Is money worth the commute?

[Danny Klick]

My wife, 10 month old son, and I have an opportunity to move from our current home into a rent free home where we are only responsible for utilities and maintenance. We will be saving around $1330 per month, plus the potential cash flow from renting out our current home. The catch being that out commute to work will go from 15 minutes to an hour and 15 minutes. I realize the answer to my question is very subjective and ultimately a personal decision, but I was just curious what others would do and their reasoning behind it?

[Derek Tellier]

Obviously lots of factors in this decision but I guess the basic question would be how much you value your time? Do you have kids? What might you miss due to that travel time? 

Just pure dollars, With the savings of 1330/month but the loss of 2 hours per day that equates to about $30/hour. Plus you have to factor in fuel and increased service expense on the car as well. 

If you feel your lost time to the commute is worth more than $30/hour then don’t move. 

Wealth is not measured “just” in $, is it worth that $ to give up that time. 

On the other hand, can you put that drive time to productive use? Listening to Podcasts or audio books? 

No easy answer here you just have to really sit down and list out the pros and cons. Write them down and think of every aspect effected. You’ll find your answer.