Let’s talk about personal finance

[EightBitNate]

Been meaning to make a general thread like this for a while. I don’t think one exists, and if it does it’s dead.

Should I be worried about this stock market stuff? Was literally pre-approved for a home a few weeks ago but I’m wondering if there’s any reason I should be concerned.

[james]

Rates have never been lower dude, load up on debt

[Mr. Gundam]

As long as you can afford it, a mortgage is the good kind of debt.

[EightBitNate]

Haha that’s the opposite reaction I received from the personal finance subreddit. They seem ultra conservative and frugal when it comes to big purchases.

I have about $15000 saved up for a home so I’m not really stressing, but all the sensationalist headlines made me think we were heading toward 2009 part 2.

[Mr. Gundam]

I bought my house at the height of the market in 2007 and I'm doing ok. Granted, I live in Seattle where real estate is fucking bonkers, but still. The big thing is to to be realistic, make sure you can afford whatever you buy and that you're ok with it. Ultimately it's your home and you should be happy living there more than seeing it as an investment vehicle. The people who hang out in that Reddit are probably super conservative about finances and would freak out over anything.

[EightBitNate]

I bought my house at the height of the market in 2007 and I'm doing ok. Granted, I live in Seattle where real estate is fucking bonkers, but still. The big thing is to to be realistic, make sure you can afford whatever you buy and that you're ok with it. Ultimately it's your home and you should be happy living there more than seeing it as an investment vehicle. The people who hang out in that Reddit are probably super conservative about finances and would freak out over anything.

Realistically I’ll only be paying slightly more than I am for rent, so it’s a real no-brainer for me.

[Mr. Gundam]

I bought my house at the height of the market in 2007 and I'm doing ok. Granted, I live in Seattle where real estate is fucking bonkers, but still. The big thing is to to be realistic, make sure you can afford whatever you buy and that you're ok with it. Ultimately it's your home and you should be happy living there more than seeing it as an investment vehicle. The people who hang out in that Reddit are probably super conservative about finances and would freak out over anything.

Realistically I’ll only be paying slightly more than I am for rent, so it’s a real no-brainer for me.

Big things to think about are:

1. Am I'm ok being stuck here?
2. Am I'm ok paying the monthly payments? Can I keep paying it for a period of time if I lose my job?
3. Am I'm gonna be ok if the value of my property drops? So many people get really hung up on this and freak the fuck out. Real estate is like the stock market, sometimes it drops, sometimes it surges upward. You just have to learn to live with it.

[james]

I bought my house at the height of the market in 2007 and I'm doing ok. Granted, I live in Seattle where real estate is fucking bonkers, but still. The big thing is to to be realistic, make sure you can afford whatever you buy and that you're ok with it. Ultimately it's your home and you should be happy living there more than seeing it as an investment vehicle. The people who hang out in that Reddit are probably super conservative about finances and would freak out over anything.

Realistically I’ll only be paying slightly more than I am for rent, so it’s a real no-brainer for me.

Eh, maintenance can be a bitch. Make sure that roof isnt about to need a replacement.

[Tripon]

Apply for a.couple of credit cards, use the card as you would use cash on daily budget things. Pay off balance at the of the month. Building up credit score allows you to eventually have low rates on bigger ticket items like a car loan or house mortgage.

[Mr. Gundam]

I bought my house at the height of the market in 2007 and I'm doing ok. Granted, I live in Seattle where real estate is fucking bonkers, but still. The big thing is to to be realistic, make sure you can afford whatever you buy and that you're ok with it. Ultimately it's your home and you should be happy living there more than seeing it as an investment vehicle. The people who hang out in that Reddit are probably super conservative about finances and would freak out over anything.

Realistically I’ll only be paying slightly more than I am for rent, so it’s a real no-brainer for me.

Eh, maintenance can be a bitch. Make sure that roof isnt about to need a replacement.

Definitely. Make sure you get an inspection.

Ah, the joys of home ownership. I actually like doing this stuff, but it always comes in clusters.

[nachobro]

as someone currently pricing some roof fixes, definitely get an inspection. in some states/with some lenders its required anyway. also figure out your property taxes and such too.

[Mr. Gundam]

as someone currently pricing some roof fixes, definitely get an inspection. in some states/with some lenders its required anyway

also figure out your property taxes and such too

Is it something you could do yourself? The only thing I've ever paid to have done on my place was having a new furnace installed and redone duct work in the basement.

[nachobro]

before you even talk to a realtor make a list of what you want from a home (x number of bd/br, if you want a big kitchen or backyard or whatever, good area for schools, stuff like that). that will make everyone's lives easier.

Is it something you could do yourself? The only thing I've ever paid to have done on my place was having a new furnace installed and redone duct work in the basement.

that's what i'm trying to figure out right now, got a guy coming today to take a look. noticed last week after a big rain that part of the carpet next to the wall was really wet and the pad was soaked. doesn't seem to be coming up from the ground so it might just be a patch job.

i've been doing a lot of the fixes myself on this place but i really hate roof tar so if it's not too much i'd rather just have someone else deal with that. the whole purpose of my current spot is to fix it up and then rent it out so i've learned a lot of home improvement things just from not wanting to pay to things done.

[Akala]

Without fail I believe home ownership is a scam at least once a year. When something expensive breaks.

[EightBitNate]

Haven’t come across a house I’d consider making an offer for yet, but yeah an inspection is definitely something I will get. And of course, taxes matter just as much as the price of the home.

Probably looked at 15 homes in person at this point. There’s a lot that come close to a good fit but nothing yet. I actually found a home on Zillow that was priced way lower than it had any right to be, looked gorgeous and was in a good spot. Immediately thought “this will be the one” in a way I had not before. Talk to my realtor about it, and it just gotten sold recently. I was devastated, but I hear these “perfect homes” come around pretty often, and I just have to be patient.

[nachobro]

going in with 15k already puts you on far better footing than i had when i got my first home. sounds like you're in a good place and you don't have a rush to get a new place so you're going in the best you can.

[EightBitNate]

going in with 15k already puts you on far better footing than i had when i got my first home. sounds like you're in a good place and you don't have a rush to get a new place so you're going in the best you can.

Yeah I’m absolutely not stressed (yet). More excited than anything.

[nachobro]

the stress really only hits at two critical points. first time is about 3 seconds after you sign the last document. the second is when something vital and expensive breaks.

[Rman]

Haha that’s the opposite reaction I received from the personal finance subreddit. They seem ultra conservative and frugal when it comes to big purchases.

I have about $15000 saved up for a home so I’m not really stressing, but all the sensationalist headlines made me think we were heading toward 2009 part 2.

They probably want you to save 20 percent to avoid PMI. 

Is that downpayment twenty percent? If so, that's a cheap-ass house lol. I'm jelly lol.

I'm not a home guy myself. Mostly because it doesn't fit my lifestyle and I hate home maintenance.  But if you want to lock in your living expenses, it's good.  Rent keeps going up all over the US.  We're at housing crisis levels of unaffordability. That probably what they mean.

[Mr. Gundam]

I don’t know why but I’m picturing a bunch of Dave Ramsey “credit cards are the devil!” weirdos.

[Nintex]

Been meaning to make a general thread like this for a while. I don’t think one exists, and if it does it’s dead.

Should I be worried about this stock market stuff? Was literally pre-approved for a home a few weeks ago but I’m wondering if there’s any reason I should be concerned.

Just put some comfort in the fact that the economic decisions by this administration are made based on the recommendations of a cocaine addicted drunk who didn't finish his economics degree.

[nachobro]

PMI isn't such a bad thing imo. I had it on my first house but I made double payments and got out of it pretty quickly. The thing to check on that front is with your lender. Some have a minimum amount of time you have to pay it and some also require a house inspection to get out of it even after you hit your 20%.

PMI payments were also tax deductible when I was paying it, not sure if that's still the case.

[BisMarckie]

Rates have never been lower dude, load up on debt

Load up on debt and then kill yourself when the rates go back up

[EightBitNate]

How do I invest in surgical face masks

[BisMarckie]

How do I invest in surgical face masks

Raid a store for medical supplies and sell that shit on amazon/ebay with a 1000% markup

[james]

My stock portfolio is 90% cruise companies, 5% apple and 5% nintendo what do I do

[EightBitNate]

alright so am I fucked for making an offer on a house before the recession effects the housing market?

[Mr Gilhaney]

Rates have never been lower dude, load up on debt

Banks here started doing negative interest rate mortgage. That cant go badly right. 

[EightBitNate]

Just live your life without trying to use a home as an investment vehicle.

spoiler (click to show/hide)

By the time you pay it off or sell, the economy will have recovered.

[close]

It’s not that. It’s the problem of buying a home now that would be $30k cheaper in 2 months.

[Occam]

Traditional logic: People have less money, buy fewer houses (=less demand), prices go down.

[OnlyRegret]

Traditional logic: People have less money, buy fewer houses (=less demand), prices go down.

thankfully I'm morally opposed to logic

[Occam]

wow thanks occam

Well, he answered his own question, I just confirmed it.
Ask questions with obvious answers, get obvious answers.

[EightBitNate]

I want someone to tell me that the housing market won’t react to the recession

[Occam]

The housing market won't react to the recession.

spoiler (click to show/hide)

The housing market will react to the recession.

[close]

[EightBitNate]

The housing market won't react to the recession.

spoiler (click to show/hide)

The housing market will react to the recession.

[close]

I think I’m too deep into this purchase to back out. Mortgage hasn’t been approved yet but we just had the inspection.

[nachobro]

you can back out after the inspection, usually within 7 days but it depends on your contract. there's a form letter you can fill out for the seller. rates are at record lows right now but they could keep dropping, either way its not a bad time to buy a house so if you really like this one just do it.

i bought my house when the economy tanked and the rates dipped more after but i still sold it for a good profit so if you're looking at it from that perspective it's almost certainly still a good investment unless we get to mad max time anytime soon.

[EightBitNate]

you can back out after the inspection, usually within 7 days but it depends on your contract. there's a form letter you can fill out for the seller. rates are at record lows right now but they could keep dropping, either way its not a bad time to buy a house so if you really like this one just do it.

i bought my house when the economy tanked and the rates dipped more after but i still sold it for a good profit so if you're looking at it from that perspective it's almost certainly still a good investment unless we get to mad max time anytime soon.

Thanks. I hope you’re right. The interested rate I got was close to 3% so I felt really good about that.

[Bebpo]

You're probably ok. My dad's in the same situation where he was pretty far into the deal for a commercial building, mortgage approved and all that and then this is all happening and the value is already less but he's locked in (plus a major tenant said they're leaving in the summer, so the building instantly lost 300k value and nothing he could do because it was too far in). He's holding it as a long term investment though so at a low interest rate on the mortgage he's fine with the recession dip that'll hit.

Doesn't seem like the end of the world. Just gotta stay there a while until the market picks back up.