Briana and her husband want to buy a home, but they don’t have enough saved for a downpayment. They also have student loan debt and a car loan. Which should they prioritize?
Javier is sick of being in debt. What can he do to put himself in a better situation?
Tracie wants to buy her first rental property, but she has student loans and a car loan to pay off. If she receives $20,000 from a cash-out refi, how should she use this money?
Vanitha wants to start a non-profit organization in memory of her uncle. She wants to know: what does this process look like?
Margie went under contract on a primary residence listed as a six-bedroom property. She found out that, legally, it’s a four-bedroom home. Should she re-negotiate the price, or ask for credits at closing?
I answer these questions in today’s episode. Enjoy!
Briana asks (at 2:45 minutes):
I’m 27 and just discovered the world of financial independence. I feel behind. My husband and I want to buy a home, but we don’t have enough saved for a downpayment.
We owe $10,000 on student loan debt and we have a $2,000 car loan payment. My husband earns $24,000 per year and I earn $58,000 per year.
We have $10,000 in savings, I contribute up to the employer match on my 401k, and I put three percent in a Roth IRA.
We want to buy a house under $130,000, and eventually, I’d like to buy and flip homes. Should we hustle and save up for the downpayment on our first home, focus on paying off all our debt, or invest in a rental before purchasing our own home?
Javier asks (at 18:24 minutes):
I don’t want to be in debt anymore. I’m 35 years old and have $63,000 of debt.
I have $11,000 in my emergency fund, $3,000 in my Robinhood account, and $46,000 between my Roth IRA and my 401k.
I have a mortgage balance of $126,000 on a condo close to Boston, MA. I’ve been living in the US since April 2013 on a work visa. Originally, I had over $100,000 in debt, but I started following Dave Ramsey and Afford Anything in 2018.
What should I do?
Tracie asks (at 26:59 minutes):
Within the next five years, I want to earn $5,000 per month from rental properties. I don’t own any properties yet, and I earn $120,000 per year.
My net worth is also $120,000, and 12 percent of my pre-tax income is split evenly between my pension plan and 403b. My employer supports my pension plan, but doesn’t contribute towards my 403b. I have 403bs from previous jobs that are collectively valued at around $50,000 – $60,000, depending on the market, and my emergency fund has a balance of $3,000.
I have three major debts:
- Student loans: $9,000 balance, $383 monthly payment, 5.5 percent interest rate
- Car loan: $8,000 balance, $574 monthly payment, 1.9 percent interest rate
- Mortgage: $77,000 balance, $800 monthly payment
I want to take advantage of low mortgage interest rates and do a cash-out refi. I plan to take out $20,000 and use this to pay off my student loans and car loan.
I’ll use the remaining money to boost my emergency fund and my down payment for my first rental property. Is this a good idea, or is there something I’m missing?
Vanitha asks (at 39:23 minutes):
I want to start a non-profit organization in memory of my uncles. The information available online is overwhelming and confusing. Where should I start?
Margie asks (at 52:53 minutes):
I’m in contract to buy our first house. It was listed as a six-bedroom, and our offer was based on six-bedroom comps in the area. However, we discovered that it’s legally only a four-bedroom house. (The attic “bedrooms” don’t have a heat source.) The tax assessment records from the town confirmed that it was assessed as a four-bedroom as well.
I want to renegotiate the price in light of this, but my husband thinks it’s better to get credits for closing and keep the same price. This house was only listed for three days and we beat out eight other offers on it.
Do you have any advice on how to proceed? I don’t want to overpay, and unless we remodel the home to create more bedrooms, we may have a difficult time selling in the future. We planned to live in the home for the long-term.
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