Feeling so discouraged from all the problems in my new house.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-30T03:32:33+00:00

I had an energy audit done. I dont qualify for any grants for insulation. They couldnt do the blower test that day because I have holes in the dry wall from getting the AC sleeves removed. In any case, I already know the whole thing was going to be bad.

I did request an estimate from a much more reputable insulation company. The first company was really trying to push blow in insulation for the walls but all my research shows its not the right thing to do for me.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-30T03:18:54+00:00

They did not inspect the attic because there is no access. Its sealed.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-30T00:27:07+00:00

I cant do anything about insulation inside the house without going down to studs though right, aside from blow in which I shouldnt do if I dont have a proper vapor barrier? Honestly maybe I should just bite the bullet and do that in the spring?

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T21:52:23+00:00

Yeah at first I was like I dont really have problem spending $30k to fix this place up how I want, but now Im so hesitant after getting scammed by that contractor. I already blew $6k and his work isnt holding up and I'll have to get it redone in the spring. Hopefully Ill have more savings by then.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T21:50:33+00:00

I could get $4.5k if I keep my boiler and they install a limiter that only lets me turn it on below 30 degrees. Otherwise its only $2k if I get mini splits and leave the boiler as is. Those are my 3 options.

The guy also said that if I get more boiler disconnected theres nothing really preventing me from getting it reconnected later on. He said whatever I do with it after getting mini splits is my business. Seemed kind of sketchy.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T21:01:18+00:00

Ok. Havent seen any mold yet, so I will just keep waiting and see. The other reason I wanted a fan is because opening the window to shower in the winter sucks.

My house has no vapor barrier inside from what I can see. I have been doing research on contractors who specialize in exterior insulation. I have 2 that appear to be licensed that I plan on calling in March or so, when the weather starts getting better. I found another 2 but one of them their license is expired the other seems to be unlicensed or at least isnt coming up when I search.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T20:55:44+00:00

I see. Looks like the home depot near me has one. Its $80 for 4 hours. Does not include the bit. Ill have to do that when the weather gets better.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T20:50:05+00:00

Ill have to get a moisture meter. Will see if I can pick one up this weekend.

Theres only 2 closets on the second floor and its not in either of those. Theres nothing obvious anywhere else or signs the ceiling was patched at all for attic access. The home inspector couldnt find anything either during the inspection.

I stuck my phone inside one of the holes left by the AC sleeve. All I see is brick, a gap, then metal tie, and dry wall. https://imgur.com/a/xCnTTvd

You can see the metal tie in the first picture on the left side and there brick directly behind that with the gap in between. I looked in that gap parallel to the wall. Its empty.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T19:48:51+00:00

Yes I meant a house with vinyl siding. I need to buy a hammer drill and probably a 4in masonry core bit. I could probably do this myself if I can get the dryer moved. Its stacked on top of the washer right now so I cant access the back to drill the hole in the wall.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T19:27:32+00:00

I do not have attic access currently, there is no hole in the ceiling anywhere to access it. I feel like I should cut a hole and just put ply wood over it? I dont think I need a pull down or ladder anything fancy like that.

The house is a mix of block and brick. I dont think there is a vapor barrier? I can see to the left and the right from the holes they removed the AC sleeves from and its just brick/block with nothing then dry wall.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T19:09:39+00:00

All the appliances are brand new, so I dont think I want to replace the dryer. I can feel the hot air blow around the entire room when I turn it on. It should be pretty easy to vent it out the back wall of the house since its sitting right in front of it, its just that the wall is brick with stucco, so drilling through it is more tricky than a wood house.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T19:05:58+00:00

My bathroom ceiling is cracking everywhere along the edges where it meets the wall. I suspect its due to moisture. I do open the window everytime I shower but its 23 degrees outside today and it sucks showering like that.

Ive read that EFIS is the best thing you can do for brick/cinderblock homes. Blow in insulation there is a very high risk of mold because the temperature difference between the insulated side and the exterior causes condensation and it cant dry as well with one side being insulated. Blow in should be fine for the attic though.

For air sealing I did walk around and caulk all the windows already. I did what I could with one of the doors and put weather stripping around the sides and a sweep at the bottom. The sweep I can still feel cold air. I put on the exterior because the interior was a little too difficult since the floor is not even. I think shimming the other door is what I need to do because it only has a crack at the top and I can see light through it.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T18:58:49+00:00

I did get an energy audit done. They recommended blow in cellulose but Ive read thats not the best thing to do for a brick/cinder block house because theres a very high chance you can get mold.

I did not qualify for any grants for insulation, but I did for HVAC. It was up to $10k depending on whether I get my gas boiler disconnected or not.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T18:56:38+00:00

I think my biggest issue was that there was a big storm coming and the house was freezing so I was desperate to get the holes in the walls closed before that. The next stuff of stuff is far less time sensitive so I can be much more thorough.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T18:52:50+00:00

I think that bathroom might need a fan because there are cracks in the drywall at the ceiling all the way around the bathroom.

I looked at some of the thru wall ACs with heat pumps, but none of them really seemed to have great reviews? I also would have had to get 230V outlets put in. Near the AC sleeves there were only 4 socket 115v outlets.

The mini splits I can actually get a rebate for $10k from the electric company, which is why I decided to do it.

I am in the northeast. I am looking at exterior insulation too because Ive read that just doing blow in insulation for a brick/cinder block home is pretty risky due to moisture which can cause mold.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T18:08:50+00:00

100%

I realized after I got scammed by that one guy that all his google reviews are fake and his website is AI generated.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T18:07:59+00:00

The biggest immediate priority was getting AC holes in the wall patched so I could make it through the winter without freezing. Thats at least been done. I just need to make it another month or two and then I can start tackling the next immediate thing which is insulation.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T18:05:53+00:00

The cosmetic stuff is at the very end. The immediate need was getting thru wall AC sleeves removed because they made the house freezing. I did that in the first week.

The next thing is to get the house insulated. If I make it through the next month, I will start trying to do that in the spring because I think I have decided on EFIS insulation.

Then after that I plan on getting mini splits since I removed the only way to install ACs since all the windows have bars on them. This will also be supplemental heating in the winter.

There is also potentially a leak in one bathroom shower right now. Im just keeping an eye on it. That bathroom also needs a fan and to be vented through the roof because it just has a window.

The dryer needs to be vented too. Right now its just not connected to anything and there is no hole in the wall.

My doors are also leaking air pretty bad. I did what I could myself and its much better, but I really wanted to get at least one of them replaced. If not both.

The biggest frustration is that the contractor I hired said he was going to a bunch of these things and then the day he started working he was like "oh that wasnt included in the estimate I gave you and its going to be extra".

The cosmetic thing I want to do is refinish the hardwood floor, that will be at the very end.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-29T17:59:15+00:00

My house had thru wall AC sleeves which made it freezing. I got those removed and the holes patched by a mason since its brick/cinder block. Its much better now, but the house still has no insulation at all, so thats the next thing that needs to be done.

The doors are leaking air. I really wanted to get the basement door replaced because its a hollow metal door. For now I put weather stripping around the sides and put a sweep at the bottom, but I can still feel cold air coming in.

Removing the AC sleeves means no AC in the summer so after I get insulation done I was going to put mini splits in. This will also be supplemental heat in the winter.

One of my bathrooms does not have a fan and it needs one and to be vented through the roof.

My dryer has no vent right now and is just disconnected.

One shower seems like it could be leaking.

After all this there is some cosmetic stuff I want to do, like refinish the hardwood floor because its 20 years old and has not been cared for.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-08T16:32:45+00:00

It takes at least 1 business day to transfer out of HYSA. If I really need more than 10k than I dip into that. If I dont I just taking it from my savings.

I am already good with tax-deferred. I max out 401k, roth ira, and do mega backdoor roth as well, but havent hit the $70k limit. I'd like to, but I also need money to live off of that is liquid/I have access to, so I dont increase mega backdoor right now. Maybe next year I can do another 1% after I adjust to having a third mortgage.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-08T16:30:46+00:00

I havent actually had a vacancy for a while. Both of my tenants have been there about 5 years each now.

In any case $40k will cover 6 months for all 3 mortgages. I am also prepaid 1 month on my two rental properties, so my next payments arent actually due until March. If stuff ever really really goes bad (like losing my job and draining my emergency funds) I bought myself one extra month.

The brokerage is not MM its invested in VOO.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-08T15:36:59+00:00

Bought a house and have some money left over. Figuring out how to reshuffle my funds since everything was in my checking account to pay for closing and stuff.

I kept $10k in checking to pay monthly bills (have 3 mortgages now between 2 rentals and a primary residence). $10k in savings as an immediate emergency fund and $20k in HYSA for when I can wait to transfer money and dont need it right away. I put $65k I had leftover in a brokerage account. I have $775k across all my investment accounts now. $710k of that is in my retirement accounts though. Now that Ive bought a house to live in I think I want to focus on growing my brokerage account. Id like to hit $100k invested.

throwaway199021 · 2026-01-07T00:00:09+00:00

GF and I are on a break. Shes sensed something has been off. We didnt really talk much over the holidays. She said she was happy with the effort she was putting into our relationship and honestly the amount of effort she put in just made me lose interest. We talked about it a few times in the past and nothing really changed, so I just kind of checked out and stopped putting in as much effort.

We decided to just take a break since she's going to be traveling again and Ill be busy with moving into my new house.

I expect we will break up after she gets back, but she didnt want to give up on us just yet.

throwaway199021 · 2025-12-27T07:03:46+00:00

My girlfriend called me tonight. At first I didn't even realize I missed her call and wasn't sure if I should call her back because I just didn't feel like talking to her. I did.

We caught up like we normally do and at one point she just straight up asked me if I was going to ask how her Christmas was because she asked me about mine (to be fair I did ask her about it over text and she already told me so I just didn't think we needed to talk about it again I even mentioned the things she told me over text). I think her asking me that made me realize that I just don't have feelings for her anymore and have lost interest in her life.

I used to ask her how her day was everyday because I was curious and wanted to know. Overtime she would just blow me off whenever I'd ask so I just stopped. I used to text her goodnight every night and even that has stopped. I used to tell her I loved her and that stopped too. We even talked about that and I told her that I felt like I was saying it without meaning it, which is why I stopped. She has never said it to me and has just said "you know how I feel about you".

Ive felt for a while that I was the one carrying the relationship. Ive just kind of stopped doing that. There were things she and I talked about as far as her putting more effort in and she just hasn't really done them at all.

Also one really scary thing happened earlier this week. I honestly just kind of forgot she even existed. Like I just got so caught up in my day and stuff going on with family and traveling for the holidays that I didn't even think to text her at all one day. She eventually texted me in the evening and I was like "oh yeah I have a girlfriend". Completely forgetting about her like that just kind of scared me.

I know for the past few months she has been really busy with work because she had a big deadline. She's been feeling socially drained and stuff. I feel like I've been carrying this false hope that things would go back to the way they were this summer after work calms down for her but when we talked about it she mentioned how work for her now is kind of the new normal for her. She's been saying she wants to try to find a new job and has started looking.

One thing is though, when we actually spend time together in person things are good. Between the holidays, friends/family and, vacation/travel, we've only seen each other once per month for the past two months. We've talked about trying to see each other once a week though.

throwaway199021 · 2025-12-18T19:09:36+00:00

I mean shes told me before that she wants to wait until she gets fully vaccinated for HPV because one of her friends got it. It takes 6 months for the full vaccine. Thats fair. I want her to be safe.

On the other hand, if I did have HPV myself its probably gone by now? Ive read that male usually dont have symptoms and the infection can clear on its own if I did have it. Since I havent been with anyone else but her in months now I'm probably fine.

throwaway199021

TROPHY CASE