Today, I document the execution of our plan to build a $200,000 accessory dwelling unit in our backyard for my parents to live in during retirement.

I’m happy to report that last week, I had a guest post on the White Coat Investor (WCI) site.
An ER physician by trade, the WCI (aka Jim Dahle) is the undisputed godfather of the physician finance blogger movement. It was a honor to be featured on his blog.
In the post, I write about the challenges of supporting my parents, whose retirement in Las Vegas turned unsustainable when they decided to come to Los Angeles. I document the execution of our plan to stabilize their living costs by building a $200,000 accessory dwelling unit in our backyard.
This will be new content for older readers, but for my newer readers who found me through this guest post, welcome! There’s more great content to come.
Here’s an excerpt from the guest post:
When I was in high school, I was always surprised that despite living in a rental house, my parents still somehow found some cash to pay for my music lessons and other extracurricular activities. Clearly, if we had enough to pay the tutors, we couldn’t be in such dire financial straits, right?
…
It was the birth of my first child that started to open the door to the murky area of my parents’ finances. Shortly after he was born, my mom decided that she wanted to move to Los Angeles to be closer to her grandchild.
…
On one hand, my parents both helped immensely with childcare, and my son (and now sons) benefitted enormously from their loving care. On the other hand, by luring my parents from their cheaper existence in Las Vegas, I doomed the sustainability of their retirement.
Do you want to learn how we figured out a solution to this situation? Read the full post on the WCI website: The Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) Solution
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- My 15 year plan to financial independence, moFIRE style
- What is moFIRE (morbidly obese FIRE) and why do I want it?
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