How do you avoid the life style creep? (sell, sale, items)

[aslowdodge]

Originally Posted by JonathanLB

I’m not sure how anyone could argue that homes don’t generally appreciate unless they’re just trolling. Houses are way more expensive than they were 30 years ago. Every place I have owned is now worth more than whenever I bought or sold it.

Also obviously places in middle America didn’t have a big drop in the recession, they never had a big gain! Nobody wanted to live in those places before and nobody wants to live there now, either. You need to live in desirable areas if you want to see larger or more consistent gains.

I think maybe you should do a bit more research on real estate values before you make a claim on how much real estate went up or down in middle America.
As far a nobody wanting to live there there are millions that do so apparently they disagree with you. There are also people moving from expensive coastal areas to lower col areas in the Midwest and south.
I posted this in the California forum:

"I posted something similar in another thread but my numbers were different because I compared a much larger house.

It really comes down to what you want in life and what you feel comfortable with financially.
Here’s 2 homes similar in size and quality of neighborhood from my old hometown of Pleasanton Ca and my new town of Marietta Ga.
Both are in very safe neighborhoods with plenty of amenities nearby.
I know with neighborhoods because I've lived there.

https://www.realtor.com/realestatean...102158&view=qv

https://www.realtor.com/realestatean...-16360?view=qv

5007 Hummingbird Rd, Pleasanton, CA 94566
4 bdrm, 2.5 bath , 2 car garage
House is 2,238 sq ft and lot is 7,140 sq ft lot
schools are rated 9-9-9
Price is $1,299,995
Down Payment $259,999 and monthly is $6,765/mo


3272 Devaughn Dr NE, Marietta, GA 30066
4 bdrm, 3 bath , 2 car garage
House is 2,350 sq ft and lot is 15,440 sq ft lot
schools are rated 9-9-10
Price is $284,900
Down Payment $56,980 and monthly is $1392/month

Both houses are close to a big city and it’s amenities. Both have plenty of parks and nature. Both feature a cute walkable downtown. Both are family oriented communities.

The house in Marietta is 5 hours away from the beach so if you love the beach, you are a bit out of luck. The house in Pleasanton is 1.5 hours from the beach. However the house in Marietta has multiple large lakes less than an hour away for swimming and boating. The shoreline of lake lanier exceeds the total shoreline of Coastal California. Of course the Ca coastline is spectacular. For some reason all the years of living in Pleasanton I only went to the coast maybe 10 times a year max.

Marietta in itself is prettier than Pleasanton with an extreme amount of greenery while Pleasanton features a lot of dry grass and Oak trees. The advantage of Pleasanton is the variety of geography with 1 or 2 hours. Coastline, Bay shores, redwood forest, grasslands, etc. Marietta can’t compete in that respect. It’s just rolling hills of green forests and some rivers and waterfalls with very little changeup.

Now the biggest factor may well be financially between the two. Here’s a comparison in which several local Ca posters discounted as not important, but I’m not as well off as they are and can’t afford to live in Ca. As they have often said, I wasn't special enough and couldn't cut it.
People claim they couldn’t pay them enough to live in heat soaked Ga. Fair enough. Here’s food for thought for those on the fence.

Ca needs you to save over 1/4 of a million dollars for a down payment which is tough for most people. The payments of $6,765/mo are tough too. But let’s say you can do it.
Buying in Ga and investing the difference could mean a lot to a family.
If you take the $203,019 difference in down payment and put it in the market then take the difference in monthly payments of $5,373 and also put it into the market you would have this based on the historic 7% stock market return:

in 5 years $675,205
in 10 years $1,345,247
in 15 years $2,296,049
in 20 years $3,645,256
in 25 years $5,559,808
in 30 years when you’ve paid off the Mortgage you would have $8,276,595.

Does 8 million dollars make a difference in your life and your kids? Is it a comfortable retirement? Good college for the kids? Help them buy a home? Financial stability for life?
Obviously several Ca posters are pretty well off since these numbers mean nothing compared to the Ca lifestyle they enjoy.

Do you want to retire early? Imagine having enough to not worry if you will lose your job or if you get tired of it and just walking away. Or if you had some life changing event and couldn't work and provide for your family mid career.

Based on the 4% rule of withdrawing at retirement:
In 15 years you could quit work early and get $91,841 per year.
In 20 years you could quit work early and get $145,810 per year.
This doesn’t include any social security or 401K either.

With these numbers you could probably move back to Ca and instead of working have your days free to enjoy Ca.

Just food for thought."


While you might see a bit more appreciation in some coastal areas, the financial numbers of living elsewhere don't lie.
Now before you say that home appreciation on the coasts will make more, you better run your numbers first plus I didn't add in home appreciation in Georgia.

[CaptainNJ]

Originally Posted by aslowdodge

Some people mention this like it's a deal breaker. If you are at the coast everyday or at least every weekend then I can see it. I lived in the San Francisco Bay Area for 50 years and went to the coast maybe once a year at best as a destination and drove to it on weekend drives not stopping maybe 3x a year.

i think she was joking. we do take advantage of the jersey shore. i am a member of a beach club so my wife is there usually 2-3 days during the week and 1-2 days on the weekend in the summer. we also go to restaurants on the water a good amount and rent a house by the beach for a week vacation.

but im pretty sure that if we moved more inland we would find something else awesome to do in our leisure time.

[Threestep2]

Originally Posted by hikernut

Yes homes appreciate, but they also have considerable carrying costs. Making a profit after considering all expenses is hardly a slam dunk even over decades, and most people do not keep good enough records to even know if they came out ahead. Over 30 years I would wager most houses have more money sunk into remodel/replace items than the original purchase price.

We sank money in all of our houses as you call it. Generally over 50% of purchase and none were fixer uppers. Every one sold within 10 days and we broke even or came out ahead. Location, location, what shape is a house in. As I said before - I like my nest well feathered. Buyers want to have it all. So I get to have it until it is time to move on. My general budget is what I get out of the old house. SO took a deep breath when 2/3 of sqf 1/3 of land in small town USA cost what we sold in TX in an up and coming market. Well, he likes his nest well feathered, low maintenance, low monthly fixed costs. That costs up front. This house would go in no time - location, shape, maintenance, woodwork, stove alone (:>)) for what we have in it but we are not yet at the five-year-itch-mark.

[aslowdodge]

Originally Posted by CaptainNJ

i think she was joking. we do take advantage of the jersey shore. i am a member of a beach club so my wife is there usually 2-3 days during the week and 1-2 days on the weekend in the summer. we also go to restaurants on the water a good amount and rent a house by the beach for a week vacation.

but im pretty sure that if we moved more inland we would find something else awesome to do in our leisure time.

Unlike me you took advantage and obviously enjoy the beach

[JonathanLB]

If I were most people I definitely would avoid living in high cost CA but no, no amount of money would ever make me live in Georgia. Not even $8 million. There are just better places to live, like Nevada with no income taxes and still low cost of living but much better weather than GA and more to do. There’s no good reason to live in GA versus Nevada. None. The only reason would be family, which is why most people are stuck in some flyover state.

In life, you get what you pay for. Some of the cheapest areas of the country are like Mississippi. But then... you have to live in Mississippi. No thanks!

[ylisa7]

Originally Posted by JonathanLB

If I were most people I definitely would avoid living in high cost CA but no, no amount of money would ever make me live in Georgia. Not even $8 million. There are just better places to live, like Nevada with no income taxes and still low cost of living but much better weather than GA and more to do. There’s no good reason to live in GA versus Nevada. None. The only reason would be family, which is why most people are stuck in some flyover state.

In life, you get what you pay for. Some of the cheapest areas of the country are like Mississippi. But then... you have to live in Mississippi. No thanks!

Have you been to Georgia? The GA mountains are beautiful. Personally I could not live in AZ or any desert where everything looks dead. Different strokes

[JonathanLB]

Have you been to Las Vegas? First the desert is beautiful, second it’s very green in almost every neighborhood with trees and parks everywhere especially in Summerlin. I don’t think most people realize these communities are very green and full of beauty. I personally don’t care about grass everywhere - which is ugly and mediocre - or stupid looking fir trees where I live presently. It doesn’t do anything for me. ANY place where it rains often is devoid of beauty if you ask me because rain is ugly and humiliating.

I don’t want to live anywhere where it snows or rains often, I want sun and summer like weather most or all of he year. Anything less than that, no dice. And GA is too far away for me, I need to be closer to LA for business. I just had a few relatives move to GA, they really enjoy it, and I’m sure it’s great for many people but it wouldn’t be the right culture for me. I’m a West Coast guy but one who wants to avoid the actual coastal states LOL too liberal

[selhars]

IF it's any consolation, I have found that the older people get, the less they accumulate "possessions".

Some of that is the people:
-- may be less attached and drawn to "things"
-- run out of things to buy (because they already have everything they wanted)
-- just want to focus more on saving/investing
-- realize "the Jones" they were trying to keep up with are more broke than they are

[southernnaturelover]

Originally Posted by aslowdodge

Some people mention this like it's a deal breaker. If you are at the coast everyday or at least every weekend then I can see it. I lived in the San Francisco Bay Area for 50 years and went to the coast maybe once a year at best as a destination and drove to it on weekend drives not stopping maybe 3x a year.

This ^. I live only about 50 miles from Pensacola Beach, which has some of the purest white sand in the world. But honestly, it means nothing to me because I don’t like the beach. I can’t even remember the last time I walked in the sand.

[ylisa7]

Originally Posted by JonathanLB

Have you been to Las Vegas? First the desert is beautiful, second it’s very green in almost every neighborhood with trees and parks everywhere especially in Summerlin. I don’t think most people realize these communities are very green and full of beauty. I personally don’t care about grass everywhere - which is ugly and mediocre - or stupid looking fir trees where I live presently. It doesn’t do anything for me. ANY place where it rains often is devoid of beauty if you ask me because rain is ugly and humiliating.

I don’t want to live anywhere where it snows or rains often, I want sun and summer like weather most or all of he year. Anything less than that, no dice. And GA is too far away for me, I need to be closer to LA for business. I just had a few relatives move to GA, they really enjoy it, and I’m sure it’s great for many people but it wouldn’t be the right culture for me. I’m a West Coast guy but one who wants to avoid the actual coastal states LOL too liberal

Yes I have been to Las Vegas...multiple times and it is not my thing. I have been to many places all over the U.S. as my husband and I traveled and lived in our motorhome for 3 1/2 years. I still love wide open green spaces. Lakes are a bonus. The ocean I have learned from living on it starts to look like a parking lot after awhile so it is boring to me. It's great when dolphins and manatees come in I love the California coast and when I was 17 I rode my bicycle with a group from San Francisco to San Diego. The sea lions were awesome. I loved that trip and the weather but CA is too expensive and crowded for me to consider living. Like you I don't care for rain so Oregon and Washington would be out. I do love the mountains and can deal with a small amount of snow although Montana is beautiful. Probably our biggest difference would be I hate crowds and I am a nature lover.




Anyway to stay on topic you can avoid the creep by not watching commercials or reading higher end magazines. I don't watch TV so I'm not manipulated, I mean influenced by what people watch. I never got caught up in that. I remember when I was about 20 and dating a guy. He was so impressed by things and told me how some girl really liked his Rolex. I said "what's a Rolex"?...lol. Also don't let anything impress you. I am never impressed when people like to "drop" names. I really don't care.