Debt robs from Opportunity
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| Wed, 12-30-2009 - 7:27pm |
As many of you know we have a small cabin in northern Michigan we use a lot (about 26+ weekends a year, minimum, and all vacations but one.) DH bought it from his parents about 20 years ago and we paid it off last year. It is located 3 hours north of our home on a very small lake. DH's parents, sister, cousin and many other extended family members also have cabins on the same lake, so we do a lot together - dinners, cards, boating, skating, hunting, etc. Yesterday I skated the mile across to DH's sister's cabin, and the kids run boats around from cabin to cabin in the summer.
Well DH's sister has a nice 1800 sq ft cabin with two baths and three bedrooms as well as an open kitchen/family room to have a lot of people at. DH's cousin has an even bigger 3 bedroom A frame home with a large lot about a 3/4 of a mile down from us.
Our cabin is 600 sq ft after the addition. Our main room is 9.5' x 9', you walk through the hallway (which is also our kitchen, stove and sink on one side, refrig on the other, can't get through if the fridge is open) to the bathroom, and our room is in the back without heat (heat is in the main room only.) The kids bunk in a room much smaller than many walk-in closets or 6'x6'.
Anyway, our cabin limits us from hosting meals or having anyone up, such as friends of the kids or my parents.
Across the lake is a beautiful A Frame home with a stone fireplace, and a garage. It sits on 5 acres as well. We know the people who own it and they are only up here about 3 weekends a year - total! Well we found out they want to sell it, and for far less than I would have ever thougth. Issue is that we don't have the money to buy.
If I did not have the CC debt, I could easily swing the payment on that cabin and the taxes and insurance and we could have a place to retire to. Issue is DH is not as hard core with getting rid of debt as I am and would rather have steaks for dinner, and get more toys for his hunting hobby. Rice and beans are not his thing, bacon and eggs, and steak are more like it.
I don't know, I just hope this home does not sell for at least a year, they don't even have a sign up and you can't see it from anywhere but on the lake. Nothing in Michigan is selling right now, and few would want a home on this small lake in that price range, unemployment in this area is about 15% or more with many vacant homes.
In the meantime, I will drive my car longer, and pay everything off so these can be opportunities we can take advantage of in the future. And post a picture of that home on my desk so I can focus more clearly on our long term goals.
-Marie



Norma
"Patience is the best remedy for every trouble"- Plautus
Wow, Marie, I hope that works out for you! And if not, maybe you can build on your land one day? I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it works out for you. I know you don't need a fire lit under you, but if it serves to add to your purpose then all the better. =c)
PS: I keep the diagram of my house plans by my computer and on the fridge (near the back door) so I see them before I have the opportunity to spend money (online or leaving the house). I can tell you from personal experience that it sure helps!
FLINGING DEBT:
Honestly Marie I'd challenge you to step back right now and look at what you have vs. what you want.
You have a wonderful cabin (perhaps smaller than you'd like) near family, friends and recreation that you are able to enjoy almost half the year.
We all want more. We all dream and reach for more. But - sit back and LOOK at what you have. Be thankful and smile.
(not saying don't reach for those stars and work towards a new cabin one day but just make sure you are thankful for what is surrounding you.)
You have achieved so much already!
I know how you feel on this one. I want a new house so bad I can taste it. However, I am at that stage in my life where I know I have to save to reach that goal. I don't want a ridiculous payment. I want a manageable one so I can reach my other goals. I know I have to pay down that debt so we look better to bank and can get a good interest rate.
Sometimes I really hate being responsible and my reality sucks! But we will get there.
Who knows, perhaps another opportunity will come up when you are ready or you can build?
And by the way. I love how you do Christmas. I need to be more like your family and enjoy life that way.
Good luck and chin up!
Wow that other cabin sounds lovely...but u seem to be very practical right now about not buying it until things financially are more settled.
Congratulations all that you have and how hard you work at everything...
Most importantly....enjoy it and give thanks for all your blessings...
Happy New Year
Duke
Aww thanks all for your kind words about this and not bashing me for wanting something. I do love our little cabin, but it is pretty cold in our bedroom when it is 16 outside. And mostly I just want to be able to host other families in our place, and not have to borrow their cabins when we make dinner in the winter (We have parties and family meals outside in summer.)
As most of you also know, when DH and I married we took a lot of debt from Exes who are/were deadbeats. I mean I took over $84k in debt, and DH has about $60k from an Ex who scammed him terribly. I lived in a 3200 sq foot home at the time with two kitchens, but we buckled down and moved into his 1600 sq ft home in 2006, moving a child during her sophomore year of high school, to be able to pay down these debts, achieve our goals of our own business, and make sure our kids could go to college.
Both DH and I lived pretty much debt free in our separate lives and saved a lot until about 2002 for me, and 2004 for DH. Word of advice to all on how to stay ahead - get and stay married to someone with similar goals! Divorce is really expensive.
Dh bought this cabin on land contract from his parents for $250 a month, and we did pay that off in 2008 as our first goal was to get rid of any debt owed to family.
We are growing our business and there are strides happening there now and we used a lot of our time together this week to talk about our goals, do some tasks for our business and plan our next steps.
We did find out that many members of our family believe we will be the ones to purchase DH's grandmother's cabin, which is sitting empty between our cabin and Dh's cousins on the north side of the lake. His grandma's cabin would need a lot of updating, but it would be about half what that stone fireplace A-frame would be, and it would have 2+ bedrooms, and an open kitchen living area we could entertain in. We did not know that everyone thought of us as potential for that, as his grandma has been in a nursing home for the last 5 years. She is doing well and we adore her. But that also tells me there is opportunity for alternate ideas, which would be totally doable if I can get the debts I have paid off. So that buys us more time to get debt paid down and a down payment funded.
Kicker is that DH is now super motivated and has gone 100% cash! He is committed to planning meals and cutting down on super expensive meals.
He did point out that we really have done a great job avoiding restaurants this year as well as packing lunches, noting his spending money needs have decreased by about 75%.
We will do this, and have fun with our kids at the same time.
-Marie
PS I spent 4 hours ice skating yesterday! It was so nice out, about 30 degrees, and snowing lightly. I shoveled off our rink on the lake and made it even bigger while the kids and DH were snowmobiling, then skating with them when they came back. Then Dh's cousin has a really fun New Year's party and the kids were back out skating another 3 hours after they ate, while we enjoyed our dinner.
It is really fun up here!
Marie - obviously you are well on your way to making all of your dreams come true! It also looks like there will be other opportunities to "trade up" from your current cabin, once you're in a position to comfortably do so, which is terrific.
What's extra awesome about all of this is that it got your DH kicked into super-debt-reduction mode! It really does take a real, tangible goal to get them on the same page sometimes, doesn't it? With both of you fully on board, you'll get there so much faster.
Good luck!