Advice for the families

To help the Steins, Mendells and Wrights get their finances on track, and stop comparing themselves to their neighbors, Money Magazine turned to financial planners Neil Kauffman of Kauffman & Drebing in Philadelphia and Chris Cordaro of Regent Atlantic Capital in Chatham, N.J., as well as career coach Nancy Collamer, who runs Jobsandmoms.com.

Get back to work
The Wrights:
Get back to work
To close the gap between their income and their living expenses, Miriam needs to land a full-time job quickly, the planners say.

To increase her chances of landing a suitable position, Collamer, the career coach, advises Miriam to update her résumé, emphasizing her skills rather than her recent work experience.

"Don't shy away from being a mother," says Collamer. "Just don't put it at the top of a résumé or cover letter."

Then expand the job search online to include industry-specific job boards, as well as mega-job-listing sites like Monster.com, and professional networking sites like LinkedIn.

If interviewers ask about the three-year hiatus in her career, she should draw attention to her real-world experience during that time. For example, Miriam, who is looking for work as a professional recruiter, should point out how she was able to recruit volunteers for the nonprofits she worked with while she's been at home with the kids.

Lastly, Kauffman recommends that the Wrights give up the idea of sending their children to private school. "I don't know where the money would come from," the planner says. And given the quality of the schools in Wallingford, that expense at least seems entirely avoidable.

The Steins

The Mendells

The Wrights

Future plans
Call it peer pressure, but meeting the right people can help you spend and save wisely. (more)
A Roth IRA for your teen could create a millionaire in the making. But how do you convince her it's a good idea? (more)
Starting a savings plan in your 20s could put you on the right track for an early retirement. Just make sure you've got the right mix, says Money Magazine's Walter Updegrave. (more)

Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.

Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.