My family has also had very good luck with older Volvos, but you can't protect them enough to keep them from rusting in MN winters! (Okay maybe if you own a car wash or something . . .
)
On the housing front . . . have you ever considered sharing a house? Our first house was a split level so we rented out the bottom 1/2 (2 bedrooms, a bathroom, and a family room) to friends of ours who were newly married and low on cash. We had to share the kitchen and laundry (though they did have a mini-fridge and a microwave downstairs), but the way our schedules worked out we barely even saw each other. We only did it for a year or so, but it did help w/ the finances. . . just one more thought . . .