The Benefits of Home Ownership?

[lordxizor]

I'm four years into a 30 year.

Are you trying to reduce your payment or simply get rid of PMI?

Both, though it's only less because I've gotten rid of PMI. P&I is actually higher unless I extend back to 30 years. The plan is to put my monthly saving right back into the principle though to keep my monthly payments the same.

[TAC]

Unless you need the $165 a month for other expenses, I'd stay with whatever puts more money to Principle.

Have you considered going to a 20 yr?

In other words, I would never remortgage a 30 year loan, 4 years into it, with another 30 year loan.

[lordxizor]

Unless you need the $165 a month for other expenses, I'd stay with whatever puts more money to Principle.

Have you considered going to a 20 yr?

In other words, I would never remortgage a 30 year loan, 4 years into it, with another 30 year loan.

I need to ask about some other terms and run those numbers too. I'm probably going to annoy the crap out of the two guys I'm working with to get tons of different scenarios. Like I said before, I'm going to put my $165 a month savings right back into the mortgage which puts $60+ a month more into principle than the current mortgage.

[lordxizor]

I'm capable of doing all the math and spreadsheets to figure out the break even points of the different options. There are just so many options and I'm not sure if it's better to get to the break even point faster or to have better longer term (8+ years) savings.

[TAC]

I would go with whatever option allows you to put the most on principle, or less in interest. Be sure not to roll those closing costs into the mortgage.

[lordxizor]

I would go with whatever option allows you to put the most on principle, or less in interest. Be sure not to roll those closing costs into the mortgage.

That's my first thought too, however I pay $4000-ish more in closing costs to have $50 a month more go to principle. The break even point on that is a long way out.

[TAC]

I would go with whatever option allows you to put the most on principle, or less in interest. Be sure not to roll those closing costs into the mortgage.

That's my first thought too, however I pay $4000-ish more in closing costs to have $50 a month more go to principle. The break even point on that is a long way out.

That is a shit ton in closing costs!
Yeah, that's not worth it. But rolling that into the mortgage, you'll pay that a couple times over in interest.


Good luck, man!


We have financed a couple of times early on before we settled on our current mortgage.

[lordxizor]

It's all the points on buying down the interest rate. The higheat interest rate is less than $2000, lowest is $6000.

[cramx3]

Can't you get the lender to drop the PMI once you get 20% ownership?  Or is that you think your home value has gone up enough to meet the 20% but you aren't there based on your current loan and hence the refinance? 

[King Postwhore]

As a matter of fact,  I can get rid of my PMI this month.   Suuuuweeeettt!!

[TAC]

The only thing better than getting rid of PMI is getting rid of PMS.

[King Postwhore]

Change of life may be worse.

[ReaperKK]

Can't you get the lender to drop the PMI once you get 20% ownership?  Or is that you think your home value has gone up enough to meet the 20% but you aren't there based on your current loan and hence the refinance? 

Correct, once the house has gained enough equity to hit the 20% mark or you've paid off roughly 20% PMI drops.

[Chino]

Can't you get the lender to drop the PMI once you get 20% ownership?  Or is that you think your home value has gone up enough to meet the 20% but you aren't there based on your current loan and hence the refinance? 

Correct, once the house has gained enough equity to hit the 20% mark or you've paid off roughly 20% PMI drops.

Can confirm. I just tried to do this last week. At 20% you can apply for the removal of it, and at 22% the bank is by law (at least in CT) required to do away with it automatically. I'm about $5400 on my principle shy of getting rid of my PMI payment ($148 a month). I was hoping the bank would play ball, but understandably they wouldn't budge.

[lordxizor]

Can't you get the lender to drop the PMI once you get 20% ownership?  Or is that you think your home value has gone up enough to meet the 20% but you aren't there based on your current loan and hence the refinance? 

FHA loan. The PMI is there forever.

[gmillerdrake]

Well....the gmillerdrake's are going Solar! Just had our final consult and went ahead and pulled the trigger. Gonna take advantage of the 30% Federal tax credit while it lasts....and it's going to actually lower our electric bill by about $60 a month.

Only 'bummer' about it that we were hung up on for a bit is that we are taking another loan out for $24k....BUT....after the 30% tax credit gets applied to that it'll be a bit lower. I'm looking at it like I just bought an expensive car. We're gonna make all efforts to pay it off at a good clip and not the 20 year loan term.

We'd been considering it for some time now and just figured 'why not'? Near every review we've read has been positive and the people we know personally have had good experiences, so....with this being the direction things are moving why not jump on board?

[cramx3]

Your roof is what everyone says.  I put up solar a few years ago, had no issues so far.  Its cheaper and better for the world.  I'm not a fan of the utility companies either so this is a good f you to them too.  I didn't buy mine though, I have a lease agreement type of deal for 20 years.  I think it's better long term to just buy them and eventually turn the profit after those 20 years but I was/am happy to just lower my bills monthly while being green. 

[ReaperKK]

Nice! We had a solar consultation at our house and it doesnt make sense for us at the moment. We have a newer home so it's really well insulated which translates to $90 a month for electric in july and August and significantly less for the rest of the year and I keep my thermostat at 66 all year.

[Harmony]

I thought about putting this in the 'things that piss me off today' thread, but I know it shouldn't come as a huge surprise.  Our furnace crapped out today.  It's exactly 20 years old, so not wholly unexpected.  The option is to repair the mother board for 1200 vs. 6000 for a whole new furnace.  Ouch.  But we are lucky.  It won't break us.  I reminded my family that for a lot of folks, this would mean not having Christmas at all, so we should remain thankful.

So now I need some advice.  We are planning some fairly major renovations over the next 1-2 years.  We are essentially remodeling the kitchen/family room first and then the master bedroom/bathroom.  The master bedroom is always the coldest room in winter and the hottest room in summer.  There are obviously major needs with regard to weatherizing that part of the house and we aren't sure what all that will entail yet.

So now that we are having to decide between repairing an old furnace or replacing it entirely, is it a good idea to repair now and wait for the major renovations to do the new furnace?  I'm just thinking the weatherizing portion of the remodel may turn up something needed in terms of heating/cooling efficiency that may impact a new unit and the last thing I want to do is shell out 6K now only to be told in 2 years we need a different furnace anyway.

Am I over-thinking this?  I know nothing about HVAC - can you tell?   

Thanks in advance for any advice! 

[Grappler]

I thought about putting this in the 'things that piss me off today' thread, but I know it shouldn't come as a huge surprise.  Our furnace crapped out today.  It's exactly 20 years old, so not wholly unexpected.  The option is to repair the mother board for 1200 vs. 6000 for a whole new furnace.  Ouch.  But we are lucky.  It won't break us.  I reminded my family that for a lot of folks, this would mean not having Christmas at all, so we should remain thankful.

So now I need some advice.  We are planning some fairly major renovations over the next 1-2 years.  We are essentially remodeling the kitchen/family room first and then the master bedroom/bathroom.  The master bedroom is always the coldest room in winter and the hottest room in summer.  There are obviously major needs with regard to weatherizing that part of the house and we aren't sure what all that will entail yet.

So now that we are having to decide between repairing an old furnace or replacing it entirely, is it a good idea to repair now and wait for the major renovations to do the new furnace?  I'm just thinking the weatherizing portion of the remodel may turn up something needed in terms of heating/cooling efficiency that may impact a new unit and the last thing I want to do is shell out 6K now only to be told in 2 years we need a different furnace anyway.

Am I over-thinking this?  I know nothing about HVAC - can you tell?   

Thanks in advance for any advice!

If it's a two story, you could add a second (maybe smaller) furnace and separate thermostat to heat that story separately.  Or there are also small fans available that are installed in the ductwork to help push the air farther.  That type of a fan actually solved a heating issue with a cold room in my in-law's house. 

[lordxizor]

For what it's worth, when our AC went out a couple years ago, we choose to replace both that and the furnace rather than paying the $3000+ repair bill. Both were pushing 30 years old though. $1200 isn't too bad for your repairs, but at that age the thing can basically crap out at any time.

[Stadler]

Do you have an HVAC guy you trust?   Without seeing the layout or knowing what your renovations would be, I feel like you can perhaps have your cake and eat it too.

If the footprint of the house isn't likely going to change with your renovations there should be no problem with the replacement of the furnace unit itself.  If the footprint changes, then you might have issues with capacity and where the "lines" (vents/pipes/returns) are run.  The line location is a renovation problem not a furnace problem, unless there is a chance you will move the furnace too (or need a second unit). But even then, if you already feel you have a capacity problem (because of that current room not getting enough heat/air) you may have a capacity problem anyway, and so whatever upgrade you do now can, with a little foresight, cover your renovation plans.

A reputable HVAC person ought to be able to meet with you for half an hour and give you reasonable advice.  I know for me, unless my renovation plans were WILDLY variable, I wouldn't let the future renovation drive my decision to REPLACE the furnace, only what I replace it with.   Does that make sense?

[Harmony]

Yes, it makes sense.  Thanks Stadler, lordxizor, and Grappler.  FTR, we do have a 2 story but the master is on the main floor.  We will not be making renovations that increase the square footage of the home in any way.  I like our HVAC company but they are very clear, "We aren't trying to sell you anything but here are your options."  Yeah, right...

So we went about a week without a furnace.  We decided to do the repair and hope for the best.  The guy who came out to do the repair, found some corrosion on some line and after taking care of that, all seemed well. 

Well...for a few minutes.  Just long enough for us to get our hopes up.  Then it stopped again and now there is some fan that is over-heating which is causing the automatic shut off to trigger.  Of course, this makes the repairs less likely to be successful.  So a new furnace it is!  Oh and a new thermostat and of course, a new AC unit.

Ah yes, the benefits of home ownership indeed.   

[lordxizor]

That sucks. Hope you had some cash laying around or at least got good terms on financing. At least you get to enjoy a warm house again!

[max_security]

I have been in the HVAC industry since 1986. I do commercial control work now but I started in residential and am blessed to have started when residential work was still a craft . There are so many retrofit universal control boards on the market today I'd be surprised if this couldn't be fixed for less than 500 but I'm not sure exactly what you have. 

But it's probably time for the 20 year old furnace to go if you can swing it. And you want one that uses outside air for combustion ( 90+ percent efficiency if this is gas ). The AC may be just as old , if it is get him to price that too ( or get a future replacement rough number ). It's better to do these replacements on your terms , but no heat in December does not leave you in a good position for negotiation or selection.

The cold bedroom is most likely due to poor duct sizing and or routing. The air distribution systems take the biggest hit from bean counters and the greed heads man , yet it is the most critical portion of ac and warm air systems. If the new furnace has a variable speed fan motor it may help with this.

Get a contractor whom you feel shows intelligence and perhaps some passion for their work ( Stadler mentioned ). The best brand to go with is simply the one he works works with . Different areas offer better support from brand to brand ( Trane in my area may be great but maybe not so much somewhere else ) .

Edit : if you haven''t pulled the trigger on anything yet check these guys out , click on find a contractor. Most of these are specifically hot water and steam but some do air systems or will point you to the right people.   

https://heatinghelp.com/

[Chino]

I've been wanting to redo my patio for a while now and got started on it this past Saturday. The gazebo I had was too small to fit my smokers and grill collection as well as guests. This larger setup should remedy that some. I was hoping to knock it out in a day, but we were a ladder short and ran out of daylight before getting the roof up.

To the left you can see it's just a lot of decorative rock on the ground. I have no idea why the previous owner did that instead of just using the same slate that the rest of the patio is made from, but I'm going to do away with that. It's a pain in the ass when trying to clean in the fall, so I plan on expanding the slate as well. I know the ideal thing to do would have been to put the new slate down before the gazebo, but I had to make moves. I've had my eye on this gazebo for a while on Costco's website, but they had it in store for $400 less than online (assuming that's because of shipping), so I pulled the trigger.

 

[ReaperKK]

Can't wait to see the final project. I've been getting some stuff around the house done as well. I think this weekend I'm going to tackle putting in irrigation.

[gmillerdrake]

Lookin' good Brian! It's always worth it once you complete something like this. Can't wait to see how it turns out.

[millahh]

Benefits of home ownership... Two years ago right now, we were in a pretty but kind of claustrophobic apartment in downtown Newark, now we are in a big house out in the suburbs with an unusually large yard.  I cannot imagine spending three months on lockdown in that apartment, not really having anywhere to run or exercise.

[cramx3]

It certainly is nice to have a home and not an apartment in these times.  I couldn't imagine being cramped and plus with some big complexes, it's still kind of hard to keep any social distance.  Meanwhile I have my workout area in my basement, two big screen/nice couch set ups, my office with my computer and green screen, a patio with grill and backyard, all to just use as needed.  Plus a spare bedroom that has turned into my cats second bedroom.

[Chino]

Making some moves this week at the homestead.

Finally finished getting my new gazebo up. Covid really fucked up putting this together. It took four of us (big dudes) to get the roof up and in place. It was tricky because of the proximity to my house. It made it hard to work on one side.



I've got a crew coming in on Tuesday and Wednesday and getting $8k worth of tree removal done. Can't freaking wait for that. I'm taking down three monster oaks that are all 50' or taller and a black birch. They're taking 4 scrawny pines and a huge limb off a neighboring oak as well. I couldn't do all the trees I wanted to unfortunately. That would have been upwards of $16K. But this is a good start. My house and property will get more sun now, so that mildew shit will stop building up on my siding (see in pic above).

I'm hoping to have a new roof by the end of summer. We'll see.

[jingle.boy]

mrs.jingle and I have been doing a crap-ton of yardwork for the past few weeks - relocating some plants, planting some new/extras, and (as I've mentioned in a couple other threads already), hauled about 3-4 yards of river rock (to top up the stone surrounding our pool patio) and crushed stone (to cover our gardens.  Will try to fire up some before/after pics when all is said and done.  Not huge changes, but it gives us a nicer/cleaner look.

[Stadler]

Chino, that looks sweet.   I spent most of Saturday washing my wife's old house (long story) because the mildew/mold/moss/whatever builds up so fast.  That house is surrounded by 50 to 75 foot pine trees, so all the sun is limited to either the back yard or a sliver of time that doesn't amount to much.  It was a lot of work.   We're going to start selectively removing trees as well.  I want to do it myself, but the wife wants no part of that (I know I can't take down a 75 foot pine tree, but those are likely going to stay; I'm talking about the smaller stuff closer to the house).   

[eric42434224]

This is my most recent project.  It is just outside my screened in pool area.  I used cedar and stained it with Timber Oil.  I ran hot/cold water from the house, and laid down travertine stone pavers (same as pool deck area).  Built in some LED lights that are under the shelf, and go on at dusk.  Dug down 3 feet for drainage and filled with gravel.  Still going to build in some covered shelves and storage, and a bench when I have time.  Also have a waterproof bluetooth speaker for tunes .  Didnt use any plans....just built from scratch and fixed my screw-ups as I went along.  A couple posts twisted which made for sme frustrating days....but SOOOO worth it to take showers outside.  My wife and kids use this shower more than our indoor showers!

[Chino]

Siiick

That came out awesome