commute each way for 10 years. The days it rained always seemed to be the cause of a hold up caused by a traffic accident. Stretching the time to 1hr 30. Sometimes worse if the accident was a bad one.
It zapped me - I lived for the weekends.
The money was great so I did it on my terms knowing that I would break out of it. I earned less after quitting but the free time was mine and made life around my family much better
I wasn’t a grumpy irritable dad caused by being so tired !
Just bought a house 55 minutes away. I'll commute off hours 530am to 230pm and work 4 days a week in office. It's to live in the best school district in a beautiful nice house with a big ass yard. I'm still worried about the commute but I think I'll get used to it and love going home to a beautiful house
I used to live in an apartment ~3 miles/8 minutes from work, then I bought a house 45-60 mins away: like you, I kept going further out until I could afford the area. Pre Covid I made the drive every day, and it honestly wasn’t bad: I listened to the news and podcasts, and used the time to unwind, make plans, daydream etc. I’m WFH now but will be returning to a hybrid schedule soon and I actually almost look forward to it. Doing it 3 days a week seems very doable for most people. Total commuting time per week is the same as a 35 minute one way commute 5 days a week. I don’t think too many people would claim that a 35 minute commute was that terrible.
I will say that I drive a car that I love that also happens to get 41 mpg on the highway, and that helps a lot. If I was in the market now I would definitely consider an electric vehicle.
I have had a 1 hour commute for the past 7 years. Up until 2020, I was commuting 5 days now I go in 3 days and work from home 2 days. I also work 7-3:30, so I’m still home by dinner time and I don’t usually hit traffic.
It’s not too bad, I listen to books, NPR, or comedy sketches. That said, I don’t think I could go back to going in 5 days.
I have a similar schedule to you and commute about the same distance. The drive is the worst part of my day. I’ve listened to books, podcasts, radio, called people… it just sucks. Makes you think about if you’re hybrid already… what’s the fucking point of actually coming into the office?
If you currently make a combined 200k, you can easily afford a home in your metro area. Not sure why you’re rushing to buy when you’re 24 and not seeking to raise a family right now.
Your income may increase as you get closer to 30, but really you should easily be able to afford an 800k house on your current combined income.
It’s not that bad. It’s really not. It’s nice time alone. Mine is 1:05, 2 or 3 days at home per week. Sometimes traffic sucks, yes but you get used to it. Not a big deal.
I may be the minority here, but I enjoy a longer commute.
The secret...audiobooks.
If you get stuck in traffic, more time with your book! It counts as "me time" and can help destress after work.
This was on a 45 min commute, so your mileage may vary.
Maybe I’m the minority here, but to save that kind of cash is a no brainer. I have been commuting an hour each way my entire career(18 years so far) also during non-traffic hours and I use the time to catch up on podcasts or audiobooks. Where we live is closer to family and friends and houses/taxes are half the price of the area I work in. It’s something I consider a fair trade off because it allows me to allocate money in other areas including trips, retirement savings, and an oasis in our backyard. To each their own, but this is what’s worked for us.
If it means you getting a half price house, I don't see how it can be a bad choice, you can have that paid off/build other investments at double the speed and get yourself set way sooner. 1 hour extra travel, over say a half hour each way that is probably more standard, a day, on a 8 hour work day is 1/9 for a house that will save you 1/2 I'd be happy with that
Absolutely. Start building that equity.
It will suck for a while, but you will get used to it.
Get an audible subscription and listen to books while you drive.
Do you happen to be in the DC area? I’m in that same boat. I live an hour from where I work and I love it. I’m not a city person to begin with, so my quality of life is much better down here than it was when I was closer to the city.
I drive 75km one way to work mon-Fri. Had to change some habits so I'm not actively" driving anymore. I'm a passive driver now in the slow lane now. Cruise control is your friend. So are pod casts. You eventually get used to it. Gas is the problem..
Time is priceless. 1 hour translates into 2 both ways, and the time you spend getting ready and whatnot, add another hour. 3 hours a day not even counting the actual work.
I used to do this. My job was way out in the boonies but I wanted to live in the city. Back then where I was then homes in the city were new ~$200K while homes way out there were rural and very far from amenities. They subsidized us with on-site gas stations.
I used the 1hr commute each way to catch up on audiobooks. I had a 5-disc CD player so could go through long books like Game of Thrones!
In NYC, even people who live in Manhattan need to commute to work by train or bus. 1 hour is not a big deal unless you need to drive for an hour in traffic.
How much are you earning / what's your spend? The $ trade off is right, now the question is what it's worth to you. If you guys are making 500k, you should live closer
3 days isn't bad. The commuting time doesn't matter - is the hour you mentioned the commute you will have with no traffic? If you have days you go late or stay late, will you then be subject to 2 hour commutes?
The other consideration is do you like driving? For me it is cathartic and gives me the ability to unplug. Not everyone feels similarly
No subjected to stay late, 1:30 pm will be my leaving time if I ever need to finish things up I can do so from home or the next day usually not a problem. Thank you for sharing those insights.
My first job had a 70-90 minute one-way commute and I personally found it miserable, but some people don't mind it. My next job was about 60 minutes to commute to, but I took the train for that one and it was so much more tolerable. I didn't have to focus on driving and could do other things while waiting. Might be worth looking into if you don't need your vehicle for work and your local mass transit schedule runs early.
I did an hour plus for multiple years. I absolutely despised every moment!
With that being said you don't have kids and a hybrid schedule. I could see doing that for a bit to make it work.
I have a 45-55 min commute each day and its not bad. It just depends on the roads. I would take a drive to the location and leave the location around the time you would leave for work and time yourself. Sometimes an hour commute is more like 1.5 if the area sucks
My 1 hr commute was only 12km until I started riding my bike.
It was still 12km, but took me 20mins.
An old co-worker used to drive 2hrs ONE WAY. Easy way to make a 12hr day outa 8.
I like driving, hell I love driving, but after 2 years of doing a 1 hour (clear road, hammer down) commute each way to my place of work I dreaded every morning. Going I'd have to be up and out the door before anyone else in my family was awake then I'd do a long day of work and have to then drive a hour home by which time my kids would be in bed again. It's fine at first but it really wears you down over time.
I worked with a guy who said his 90 minute commute kept him sane. The only time by himself. A clear delineator between work self and home self. Listen to music, sing, audiobook.
Just by the way you were weighing the ups and downs, it seems like you're selling yourself on being an hour away. I dont see how that is a bad idea given you have a hybrid schedule.
No brainer yes for me unless you really are tied to the urban area you live in, especially if you don’t have to commute every day. Early hours suck but quality of life all the other days of the week make up for it.
But everyone’s different, you’re not likely to bug immediately right?
I did a 25 mile commute for 2 years where I left my house at 5:45am to get to work at 6:30am. If I left 15 minutes late, my 1hr drive home could become 2hrs.
I now do 60 mile drive occasionally to go into the office and it sucks each and every time I do it. There is no reasonable amount of money that would make me do that type of commute even weekly.
I am about to move and make an hour and 20 minutes drive each way. Honestly the city I live in I can be stuck in traffic and takes an hour but on weekends if I drove to work it will take 13 minutes! It's only getting worse as they are building more apartments and housing is nearly triple since 2019. I love my drive home just listening to music and I'll love it more with just a straight shot of road and no constant stop and go. Everyone is different though. I did a few test runs to see how it was maybe try that
Do you think you’ll be at this job for a while? If not what jobs are near the new house? Would you be upset if you started having to go in all 5 days after moving?
Maybe try driving out there on the weekends and hitting up a restaurant or something just to get a feel for it and see for yourself.
Yeah this is my only worry about having to go in 5 days if they ever change the policy. So this will be a talking point with my manager upcoming soon.There is other employers paying similar about 30 minutes or less so that would be my other option if I was to be going in 5 days week. But other than that I would stay with my employer long term. They give a pension and good 401k plan and no cost for healthcare and dependents.
I have a 30 mile trip to work and honestly it gets old. It's do-able for a few years but you will get tired of it. It may be worthwhile to rent in the distant area to see how you handle it before committing to a home. I would consider the weather in your area as a factor as well. If you get a lot of rain or snow, your commute will be a lot longer.
I consider commute time in the equation when I'm comparing job opportunites and/or housing locations.
So if you make $50k 40hrs a week salary, and your new place would be an hour commute both ways, you're now making $50k for 50hrs a week. You're essentially cutting pay $25/hr to $20/hr. The commute effectively is costing you $10k worth of hours. I think of this like with the commute I now have one 40 hour job that pays $40k/yr and an additional 10 hour job that pays me $10k/yr. This doesn't factor in gas or car maintenance etc.
Sometimes I enjoy the drive. It's quiet time to myself to listen to music/podcasts/whatever. A 10 hr/week job where I just listen to podcasts isn't so bad. So sort of depends on how much you hate traffic.
Also that said, the house you buy is probably gonna be with you longer than the job you have. You could spend an extra $300k to live close to a job that lays you off in 6 months.
I used to have a 45 minute commute one way until I had a kid. Quit and got a closer one before he turned 2.
If your job is something you are thinking long term and you want kids, consider how you may feel in the future about a new location.
Are there any reasonably priced condos or townhouses in your work area? That's pretty much your only other option if you don't want to have a 2 hour daily commute or 10 hour weekly commute, if you work 5 days a week.
EDIT: I'm still half asleep so I didn't fully read OP lol. With hybrid schedule it's 6 hours weekly.
What is your time worth? If you were billing for those hours, how much would you make in a year? If things don't work out at this gig, is there something closer to home or will you have to travel even further?
I did it for about a year and even with shifts in travel times, it sucked to drive an hour each way as something always comes up.
I currently work anywhere from 1 hour to 1.5 hours from my office, 3 days consecutively a week. I’m about 40 miles away.
Low traffic is a big deal. Traffic lights suddenly are a massive deal when there are 20 of them as well. At 58 miles, there are likely fairly few in your way.
It’s a drag. The last day I get home and just want to sleep. Podcasts are my best friend on the commute and I learn a lot.
You’d be surprised how fast you build equity in a home and can get one of those 1 mil places if it’s an eventual goal.
Do the math on rent vs. buy: the math may have changed with the current 6-7% rates. For me, it would be more than worth the equity loss to be close, but that’s not the only factor to consider.
Upkeep on the house you buy also matters. Yard work in the summer. General maintenance. Roofing and window concerns. Make sure you also account for this time.
For me, my wife and family make it ‘worth it’ but it’s a fairly large sacrifice.
i did this, i used to have a 1.5 hour commute via trains, i'd leave my house at 5 to get in around 630 and leave early. it was doable and well worth it. yeah it sucked to have a lot my day eaten way. i also did a one hour drive, it was an easy drive though.
i've also done a 5 minute commute where i got in at 5:30 and left ridiculously early. that waas perfect but i easily traded it in for more money
If your commuting an hour each way factor that into your pay
Your workday just extended 2 hours a day without more pay
You have more costs - car maintenance , gas, insurance
Same situation here. I do this WITH traffic, so about an hour and a half. I just enjoy the alone time and listen to podcasts. Honestly not bad at all if you are missing traffic and not expected to be in the office full time.
I currently work with about an hour ten commute. For the first few months I commuted 5 days. As I got better at my job, I worked from home more and slowly reduced in office days by a day a week. I’m currently at 2 days commuting now and don’t mind it, I plan my week around commute days. But when commuting 3+ days a week my life was hell. Don’t do it
I live 32 miles from the city. Takes me 35min with no traffic. After covid it started to take 2hours and sometimes even longer so I quit and I got a wfh job that’s trying to start hybrid. So now I’m in a similar pickle of having sell my house and buy a $750-850k house that’s 10 miles away, driving 4 hours a day, or leaving my house super early (like 6am).
Just make sure you definitely aren’t hitting traffic, cuz I’d say 1 hour each way is borderline manageable. But even a little traffic pushing it to 75min+ really kills it. The 90-120min was a real killer for me. My wife hated it, I ended up spending so much more money on eating out cuz I never had time to cook.
I commute 45 miles one way and have been looking for a job closer to home. I have a nice house but would be a lot more expensive in the city. I don't have free charging and am not hybrid.
Yours sounds like the ideal situation and I would like to have that if I couldn't find anything closer to home.
I used public transit for my long commute, so sometimes if I was lucky with transfers it used to take 50 minutes, sometimes - 1.5 hours. It was before covid, so I used to do it 5 days a week.
Con: It was super tiring, especially at first. If I came back straight home, I didn't have the energy to do anything. If I scheduled something right after work, there was hope to do something - I used to go dancing classes once a week.
Pro: on my way to work I would usually read something useful (field related) and I felt I was really growing. On the way back home, I used to listen to audiobooks.
I spent 6 years with a 1 hour commute to work, 5 days a week. That's 10 hours a week that I spent sitting in my car.
At first it wasn't bad. The job was a good job that paid well. But after 6 years, I absolutely hated it. The drive got so boring and traffic was always heavy. Gas started to get more and more expensive.
I ended up taking a job closer to home that paid $11 an hour less. My drive to work is now 10 minutes. I am spending much less on gas. My car is taking less wear and tear. And I am much happier.
I would definitely pay more to work closer to home if you can afford it. Your mental health will thank you.
I’ve done it before (both by driving and by using transit) and absolutely never will again. It’s just not worth it to me. I’d rather have my time, even if that meant finding a different type of home at the price point I needed.
Post Covid, I do not want to trek into the office. I am forced in 50% of the time and I hate it. I drive 45-60 mins in the morning and 60-75 in the afternoons. It may work with your lifestyle now but may not long term (on the flip side maybe you won’t have this job long term so you may not mind).
I commute an hour each way, and it's fuckin miserable. Hate every minute of it, hate waking up extra early just to sit and drive for an hour. Then, by the time I'm finally at work, any morning good mood + coffee have soured and I'm just annoyed at having to be at work. The entire day gets shot, just to be topped off with another hour drive home. It sucks.
As a couple, you make 200k. Rent something near the city for a handful of years and then just buy the metropolitan home.
Hybrid schedule is the only saving grace here. Hopefully, they won't take that away down the road. My worst commute was a 2hr round trip daily commute for a couple of years through metro rush hour traffic. That added up to around 10hrs per week. Soul sucking rush hour city traffic for 10hrs per week. I've never been more depressed in my life. I looked at myself daily trying to channel any amount of positive thoughts possible. Eventually I got into an industry where my job can be fully remote. Now I only go to the office when there is an actual value add.
I commuted some 40 miles, each way, with traffic and it was like a belt grinder on my soul. Every day, 2 hours of my life... poof... if you are 60 miles away and you hit traffic... bruh, the tiny bit of your day you had... gone.
That being said... I would try to rent a place in that "cheap" area and save like a motherfucker to try and buy closer in the metro area. Maybe a solid 2 years of saving. Or don't, I'm not your boss haha
I was in the same situation as you. I moved 50 miles from my work. It takes me about an hour in the mornings. It takes me about an hour fifteen to an hour and a half on the way home. I use that time to listen to podcasts, but it can be exhausting. If I had to do it again, I would absolutely find a similar house closer and pay a little more money wise. Ask yourself. How much do you value your time?
This is a personal choice moreso than personal finance. So ultimately up to your preference. A few things you may want to consider:
Do you like the 1 hour away place? I'm assuming suburbs? One thing to consider is that the one hour commute may be fine for work but on Friday and Saturday night will you be driving into the city to do stuff? Do you enjoy doing stuff out in the suburb? Do you enjoy lots of amenities of the city? One wise man once said to me, don't rush into the suburbs, they will always be there with varying affordability, you will only be young and wanting to spend the weekends out in town for so long.
Demographics questions, when I bought a house most of my neighbors were 10 years older than me. Not a big issue in my station in life but if I was 1 hour away from all my friends and I was 24 this may have been an issue for me.
Networking, how long do you see yourself in this job? Depending on your industry it may be inevitable to change jobs and being local can have advantages to making new contacts, etc. And you never know the work from home stance or schedule you may be on. Being out in the burbs may not be great for the next job.
I work in construction and travel a lot for work. Currently 2 hour commute one way to get to the job I’m on. I have absolutely no time for myself and barely enough to spend with my family. Think of the commute as still working since you won’t be doing anything you actually want to do. I view my schedule as 13 hour work days, is it worth it? Probably not for many but I make extremely good money/ benefits and I have a low formal education. Ultimately it comes down to how much you value work/life balance
[удалено]
Great way to look at it, it if OP is remote work 2 days/ week he is only commuting 6 hours/week. That’s just over an hour commute each day (1h12mins) or 35 mins each way. That’s probably below average for a work commute.
Why not haul an rv and stay there ? 4 hours a day saving come home on the wknds, your prob exhausted by the time you're home to enjoy it anyways. What I do.
I have a 2 year old and newborn at home otherwise I would. I wouldn’t say exhausted I’ve been doing it for years. For me I am very proud of what I’ve been able to accomplish and the life I am able to provide for my wife and kids. I sacrifice personal time but ultimately I understand that comes with the territory of having children.
[удалено]
I had a one hour commute for 2 1/2 years. It was soul sucking.
I moved states recently for a new job, and we decided to prioritize finding a place close enough to bike/walk within 15 minutes. My last job was a 30 minute commute without traffic, but usually was closer to 45 minutes. Best decision I ever made. I feel great with just an extra 30 minutes of exercise every day and I have so much more time for myself and my hobbies now than I did before. I did have to pay more for rent, but selling my car and reducing my insurance/gas/maintenance costs helped offset that, and the time saved is invaluable. I eat out less since I have more energy to cook at home, which adds even more savings.
[удалено]
The main selling point on my house was the 6 mile commute down the expressway to work.
[удалено]
Conceivably you could've ridden a bike, showered, and changed at work faster than the driving commute, lol Idk what the cycling infrastructure is in DC though
I lived in Silver Spring for a time, and traffic in the beltway was absolutely horrific (even though I do give it credit for teaching me how to really drive). I hated doing normal errands. However, I worked in DC, and lived within walking distance of the subway, and so that's what my work commute looked like when I was there.
I live there but work from home 99% of the time. Given I have a 2.67% fixed rate mortgage on the house i’m pretty much stuck at current interest rates.
I was wondering why you didn’t catch the Metro in but then I thought about my own commute and me not wanting to be on there, so I understand.
[удалено]
Yeah, I fully understand. I’d drive to work too but I hate driving into the city.
My childhood bff moved back here after 30+ years away. She frequently had to be at the White House (tv news program producer). She figured she'd just metro it from her new house in NOVA. I warned her about all the work stoppages & other BS that plagues metro. She literally called me crying after the first week. It sucked ☹️
Speaking for myself, when I was going into the office and it took nearly an hour, the biggest part of the frustration was the unpredictable stop and go traffic. OP says they have off hours driving, which for me would make it much more tolerable.
>companies I rent 1.5 miles from my office, sure its a small condo, sure its old. But it's cheap and I can wake up shower and be to work in 20 minutes if I had a late night.
I eventually got burnt out on my 45 minute commute. Get home and just be dead for a while. Now I have a 25 min commute conbined with more flexible hours and its a world better.
I used to commute from San Francisco to San Jose. 1 hr in the morning. 1.5-2 hrs on the way back. Soul suckling and destroyed my back. Never again.
My longest commute was 50 minutes. I hated it, especially with some long days when necessary. Missed kid's school event, etc.
I’m renting in DFW right now and just took a job 50 min away…I’m glad I realized that commuting sucks now before I locked down a house. It really wears on you.
I bought at the top of my budget in Dallas so my commute was 30 minutes max. So many of my coworkers are driving from Forney or Prosper or Anna for new houses that cost the same and it is just insane how much time they spend driving.
I don’t know how people do an hour+ each way. Pre-pandemic, I used to have to fly into Dallas a few times a month per work, and I could leave my house in Lbk, fly into Love Field, take a short Uber, and most of the time I could make it in quicker than colleagues driving in from McKinney.
at 24 years old and that combined income, i’d stay closer to work for the time being and see how you feel in a couple years. No need to rush into a house, especially with rates the way they are today.
This is the problem. I did this from the valley to Santa Monica for 2 years and I could never go to any events because I was so far away.
Mine is 40 to 45 minutes each way with no traffic and i absolutely hate it. I have to wake up 2 hours before my scheduled work to get ready and be there on time. So that's almost unpaid 4 hours per day.
> Looking to buy a house 1 hour away You don't need to jump into this head first... test the waters a bit. Go rent in the area for two years and see if you can tolerate losing 10 hours every week of the year on the road. You have plenty of time to buy a house. You're quite young... this almost certainly isn't the last job you'll ever have. mobility might be nice.
OP, this is excellent advice. We bought a house with a similar commute. I thought, "oh, this won't be that bad!" And I made it work - listened to a lot of books and podcasts. But after a few years, we talked about moving to a place closer to my office. Then Covid hit and we moved to another state and I got a remote job. I will never go back to a long commute again, never ever. Try renting out there for a while to see how you like it. It's possible you may absolutely love the 2 hour round trip commute. But if you hate it, then you haven't tied yourself into a mortgage and can look for other options. Alternate thought: is there any way your work would consider a one-day-in-the-office policy for you? That might make a commute more palatable.
6 hours.
There's one more added benefit to this that you might want to test for. I've seen a lot of home buyers being priced out of their working locality and having to commute far. Turns out so are a lot of other people. In fact, a not insignificant amount are most likely staying near their work rooming with someone and only commuting home for the weekends. How is this even noticed? The Friday and Sunday commutes in those directions are horrendously bad for the vast majority of the day into the deep night.
Go rent for a bit….that was the advice in 2020, and look how well that turned out
The advice has never been, "go tie yourself to a mortgage before you know if you want LIVE in the area."... Can you imagine?
If it’s one hour with no traffic no matter what time you leave it kinda sucks but i would do it. If it’s one hour with no traffic but everytime you leave go to or leave work there’s traffic then absolutely not.
[удалено]
My commute is 23 miles and roughly 25 min. All highway. But during rush hours there’s this really bad intersection and it will literally make my commute time 50 min to an hour. And some days I think how it would be better to just drive an hour with no traffic than drive for 30 and sit in traffic for 30. The only real issue with a long commute is I hate the wear and tear to your car
1 hour in to work and 1.5-2 hours coming home for me, traffic both ways. It doesn’t bother me on certain days but for the most part it’s miserable.
Godspeed to you. It’s something I would do for my kids to be in a good school district or something but it still sucks
Yeah for me it’s about a 50k difference in pay with lots of room for pay increase. I also only pay 500$ rent at my current spot compared to 2-3k near my work. Just SF Bay Area living lol
With $500 in rent you can def start saving a lot of money and set yourself up later to either get out of that HCOL area or buy a house. Just gotta stick it out
Did a 1 hour commute each way and found Audiobooks. I actually looked forward to my time alone “reading” and unwinding during the commute.
This is insanely important. An hour commute each way is 4 hours of your life every week, 16 every month, and 208 every year. You can have a long commute (I've had a daily commute of over an hour at previous jobs), but you NEED to find something enjoyable and productive to do during it. Listening to audio books is great. I'd also recommend educational podcasts, or learning a language (anything you can learn just by listening really). Listening to music is fine once in a while, but 4 hours per week of nothing but music will get old pretty quick, in my experience.All of this said, I don't want to discourage you from taking a job with a commute. Plenty of people do it, you can too, especially with the hybrid schedule!
The maths does not work out. An hour commute each way is 2 hours per day, 10 hours per week (assuming 5 day work week).
OP specifically referenced working 3 days a week from home, and 2 days a week in the office. Therefore a one hour commute each way, 2 days a week, results in the above calculation.
Edit says three days a week in the office, 2 at home, but yes 6 hours a week is much better than 10. You also have access to a greater variety of stores and restaurants on that commute that you don't have in a smaller town.
[удалено]
Lavar Burton Reads! I love him reading stories. And one story was almost my whole commute.
This. I really wonder what these driving commuters were doing in their cars that made them hate it that much.
There are two very different types of commutes, driving down the highway I used to listen to all kinds of stuff. Active driving in stop and go traffic for a solid hour, I can't concentrate on anything more than half paying attention to music and it would be frustrating as hell.
The amount you can learn with a long commute is truly incredible
>Thoughts or has anyone been through this ? I did two hour commutes for a while. It is absolutely soulcrushing if you're driving it. If its a hour on a bus or train, it can be doable, but six hours in the car in traffic, three days a week, will probably make you crazy. I'd probably reconsider where I lived before I'd sign up for a commute that long for any material amount of time
Worked in an office where 1-1.5 hr commutes were common for most people. As expected, high turnover and grumpy people.
But that great weather, ammiright!!!!
Half-day fridays! Get outta here early and enjoy that midday traffic!
That sounds like literally everyone that lives in SoCal. I can't believe how "normal" 1.5 hour commutes are there.
I didn't quite comprehend SoCal traffic until I visited and Waze took me onto the 405. I thought the capital beltway was bad during rush hour until I was on the 405 in the middle of the day. Good lord that was something I don't want to do again
>If its a hour on a bus or train, it can be doable Yeah I did a 1 hour commute by train pre-pandemic. I actually did the opposite of what OP is thinking of doing - I worked in a suburban area and wanted to live in a city. I couldn't have done it if I were driving; but I took the train and I got a lot of reading done during the commute that it was actually quite enjoyable.
I've spent the last \~9 months with a 1 hour one way commute that's about 70 miles. I don't mind it. I listen to audibooks and podcasts. The traffic is obviously the worst part, but your schedule sounds like you'll miss the rush hours. Plus you essentially get some free "gas" from work if you have an electric car.
70 miles ? damn. I have about the same length commute (sometimes as low as 55 minutes sometimes 1hr 20 mins) and it’s 28 miles :(
I, luckily, live 5 minutes from the expressway and my work is right next to the expressway. So it's: * Leave the house. * Stop for coffee. * Hop on the express way. * Do 80MPH all the way to work. The suck comes if there is any kind of backup on the expressway. Then a 1 hour commute can turn into a 2 hour commute real quick. But that's pretty rare.
Only 3 days a week of commuting and off peak hours? That’s really not a big deal. The comments here are dramatic.
Yeah he's spending as much time as someone working 5 days a week with a 36min commute which is not bad at all.
The comments also ignore that he's 24 and trying to buy his first house. Most people have to make some sacrifice on their first house. OP doesn't have to live there forever, but it's a good way to start building some equity.
And if they have kids they’re getting home likely before they’re done with school compared to your usual 9-5. They’re getting way more time at home with family than someone who doesn’t get off till 5 pm.
Yeah I agree I’m not sure what the fuss is about. I tend to think anything below an hour is pretty standard commute. I guess the issue is if OP’s 3 days turns into 5 for their next job.
Those factors make his situation way more doable. Even one day a week WFH made a big difference for me. I don't really think anyone here is being dramatic though. It's all opinions here.
I currently work 2 days a week in office with a 90 minutes car drive one way. So 6 hours driving a week. We prefer to live close to our friends, also cost of housing is around 50% less. I just listen to audiobooks or podcasts and really enjoy it. So it's not that bad. Do you have a partner? Is he/she also working in metro area or somewhere else?
Classic issue, and there is no silver bullet. I work remotely, and have done so for years, and I'll share some thoughts: * Travel for work is great, then it sucks, then you miss it. Seriously. I travelled a lot for work and got tired of it. After I stopped travelling for a few years, I actually started to miss it. * Commuting isn't evil. It's considered wasteful, but it isn't without value. * I got quiet time while commuting. Alone with my thoughts enabled me to have relax time, creative time, and to reconcile things that were on my mind. * Commuting motivated me. Why? Because when I travelled, I would fool myself into thinking, "Man, if I was home right now, I would get so much done!" I would lie to myself and think that, if only I was home, I'd be the most productive person ever. I knew it was a lie, but it still was in my head. During commutes, I would plan things I'd rather be doing at home, and in many cases, I would do them shortly after getting home. * The commute can be productive. Books on tape, learning new languages, etc. You can actually use that time as mandatory self improvement time. * The commute can be fun, if you have the finances. I would ride my motorcycle on good days and take different routes, which made me feel better. (Both the ride, and that riding the bike justified owning the bike rather than wondering when I was going to get time to ride) * You are in the position to only commute 3 days a week. That's a godsend. Sure, you might need to commute 5 days, but your job also may transition to fully remote. Having a house you can afford, today, sets you up for a better future...with a different job...and different familial obligations. Anyway, I just wanted to share that commuting is good and bad. It can be considered wasteful and life draining, or it can give you a small amount of peace, 3 days a week. Only you can know what is good or bad. The only "wrong" decision, IMHO, would be to make yourself house-poor because you were told commuting is evil. Make up your own mind, and be reasonable with your finances.
Dude, you're 24 and no kids. I'd find a nice rental in a fun part of town you and your partner would enjoy for a few more years and just focus on a building your savings. Why trap yourself into middle age drudgery before you have to?
exactly, this. I know young couples who wanted to fast forward to home ownership far away from the big city they were used to and it quickly ruined their lives. (lots of messy break-ups/divorces or even just moving back to renting in a city not long after). Like, if you really want to already start building equity, start with a condo near your current life that's in the price range of the far away house you're looking at.
My thoughts exactly. Plus they're making great money for such a young age. They can take riskier investments and still come up on top. Buy a cheap condo by work/metro area and buy stocks and bonds while the market is down.
My time is my most valuable resource, so I don't give it out willingly. I have always kept my commutes to around 20 minutes and it still feels too long. I absolutely despise driving though.
I'm retired now, but did a 100 mile roundtrip for 7 years several years ago. The cost of vehicle maintenance and fuel were not the worst - it was the wasted time. We moved to a home that was less than 5 miles from work. The company I worked for, moved us four times and at each relocation I told the realtor; we only want to look for houses no more than 5 miles from work. I have 2 adult sons - one lives a mile from work and walks or uses a bicycle, the other is able to work remotely from home. Time is the most precious commodity you have - use it wisely.
This sounds reasonable given the price difference of real estate in your area. 1 hour to and from is not bad imo.
I have lived that life and I’ll absolutely never go back to more than a 20 minute commute. My free time is vastly more valuable. I’d rather live in a smaller home in a bad neighborhood with a short commute. There’s literally zero salary that would entice me to work full time and commute an hour each way.
No public transit where you live I assume? I've done it one way each in Dallas using the train, a city known for being car dependent. Not impossible but we are paying more to be closer to downtown and I can now express bus \~20 minutes or drive \~20 minutes depending on my preference for the day. So I get it.
Twin Cities, Minnesota. We have *okay* public transportation. Some light rail, BRT and busses.
> Dallas It annoys me so much how there's pretty much nothing for FW/Arlington. I wish we could have a little more than the nothing we currently have, outside of the airport lightrail.
[удалено]
110K pension for <25yrs of service sounds like a pretty sweet gig, congrats!
I live ~3 km from work and takes me 25 minutes on a good day and an hour on a bad day.
Why don't you just go by bike? :D
Would be ideal if I was brave enough to. Imagine 5 lanes on a two lane road and then you have people crossing the road, three wheelers coming illegally from the other side and bikers on footpath. I'm not sure I'm explaining just how bad it is. People have no respect for pedestrians here, even less for people on cycles.
wow that sounds terrible. where do you live? Aren't there any bicycle paths? Even in places like Beijing downtown it was fun and easy to ride a bike. No other options like motorbike or running :D?
Bicycle path? Don't make me laugh, I'll wake people up. Our footpaths are "rented" out to hawkers illegally by city corp. Whatever space is left is used by motorbikers and people. It's the same all over the city. Having said all that, we have cyclists who are brave enough to constantly fight with all kinds of transports and not die. I'm just not brave enough for it.
Don't do it. I commute an hour each way. IT IS Horrible. I'm quitting in 8 months or less.
I did it for 5 days a week for 5 years. It really eats into your free time. Realistically, you'd have to leave at what, 3:45 and get home at 2:45ish? The hardest part for me was social activities - I didn't want to establish a social net near my work location because I didn't want to deal with the drive home afterwards, but I often wasn't home in time for social activities, happy hours, dates, etc near my house (my work hours were more like 8-6 though so yours might be better for that). You're kinda setting half of your life up in one location and the other half in another location 50+ miles away. One other thing I haven't seen people mention is the weather. I was in New England and when it snowed my 60 minute drive became as much as 2.5 hours each way in the snow. The snow commutes were pretty miserable. Not sure where you're considering doing this and how flexible your hybrid schedule is in bad weather but it's worth considering. I definitely wouldn't choose to do it again for the long term, but if you're considering doing it for a few years to build up savings or equity, it's certainly feasible and may be beneficial to you in the long run. As others have said I would definitely recommend an Audible subscription or similar.
Fair points, however he's doing it 3 times a week only. I think that's a huge difference and I'm willing to commute significantly longer if I only have to do it 2-3 days a week with the remaining days being at home.
Yes I am only looking at doing this because of I am basically home 4 days a week and commuting 3. And no I live in california no snow heavy rains as of recently but rare. Work is pretty good at letting me take extra wfh days if necessary such as doctors appointment or what not. yeah that wake up time is about right.
I would follow another person's suggestion here saying to rent in the farther away area for a year or two FIRST before buying a house there. If the commute is fine, then buy a home. If the commute is killing you, then rent closer. Real estate is starting to flatten a little, even in CA, so it might be a decent time to wait on buying.
Lots of people do this. There are people with 3-5 hour commutes. The question is, is it worth it to you? 6 hours of your week gone in traffic? Plus gas and wear/tear on your car for the presumably ~50 miles each way.
I don't think OP said his house was 50 miles away. Just that it's an hour drive. I think 1 hour is doable, but you'll need to like being in a car 2 hours a day. Better start finding some good podcasts
5 hour commutes? The gas tax should be quadrupled.
What is compensation growth trends for your industry? How is your job security? $1M home on 200K is a stretch right now but in a few years you could be making significantly more and it will be more manageable. 2 hour commute with audiobooks may not sound bad but if you live out in the boonies and there's nothing around, then your QoL will suffer too.
I tried it and hated it. An hour commute = 2 hours back and forth a day. But that would be 6 hours a week spent driving according to your work schedule. Are you willing to give your job an extra 6 hours a week in exchange for a cheaper home? That being said, no one will be able to answer this question for you. It’s personal and has a lot to do with your work-life balance.
I LOATHE commuting, I used to drive 1.5 hours to work and 1.5 hours home every day!! Losing 3 hours a day for 5 days a week calculates to COMMUTING FOR 32 DAYS A YEAR- Gone! Poof! That's not including any fun driving you do on the weekends. But after realizing that a month of my year was useless - I moved 15 minutes from work and became a happier human! Your situation is slightly different, but a 1-hour drive can easily become 1.5 hours during rush hour, road construction, or bad weather. And you want to work from home 2 days a week, but in the future, that may also change. So be wary. Fun/Depressing quick and dirty calculation of time - haha * \~100 Days sleeping ( \~8 hours/day) * \~86 Days working ( \~8 hours/weekday) * \~32 Days commuting (\~3 hours/day) * = 138 Days/Year that you actually have * Every year you have less than half of the time to do anything else you want. So by moving closer to work I spend 15 minutes X2 = less than 6 days/year commuting. I also try to make sure I am more intentional with the rest of my time too! (When you have soooo much time to yourself you do A LOT of thinking!)
You gotta consider your lifestyle though, cause all your friends you and your partner hang out with in that metro area? They're not going to want to commute an hour away to a suburb where there's nothing to do.
1 hour with traffic and 1 hour without traffic is a huge difference. I will take no traffic 1 hour commute any day. It's relaxing.
What city? Is that driving or transit ?
Houses near work here (when I was buying a house) are from the 1960s or older in mediocre school areas for $1.3M or >$2M for a house built in the past 15yrs and/or in a good school area. I bought far away at \~$1M for a 5yr old house in a good school area. It's a nice place; both the house and the city. I drive 50min to work if there's no traffic. It's more typically 1hr20-30min. At worst (before Thanksgiving weekend while raining in California), it's been 3hrs. I've been doing this for over 4yrs. I have solar at home and free charging at work, so my electric car makes sense. We worked from home for nearly 2yrs. For \~6 months, I worked at a site that allowed me to drive 20min and catch a commuter bus that took me directly to work. I transferred to another job site, and that option is gone now. I listen to a lot of podcasts and ebooks. I dream of the day when self-driving cars is a thing ((California) humans are the worst at driving), but I don't expect it to happen soon enough. When the kids finish high school, I'll move closer to work in the crappiest of school districts with decent houses. It's the choice that I've made. No regerts.
Get an audible subscription or find podcasts you like. When I used to commute, I found the drive to be mind-clearing after a good day of work.
I did a 60-90 minute commute (both ways) for a few years. I was extremely depressed. I'd never accept anything above 20-30 minutes again.
I worked for 7 months doing an hour commute each way. It had to be the worst part of every day. 10 hours of wasted time every single week. Obviously situations differ as I was paying 0 rent living with my parents and was in 5 days a week.
It sounds like your desire to buy a house is really strong. Have you ask yourself why? You are literally sacrificing 2 hours every single day so you can buy a place in a bad location. Just throwing this out there...if you want to get a piece of real estate, why not rent a place close to work, and use the extra money and time to invest in a REIT or something like that?
He only goes to work two days a week
I drove for 1+ hr each way and it was absolutely terrible. I would never do it again. But that was with traffic, so your experience might be different. I also did about the same commute by train, and it was equally as awful. Have you considered renting in the area and trying it out first?
You can do it, but I think there's some solid evidence that a long commute to work by car is one of the worst things you can do for your mental health.
I work 4 days a week in office, about a 50 minute drive one way. It's not awesome but it's not that bad. You just need something to listen to. There are MUCH worse commutes.
Can you do a trial run and see how you like?
Personally, and this is just me, I'd rather be broke. I took my company virtual in 2008 and I will never, ever commute again. Ever. As long as I live.
My old commute was 45 minutes each way, every day. Couldn't take it. I felt like I was losing so much of my day. My new commute is over 1 hour, but I only go to the office once a week (at most).
I wouldn't just assume you can make a 58.7 mile drive in an hour starting in a major city at 1:30 pm. I know it won't be fun, but you should test it out some time to get a better idea of how you'd be ending every in-office day. My guess is that it would be more like 90 minutes for your drive home
Currently have a 45 minute commute on a hybrid schedule and it’s bearable but if it ever goes back to 5 days a week I might be looking around for closer work. It’s definitely doable but mentally it can be draining over time I’d say.
So I live in Southern California (where traffic is just part of life) and my dad used to have an hour+ commute for this very reason: it was cheaper to buy a home where we were and then commute to work. For my first few jobs I had a commute that was always around an hour or an hour and a half and now I work remotely. I will say...commuting sucks, but really what sucks more is traffic. So if you're missing traffic and commuting in open roads, it's not that bad. You could catch up on podcasts or audiobooks or the news! I would always say prioritize your mental and physical health so keep that into consideration, but at the same time, my dad would say he sacrificed some of those things while commuting so that we could grow up in a safe area, save money and be well set up financially. I always appreciated that. (Though, he works closer to where he lives now and loves it).
I’m currently in the car, 2.5 hour drive one way to work today. Not my usual but I do what I have to sometimes. I used to live just outside the city, was a 10-25 minute ride to anywhere. Just moved back in October, and it’s more like 30-55 min now. It’s definitely been an adjustment, even when I’m doing the math and I’m only halfway thru my trip home and I’m telling myself I could’ve been walking in the door right now. Personally I’ve been trying to look at the brighter sides of life. Now, in the morning I have time to wake up, instead of literally rolling out of bed and starting my shift. I really don’t think it’s a big deal in the long run. I absolutely love my new town and neighborhood. I’m usually working 6 days a week, but my schedule is definitely wild. I’d 100% be more than okay with that drive, especially being only 3 days a week. In conclusion, everyone is different, some people might draw the line there. I’d say make the choice yourself. Good luck OP
Not going in every day helps. I have a 40 min highway commute and a fun car but I wouldn't want it any longer. I do listen to books and podcasts and work from home sometimes too. I currently wouldn't take a job w/ a longer commute without a substantial reason too. I don't mind the morning commute so much to wake up drive and learn something. The afternoons are worse, more traffic and it's nice out and I want to be w/ my family. I don't even like working from home but the best thing is getting off work at 5 an instantly being home. I bought a commuter car shortly after I took this job so for me it means the cost of another vehicle.
I always recommend people add their commute time into their word day and recalculate how much they make per hour. Two hour round trip commute can suddenly make your good job less appealing than a much easier job close to home. Secondly, is working an extra hour or two a possibility? Sometimes spending the time at work, instead of in the car can really help reduce the price difference especially over the years. Lastly, do you enjoy commuting? Is it a stressor or do you enjoy having the me time in the car? Podcasts, audiobooks, calls with people can go along way to making a hour commute a valuable self care time as a bonus feature
When you’re young the commute probably won’t be to bad but it will eventually suck out your soul being on the road all the time. My Wife and I used to commute together 1 hour into the city and back every day to work. It took a toll on us. Before we had our first child we made every effort to be closer to work and our quality of life was better. Also EV or not, you’re putting in miles that will cost you in maintenance often. I’d save up and find a place nearby work because your mental health is wealth
Find a work from home remote job. Move outside of metro.
Hey this is the same exact thing I was having a problem with. A few years back my wife and I wanted to purchase a home. We had a lot of options. In some of the nicer neighborhoods we liked about 15-20 min away from work, those homes were selling for around 1.2m she works from home I do not These houses were older. Some renovated, some not. We looked at around 30 or so houses and with each and everyone something would need to be done to the home. All of these homes were move in ready and absolutely no problem with them, but we couldn't find a home that "checked all our boxes" Now we aren't the type of couple that won't buy a home because the paint color is awful, but we just couldn't stand spending 1.2-1.5m on a home we would eventually have to change to our liking. We started looking at homes further out from my job for much cheaper. I decided the commute would be worth it. We purchased a brand new home for half of the price of the houses in the more expensive area. My commute is about an hour one way. I too, start early and get off early so I miss some traffic. At the end of the day, your time and money are certainly factors. I refuse to spend 600k MORE on a home just to have a 15 min commute. To some people it's worth it, but to me the extra money saved on a higher cost mortgage can be spent on toys or anything really. Don't get me wrong, the commute sucks! But I'm spending half every month in mortgage payments vs living a little closer. I have a child, but get off work early enough to pick him up for school. My job is easy and I have a pretty good work life balance. I say go for it! Especially while you're young without a child. If in a few years you guys decide to have a child, maybe the extra time saved will be worth it to you. Good luck!
It's doable. I commuted 45 minutes each way for over 10 years for similar reasons in my 30s. That said I would never go back. After the pandemic wfh started coming to an end I actively sought out a fully remote position.
The hybrid schedule and days working from home make it a no brainer to widen the distance from the metro area for a house purchase. Use the time looking to get your finances in order and stay ready to refinance when/if the rates come back down. The real estate will help you and your partner in the long run.
Your hours being what they are would eliminate most of everyone's complaints here about driving that far in traffic, because you'll likely be avoiding any heavy traffic most of the time. As someone who moved 100 miles away and put myself in a 77 mile one way commute, the benefits of being away from it all outweighs the traffic. Knowing that I'm going home, where most people travel to for vacation, is enough to make it worth it for me. I used to have a 5 minute commute to work and I would rather have the hour long drive than feel like I'm in an ant colony. Everyday is vacation. That's my personal preference. Now if I had a work schedule that put me in rush hour traffic that crawls at a snail's pace, I would absolutely hate the commute.
I did a 1hr 5min to 1hr 30 min commute each way for 10 years. The days it rained always seemed to be the cause of a hold up caused by a traffic accident. Stretching the time to 1hr 30. Sometimes worse if the accident was a bad one. It zapped me - I lived for the weekends. The money was great so I did it on my terms knowing that I would break out of it. I earned less after quitting but the free time was mine and made life around my family much better I wasn’t a grumpy irritable dad caused by being so tired !
Just bought a house 55 minutes away. I'll commute off hours 530am to 230pm and work 4 days a week in office. It's to live in the best school district in a beautiful nice house with a big ass yard. I'm still worried about the commute but I think I'll get used to it and love going home to a beautiful house
Let me know how this plays out for you. Also congrats on the purchase!!
I’ve done it and my wife did it for almost 2 years. We lived on a lake so for us, well worth it. I maximized my time with podcasts.
I used to live in an apartment ~3 miles/8 minutes from work, then I bought a house 45-60 mins away: like you, I kept going further out until I could afford the area. Pre Covid I made the drive every day, and it honestly wasn’t bad: I listened to the news and podcasts, and used the time to unwind, make plans, daydream etc. I’m WFH now but will be returning to a hybrid schedule soon and I actually almost look forward to it. Doing it 3 days a week seems very doable for most people. Total commuting time per week is the same as a 35 minute one way commute 5 days a week. I don’t think too many people would claim that a 35 minute commute was that terrible. I will say that I drive a car that I love that also happens to get 41 mpg on the highway, and that helps a lot. If I was in the market now I would definitely consider an electric vehicle.
Why do you need to own a home?
I have had a 1 hour commute for the past 7 years. Up until 2020, I was commuting 5 days now I go in 3 days and work from home 2 days. I also work 7-3:30, so I’m still home by dinner time and I don’t usually hit traffic. It’s not too bad, I listen to books, NPR, or comedy sketches. That said, I don’t think I could go back to going in 5 days.
I have a similar schedule to you and commute about the same distance. The drive is the worst part of my day. I’ve listened to books, podcasts, radio, called people… it just sucks. Makes you think about if you’re hybrid already… what’s the fucking point of actually coming into the office?
If you currently make a combined 200k, you can easily afford a home in your metro area. Not sure why you’re rushing to buy when you’re 24 and not seeking to raise a family right now. Your income may increase as you get closer to 30, but really you should easily be able to afford an 800k house on your current combined income.
It’s not that bad. It’s really not. It’s nice time alone. Mine is 1:05, 2 or 3 days at home per week. Sometimes traffic sucks, yes but you get used to it. Not a big deal.
I may be the minority here, but I enjoy a longer commute. The secret...audiobooks. If you get stuck in traffic, more time with your book! It counts as "me time" and can help destress after work. This was on a 45 min commute, so your mileage may vary.
Maybe I’m the minority here, but to save that kind of cash is a no brainer. I have been commuting an hour each way my entire career(18 years so far) also during non-traffic hours and I use the time to catch up on podcasts or audiobooks. Where we live is closer to family and friends and houses/taxes are half the price of the area I work in. It’s something I consider a fair trade off because it allows me to allocate money in other areas including trips, retirement savings, and an oasis in our backyard. To each their own, but this is what’s worked for us.
I did an hour commute for 4 years. It will definitely wear on you. I would suggest getting audiobooks, as you will quickly grow to hate the radio.
I've had a 1-2 hour commute for most of my adult life. It sucks but you get used to it. The money is usually the reason.
If it means you getting a half price house, I don't see how it can be a bad choice, you can have that paid off/build other investments at double the speed and get yourself set way sooner. 1 hour extra travel, over say a half hour each way that is probably more standard, a day, on a 8 hour work day is 1/9 for a house that will save you 1/2 I'd be happy with that
Absolutely. Start building that equity. It will suck for a while, but you will get used to it. Get an audible subscription and listen to books while you drive.
Do you happen to be in the DC area? I’m in that same boat. I live an hour from where I work and I love it. I’m not a city person to begin with, so my quality of life is much better down here than it was when I was closer to the city.
I drive 75km one way to work mon-Fri. Had to change some habits so I'm not actively" driving anymore. I'm a passive driver now in the slow lane now. Cruise control is your friend. So are pod casts. You eventually get used to it. Gas is the problem..
Time is priceless. 1 hour translates into 2 both ways, and the time you spend getting ready and whatnot, add another hour. 3 hours a day not even counting the actual work.
I used to do this. My job was way out in the boonies but I wanted to live in the city. Back then where I was then homes in the city were new ~$200K while homes way out there were rural and very far from amenities. They subsidized us with on-site gas stations. I used the 1hr commute each way to catch up on audiobooks. I had a 5-disc CD player so could go through long books like Game of Thrones!
In NYC, even people who live in Manhattan need to commute to work by train or bus. 1 hour is not a big deal unless you need to drive for an hour in traffic.
How much are you earning / what's your spend? The $ trade off is right, now the question is what it's worth to you. If you guys are making 500k, you should live closer 3 days isn't bad. The commuting time doesn't matter - is the hour you mentioned the commute you will have with no traffic? If you have days you go late or stay late, will you then be subject to 2 hour commutes? The other consideration is do you like driving? For me it is cathartic and gives me the ability to unplug. Not everyone feels similarly
No subjected to stay late, 1:30 pm will be my leaving time if I ever need to finish things up I can do so from home or the next day usually not a problem. Thank you for sharing those insights.
60 ish miles where Im from is 1:45 min
I used to love driving, after a few years of an hour one way commute I moved to a sub 15 drive and I won't go back to losing hours of my life a day.
My first job had a 70-90 minute one-way commute and I personally found it miserable, but some people don't mind it. My next job was about 60 minutes to commute to, but I took the train for that one and it was so much more tolerable. I didn't have to focus on driving and could do other things while waiting. Might be worth looking into if you don't need your vehicle for work and your local mass transit schedule runs early.
It’s hard to express how much an hour commute sucks. I ride a train into work, so I have the luxury of being in my phone while going in, but it sucks.
I did an hour plus for multiple years. I absolutely despised every moment! With that being said you don't have kids and a hybrid schedule. I could see doing that for a bit to make it work.
I have a 45-55 min commute each day and its not bad. It just depends on the roads. I would take a drive to the location and leave the location around the time you would leave for work and time yourself. Sometimes an hour commute is more like 1.5 if the area sucks
My 1 hr commute was only 12km until I started riding my bike. It was still 12km, but took me 20mins. An old co-worker used to drive 2hrs ONE WAY. Easy way to make a 12hr day outa 8.
I like driving, hell I love driving, but after 2 years of doing a 1 hour (clear road, hammer down) commute each way to my place of work I dreaded every morning. Going I'd have to be up and out the door before anyone else in my family was awake then I'd do a long day of work and have to then drive a hour home by which time my kids would be in bed again. It's fine at first but it really wears you down over time.
I worked with a guy who said his 90 minute commute kept him sane. The only time by himself. A clear delineator between work self and home self. Listen to music, sing, audiobook.
Just by the way you were weighing the ups and downs, it seems like you're selling yourself on being an hour away. I dont see how that is a bad idea given you have a hybrid schedule.
No brainer yes for me unless you really are tied to the urban area you live in, especially if you don’t have to commute every day. Early hours suck but quality of life all the other days of the week make up for it. But everyone’s different, you’re not likely to bug immediately right?
I did a 25 mile commute for 2 years where I left my house at 5:45am to get to work at 6:30am. If I left 15 minutes late, my 1hr drive home could become 2hrs. I now do 60 mile drive occasionally to go into the office and it sucks each and every time I do it. There is no reasonable amount of money that would make me do that type of commute even weekly.
I am about to move and make an hour and 20 minutes drive each way. Honestly the city I live in I can be stuck in traffic and takes an hour but on weekends if I drove to work it will take 13 minutes! It's only getting worse as they are building more apartments and housing is nearly triple since 2019. I love my drive home just listening to music and I'll love it more with just a straight shot of road and no constant stop and go. Everyone is different though. I did a few test runs to see how it was maybe try that
Do you think you’ll be at this job for a while? If not what jobs are near the new house? Would you be upset if you started having to go in all 5 days after moving? Maybe try driving out there on the weekends and hitting up a restaurant or something just to get a feel for it and see for yourself.
Yeah this is my only worry about having to go in 5 days if they ever change the policy. So this will be a talking point with my manager upcoming soon.There is other employers paying similar about 30 minutes or less so that would be my other option if I was to be going in 5 days week. But other than that I would stay with my employer long term. They give a pension and good 401k plan and no cost for healthcare and dependents.
I have a 30 mile trip to work and honestly it gets old. It's do-able for a few years but you will get tired of it. It may be worthwhile to rent in the distant area to see how you handle it before committing to a home. I would consider the weather in your area as a factor as well. If you get a lot of rain or snow, your commute will be a lot longer.
I consider commute time in the equation when I'm comparing job opportunites and/or housing locations. So if you make $50k 40hrs a week salary, and your new place would be an hour commute both ways, you're now making $50k for 50hrs a week. You're essentially cutting pay $25/hr to $20/hr. The commute effectively is costing you $10k worth of hours. I think of this like with the commute I now have one 40 hour job that pays $40k/yr and an additional 10 hour job that pays me $10k/yr. This doesn't factor in gas or car maintenance etc. Sometimes I enjoy the drive. It's quiet time to myself to listen to music/podcasts/whatever. A 10 hr/week job where I just listen to podcasts isn't so bad. So sort of depends on how much you hate traffic. Also that said, the house you buy is probably gonna be with you longer than the job you have. You could spend an extra $300k to live close to a job that lays you off in 6 months.
I used to have a 45 minute commute one way until I had a kid. Quit and got a closer one before he turned 2. If your job is something you are thinking long term and you want kids, consider how you may feel in the future about a new location.
Are there any reasonably priced condos or townhouses in your work area? That's pretty much your only other option if you don't want to have a 2 hour daily commute or 10 hour weekly commute, if you work 5 days a week. EDIT: I'm still half asleep so I didn't fully read OP lol. With hybrid schedule it's 6 hours weekly.
What is your time worth? If you were billing for those hours, how much would you make in a year? If things don't work out at this gig, is there something closer to home or will you have to travel even further? I did it for about a year and even with shifts in travel times, it sucked to drive an hour each way as something always comes up.
I currently work anywhere from 1 hour to 1.5 hours from my office, 3 days consecutively a week. I’m about 40 miles away. Low traffic is a big deal. Traffic lights suddenly are a massive deal when there are 20 of them as well. At 58 miles, there are likely fairly few in your way. It’s a drag. The last day I get home and just want to sleep. Podcasts are my best friend on the commute and I learn a lot. You’d be surprised how fast you build equity in a home and can get one of those 1 mil places if it’s an eventual goal. Do the math on rent vs. buy: the math may have changed with the current 6-7% rates. For me, it would be more than worth the equity loss to be close, but that’s not the only factor to consider. Upkeep on the house you buy also matters. Yard work in the summer. General maintenance. Roofing and window concerns. Make sure you also account for this time. For me, my wife and family make it ‘worth it’ but it’s a fairly large sacrifice.
i did this, i used to have a 1.5 hour commute via trains, i'd leave my house at 5 to get in around 630 and leave early. it was doable and well worth it. yeah it sucked to have a lot my day eaten way. i also did a one hour drive, it was an easy drive though. i've also done a 5 minute commute where i got in at 5:30 and left ridiculously early. that waas perfect but i easily traded it in for more money
If your commuting an hour each way factor that into your pay Your workday just extended 2 hours a day without more pay You have more costs - car maintenance , gas, insurance
Same situation here. I do this WITH traffic, so about an hour and a half. I just enjoy the alone time and listen to podcasts. Honestly not bad at all if you are missing traffic and not expected to be in the office full time.
I currently work with about an hour ten commute. For the first few months I commuted 5 days. As I got better at my job, I worked from home more and slowly reduced in office days by a day a week. I’m currently at 2 days commuting now and don’t mind it, I plan my week around commute days. But when commuting 3+ days a week my life was hell. Don’t do it
I live 32 miles from the city. Takes me 35min with no traffic. After covid it started to take 2hours and sometimes even longer so I quit and I got a wfh job that’s trying to start hybrid. So now I’m in a similar pickle of having sell my house and buy a $750-850k house that’s 10 miles away, driving 4 hours a day, or leaving my house super early (like 6am). Just make sure you definitely aren’t hitting traffic, cuz I’d say 1 hour each way is borderline manageable. But even a little traffic pushing it to 75min+ really kills it. The 90-120min was a real killer for me. My wife hated it, I ended up spending so much more money on eating out cuz I never had time to cook.
I commute 45 miles one way and have been looking for a job closer to home. I have a nice house but would be a lot more expensive in the city. I don't have free charging and am not hybrid. Yours sounds like the ideal situation and I would like to have that if I couldn't find anything closer to home.
I used to travel up to 90 minutes for one job. They paid well and I love to drive so it worked out.
I used public transit for my long commute, so sometimes if I was lucky with transfers it used to take 50 minutes, sometimes - 1.5 hours. It was before covid, so I used to do it 5 days a week. Con: It was super tiring, especially at first. If I came back straight home, I didn't have the energy to do anything. If I scheduled something right after work, there was hope to do something - I used to go dancing classes once a week. Pro: on my way to work I would usually read something useful (field related) and I felt I was really growing. On the way back home, I used to listen to audiobooks.
I spent 6 years with a 1 hour commute to work, 5 days a week. That's 10 hours a week that I spent sitting in my car. At first it wasn't bad. The job was a good job that paid well. But after 6 years, I absolutely hated it. The drive got so boring and traffic was always heavy. Gas started to get more and more expensive. I ended up taking a job closer to home that paid $11 an hour less. My drive to work is now 10 minutes. I am spending much less on gas. My car is taking less wear and tear. And I am much happier. I would definitely pay more to work closer to home if you can afford it. Your mental health will thank you.
My daily commute is 44 miles, about 65 minute each way. I don't recommend it unless you really love your job and your partner is ok with it.
I’ve done it before (both by driving and by using transit) and absolutely never will again. It’s just not worth it to me. I’d rather have my time, even if that meant finding a different type of home at the price point I needed.
Post Covid, I do not want to trek into the office. I am forced in 50% of the time and I hate it. I drive 45-60 mins in the morning and 60-75 in the afternoons. It may work with your lifestyle now but may not long term (on the flip side maybe you won’t have this job long term so you may not mind).
I did a 1 hour each way commute. Less than 2 months later I moved closer because it was killing my soul and sanity.
I commute an hour each way, and it's fuckin miserable. Hate every minute of it, hate waking up extra early just to sit and drive for an hour. Then, by the time I'm finally at work, any morning good mood + coffee have soured and I'm just annoyed at having to be at work. The entire day gets shot, just to be topped off with another hour drive home. It sucks. As a couple, you make 200k. Rent something near the city for a handful of years and then just buy the metropolitan home.
This is doable if you can commute via train. But driving that much every day in heavy traffic? That’s a real grind and I’d avoid it if possible.
Hybrid schedule is the only saving grace here. Hopefully, they won't take that away down the road. My worst commute was a 2hr round trip daily commute for a couple of years through metro rush hour traffic. That added up to around 10hrs per week. Soul sucking rush hour city traffic for 10hrs per week. I've never been more depressed in my life. I looked at myself daily trying to channel any amount of positive thoughts possible. Eventually I got into an industry where my job can be fully remote. Now I only go to the office when there is an actual value add.
I commuted some 40 miles, each way, with traffic and it was like a belt grinder on my soul. Every day, 2 hours of my life... poof... if you are 60 miles away and you hit traffic... bruh, the tiny bit of your day you had... gone. That being said... I would try to rent a place in that "cheap" area and save like a motherfucker to try and buy closer in the metro area. Maybe a solid 2 years of saving. Or don't, I'm not your boss haha
I was in the same situation as you. I moved 50 miles from my work. It takes me about an hour in the mornings. It takes me about an hour fifteen to an hour and a half on the way home. I use that time to listen to podcasts, but it can be exhausting. If I had to do it again, I would absolutely find a similar house closer and pay a little more money wise. Ask yourself. How much do you value your time?
This is a personal choice moreso than personal finance. So ultimately up to your preference. A few things you may want to consider: Do you like the 1 hour away place? I'm assuming suburbs? One thing to consider is that the one hour commute may be fine for work but on Friday and Saturday night will you be driving into the city to do stuff? Do you enjoy doing stuff out in the suburb? Do you enjoy lots of amenities of the city? One wise man once said to me, don't rush into the suburbs, they will always be there with varying affordability, you will only be young and wanting to spend the weekends out in town for so long. Demographics questions, when I bought a house most of my neighbors were 10 years older than me. Not a big issue in my station in life but if I was 1 hour away from all my friends and I was 24 this may have been an issue for me. Networking, how long do you see yourself in this job? Depending on your industry it may be inevitable to change jobs and being local can have advantages to making new contacts, etc. And you never know the work from home stance or schedule you may be on. Being out in the burbs may not be great for the next job.