Comments on: You Can Always Switch Where Your Money’s Going.

By: J. Money

J. Money — Wed, 01 May 2013 14:51:16 +0000

I hear ya on that. We can’t have our perfect worlds all the time, eh?

By: slinky

slinky — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 23:07:54 +0000

I change stuff up with my budget pretty regularly, but i still get stuck sometimes. Its usually related to trying to do too much. I wanted to rebuild my emergency fund, max out my roth, buy a lawn tractor, and do home renovations this year. Its not happening, and unfortunately, the least critical item is the Roth. Once i took that out, everything worked again. I’m hoping i can scrape together extra cash throughout the year and be able to contribute half the max, but well see. I just needed to let go and realize that i just bought a house, and its perfectly fine to make this a year of getting all that did set up.

By: J. Money

J. Money — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 21:46:07 +0000

In reply to Monroe on a Budget. Sounds awesome :) Congrats on making it happen!

By: Monroe on a Budget

Monroe on a Budget — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 11:33:47 +0000

When we bought our house in 2004, we did so with the intention of painting and minor cabinetry projects within two years, and a major renovation around years three to five.
But finances were tighter than we expected because of a layoff, and the even the inexpensive projects took years to complete. The big renovation (basement remodel) happened at year eight.
Now that we are done, the house was not only more pleasant in appearance, it was far more functional. It fits how we actually live and want to use our space. That’s a much more tangible return on investment than anything else we could have done with our money.

By: Mary Anne @ BillGuard

Mary Anne @ BillGuard — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 19:12:57 +0000

If your reader can pay down the mortgage to the point at which she no longer has to pay PMI, she’d be in a great situation. Now she has additional cash flow (because of a lower mortgage payment) which she can direct in any way she feels is prudent: towards making extra mortgage payments, towards investing, towards renovating her house, towards building an emergency fund, etc.

By: J. Money

J. Money — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 00:54:50 +0000

In reply to @pfinMario. yeah, the psychic/emotional value is an important one which a lot of people don't consider. sometimes for the best, but ultimately you gotta go with what makes you most comfortable :)

By: @pfinMario

@pfinMario — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 15:33:16 +0000

That makes sense; always point your money to where it has the highest effective ROI — which of course should include psychic value.

By: Shafi

Shafi — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 15:27:27 +0000

I suggest you pay down more to avoid paying PMI. Once you move in, you can always renovate when you get a chance and when you have saved the money for it. If it’s livable and I am sure it is, wait till you save to do the TLC.

By: J. Money

J. Money — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 12:11:15 +0000

Haha I hear that. Or better yet – an older house fresh off a reno!

By: Suzanne @ Financial Advisor Coach

Suzanne @ Financial Advisor Coach — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 23:53:30 +0000

We bought our house 15 years ago and it was in need of updating like you wouldn’t believe. Fortunately my husband is very handy so we did all the work ourselves. Sweat equity is great, but you still have to buy stuff – like faucets, cabinets, flooring, etc and it adds up. I don’t think I would ever buy an older house again because living through the renovation is a major pain. Next time, give me the brand new house with no work to do!