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Also born in 1976 (born in USA), have always saved 15% of our income towards retirement, paid cash for cars, never used credit or loans (outside a mortgage) and hope to have our home paid for by the time we're 42.
Honestly, I know a lot of people who live the way we do, they may not talk about it.
I never had a mortgage, at that time no bank would loan the money to me so I told them off and built my own home. Never, ever will I borrow money for personal use.
like me you were longtime outside of this country. you got ID (immigrant drive) like me--- that makes it another ball game altogether doesn't it.
"ID" trumps any age factor. its what makes someone work all day and go to school every night 7 days a week.
I'm a born and bred American, born in 1968 with somewhat indulgent parents, who paid off the mortgage at age 40 via hard work and wise decisions. No revolving debt, two old cars (in the process of donating the second), and a modest house in a very affluent area near Denver. My peers run the gamut: some are in the same position as I am (or at least moving in the same direction), while others are running on a lick and a prayer. I don't think you can lump an entire generation into one basket.
Last edited by formercalifornian; 08-09-2009 at 09:43 PM..
I think there are too many with black and white views. It seems that people think you either lived on very little, continued to live frugally all of their lives and now can wear this "badge" of the paid off home, or you spend every dime as soon as you get it and have no regard for the future. I'm sure there are plenty in the above categories but let me introduce you to a third category:
There are many who work, plug along saving what they can, not buying too many extravagant things (maybe treating themselves every few years to a new couch or TV or whatever) and staying away from credit card debt.
It should be noted that in the 1970s and earlier it was possible to pay a household's entire bills on one salary as this was before houses transformed from being "home" to being a vehicle to provide riches for the homeowner. I don't remember people buying up all the houses on my block in order to double the price and resell them when I was growing up. There certainly was a lot of that going on all over and this put prices beyond the reach of "regular" working people.
I can only speak for myself when I say that my spouse was paying the monthly costs for the nursing home care of an elderly relative for over ten years and that ate up a huge chunk of money that could have been saved. The weight was on me to carry a lot of the monthly bills and we managed to get by without incurring any cc debt.
The result of that, however, was little savings. We were finally able to start putting away on a consistent monthly basis about four years ago but where we live the amount we have is laughable. Being older and having rock solid jobs doesn't allow us to simply pack up and head for lower housing costs areas since it's hard enough for young people to find jobs and that's a risk that is just not smart.
In any case, we don't have any debt or loans, nothing extravagant and save what we can but it's still not enough. I'm sure there are plenty of people out there in the same situation. It's not a matter of either you spend everything and give little thought to your future or you live on Ramen and oatmeal and save every penny you can. There are some of us trapped right in the middle of that who feel as though we are living very basically but not achieving much in the way of advancement.
I congratulate anyone who is able to successfully navigate the state of the world today and land in a nice home that they can pay on without losing sleep at night. I can't say that I view a paid off home as a badge of honor though because circumstances are very different.
Last edited by cleasach; 08-10-2009 at 06:07 AM..
Reason: left out a word
My husband bought our home in 2001 while making $8 an hour by himself and we have about 70% of it paid for...that's frugal. We are now building a new home for almost triple the amount of the first and still see no problem with having it paid off in 15-20.
I was born in 1965. I currently own my home free & clear. I also own my vehicle. I have no revolving debt. My parents did not help out, I do not have an inheritance or trust fund, I did not win the lottery, I did not get a settlement in a law suit, etc. I simply made decisions that ended up being wise.
*blows a big 'ol raspberry at you*
Love the raspberry, lol.
We managed to take some risks in our late 40's and by building speculative homes with just the family, we managed to build up enough to now have 3 homes free and clear. We will have a tiny rental income and a roof over our heads and we are a few years from 60. We left our office at 3 p.m every day, drove up the mountain to start working on whatever home we were doing at the time and did not stop until 9, or the neighbors started yelling at us. This was the hardest I had ever worked and can still feel the soreness when I finally went to bed. It was worth it and I wished we could do it all over again.
I'm a born and bred American, born in 1968 with somewhat indulgent parents, who paid off the mortgage at age 40 via hard work and wise decisions. No revolving debt, two old cars (in the process of donating the second), and a modest house in a very affluent area near Denver. My peers run the gamut: some are in the same position as I am (or at least moving in the same direction), while others are running on a lick and a prayer. I don't think you can lump an entire generation into one basket.
there are track stars that smoke 2 packs a day.
not the norm. nor a good habit to acquire if you wana run track. work ethic and saving are not the current norm. 50 years ago they were.
So you think that just because you paid your mortgage off the house is yours. My friends we NEVER own our homes. Try putting an addition on your home without getting "permission" from the city first. Try going without paying property taxes and see what happens. Anything that can be taken from you was never yours to begin with. An improvement to a property that needs approval from anyone other than the "owner" is not really your property. Having your home paid off just means more money in your pocket, not sole ownership of the property.
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