I live, write, and garden in the PNW with my husband of 28 years, disabled daughter, adult son, and my 84-year-old mother. We have paid off $250,000.00 worth of debt (if you include the interest) in the last fifteen years and as of 6/12/2020 are 100% DEBT FREE!!!!All of them. I'm not picking sides.
I do not like the hit we are going to be taking with the end of the payroll tax holiday. I'm estimating $500 a month on a normal month. Probably $750 this month due to the extra week of pay. I may come up short paying off the BoA VISA this month. I am still going to try to squeeze it out, because gosh, darn it, I want it gone, but any breathing room the extra week of pay gave us is gone. Your gubmint dollars at work.
I am just very, very glad we have spent the last few years buckling down hard and paying down our debt with a vengeance and that we are used to living on less than half our income. And if it is that bad for us with a good middle class income, I can't even imagine how hard this is going to slam those who are barely scraping by. Well, hello there Great Depression 2. I'm not an alarmist by nature but I don't see us coming out of this for a long time. I worry about what the world will be like when my kids are adults.
I am starting to think about putting the whole buying a new house thing on hold for a few more years. Well, I've been thinking it for the last few months, but this may just be the final nail in the coffin. It's going to take longer to build up an emergency fund with $500 a month missing from DH's paycheck. It's certainly going to make saving for and cash flowing college harder than I thought. And Mom isn't getting any younger. With two mini-strokes to her name already I really worry more about leaving her on her own.
It's even crossed my mind to cancel or postpone Disneyland. I'm not going to, but I think this is going to be the last vacation of consequence for a few years. I'm just really glad that we'll have a full kitchen in the condo.
It's possible DH might pick up another week in February. If he did I could bank that and it would go a long way towards making up the shortfall for the rest of the year.
I am worried about my knee. It has been swollen and painful since Christmas and it's started clicking. I am going to try to get a hold of the doctor tomorrow now that the holidays are over. I am hoping it is just needing to be drained of fluid. I do not want cortizone. I also do not want to end up having knee surgery again and having yet another medical debt to pay off.
Okay, I know I sound negative and down, but I am actually in a surprisingly good mood today despite everything. This has been more of a getting it out of my system rant. DS was pretty easy on me with his first day of homeschooling since the holidays ended. And I am totally understanding the math today, so go me. I thought I was going to struggle the whole year, but I think that this unit at least will be easy.
Self-Indulgent Politicians Break the Future
January 3rd, 2013 at 06:53 am
January 3rd, 2013 at 01:41 pm 1357220493
Sorry about your knee.
January 3rd, 2013 at 03:46 pm 1357227960
January 3rd, 2013 at 03:46 pm 1357227962
As for buying the house, you want to make sure you buy something when you are ready that you plan to stay in because with the Obamacare law, if you sell anything for more than you paid, you pay huge capital gains taxes.
Hope your knee improves.
January 3rd, 2013 at 04:01 pm 1357228904
January 3rd, 2013 at 07:06 pm 1357239962
Actually, now that I think about it, you are probably noticing that it went from -0- to 6.2% in the new year. Probably because you capped out at some point last year and maybe haven't paid social security tax in recent months. That is nothing new. Just that it was 4.2% for the past 2 years - was 6.2% before that.
& Rob's comments about the house tax are untrue. Married couples still enjoy $500k tax-free gains on their residences, for a home owned and lived in for two years.
January 3rd, 2013 at 09:20 pm 1357248025
January 3rd, 2013 at 11:25 pm 1357255510
January 3rd, 2013 at 11:39 pm 1357256349
January 4th, 2013 at 02:00 am 1357264805
January 4th, 2013 at 03:46 am 1357271183