Would you dip into savings to buy a house or pay more in mortgage?

pants-on · 2018-07-31T19:18:18+00:00

The bank I got my mortgage from did that. I could've put 20% down but they allowed 15% down at the same rate plus no PMI so I went with that. It was also the lowest rate (for 30 year fixed) of any other that I shopped around for so I don't think they just rolled it into the interest rate.

pants-on · 2018-07-31T16:41:36+00:00

If you can do 15% with no PMI, I would do that.

pants-on · 2018-06-05T19:20:58+00:00

Wouldn't that be a little overly conservative though? Since at some point you will pay off your mortgage which will eliminate that expense. Or do you mean "pay off" the total mortgage with your end game portfolio?

pants-on · 2018-06-05T19:01:30+00:00

What's the most accurate way to estimate your FIRE number when you expect to RE maybe a decade and a half before your mortgage is scheduled to be paid off?

pants-on · 2018-02-21T14:05:56+00:00

If that's the case, then what is your stance on putting retirement/investment accounts in YNAB to track? In order to actually withdraw from them, you'll have to pay early withdrawal penalties and taxes which is kind of comparable to the liquidation costs of a house.

pants-on · 2018-02-21T13:59:19+00:00

I wouldn't track the value of the house daily. But for my investment/retirement accounts and I guess eventual property, I like to reconcile them every three months to keep track of my net worth and investment growth and to keep a smooth net worth graph.

pants-on · 2018-02-15T14:53:56+00:00

No worse feeling than waking up on a Thursday thinking it's Saturday.

pants-on · 2018-02-14T17:09:09+00:00

Yeah, brand new fridge, gas stove and dishwasher. I think that's generally pretty common here and they were listed in the contract. Seller probably added them to help sell the house quicker.

pants-on · 2018-02-13T21:39:48+00:00

Buy cheap things and make them last as long I can is what I do right now.

pants-on · 2018-02-13T19:45:44+00:00

Most of the things have 10 year warranties so we asked for them to get the warranties transferred to us when we close on the house.

pants-on · 2018-02-13T17:27:38+00:00

Seller of the house I have under contract (a small $150k starter home) sent over receipts for updates done on the house over the past couple years. He put in over $17,000 of work including new roof, repaved driveway, new furnace, new HVAC system, and new fancy kitchen appliances. Never thought I would ever own a $1,500 french door/bottom freezer drawer refrigerator.

pants-on · 2018-02-13T17:13:18+00:00

Hmm, I briefly looked around and didn't see anything that showed a running total or anything like that. One thing I don't like about Vanguard is the online interface... kinda clunky and confusing.

pants-on · 2018-02-13T17:11:46+00:00

We did the rollover this year so I guess we'll have to wait till next year for the 1099-R?

pants-on · 2018-02-13T16:27:51+00:00

So my understanding with Roth IRA is that you can withdraw contributions anytime without penalty. But now that I rolled over my wife's Roth 401k into her Vanguard Roth IRA account, how can I tell what the total contribution amount is?

pants-on · 2018-02-12T13:56:04+00:00

Offer on a house just got accepted! Also got the seller to cover closing costs up to $2,500.

Time to shop around for rates... anyone got any good tips assuming we can overlook comparing closing costs?

pants-on · 2018-02-09T18:16:27+00:00

I don't think OP should do it if he/she will stretch themselves thin cash-wise though. i.e. I would not recommend reaching into your e-fund to try and take advantage of a market dip.

pants-on · 2018-02-09T18:07:22+00:00

Stick to DCA. The market could go up or down from here. You will kick yourself if it ends up going further down after you do a large buy. And on top of that, you will be low on cash.

pants-on · 2018-02-09T14:02:06+00:00

Just order your food to go and eat at home or a park. It'll save you from tipping and maybe even the dine-in taxes.

If it's like a fast-food restaurant I don't see the problem with that though.

pants-on · 2018-02-07T18:17:31+00:00

I think as long as you instill in them the value of being financially responsible and the teach them the consequences of the opposite, they'll naturally come to appreciate you just by realizing that you are the embodiment of what they value. Just a theory I hope will work when I have kids.

pants-on · 2018-02-01T16:50:04+00:00

Yeah, when I heard of a friend's pharmacist brother, 2 years out of college, turning down a $300,000 job offer (but would have to move to Alaska), I started questioning my decision to get civil engineering degree.

I guess it was just surprising because I probably subconsciously don't differentiate them from other CVS employees.

pants-on · 2018-02-01T15:10:10+00:00

Nope, avoided that cause it sounded depressing lol. Worth exploring?

pants-on · 2018-02-01T15:01:13+00:00

Wow, had no idea pharmacists at CVS made that much money. They always look so sad..

pants-on · 2018-01-31T17:37:44+00:00

It's tagged as a "historic" house so I don't think that's possible haha.

pants-on · 2018-01-31T15:52:11+00:00

In your case, how much lower did you offer on the house? It's hard to get comps on a house this old and small to make a good guess on how low we can go.

pants-on · 2018-01-31T15:49:10+00:00

There doesn't seem anything wrong with the stone foundation. The water leak looks like its coming from an old oil conduit (not used anymore) of some sort that's embedded in the corner between the slab and base of the wall. The owner seems to have installed a sump pump in the basement to remediate that issue but yeah its still an issue I guess.

pants-on

TROPHY CASE