The beatles Case Study

[The beatles]

I did something kinda stupid this morning.

At risk of being called a troll, I won't say what it is.

But i'll just say that i'm still learning to control the urge to spend - apparently.

Use this as a learning experience.

First: Can you undo the damage, take it back?

Second: Identify the circumstances that caused you to slip. Was it the environment, was it something emotional, was it just being on autopilot, was it a habit?

Third: What is the "why" behind the purchase what need were you trying to meet? Copying the advice I suggested earlier

****
Blogs recommendation: Northwest Edible Life's money category:
http://www.nwedible.com/topics/productive-home/frugality-finance/

IF YOU ONLY READ ONE THING:http://www.nwedible.com/mini-money-challenge-occupy-your-brainwhat-you-want-isnt-really-what-you-want/

Print out the blank worksheet: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/35224895/NWEdible_What_I_Really_Want_From_My_Purchases_Chart.pdf

DO THIS FOR EVERY SINGLE PURCHASE. HAVE YOUR WIFE DO THIS FOR EVERY PURCHASE.

Those "diet" full of sugar, fake snack foods? Why do you want them? What is the purpose those are meeting? What are the FEELINGS you think it will address...what do you REALLY want?

Same with the TV, same with the extra freezer...everything. You have to start thinking critically and thinking deeper. Print out multiple copies of this worksheet. Share your thought process if it helps. This is something you can do RIGHT NOW that will make a BIG difference.
****

Ideally, you ask these questions BEFORE you buy, but you can also ask them afterward to figure out where your head was at.

What I want?

Why I want it?

Problems I think it will solve?

Feelings I think it will address?

What I really want?

Going through this exercise would make a great blog post!

I'll just say it.

It's a TV.

I may be able to cancel the order before it even ships.

[Jakejake]

Please try canceling it. Now. Before you post again.

(Don't make us all come after you with pitchforks.)

[former player]

You are selling the house with a tenant in situ (because you can't afford to get rid of the tenant and lose income before the sale date) so it is a rental.  Look up listings for sales of rentals in the area that house is in and talk to the agents who are selling them for advice.

Can you either take the "thing" back (if you bought it in person) or ring up (if you bought it on the internet) to cancel - if you do this before they have even started to deal with the order you should be able to persuade them not to charge you.

If your buying habit is internet based, please delete all the quick links to those sites from your computer.

You need Mrs Beatles on your side here.  If she is taking the trouble to return $3 worth on goods on her shopping, and is proud of herself for doing it (as she should be) and then you spend 70 times that on a luxury, how is she going to feel?

[swick]

I'll just say it.

It's a TV.

I may be able to cancel the order before it even ships.

If you put in the order this morning, you can still cancel it. Do this right now and let us know you have done it.

This is a great opportunity to show yourself (and us minions) how serious and dedicated you are. It is a great opportunity to figure out what ideas you are rebelling against. Make no mistake, this is an act of rebellion against yourself and your family - but you can stop it and learn from it.

[marielle]

If certain websites are a problem for you, what about a Chrome extension to block those websites? For example, StayFocusd:
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/stayfocusd/laankejkbhbdhmipfmgcngdelahlfoji?hl=en

If it's Amazon, or Ebay, or some other site like that you don't need it. Block it for a month, 6 months, or even forever. If you paid for Prime, call them and see if you can get reimbursed. You can buy food and other household stuff in a physical store, with physical cash. Actually having to give away that cold, hard cash will be harder than clicking a button online and money disappearing without you seeing it. It's actually been proven with a study that people spend less when they use only cash.

[swick]

Next steps: AFTER CANCELING ORDER

Delete ALL your saved credit card info from every shopping website you frequent. Maybe your wife can help you with this.

Cut up/Freeze in a big block of ice your credit cards. Seriously, you need to do this until you have the mental and emotional stability you need to evaluate your spending decisions.

Come back and report your successes!

[pbkmaine]

1) Cancel the order. 2) Freeze the credit cards in a block of ice. 3) Go to cash and an envelope system for spending. 4) Enroll in Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University. 5) Sell current home and move back into rental, if it's in a decent school district.

[The beatles]

I canceled it.

:(

[kms]

I'll just say it.

It's a TV.

I may be able to cancel the order before it even ships.

I would be really interested in the thought process behind this purchase. As in what exactly happened that led to you purchasing a TV you don't need with money you don't have? I can't imagine it being like "well, I need milk for the boys, gloves for myself since it's getting cold, and I'll also take that $3000 TV set because why the hell not". I just don't understand it since to me, a TV is nothing one buys spontaneously. It involves a lot of thinking, reading, and tons of research in regards to model, capabilities, quality, price, etc.

What's the dynamic here? What made you buy another TV? You've mentioned that you already own three TVs in your house, why did you feel the "need" to purchase a fourth one?

I'm really curious here.

[The beatles]

I'll just say it.

It's a TV.

I may be able to cancel the order before it even ships.

I would be really interested in the thought process behind this purchase. As in what exactly happened that led to you purchasing a TV you don't need with money you don't have? I can't imagine it being like "well, I need milk for the boys, gloves for myself since it's getting cold, and I'll also take that $3000 TV set because why the hell not". I just don't understand it since to me, a TV is nothing one buys spontaneously. It involves a lot of thinking, reading, and tons of research in regards to model, capabilities, quality, price, etc.

What's the dynamic here? What made you buy another TV? You've mentioned that you already own three TVs in your house, why did you feel the "need" to purchase a fourth one?

I'm really curious here.

It was actually a replacement of the third.

The bedroom TV had started to act a little strange.

In the middle of a show it'll fuzz out for a moment, and then come back.

I think it's only a matter of time until its done for good.

[ausername]

Well done beatles :-)

I'm battling buying lovely pastries on the way to work at the moment, although I've a lot of other stuff very sorted...we're all only learning and it's brilliant that you've cancelled it.

I just wanted to say that I loved your first blog post too and will definitely keep reading :-)

[terran]

I canceled it.

:( :)

I fixed that for you. Good job!

[charis]

After canceling the TV, examine the feelings that caused you to buy it.   You have several TVs, so you obviously aren't in "need" of a television.   Is part of your self-worth or feelings about yourself tied to having something nicer, better, or more than what you currently have? Is it image related or the rush of getting a good deal? 

After you have been at this for a while, you will start to feel negatively about accumulating STUFF.  I hate getting or buying things just for the sake of doing so.  I am forever trying to clean out my house to the chagrin of my husband.

We have one TV in the living room and a TV in the bedroom that we've never used (it's broken now but for some reason we never watched TV in the bedroom).  Why do you need to have television available in several places in your house?  This is not snarky, I truly don't understand.  Also not suggesting that we are "above" TV - we watch netflix every night and are on our phones way too much.

[Malum Prohibitum]

http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/05/06/mmm-challenge-cut-your-cash-leaking-umbilical-cord/

The prize for this week’s challenge is about Nine Thousand Dollars, plus getting the equivalent of about 36 weeks of extra vacation time each year. That would bring you up fairly close to my own level of  leisure.

The challenge, of course, is to immediately and completely cancel your cable television service forever.

Now I will admit that TV programming has really advanced in modern years, with a spectacular array of new channels. At one moment, you could be watching a young Brazilian girl blow a Vuvuzela at the World Cup game, and with just the press of a thumb you could be transported into the deepest reaches of a smoke-filled senior center watching a bingo game. You can study the most incredibly well produced commercials for an average of 16.5 minutes out of every hour, which will keep you informed of the must-have products of the day, protecting you from accidentally thinking your current products were sufficient.

Contemporary television must be great, because everyone has it. If you’ve ever gone for a night time walk around your town, as I like to do often, you’ll notice that almost EVERY SINGLE HOUSE has flashing blue light streaming out through its windows. If you peek through into their living rooms, as I also like to do . . .

[kms]

Ok, not exactly an answer to my question but something we can work with.

Where are your other two TVs located? I'm guessing one is in the basement and the other in the living room? If you really want a TV in your bedroom, couldn't you just move the one from the basement into your bedroom for the time being? Assuming the one in the basement is actually the one that gets used the least.

Also, fuzzing out does not sound like the TV is going to die anytime soon. My guess would be either bad signal (antenna/satellite/cable) or interrupted stream (Netflix, Hulu, etc.) but certainly not a dying TV.

[swick]

Good Job Beatles, like starting to exercise, you are using muscles you are not use to using. It hurts a bit, but it will get easier and you will get stronger.

Another idea to explore: WHY is it so important to have a TV in your bedroom? What purpose does it serve? Could you use that time snuggling up with and really getting to really know your wife, and start building a dream together? With kids and stress, especially money stress it is really easy to lose sight of who you are as an individual and a couple. It would be a great time to explore that together.

[Malum Prohibitum]

http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2012/04/21/guest-posting-its-all-bullshit/

Don’t be a drone.

Turn off your television. Not just for a day, or a week, but for months. Don’t watch advertisements. Get yourself off all of those electronic mailing lists. All of these are turning you into a drone.

It will take a while, but as you un-program yourself, you’ll begin to see how stupidly the world is run. You’ll begin to scratch your head when you occasion to run across those ads in your everyday life. Their nectar will no long smell as sweet. Their clever patterns will no longer lure you in. You will no longer be a Bumblebee of Consumption.

[TheJamesGang]

I logged in for the first time in probably a year to comment on this.

WOW. Great job for sticking through the 600+ comments and making a plan for your family.

Congratulations. You are on the way to changing your family in more areas than just money. 5 years from now hopefully we can all look back at this thread as the beginning of when The Beatles turned his family's life around.

Keep trucking and pick yourself up when you fall. It looks like everyone on here doesn't make mistakes but we all have. We've all made dumb purchases that we've kicked ourselves about afterwards. The key is to keep picking yourself up and moving forward. Before you know it you will be a pro at budgeting and saving money.

If you need any advice PM me and i'll be glad to help. We started 5 years ago reading MMM and now have a NW over 120K and 60k in retirement (1 income, 3 kids under 5)

[Poundwise]

If you are interested in troubleshooting the problem with your TV, try posting in the DIY section:
http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/do-it-yourself-forum!/

I would start by swapping out TVs for a while to see if it's the signal or the actual machine.

[ysette9]

I just want to post to say congrats on the progress you are making so far, both you and your wife. We are cheering for you!

[kms]

I would start by swapping out TVs for a while to see if it's the signal or the actual machine.

This. This is how an engineer analyzes and ultimately fixes a problem. It's not rocket science (well, for some engineers it is), it's simple small steps to eliminate all other options and impacts. There's a joke that pretty much sums this up: What does an engineer do if he notices his front left tire is punctured? He swaps it with the front right tire to see whether the problem persists. Think about it next time something "breaks".

Once you're 100% it actually is broken take it to a Repair Café nearby and have someone take a look at it. I used to attend these occasionally to help people fix their old stuff they were unable to repair themselves (obviously not everybody is an engineer and knows how to hold a soldering iron. Hint: pointy end down and away from any orifices!). I've been shocked at how many people throw away perfectly good electronics because they think they're broken. I can't even tell you how many laptops/computers I've "rescued" from the dumpster that needed nothing but a reinstall of Windows (cost of repair: $0), had a faulty RAM chip (cost of repair: $20) or harddrive (cost of repair: $50). Yet their previous owners decided it somehow made more sense to spend $500 on a new laptop instead.

[Laura33]

Awesome job returning the TV!  Everyone screws up.  You've been working on "I want it, I'll buy it" for so long that it's going to take time to cancel the autopilot.  The important part is that you caught yourself and fixed it.

It sounds like you need some practice distinguishing a "want" from a "need."  I'd propose an exercise.  First, you need to finish your monthly budget, with a certain amount going to debt repayment (that part's non-negotiable).  Next, make a list of all of your needs and wants, from groceries to college funding to winter coats for the kids to new TVs to vacations to retiring by X date to even faster debt repayment, etc.  Then put them in order, from the most important to the least. 

Now, whenever you want/need something, look at that list.  Where does this thing fall?  Is it near the top (meaning it's a real need)?  Is everything else that is above it on your list already taken care of within your existing budget?  Awesome!  If you can fit it in your budget (in cash), go for it!  Is it lower on the list than something else?  Then it gets put aside until you get that higher priority thing taken care of. 

Of course, the reality is that until you get your debts paid off, you really don't have room in the budget for any of the wants.  But that list can help you reframe the issue in the moment of temptation -- it's not just "I want," it's "do I want this more than that?"  You need to train your brain to see your monthly budget as a zero-sum game -- getting X means you don't get Y. 

But the really important thing is that the list makes the whole exercise not about deprivation.  This whole thing will crash and burn if you spend the next year telling yourself "I can't have any toys because the money hippies said so" -- that's like white-knuckling it through a starvation diet, and we all know what happens when diets end.  But focusing on your list turns "I want but can't have, grumble grumble," into "you know, I want this TV, but my kids need winter coats, so I'm going to be a good dad and make sure they're taken care of first."  And that is something you can feel good about instead of deprived.

[Trifle]

http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2012/04/21/guest-posting-its-all-bullshit/

Don’t be a drone.

Turn off your television. Not just for a day, or a week, but for months. Don’t watch advertisements. Get yourself off all of those electronic mailing lists. All of these are turning you into a drone.

It will take a while, but as you un-program yourself, you’ll begin to see how stupidly the world is run. You’ll begin to scratch your head when you occasion to run across those ads in your everyday life. Their nectar will no long smell as sweet. Their clever patterns will no longer lure you in. You will no longer be a Bumblebee of Consumption.

This.  TV is bad for us.  Reducing or eliminating it = more time, more money, less stress, more focus, better health, better sleep, better relationships. 

Great job returning the TV!

[Allie]

I did something kinda stupid this morning.

At risk of being called a troll, I won't say what it is.

But i'll just say that i'm still learning to control the urge to spend - apparently.

you did return it!  Awesome.

Seriously, our TV died, like totally died, a few years ago.  Some internet research revealed it was a problem with some internal component.  With a soldering iron, a $5 part, and a youtube video, I could have fixed it myself.  I'm not an engineer, but I can mimic what a guy does on YouTube.  A little more research revealed it was a known problem with the Samsung version we had, so I called the company, complained nicely, and they sent a guy who repairs TVs to my house to fix it - for free.  The TV is still working to this day. 

Instead of searching for the cost of new TV's, try fixing it first.  Switch TVs.  If it's still freaking out, Google the problem and dig a little.  Contact the TV maker.  Call a repair dude to see if it can be fixed for less than the cost of a new TV.  Ours would have cost $80 to fix by a professional and $1000 (it was years ago, 48" flat screens were considered fancy) to replace. 

I'd recommend that you figure out what's wrong with the tv, fix it, then sell it.  I imagine with a little creativity you guys could think of another way to entertain yourselves in your bedroom...books...or something.

[swick]

I did something kinda stupid this morning.

At risk of being called a troll, I won't say what it is.

But i'll just say that i'm still learning to control the urge to spend - apparently.

Return it.  Now.  So simple.

He did :)

[scantee]

Buying the TV was probably due to a psychological process known as an "extinction burst": when a person acknowledges an undesirable behavior needs to go away entirely (in The Beatles case the undesirable behavior is spending money they don't have) there is often a short-term dramatic increase in that behavior, followed by decline or complete absence of it. Compare to an addict who spends a few days getting as high as possible before going off to rehab.

Your dysfunctional relationship with money is more of an emotional and psychological issue  than a financial one. As others have said, if you want to really address this issue, you need to get at the root causes of why spending money on things is so soothing to you and why you keep doing it even though you recognize it is doing you long-term harm. Once you've address those root causes, the financial stuff will seem absolutely simple by comparison.

[1967mama]

Beatles, You and your wife may find some folks you can identify with on The Dave Ramsey Show. I try to tune in a bit every day on my computer while I cook up a storm in the kitchen. I find it very motivating to hear how people dig their way out of debt.  I always get some new ideas. They loop the 3 hour show for 24 hours at a time so you can catch it at any point. It's also available as a free podcast which is awesome for commuters!

Were you able to borrow the book from your parents? Cut up those credit cards yet? (Wink)

[The beatles]

If you are interested in troubleshooting the problem with your TV, try posting in the DIY section:
http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/do-it-yourself-forum!/

I would start by swapping out TVs for a while to see if it's the signal or the actual machine.

It's definitely the TV.

The same issue occurs on multiple inputs, and sets.

[RetiredAt63]

You have 2 choices when the TV dies.

Move the one you use least into the bedroom,
OR
Don't have a TV in the bedroom.

Sleep experts say the bedroom should be used for as few activities as possible so you sleep well.  This article is interesting, there are others.
http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/power-down-better-sleep#1

You wanted a couch in the bedroom at one point.  It is a room for sleeping (the name does mention a bed), and getting dressed, not having guests or marathon TV watching.  If you or your wife were bed-ridden I could see the point, but you have active lives.  Um, when you look at needs versus wants you may end up cutting cable and then the TV availability becomes less important.

Remember that priority list others have suggested you make? 

Doesn't it look somewhat like this?

IRS
car and CC and other debt
Rental house

Savings for retirement
Savings for children's future (education fund)
Short-term savings for unexpected expenses (and your budget should have a long list of expected expenses, even if they only show up once a year)
Emergency fund (illness, job loss, etc.)

Sure you want a replacement TV.  But do you NEED a replacement TV? No.  The main exercise is figuring out wants versus needs.  The secondary exercise is establishing priorities so once your hair on fire debt is taken care of you don't waste money on low-priority spending and then have none for high-priority spending.  Wasn't there mention of a vacation in Hawai'i?  Your kids will enjoy it a lot more when they are older (they won't remember it at their present ages) and you will enjoy it a lot more knowing there is no huge CC bill waiting when you get home.

Seriously.  I had an engine gasket go, the engine replacement cost almost $3000.  Not covered by warranty.  I paid cash (well, I paid on a CC for the points, and then immediately paid off the CC).  No problem except the annoyance factor.  I may be a money hippie*, but I am a solvent money hippie.

*Just a fun factoid, I really did wear a granny dress to a live performance of Hair back in the late 60's.  How much hippier can I be without having ever done drugs?  Yup, honest to dog money hippie here.   ;-)

[Bee21]

Here we go again. Wife returns 3 dollars worth of cans, does a great job in not buying crap and our hero buys a tv on credit to celebrate their new life! See the pattern here? In my life it translates into i was good and i lost 1 kg by eating soups and salads for 3 days in a row, its time for pizza and cheescake to celebrate. Stupid.this is how i got fat and you poor. We need more discipline in our lives to fix this. Lucky you, you could cancel the order. Well done on that one.

 You should simply need to get a new hobby which doesn't involve spending money. Join the library and borrow every book on personal finance you can find. That will keep you busy.

Nobody should have a tv and a sofa in the bedroom. Especially if you have a large house, a dog and a kid. Play with those kids instead, they are very entertaining at this age. Take the dog for a walk. Teach her new tricks.
You mentioned the kids don't watch tv, they do activities instead. So why do you need 3 tvs in the house? Whywhywhy?

[ysette9]

Stupid.this is how i got fat and you poor.

Calm down here, buddy. We've beaten this guy up black and blue and he is working on making changes and understanding his motivations behind his destructive actions. We are here to be helpful and supportive while giving feedback. Let's be kind.

[Bee21]

Well, i am usually kind and very understanding, but that replacement third tv broke the back of the camel. Toughen up buttercup.


Tv

Tv

Tv

[mustachepungoeshere]

*Just a fun factoid, I really did wear a granny dress to a live performance of Hair back in the late 60's.  How much hippier can I be without having ever done drugs?  Yup, honest to dog money hippie here.   ;-)

You could have dressed to match the cast in a certain scene... ;)

[ysette9]

Well, i am usually kind and very understanding, but that replacement third tv broke the back of the camel. Toughen up buttercup.

He recognized it was a mistake, came here to talk about it, and returned it at our urging. Yeah, it isn't perfect, but damn, that is impressive progress in five days. I stick by my original opinion: be nice.

[RetiredAt63]

*Just a fun factoid, I really did wear a granny dress to a live performance of Hair back in the late 60's.  How much hippier can I be without having ever done drugs?  Yup, honest to dog money hippie here.   ;-)

You could have dressed to match the cast in a certain scene... ;)

Yup, I could have tied my hair back to make it look like it had been cut short and I was in the military.  ;-)  I do remember the plot, a bit.  My hair was nearly to my waist then.

beatles, sorry, we do tend to go off topic and inject levity into serious threads every now and then.  Look at the name of the person who got us way off topic.

[LadyStache in Baja]

You can have two cars, but they don't need to be expensive cars.  Lots of Mustachians use $7000ish cars and they work just great.

I wonder what the average value of a mustachian car is...has a poll been done?

[Cowardly Toaster]

You can have two cars, but they don't need to be expensive cars.  Lots of Mustachians use $7000ish cars and they work just great.

I wonder what the average value of a mustachian car is...has a poll been done?

Did Beatles ever mention how far he has to commute to work? That would play heavily into whether or not he needed 2 cars and how expensive a possible used car would have to be.

[Quidnon?]

She said that we would be foolish to sell the home without doing the roof, as it will push away a lot of buyers and drive our price down.

But then other posters on here say I should sell without the roof done. I dont know.

Take the advice of your local real estate professional over that of some Minion Money Hippies from half way across the US.  As the saying goes, all real estate is local.  That is why you pay for a local realtor, because there isn't anyone here that knows the local real estate market as well as she does.

But then, it becomes a problem of financing while in a hole.  First, get a good quote.  Then let us know what it is, and we might be able to come up with something.  I'm still of the opinion that you should really consider, hard, moving back into your starter home.  I think that you over-bought house wise, and that the extra space and costs will harm you for years.

[Quidnon?]

I don't know how we could make it work without a 2nd car.

I know that you can do it, it's a question of how to do it best.  I'd wager that if you asked your own parents, there was a time that your parents only had one vehicle between them.  At least, if your mother didn't work outside the home.  I know that it sounds very 1950's, but a second car is always a luxury for a single income family, and you really can't afford any luxuries right now.

[katscratch]

*Just a fun factoid, I really did wear a granny dress to a live performance of Hair back in the late 60's.  How much hippier can I be without having ever done drugs?  Yup, honest to dog money hippie here.   ;-)

You could have dressed to match the cast in a certain scene... ;)

Yup, I could have tied my hair back to make it look like it had been cut short and I was in the military.  ;-)  I do remember the plot, a bit.  My hair was nearly to my waist then

.

Preeeetttty sure that's not the scene mustachepungoeshere is thinking of ;) 




beatles, dang man, way to go on that cancellation!!  Even better, you identified your impulse AND made a correction, in one day! 


....I will admit I have considered replacing the TV that is now at college with my son. Bottom line is that it's not necessary to my day to day life.  He bought it just two years ago, and I've only had cable one year in my adult life, so it's not like I was even used to watching TV.  So I won't buy one.  And definitely won't after your good example :)

[BlueHouse]

I mean, do you feel bad that Donald Trump's kids get money from their dad? Or just non-billionaire parents?

Yes, I do feel badly that they get such a huge head start in life and in business because of their parentage.  I believe in meritocracy (although, not total).  It sickens me that Donald Trump thinks he is more successful than I am or that he believes he is smarter than I am.  He started out with vastly more than I did and was able to keep it without losing too much to inflation.  Pretty sure anyone on this forum could have done better.  His children clearly believe that he (and they) deserve the wealth they have.  And that attitude really really bothers me.

Let's not derail an excellent thread by talking about the political situation. There are threads elsewhere for that.

Svenster, I try not to be defensive when another poster disagrees with something I've written, but in this case, you aren't disagreeing with me, you are attempting to redefine the category of my comment and that is not okay, particularly within the current political climate. 
My comment , in direct reply to a question from the OP, had nothing at all to do with politics.  It had to do with my belief that merit should trump nepotism, cronyism, inherited wealth, and especially inherited advantages.  The subject of the example was almost not relevant, other than his being the ultimate example of a person who used his money to buy his children untold advantages in school, business, and life.

tl;dr:  don't try to shut me down by redefining the topic of the statement. 

I do agree that we shouldn't derail this conversation though, so if there is any further discussion, please feel free to start another thread or PM me. 

[RetiredAt63]

*Just a fun factoid, I really did wear a granny dress to a live performance of Hair back in the late 60's.  How much hippier can I be without having ever done drugs?  Yup, honest to dog money hippie here.   ;-)

You could have dressed to match the cast in a certain scene... ;)

Yup, I could have tied my hair back to make it look like it had been cut short and I was in the military.  ;-)  I do remember the plot, a bit.  My hair was nearly to my waist then

.

Preeeetttty sure that's not the scene mustachepungoeshere is thinking of ;) 


Toronto was still pretty strict back then  ;-)


beatles, dang man, way to go on that cancellation!!  Even better, you identified your impulse AND made a correction, in one day! 


....I will admit I have considered replacing the TV that is now at college with my son. Bottom line is that it's not necessary to my day to day life.  He bought it just two years ago, and I've only had cable one year in my adult life, so it's not like I was even used to watching TV.  So I won't buy one.  And definitely won't after your good example :)

Yup, he fell and he caught himself.

[Malum Prohibitum]

So, tell us what your accountant is suggesting and when you are implementing it.

So, tell us what the real estate agent thinks you can get for the second house.

So, tell us the $ amount of the roofer bids.

[larmando]

I canceled it.

:(

No. You cancelled it. :) Huge win! That's X$ more you now own. Victory!

[larmando]

It was actually a replacement of the third.

The bedroom TV had started to act a little strange.

In the middle of a show it'll fuzz out for a moment, and then come back.

I think it's only a matter of time until its done for good.

Oh no. And then you'll have to go *to the other room* to watch tv. Can you imagine the hassle?
Are there even people watching 3 TVs at the same time at your place? Is it just because you want to be in the bedroom? Can you do something else, instead? I have one projector, no tv, and I'm super-happy with that. Definitely wouldn't want an extra in the bedroom. And there's always watching something on the laptop there, in case, for particular moments.

[GetSmart]

This is great! I was hoping you’d come back and stick with it.

So here is something you might want to analyze.  At some point in your recent life you lived in a paid off house, with two paid off cars and (presuming) no school loans. 

Guessing here - either you inherited the house OR are the beneficiary of some very generous people (parents) OR you totally had you act together and were badass killing it!  At that point you had 60k a year to spend on food, clothes, toys, gas and insurance - that’s a lot of spending power right there!

So what you might want to think about is what decisions did you make that put you off the track.  What were you doing differently then from what you are doing now.

Personally I would put both houses on the market and see which sold first, then move into the other one.  I also don’t get this whole ‘renter’ house and find a realtor who knows investors / rental market? What is that all about?  It’s a house. People live in it.  Why label it as something that seems to have negative connotations - as if it has less value.  You could ask the tenants if they are interested in buying it and not go through a realtor at all and save the fees.

[Quidnon?]

  I also don’t get this whole ‘renter’ house and find a realtor who knows investors / rental market? What is that all about?  It’s a house. People live in it.  Why label it as something that seems to have negative connotations - as if it has less value.  You could ask the tenants if they are interested in buying it and not go through a realtor at all and save the fees.

I think that you might be talking about me here.  I said that, originally, because I wasn't imagining a single family, detached home as the rental.  I was imagining a small building deliberately built as an investment property, such as a duplex or quad. 

[RetiredAt63]

It's Friday.  How was lunch at work today?  This would have been "buy the office lunch" day - how is that going?  I ask because sometimes the hardest steps are not the big huge scary ones, they are the ones that impact other people outside the family.  We are a social animal and we are built to care what others think of us.  That is why this is such a good place for you to be, we will be your responsible spending social group.

Plus of course I am wondering if anyone else has started buying lunch for the group.  I bet no-one has.

[The beatles]

So, tell us what your accountant is suggesting and when you are implementing it.

So, tell us what the real estate agent thinks you can get for the second house.

So, tell us the $ amount of the roofer bids.

I only spoke with him once (phone consultation) and he doesn't have any full details of the intricacies of my case.

But the accountant said that he has worked deals with the IRS in past where they agree to not only stop charging interest as soon as the person starts paying, but also reduce a large portion of the already accrued interest.

He then amortizes the tax debt over a certain year span. In my case, I might be able to amortize over 4 years and pay an additional $6-8k in income taxes each of the next 4 years to supplement the debt.

(the range of $6k to $8k is because we dont know how much they would be willing to take off, if anything)

[The beatles]

It's Friday.  How was lunch at work today?  This would have been "buy the office lunch" day - how is that going?  I ask because sometimes the hardest steps are not the big huge scary ones, they are the ones that impact other people outside the family.  We are a social animal and we are built to care what others think of us.  That is why this is such a good place for you to be, we will be your responsible spending social group.

Plus of course I am wondering if anyone else has started buying lunch for the group.  I bet no-one has.

This marks the first week in, I'm not sure how long, that I only purchased 1 day of lunch.

I'm guesstimating that I saved around $145.