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Echo what most have said here about traveling 50-100% of the time. I did it for years in my old job (I made the airlines top tier by mid March due to biz class international travel) but eentually it becomes VERY VERY stale. THe five star hotels, fancy dinners, subsidized life becomes the 'norm' and ...

All Thank you for your advice again. If I offended anyone with my choice of words or came across as whining when describing our income or the emotion we feel about our month to month spend, my humble apologies; not my intention AT ALL. We never forget how fortunate we are, and are trying to instill ...

I don't think you understand what "living paycheck to paycheck" means. Momar - I guess I mean we feel like we are always in a pinch. Which I agree is crazy given what we save... hopefully that makes sense! Not sure it does even in my head. There's nothing obvious here to indicate the fina...

All Thanks very much for the counsel. I agree we save a lot/overpay the mortgage - I guess we are trying to be as financially responsible as possible, but do need to balance that. Mainly I wanted to see that we were not saving too little, or in the wrong places. The rental home I agree is not ideal;...

momar wrote:I don't think you understand what "living paycheck to paycheck" means.

Momar - I guess I mean we feel like we are always in a pinch. Which I agree is crazy given what we save... hopefully that makes sense! Not sure it does even in my head.

If your mortgage interest rate is reasonable, I would stop paying extra on the mortgage if you want to spend more money on eating out, cars, vacations, and things like that. Mortgage rate is 3.5% on a 30 year fixed. I agree... less overpayments would be good; but trying to balance that with being d...

hand wrote:Two pieces missing from this puzzle:
1) What are your annual expenses beyond the $100k in savings you identified
2) What debt do you have other than the mortgage (credit cards, car loans etc.)

I have updated my first thread - thank you for the insight.

Experts So, I wanted to give a snapshot of our finances and situation and see if we are doing anything wrong and what we are doing right. As a couple we both have professional jobs but still feel like we are living paycheck to paycheck despite having decent income. Let me know if you need more infor...

All, We have just purchased a new home and have a 30 year mortgage on it. We would like to pay it off in 10-15 years prior to hitting 50. However having a new job, I would like to keep the overpayment to one side (I am somewhat cautious) and gradually put the money in - say save 24 months worth and ...

Thanks all.... Yes, we had one payment we missed when we moved (Argghhh) for $60 which is now paid off. We had told the retail store we had moved but somehow it did not update on their system but they have refunded all of the fees/interest. Is there anything else I can do?

Any thoughts on my question? Thank you all in advance...

Hey all Thanks to many of you - we have decided on a 30 year fixed jumbo as it gives us some flex in our budget. I just ran a credit score for myself and my wife, and our scores are 770 and 708 respectively. Hers was 'good' but there was one delinquent balance statement of $60 from Jan 2013 which we...

Not Blackstone, but likely little room to improve if PenFed will be able to write a 3.5% Jumbo, unless you absolutely need the improved cash flow in a couple years and are willing to pay extra for the benefit. Be aware, folks are having difficulty getting PenFed to close on time. Not a big deal for...

Also consider getting two loans rather than one. A 30 year conforming loan + an add on ARM. In some situations this works out better. Blackstone, can you explain this further? All - thanks so much for the guidance! I really appreciate it! This approach yields the following benefits: 1) A big portio...

blackstone wrote:Also consider getting two loans rather than one. A 30 year conforming loan + an add on ARM. In some situations this works out better.

Blackstone, can you explain this further?

All - thanks so much for the guidance! I really appreciate it!

All,

We are purchasing a home and are in need of jumbo mortgage loan. We have our 20% down, but wanted recommendations from the wiser folks here on either recommended banks/brokers.

Thanks
DP

I think you are ready to buy the house. Things will probably be a little tighter than you expect but based on the fact that you have a good emergency fund and your listed expenses include several things that I would not classify as true expenses, i.e. they could be suspended in a pinch. Plus you ha...

is the $3400 mortgage what you'd have on the old place, or what you're paying on a current place? If not, what are you paying on the current place? Thanks all - keep the thoughts coming. The $3400 will be the amount on the new place based on our mortgage projections on our pre-approval. The house i...

$13,500 take home after 401k contributions? If so, the math at least adds up to suggest you could swing it. Unless you're really good with calculating your expenses, it will be tighter than you think. Yep that is our take home after 401k contributions of $16,500 each. Other things to consider: Who ...

All, my wife and I (both 35) are looking to purchasing a home for $700k and already have a down payment of $140k saved. I want to know what the experts think in terms of affordability, would you do it and any risks you foresee. Income Combined post tax Income: $13,500 per month (this is take home pa...

We used the Dave Ramsay Endorsed Local Providers and phone interviewed the three we were given. 2 of the 3 were great, one was just good. Might be worth a shot and no cost to you

Thank you all - great responses. I appreciate it.

The builder has indicated the specifications, brands and materials etc will be in the contract.

Thanks CaliJim - some great points for us to consider to lowering our risk.

Danger danger will Robinson. I've done the custom built home thing twice. Once with construction financing, 2nd time with my own money, so I have some, not a lot, of experience. I'll be straight up with you. You sound green - new - at this. So I'm thinking you are in a high risk situation. I'm goin...

All My partner and I are looking to build a home and have found a builder etc etc. The loan amount for the home would be for $500k and we have a down payment for $100k. We are trying to work out a few final options etc. and wanted to get opinions from the wiser folks here on our situation. The build...

Ours run around $1200 per kid per month . Flip side, is quality day care even for a 6 month old is very obvious in a child based on my experience. As a 26 yo childless male I literally just choked on my coffee. LOL, $1200 is cheap as our child is almost in preK. A 6 month old costs $1600. As others...

1. Our employer provides no discount to any daycares - though as above we contribute the full $5k to our FSA. 2. No flexibility on price if they go one day or five. Ours run around $1200 per kid per month. Flip side, is quality day care even for a 6 month old is very obvious in a child based on my e...

Preparing the house for sale is essential, there are many good guides out there on de-cluttering and removing things that might distract potential buyers from the high points of your house. Agree with this 100% - we de-cluttered, de-personalized quite a bit without making the house sterile and ensu...

I recently did the Dave Ramsay ELP thing - in the end listed using a Flat Fee MLS service for $500 plus 0.003% of the sale price (e.g $300 per $100k). I have emailed a flyer to all the neigbouring buy side agents and have had 4 viewings in the first week. Whether it sells, who knows - but thought I'...

Thanks all for your insights so far

All, We are in the process of wanting to list our home for sale. We have interviewed about 5 realtors (3 of which were from the Dave Ramsey ELP Program) and two were referrals and essentially got the impression that one is no better than the other and that each wants to list our home for as cheap as...

Thanks all....

Just a few to start off with: Access to utilities and water. Existence of restrictive covenants, deed restrictions, easements (including negative easements) etc. Topography of the land (grading of the land, reasonable building site, etc). Geology of the land (any possbility of mineral or oil and ga...

All As in another thread, we are thinking of buying land to build a new home. The plot previously had a home on it which has been demo'd now. Having brought homes previously, but not land are there specific considerations or stipulations we should consider as part of any offer or going forward? Than...

32% but that includes 401k, iras and mortgage overpayment as it was going into our stock portfolio until this year.

All, thank you for the continued advice and counsel. We are both currently very active parents in both of our kids school albeit given their age it is not as intense as an older child. The cost of a mid tier private school for both children combined is $47k, and we have visits coming up with a numbe...

Agree, it's a tough decision. We are touring both private an public schools do will know more in a month or so. Just thought I would get the Bogles to weigh in with your wisdom. We want to do what's a good fit for our kids to help them succeed, keep in mind we have a 4 year old and 2 year old. Regards

All So we thinking of re-location within our city for better schools vs paying for private school fees (estimated at $47,000 for two kids). We are both approx. 35 years old. Our options would be to sell our home and either buy a home and renovate it or buy land and build on it. Existing homes withou...

All, My wife has recently rolled over her former employer's 401k account to Vanguard. She has about $80,000k in a money market fund for now, and we are looking for advice for funds to invest in. She is approx. 35 years old and has only two other retirements accounts in addition to above. 1. New empl...

Does preschool cost 55k? I don't think Preschool and kindergarten are critical to be in the "top ranked" school systems in your state. We're talking coloring and finger painting here... A good preschool and kindergarten will do much more than coloring and finger painting. My children were...

TRC wrote:Does preschool cost 55k?

I don't think Preschool and kindergarten are critical to be in the "top ranked" school systems in your state. We're talking coloring and finger painting here...

TRC - $55k was based on two kids, before and after care and summer programs as we both work.

All Thanks for the information - its been a huge help. Our current plan of attack is the following: - Visit the schools on our shortlist - Sell our home (either through Craigslist or Flat Fee MLS in early 2012 perhaps sooner post school visits) - Rent a home in the school district we are interested ...

Hey all I agree on the $650k price point. The school district is for some great Fulton County schools which keeps us near the north 285 area rather than Cobb which for us is a much longer commute in - but we may revisit too to be fair. Ref: the realtor component, I agree its probably something to di...

GTaylor - thanks for the advice. Excellent... are you also from Atlanta? What percentage are buyer's broker paid in GA as an estimate? All - Which Flat Free service do people recommend? No, but my mom lives there so I'm vaguely familiar with some parts. I'm more familiar with Massachusetts real est...

All I am really liking the banter on this thread and all the views and opinions. The new location is near in town but just outside of 285. I agree house prices aren't going anywhere fast so thought perhaps sell my home on Craigslist prior to doing a Sell ByOwner via MLS and then agree try and rent ...

All I am really liking the banter on this thread and all the views and opinions. The new location is near in town but just outside of 285. I agree house prices aren't going anywhere fast so thought perhaps sell my home on Craigslist prior to doing a Sell ByOwner via MLS and then agree try and rent f...

My wife and I work so home school is not an issue.

Thanks all your guidance so far has been great. The new location feeds into different middle and high schools hence the desire to move as the new district is a lot better. Agree property taxes may rise... Does anyone have experience if banks will accept offers on bank owned homes with conditions suc...

Krants

Thanks for yor thoughts. I have never been through the process of buying a foreclosure or short sale. Do I need to sell my current home before buying one or can you put on the contract that closing will only occur after I have sold my existing home?

Thanks

All My wife and I have a home which was bought for around $500k about 5 years ago and think it is valued at around $450k now - located in GA. We now have a 3 year old and 1 year old and looking to move for better school rather than paying $55+k for private schools. The location of the new area would...