All Forum Posts by: Theresa White

Eamon Heggarty , so just to clarify...when you do obtain your mortgage, it's only for 70% of the original appraised $117,000 at the 24 month point? So as long as you can afford the hefty initial 30% paid over 24 months, you've got your foot in the door and are not subject to a new valuation at the time you actually purchase? I think that's great! The U.K. Property Ladder can be tough to get on, from everything I have researched, so congratulations!

Your comments about respect for money/wealth were moving and humbling.  Wow. Thank you.  

I have travelled to different places for work, and your idea of remembering that someone's money represents their time/effort reminded me of rug shopping in Iraq.  I asked about the price of an incredible rug that I really liked, and the salesman said $1300.  I was quite young and, well, American.  I thought, "$1300 for a rug?!"  And the salesman read my thoughts through my eyes and gently reminded me that this piece of functional art represented 18 months of a man's life, hand tying every knot.  He smiled with crinkly eyes, spread his arms wide, and asked with pride, "is it not a beautiful bargain?!"   

Welcome, Kris!  I am pretty new as well and can't get over how awesome BP forums and podcasts are.  Love it.  Nice job on getting someone else to pay your mortgage! 

Oh! Last thought on this...another polite approach of, "that's really great that you are joining the military and might help us both. I'll contact your recruiter to make sure your back rent can be garnished without you having to worry about it." The military does not play with financial responsibility, so worst case, you stand to get paid up directly from his paycheck, and best case he says "I'm happy to pack up and leave." I guess I'm assuming it's a back rent problem and not something else! Either way, military service is a landlord ally, from my experience.

Yeah, I second a polite "no problem, I just need a copy of your orders and your recruiters name so I can dig into this a bit, as I've never had a military tenant" approach. He's not free to be a jerk who doesn't pay his bills, but he could also be someone legitimately trying to get his crap together via military employment. You could also suggest that the tenant end the lease with you, get a storage unit, and save any "basic allowance for housing" entitlements during his deployment rather than pay rent. (The odds of someone deploying straight out of basic training are also slim to none. Likely it's some other form of training.) this likely would only be an attractive option for him if he is single/no dependents.

Hi Craig Aucott ! I'm glad to come across someone interested in UK RE! Sadly I don't have much to offer you though other than interest in the market there across the pond, and frustration! I have perused the home buying schemes, real estate websites, etc and my gosh I cannot see how a young adult is ever supposed to get onto the property ladder there! I've primarily been looking in Bury St Edmunds and Ipswich areas due to a desire to find a win-win situation that would help my husband's son (dual citizen who decided England is more "home" than the USA) onto that ladder while being a sound investment for me. But multi families seem non-existent (in terms of him being able to house hack), partial or shared ownership schemes seem like they would be very difficult to exit, and basic SFR prices seem just so high that appreciating seems to be the main profit strategy. Since I haven't found many Brits online discussing their home market, my impressions are pretty basic and lack local context. While your family may not be close, might you have something to offer them (labor, leads, etc) that would be a decent exchange for them? Also...perhaps commit to picking a different market before you ask, so that your inquiry is non-threatening? Maybe you could spend a few hours finding a typical deal on the major selling websites and asking for their help in analyzing it. If they say the numbers won't work, that's your opening to ask if you could help out for experience; if they ignore you or don't offer anything constructive, you know it's a dead end without having asked for a handout. (Or maybe they help you find a deal and just take a fee for the service...you're family after all!!) Also...you could get in touch with some realtors and ask if they are investor friendly. You might get lucky if you call around. I'm sure they'd be willing to give you their perspective on local market and climate. What I'd be hoping for is that I click with someone, who ends up happy to teach you a thing or two in the hopes that in a couple years, he/she gets a commission off your first purchase!

@Matthieu Miser--I'd love to hear about your travels in France!  I lived in Germany for a few years for my job, and miss the culture, history, and architecture of the various parts of Europe.  One of my "breadth of experience" and "lifestyle engineering" goals, after I hit my initial buy and hold goals locally, is to buy a holiday flat in France that my family can use when we want, but that will bring in some income when we're not using it.  I envision my kids taking language courses and volunteering in whichever community we buy in, all of us slowing down for a few weeks at a time to enjoy art and food and music and architecture and history...and then coming HOME to the good ol' US of A! 

Thank you for your service through your faith and best of luck to you!

@Rajeev Kotyan, Thanks for the input...it's like a beautiful field of flowers planted atop landmines.  Thanks to you and the others for posting the clear warning signs!

@Ari Zartarian, this is my chance to plug the architect who helped us with our house: Jamee Parish out of Columbus OH.  Not sure if she's done a project like that, but in my opinion her style, taste, and abilities would suit the project well.  Google her website and check out her reviews on Houzz.com.  You'll see mine there.  Getting the details right, regardless of how you end up using it, will be so hugely important and she's a dream to work with. 

Assuming you've separated from government service and are able to move your money out of TSP? (You can't roll over your TSP if you still serve/are employed by the feds.) You then have to be self-employed (and I think not having employees other than a spouse) to open a self-directed 401k.