u/FullHousing7457

32M finishing residency in a surgical subspecialty and joining a private practice in a rural LCOL area. Initial compensation will be $385k W-2 base with a realistic expectation of $450–500k after production bonuses.

I genuinely believe this is likely my long-term practice. I have an excellent relationship with the current partners, practice has been around forever and is financially stable. The plan is for a partnership buy-in after ~1.5 years as an associate. Expected buy-in cost is likely $1.5–2M with seller financing amortized over 7–10 years (details still being finalized). Estimated post-partnership income would likely increase to 800K in early 2028. 

My spouse (31F) finishes training in summer 2027 in different surgical subspecialty and is expected to make ~$400–500k W-2 without partnership opportunities. No opportunity for moonlighting during final year of training. 

Current financial picture:

• Combined student loans: $150k at 5%
• No car/credit card debt
• One kid, expecting a second in mid 2027
• ~$175k in Roth IRAs
• ~$30k cash emergency fund

Our long-term dream has always been a large acreage property where we could eventually build a primary home plus additional homes for parents/family. Family would pay for builds of their own homes. A property recently hit the market that checks almost every box:

• 100+ acres
• Mostly cleared land
• City water/electric already run throughout the property
• Existing working septic
• Large barns/outbuildings already in good condition

This is important because most large parcels in this area are raw hunting land with minimal infrastructure, and parcels >80 acres are rare.

The property also includes an older single-family home that likely needs ~$200–300k in renovations, but our plan would be to build a new home on property in several years with cost estimated around $1,500,000. The barns/outbuildings themselves would probably cost several hundred thousand dollars to replicate if starting from raw land.

We believe we could purchase for $1,350,000, which is significantly below asking price. The expected PITI would be ~$10,000/month. This does not include the eventual home we would like to build on the property. We were quoted a 30-year fixed physician loan at 6.5% with 100% financing. Seller’s would cover all closing costs. My expected monthly take home at my base will be ~$21,000, and PITI plus other fixed finances will be approximately ~$20,000 monthly (student loans, daycare, insurance, etc).

The obvious concern: if we buy this property now, this upcoming year would be financially very tight until my wife begins working. We likely would not have the liquidity to renovate or rebuild immediately and would probably continue renting for 2–3 years while simply holding the property, which would cost around $1500-2000/month.

So this feels like a question between accelerating our “dream property” timeline by 5–10 year versus following the more traditional/safe path of renting first, building assets/liquidity, confirming long-term job fit, and delaying the purchase.

From a purely financial perspective, I know the conservative answer is probably “wait.” But a property that checks this many boxes may not come around again. Curious how others here would think through this decision.