Jan
15
Realtor.com introduces new iPhone app
January 15, 2010 | Leave a Comment
Realtor.com has introduced a cool new iPhone app. And its free. This free iPhone app is called Home Search and uses GPS to produce a map of houses for sale near you. You can refine the map based on distance, type of house, price range and other criteria. It will also display results of your [...]
Dec
17
Best Investments in a Depression
December 17, 2008 | 8 Comments
A financial apocalypse descends on the US and the world. Stock Market returns are terrible. Treasury Bills have a negative return. CD rates are falling. What do you put your money in times like these? A few people have asked me, where do you put your money now? Nothing is safe and the sky is [...]
Dec
11
Home Ownership is for the Wealthy
December 11, 2008 | 1 Comment
Now that America is trying to sleep off the housing bubble hangover, people like me can say I told you so. Houses are for the rich. Always have been, and for the foreseeable future, always will be. By definition, poor people can afford little. So putting a poor person in a house is a fundamentally [...]
Oct
15
Why A Mortgage Increases Your Risk
October 15, 2008 | 1 Comment
Or rather, why does any debt increase risk? Take a look at Wall Street now. Debt (over leveraging) and randomness wiped out every independent investment bank on Wall Street. Those that didn't fail are probably going to get nationalized (thank you comrade Bush). The banks failed ultimately because they ran out of capital. They had [...]
Oct
14
A House is a Consumer Good Part 2
October 14, 2008 | 2 Comments
I published an article about house as consumer goods over the weekend that was meant as a draft. So instead of fixing that post, I'll finish my thought in this post. Houses are consumer goods. A house is not an investment. A house is a place to live. Definition of Consumer Goods From Answers.com: Goods [...]
Sep
3
Why First Time Home Buyer Programs Are a Bad Idea
September 3, 2008 | 2 Comments
Another home remodeling project is almost complete. My back hurts, my hands are scraped up pretty good and I'm tired. Working on my house always makes me wonder if I made the right decision about buying a home. If I could go back in time and give a younger me advice, what would I say? [...]
Aug
11
Should I Buy a New House?
August 11, 2008 | 4 Comments
I've been struggling with a decision. Should I stay in my house or sell it and either move into a condo or buy a new house? There are pro's and con's for each. I live in a rather modest home (especially compared to today's standards). We have one child and we could use a little [...]
Aug
6
Should you rent or buy? That's one of the hardest questions to answer. Most articles don't tell you what you really need to know. This one does. I'll give you the facts about home ownership. Fact: Houses need maintenance. Your maintenance costs could be as high as thousands of dollars a year (or more). Fact: [...]
Aug
4
Track Home Improvment Expenses for Tax Purposes
August 4, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Should you keep track of your expenses (and receipts) from home improvement projects? What are the tax consequences? Taxes Generally, there are no tax breaks for most home improvement/remodeling projects (excluding those projects that qualify for some type of tax break based on energy savings) in the year that you make the improvements. From Jackson [...]
Jul
30
The Real Reason I Paid Off My Mortgage
July 30, 2008 | 17 Comments
I paid off my mortgage last year. Why did I do it? The time was right for me and it still might be the right time for you to do the same thing. I'll explain why. I've been on a rampage against the mortgage lately. In my last article (more reasons to pay off your [...]