I started looking at condos and town homes today. Housing prices in northern Virginia are just insane.
At one point we looked into moving back to the D.C. suburbs in MD and VA. Between the traffic, the cost of living (especially housing costs), and standard pay for jobs it was not feasible.
With a mortgage, none of those numbers scare me. If I need cash, I will be able to hit the lower edge of those ranges in 2-5 years. It might be time to look into private loans.
With a mortgage, none of those numbers scare me. If I need cash, I will be able to hit the lower edge of those ranges in 2-5 years. It might be time to look into private loans.
Those are tiny cockroach type places with the low numbers.
I could build to that point, But it'd take years of acquiring assets, letting them mature, renting the ones in property, etc, etc, I don't wanna move to LIC when I'm 40, I wanna move there when I'm 26.
I have opportunities not afforded to everyone. I could wait for some stuff to happen and convince some other people to let me live in a place for a fraction of the rent it actually costs (Ridgewood). Then wait for some other stuff to happen become the actual owner of that building, and others. Downside is I have to maintain a don't write me out of the will relationship with republicans.
This is the only reason I've not taken such a harsh stance against republicans like you have. Greed.
That's why instead of saving and leading a frugal life, I just rent and spend my money on enjoying these young virile times.
My grandparents gave me the best advice. They were world travelers.
"Don't wait until you're old to travel. You're too old to do anything."
Applying that to my whole life. If retirement isn't an option, I'll turn to crime probably.
I'm sort of half doing this. I have a cheap house in the burbs so I'm not dumping a ton of money into "building equity". It gives me space for what I really want to do which is car projects. I also budget money every month for my car projects, saving it up over the coldest and hottest months to spend when the weather is more mild. I'm also currently amassing a house repair buffer fund, and I'll have a lot more money to do whatever with once it's full.
That's why instead of saving and leading a frugal life, I just rent and spend my money on enjoying these young virile times.
My grandparents gave me the best advice. They were world travelers.
"Don't wait until you're old to travel. You're too old to do anything."
Applying that to my whole life. If retirement isn't an option, I'll turn to crime probably.
I'm sort of half doing this. I have a cheap house in the burbs so I'm not dumping a ton of money into "building equity". It gives me space for what I really want to do which is car projects. I also budget money every month for my car projects, saving it up over the coldest and hottest months to spend when the weather is more mild. I'm also currently amassing a house repair buffer fund, and I'll have a lot more money to do whatever with once it's full.
I'm basically pulling a reverse Rym, I live rent free with my parents, I am saving money in my work's 401k and a separate Roth which I have with Vanguard. Despite both of those I'm saving most of my income and I'm debating between 2 things to do. Keep doing what I'm doing and buy a place in the city to live in. Or buy a more modest place somewhere around here, and begin the, being a landlord process.
Just had the hose faucet replaced. The old faucet was solder on. So an opening had to be cut out from the panel to get at the inside area. The plumber had another guy do that. The cost doubled with the extra labor for the cutting out the panel and replacing part of the pipe. Cost was $418 after it was all set and done.
I bought my house because it was (and still is) cheaper than renting. There is the downside of being geo-locked to the house but my kid has a few more years of school so I wouldn't be moving anyways.
My alimony payments stop in January so I get a big raise (effectively) in February. At that point I can start putting the extra cash into fixing things that will help the value of the home appreciate so that when I do sell I will profit off of the deal.
If my kid moves out after school then I get to live like a young person again. I can sell the house and rent. I can gain back my freedom.
Home ownership is great when you want to put down long term roots and raise a family. It is not so great when you are young and still want to wander.
When I bought my house I was also looking at multifamily units. Unfortunately none of the ones I wanted were in my price range and the ones that were suffered with bad locations for being a live in landlord.
If I were in Run or Scott's situation I would never even consider buying a place.
Has anyone looked into a ground-source heat pump? I've been researching them, and while the upfront cost is steep, the payoff can be amazing.
Right now, I'm weighing the difference between buying my propane tanks (they're leased currently, and purchasing them frees me to shop for cheaper propane) with a 4 - 7 year payoff window, or pursuing a GSHP for a much steeper upfront cost with an almost identical payoff window.
I think the question is whether I can get the capital together in a couple of years, or qualify for a home improvement loan.
I dunno, I'm just really not jazzed at the prospect of paying like $2k to heat my house through the winter.
Not sure about propane specifically but I do know that the natural gas vendors in my area charge MORE if you only use it for heating and a lot less if you use it for heating and cooking.
The ground systems are great if you can afford the upfront cost AND you have the space to install them. They can be installed vertically or horizontally in the ground.
Has anyone looked into a ground-source heat pump? I've been researching them, and while the upfront cost is steep, the payoff can be amazing.
Right now, I'm weighing the difference between buying my propane tanks (they're leased currently, and purchasing them frees me to shop for cheaper propane) with a 4 - 7 year payoff window, or pursuing a GSHP for a much steeper upfront cost with an almost identical payoff window.
I think the question is whether I can get the capital together in a couple of years, or qualify for a home improvement loan.
I dunno, I'm just really not jazzed at the prospect of paying like $2k to heat my house through the winter.
And before anyone says it, yes, we fucking HAVE a woodstove. Thanks. It's not a viable long-term primary heat method.
You can switch up who you lease from every time your contract is up. We shopped around every year and usually took the budget plan at MainCare because it was significantly less and they bought back unused propane.
Some streets/communities in that area banded together to get natural gas lines laid. I know some municipalities in Saratoga County and Schenectady County were swayed by such groups and helped them work with gas providers to get the lines put in over the past 5 years. There may be such a group in your area or perhaps you can start one? Just a thought.
We don't currently have a contract, but our tanks are owned by 1 company, so we can only buy from that company. We are trying to decide between leasing tanks with a different provider or buying tanks outright. There are multiple considerations, including whether we stick with propane for more than a few years.
I'm almost certainly headed to the Galway Propane Co-Op no matter what. The question is whether I have the current company remove the tanks and lease new ones from the co-op supplier, or buy the tanks from the current company and get the cheapest possible propane.
Well.
Or see if National Grid can run natural gas to my house.
I feel like that last one is a long shot, but I've got inquiries in. That would solve all of my concerns.
Galway gets us a discount on our trash service (not much, but the discount covers the co-op's annual fee), and they're starting up a program to order food from Sysco for its members. Perfect for us!
LOL. As if that would change the price of propane or natural gas significantly. We could use the potentially-radioactive backflow wastewater to brine the roads in the winter, though.
LOL. As if that would change the price of propane or natural gas significantly. We could use the potentially-radioactive backflow wastewater to brine the roads in the winter, though.
Propane is annoying, but it sounds like your current place is gouging you.
Their price is pretty competitive for any other non-discount operation that I've found, but I haven't done a ton of research either.
The thing about the tanks is irritating, but they also don't charge a tank rental fee of any kind (which other places do charge), so I can see why the previous owner went with 'em.
But pretty much the only reason I went with these folks is that the previous owner went with them, and I didn't want to deal with getting a new propane supplier.
I like the idea of buying back that unused propane, though. I'ma add MainCare to the list of people I'm investigating.
Comments
Fuck real estate in the city.
That's why instead of saving and leading a frugal life, I just rent and spend my money on enjoying these young virile times.
My grandparents gave me the best advice. They were world travelers.
"Don't wait until you're old to travel. You're too old to do anything."
Applying that to my whole life. If retirement isn't an option, I'll turn to crime probably.
I have opportunities not afforded to everyone. I could wait for some stuff to happen and convince some other people to let me live in a place for a fraction of the rent it actually costs (Ridgewood). Then wait for some other stuff to happen become the actual owner of that building, and others. Downside is I have to maintain a don't write me out of the will relationship with republicans.
This is the only reason I've not taken such a harsh stance against republicans like you have. Greed.
My alimony payments stop in January so I get a big raise (effectively) in February. At that point I can start putting the extra cash into fixing things that will help the value of the home appreciate so that when I do sell I will profit off of the deal.
If my kid moves out after school then I get to live like a young person again. I can sell the house and rent. I can gain back my freedom.
Home ownership is great when you want to put down long term roots and raise a family. It is not so great when you are young and still want to wander.
When I bought my house I was also looking at multifamily units. Unfortunately none of the ones I wanted were in my price range and the ones that were suffered with bad locations for being a live in landlord.
If I were in Run or Scott's situation I would never even consider buying a place.
Has anyone looked into a ground-source heat pump? I've been researching them, and while the upfront cost is steep, the payoff can be amazing.
Right now, I'm weighing the difference between buying my propane tanks (they're leased currently, and purchasing them frees me to shop for cheaper propane) with a 4 - 7 year payoff window, or pursuing a GSHP for a much steeper upfront cost with an almost identical payoff window.
I think the question is whether I can get the capital together in a couple of years, or qualify for a home improvement loan.
I dunno, I'm just really not jazzed at the prospect of paying like $2k to heat my house through the winter.
The ground systems are great if you can afford the upfront cost AND you have the space to install them. They can be installed vertically or horizontally in the ground.
Some streets/communities in that area banded together to get natural gas lines laid. I know some municipalities in Saratoga County and Schenectady County were swayed by such groups and helped them work with gas providers to get the lines put in over the past 5 years. There may be such a group in your area or perhaps you can start one? Just a thought.
Well.
Or see if National Grid can run natural gas to my house.
I feel like that last one is a long shot, but I've got inquiries in. That would solve all of my concerns.
Galway gets us a discount on our trash service (not much, but the discount covers the co-op's annual fee), and they're starting up a program to order food from Sysco for its members. Perfect for us!
The thing about the tanks is irritating, but they also don't charge a tank rental fee of any kind (which other places do charge), so I can see why the previous owner went with 'em.
But pretty much the only reason I went with these folks is that the previous owner went with them, and I didn't want to deal with getting a new propane supplier.
I like the idea of buying back that unused propane, though. I'ma add MainCare to the list of people I'm investigating.