u/SproulMate

My wife and I (early 30s, a toddler, and a newborn) own a house in Round Rock, TX. We want to move to Georgetown, TX (a bit farther north) sometime in the next few years, but I need help determining the best next step.

(My wife's entire family lives in Georgetown, about 30 minutes north of our current house, and we want our kids to grow up near them.)

Ultimately, I'd love to own a portfolio of single-family rentals.

Some background on our current situation:

• 2025 household AGI was $186k. I am self-employed (about $15k/month in revenue, before business expenses/taxes). My wife earns $65k gross on a W-2.
• We have a $50k emergency fund and about $180k in retirement accounts.
• After all of our typical expenses (mortgage, childcare, etc.), we usually have about $3k available to invest (which has, to date, largely been going to Roth IRAs and a SEP IRA).

Current House (Round Rock)

• Bought in 2021. We owe about $330k at 2.75%.
• It is worth about $350k today, which is below what we paid ($416k - Austin's housing market has really contracted). If we sell now, it's probably a wash after agent fees and closing costs.
• The payment is about $2,100/month, including taxes and insurance.
• I expect the house would rent for $2,000-2,100/mo today, which should cover most ongoing expenses except maintenance, I think.

THE KICKER: My in-laws recently gave us $65k toward a down payment, but we can only use it if we buy in Georgetown. (They didn't give us a particular timeline, though, and would be fine with us waiting a few years if we wanted.)

The Three Options (as I see them)

• Buy in Georgetown now and keep Round Rock as a rental.
• Buy in Georgetown now and sell Round Rock to avoid two mortgages.
• Stay in Round Rock for now and look to buy in Georgetown in a few years.

What should we do? Our current house was our first house, so I feel a bit paralyzed by the options.

As a Texan approaching football season, I have been earnestly wrestling with whether Christians can watch football in good conscience, particularly because of the risk of repeated head trauma. I’ve recently taken a bit of a deep dive into the research/academic literature, which has caused me to reflect on this question in a way I haven’t ever before.

I am NOT coming at this from a place of wanting to condemn football or Christians who enjoy it at all. I have enjoyed football myself for a long time, and I completely understand the appeal of the competition, athleticism, strategy, tradition, and community around it.

What troubles me is that head injuries do not seem like rare but that repeated blows to the head seem deeply intertwined with the ordinary way tackle football is played, especially for positions like offensive and defensive line.

I understand that players consent to participate and that adults can choose activities that involve significant risk. At the same time, I do not think consent alone resolves the moral question for me. If we eventually became confident, for example, that normal participation in football caused permanent brain damage in a meaningful share of players, I do not think I could simply say that they chose the risk and therefore watching is morally neutral. Especially when other sports like basketball offer many of the same benefits re: teamwork, leadership development, etc. with far less serious bodily risks.

I know football does not require brain injury as its goal. Players are trying to block, tackle, run, and compete. If the sport could become much safer without losing what makes it football, everyone would welcome that. So I am not trying to compare football to something whose purpose is simply to hurt another person.

I think my concern is more specific. What if repetitive brain trauma is not just an unfortunate possibility but an unavoidable part of playing tackle football at a high level. At what point does enjoying the sport become difficult to reconcile with loving our neighbor and taking seriously the dignity of the people on the field?

I truly am coming at this from a place of genuine interest in hearing how other Christians think about this as I continue working to shape my own opinion/perspective.

Grateful for this community of believers!