asking a questoin you may not want to answr

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Posted by ellie424

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Posted by AdriandSteve

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Posted by stinenandy2010

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Posted by grkbarbie

oh.. and another thing..DEBT.. theres no such thing as savings when u have debt. pay that shyt off ASAPPPPPPPPPPPPPP

b4 u even LOOK to byu property, if u have debt. take all ur wedding money and PAY IT OFF!!!!!!!!!!!

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maybe this is the accountant in me, but some debt is good debt....like car debt, is fine, it doesn't really go against you and it doesn't hurt your credit score. on the other hand CREDIT CARD DEBT IS EVIL....pay that off right away. Its good to have some debt bc it does build your credit history, there is such a thing as good debt and bad debt.

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And school loans are good debt.
( I gotta keep reminding myself this lol)

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Ugh--I have to keep reminding myself of this too!!!

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um actually school loans aren't good debt....i mean in theory you would think they are (i know we did) but then when we went to look for a condo/co op to buy they wouldn't give us a mortgage because our student loans are too high......we have excellent credit but they said if we didn't have the student loans we would of definitely been able to buy something....... oh well

Just a question,
For everyone that says renting is a waste of money---where do you live if you cant buy?? I see it this way --you gotta live somewhere--rent is paying for you to have an independent life. So in my opinion that isn't a waste. I grew up in brooklyn, most of my friends parents didn't own their homes, they rented apartments. I don't think there is anything wrong with that.

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Posted by Iluvpoodles

No offense to anyone here, but you defentially don't need 100-120K to live comfortably. I don't know how it is in Long Island though. Me and FH combined will not make that much and I'm not the least bit worried. I've never even thought about it. Like when people complain about not being able to make it on 50 grand a year as a single person, I have to wonder where is your money going. To me, that's good money. More money then most people I know make. I make less then that and pay a car lease, rent, all my bills, insurance, eat out and I'm very comfortable. And like Barb said, look at all the material things you have. That's where alot of people's money goes and it's the whole gotta keep up with the Jones idea.

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I kinda agree w this... FH & I make muchhhh lower than the numbers that I'm reading here, and I don't forsee us having issues b/c we are budgeting well.

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Posted by bunny032002

Just a question,
For everyone that says renting is a waste of money---where do you live if you cant buy?? I see it this way --you gotta live somewhere--rent is paying for you to have an independent life. So in my opinion that isn't a waste. I grew up in brooklyn, most of my friends parents didn't own their homes, they rented apartments. I don't think there is anything wrong with that.

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this is what i am wondering as well...while i agree that i would like to buy sooner than later bc renting for a long time is a waste....i would never give up being able to live on my own with fh for the past few years. if it means renting for the time being until we can save up for a down payment then so be it....we are currently renting a 1br apt in manhattan and while we are spending a lot of money, we are enjoying it while we are young and kid-free...once we are married and start thinking about family we will def want to look to buy a house outside of the city.

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Posted by stinenandy2010

I agree in theory no one wants debt and it should be paid off.....but without debt you wouldn't have credit history so thats why sometimes certain types of debt isn't bad.....The way I look at it is, I will probably always have car loans and for a long time I will have student loans since I went to graduate school.

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I don't have any debt, and I have excellent credit. (because I have no debt) I use credit cards all the time, but I pay them off in full each month. So, it's not correct that without debt you have no credit history.

FH owes about 8k in student loans which will be paid off immediately after the wedding. He's already paying towards them and he isn't even out of his grace period.

I'm with Barb... The only debt we want to have is a mortgage... if I start driving again, I'll buy a used car outright. We may have to rent for a year (which I'm not fond of) but we're not going into debt we can't handle. I'd rather sock a decent down payment away while we're renting then be foreclosed on!

Ali!!! No offense taken!!

Okay I think combined between both of us would be about $150 - $160K per year.

But I agree with a lot of you to say you don't need so much to live comfortably....my problem is I have a lot of student loans and bills that I have to pay. But if I didn't have them, I would be happy and content with my salary which is way way way less than 100K... FH makes all the money, but he works two jobs.

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Posted by bunny032002

Just a question,
For everyone that says renting is a waste of money---where do you live if you cant buy?? I see it this way --you gotta live somewhere--rent is paying for you to have an independent life. So in my opinion that isn't a waste. I grew up in brooklyn, most of my friends parents didn't own their homes, they rented apartments. I don't think there is anything wrong with that.

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you can only 'assume' they're living at home......rent free?

even when i did live at home with my rents i still had to pay rent...man i'd like to go back to paying my $25 a week as opposed to $550+ a month but i wouldn't trade my freedom or my living with FH for the past 3 years for the world.

plus i'd recommend living with Fh before getting married any day as opposed to just jumping in and living together once married. some of you will be in for a rude awakening

Right now we are at $125K, but it could go to 70K in a heart beat considering FH's job is not stable... That's a whole 'nother story...
We have a mortgage, and maintenance, the usual bills plus his car loan and my care credit loan ($300 each).. We are comfortable right now, but last night I realized the value of a dollar when FH came home and said we might just have to live off my salary if he loses his job. Wanna loses some weight? Stress is the best diet... I've dropped 3 lbs in 4 days.

You need to determine what your priorities are... I look at my FMIL and admire her because FFIL came from Italy with the shirt on their back.. Now they own a very successful business, 3 houses and tons of gorgeous things because FMIL knew how to make $1 into $2 by cutting corners and saving. While the husband may be the head of the family the wife is the neck and tells the head where to turn. You need to take charge and determine what's necessary. Eat home instead of dining out, bring lunch and drinks from home, buy in bulk instead of running to the corner store to pick up odds and ends. COUPONS COUPONS COUPONS!!!!!!!!!

I have turned into the cheapest person and am seriously so cheap on myself it isnt funny but guess what, I have money in the bank and I have the satisfaction of paying for my own wedding with FH... I rather sacrifice now so that in the future i will be able to have the money to take care of my family the right way

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Posted by bunny032002

Just a question,
For everyone that says renting is a waste of money---where do you live if you cant buy?? I see it this way --you gotta live somewhere--rent is paying for you to have an independent life. So in my opinion that isn't a waste. I grew up in brooklyn, most of my friends parents didn't own their homes, they rented apartments. I don't think there is anything wrong with that.

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I agree, if people can afford to buy something i think that is really great.......i tried and can't so rent is my only option......

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Posted by JoanneAndJustin

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Posted by stinenandy2010

I agree in theory no one wants debt and it should be paid off.....but without debt you wouldn't have credit history so thats why sometimes certain types of debt isn't bad.....The way I look at it is, I will probably always have car loans and for a long time I will have student loans since I went to graduate school.

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I don't have any debt, and I have excellent credit. (because I have no debt) I use credit cards all the time, but I pay them off in full each month. So, it's not correct that without debt you have no credit history.

FH owes about 8k in student loans which will be paid off immediately after the wedding. He's already paying towards them and he isn't even out of his grace period.

I'm with Barb... The only debt we want to have is a mortgage... if I start driving again, I'll buy a used car outright. We may have to rent for a year (which I'm not fond of) but we're not going into debt we can't handle. I'd rather sock a decent down payment away while we're renting then be foreclosed on!

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sorry joanne, to clarify i meant someone with no student loans, never had a credit card, etc probably has little credit established....so i meant to say if you have a few credit cards out there with low balances, its not the end of the world, sometimes it helps build credit history.

and girls, it is ABSOLUTELY do-able to own a home....FH and I just bought our home six months ago. I have about $6k left in credit card debt....yes very bad, but that is all in a debt consolidation program. Plus, I have about $30k in student loans....FH has about $10k...we were approved instantly for our mortgage, no problems. even with all this 'bad debt' against us, our credit scores are about 750 bc we always pay on time and pay more then the minimum. plus we got the first time homebuyer tax credit, which went right into our savings. we rented for 2 years...and we always pay our bills on time PLUS save money. So it all depends on your way of living....plus budgeting, you need to budget every month for every single item.

The best piece of advice I can offer from a 'financial' perspective is budget. Budget for everything from stamps to car payments. Then see what you have left over at the end of the month. And on the other hand, I completely agree with Alyssa....moving in together prior to the wedding will be the best decision you make.

When there is a will, there is a way!

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Posted by MrsC2010

this is what i am wondering as well...while i agree that i would like to buy sooner than later bc renting for a long time is a waste....i would never give up being able to live on my own with fh for the past few years. if it means renting for the time being until we can save up for a down payment then so be it....we are currently renting a 1br apt in manhattan and while we are spending a lot of money, we are enjoying it while we are young and kid-free...once we are married and start thinking about family we will def want to look to buy a house outside of the city.

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ITA... It annoys me so much to hear people say that renting is a waste. I am in law school, and will graduate with a lot of debt, and won't be able to buy a house anytime soon until I have a stable, good-paying job... If I didn't rent and 'throw my money away' I wouldn't get to wake up with FH every day, we wouldn't have our beautiful apartment and be able to live in a great neighborhood (where houses go for $600K+), we wouldn't have our two dogs, we would have our parents in our faces all the time (we are very independent, tried living at home together with them, it didn't work out) and I think that's worth a lot to us. It's not the BEST plan in order to save a whole lot of money, but it's our best option right now. I think everyone's situation is different and some people are not better off paying a mortgage every month when money is tight, and I wasn't willing to live home an extra 3-5 years into my late twenties to get a house sooner. We'll still get the house in time. And I have a lot of respect for people who live home and save money and are able to buy a house right after they move out... I just don't think people should deem choosing a different lifestyle a 'waste'... I am quite happy with my living situation and that's what I get for my rent money.

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Posted by DWKSwed

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Posted by MrsC2010

this is what i am wondering as well...while i agree that i would like to buy sooner than later bc renting for a long time is a waste....i would never give up being able to live on my own with fh for the past few years. if it means renting for the time being until we can save up for a down payment then so be it....we are currently renting a 1br apt in manhattan and while we are spending a lot of money, we are enjoying it while we are young and kid-free...once we are married and start thinking about family we will def want to look to buy a house outside of the city.

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ITA... It annoys me so much to hear people say that renting is a waste. I am in law school, and will graduate with a lot of debt, and won't be able to buy a house anytime soon until I have a stable, good-paying job... If I didn't rent and 'throw my money away' I wouldn't get to wake up with FH every day, we wouldn't have our beautiful apartment and be able to live in a great neighborhood (where houses go for $600K+), we wouldn't have our two dogs, we would have our parents in our faces all the time (we are very independent, tried living at home together with them, it didn't work out) and I think that's worth a lot to us. It's not the BEST plan in order to save a whole lot of money, but it's our best option right now. I think everyone's situation is different and some people are not better off paying a mortgage every month when money is tight, and I wasn't willing to live home an extra 3-5 years into my late twenties to get a house sooner. We'll still get the house in time. And I have a lot of respect for people who live home and save money and are able to buy a house right after they move out... I just don't think people should deem choosing a different lifestyle a 'waste'... I am quite happy with my living situation and that's what I get for my rent money.

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ITA too. I came to this country alone, my parents are back in my country, I am 28 so where am I suppose to live if not in a rented apt? I am building my life from scratch same as some of ur parents/grandparents did.
I came with almost nothing, 1st worked for almost nothing (this for about 4 yrs), went to school with almost no money and still was able to pay 30% out of pocket for private MBA program, the rest had to take out loans. now I make what my parents make combined in 2 years back home, but I still cant afford to buy anything. so where someone like me would live?
I think its easy to say that renting is a waste when u have alternatives, but when u dont u do what u can and happy that u did it