on track – Living in her parents’ garage apartment, Eller pays $300 a month in rent and utilities, expects to wipe out her student loan debt within a year, and says the savings and space are giving her confidence after years of feeling judged for multigenerational living
When Eller moved into her parents’ garage in 2020, she didn’t just change her address—she changed the daily rhythm of her life. She still sees her parents each day in some capacity, but she’s settled into the kind of routine that comes with more ownership over her own apartment.
“I do feel more responsibility,” Eller said. “I was kind of spoiled. My dad did my dishes for me, so now I have to do my own dishes. It gives me something to do. It feels like I’m contributing to the household.”
Her financial plan is just as deliberate. Eller pays her parents $300 each month in rent and utilities, and she says the arrangement is already helping her save money. With that structure in place, she’s aiming for a rare milestone—being free of student debt soon.
“I’m on track to hopefully pay off all my student debt within a year,” Eller said. After that, she wants to shift from emergency survival to longer-term building.
“Then I can start saving and investing more and really start building up my finances.”
Eller also doesn’t hide where she stands right now. “I’m pretty much negative net worth right now,” she said, adding that living in her parents’ home is part of the reason she believes she can change that.
It hasn’t always been comfortable, especially when she first moved in as a single mom in 2020. Eller said she worried about what people might think, describing the move as something society often looks down on.
“It kind of was embarrassing, I guess you could say, from societal standards,” Eller said. “I feel like living with your parents is kind of frowned upon.”
But as the benefits of multigenerational living became clearer, her attitude shifted. “But this time around, I feel like I’m embracing it more, and I feel more confident in myself,” she said.
She credits her parents not only with making space, but with allowing the family to make it their own. Eller said she’s especially happy and grateful that her parents gave them the place and that they were able to renovate it.
“Honestly, I’m just really happy and fortunate that my parents gave us that place and that we’re able to renovate it. I’m just proud of it now.”
The sequence is straightforward: Eller takes on daily responsibility in her own apartment, contributes $300 a month toward rent and utilities, and uses the savings to accelerate her plan to pay off student debt within a year.
single mom multigenerational living student loans debt payoff rent and utilities personal finance savings investing
So basically she lives rent free and pays her parents $300? Lucky.
I don’t get how $300 a month is some kind of “debt runway” when student loans are like, forever. Also $300 utilities?? that’s still paying a bill.
Sounds like the parents are just running a mortgage for her but with a family vibe. She says she’s negative net worth now but hopes to fix it in a year… like okay, sure. I feel like people will judge no matter what, even if she’s doing her dishes now.
Honestly good for her. But also I feel like this story is missing the part where she got the student debt figured out, like what was her interest rate and how much is the actual balance. Paying $300 to parents in a garage apartment doesn’t sound like it covers much, unless the loans are small. Still, better than emergency survival I guess, and parents letting her renovate is huge.