What does your partner do? Are you splitting finances? Marriage simplifies this kind of stuff, if you have a kid especially. Are you paying for rent or are you splitting 50/50? Who does most of the child rearing? Do you have equal incomes? Why are you talking about one income? If you can get around by Public transit: sell the car. Does your “partner” have another care you can share. If you get married, your debt will be “our debt” and your savings will be “our savings”. If your “partner” has $100k sitting in a savings account then this should be both of your problem not just yours alone.

You cannot afford a car. How about a scooter? Electric bicycle? Can you move closer to work? Or within a better bus route?

I’m sorry but if there is a way to get there by bus (even if it’s 2 hours each way) then take the bus. $500/2800 for Uber is not an acceptable expense. Do you have an emergency fund saved up?

If something happens like a messy breakup or even if one of you dies it can be very messy. Imagine you share a mortgage with your fiancés next of kin and they don’t want to sell… so talk to a lawyer.

I played with virtual stock exchanges as a 13 year old and did not learn much. I would have preferred having view access on some $100 put into an investment fund. Eg put it on an index fund and tell them they can have it when they turn 18. Could teach them a valuable lesson about taxes also haha.

If you go to a baseball game and don’t wear a glove but then nobody else is wearing one either and everyone is wearing white clothes and the bat looks like a paddle and there are wooden toys and the pitcher bounces the ball, then maybe you are at a cricket game and not a baseball game. -Bob 2022