They moved to Royal Oak, Michigan, and could finally save enough to buy their first house. Three days before my daughter was born, we moved to Glendale, a suburb of LA, and paid $1,600 monthly for a one-bedroom apartment. Because we didn't have savings, we decided to rent in Royal Oak, a young and trendy town 15 minutes outside Detroit. In Royal Oak, we could pay our rent and student loans and get groceries with about $4,000 to put aside into our savings. That summer, we bought an additional vehicle; we'd sold my car in LA to save money.

---