Topics

1

General Discussion / sell or keep condo

« on: August 05, 2020, 11:57:45 PM »

Hey all...figured I'd hit you up seeing these are the smartest FIRE people on the planet...heres my situation

Have enough to poor fire..Could travel on the road, but nothing high end.
the condo may be keeping me from having a decent to good FIRE life..sell it or keep it

positives
Condo is in Bellevue Wa...light rail going up less than a mile from my condo
Amazon locating 5000 employees downtown...about 3 to 5 miles away
paid off
hedge against future rent inflation

Negatives
May have a special assessment coming up 10-15k, elevators also from 1969...hoa said they are beginning to have problems finding replacement parts. elvevators are probably out of code and will eventually need to be replaced..current cost is 250k.
building is old..1969 construction, popcorn ceiling
building has not appreciated much as newer construction is in much higher demand (I bought the crappiest condo in the best neighborhood...what I could afford)

My dues, taxes, water, heat  and insurance come to around 8k a year....so if it appreciates @2.5%, I break even.

Im 50, so I'll be taking out money out of my roth at 59 1/2. My immediate feeling is I'm paying 80k plus increases over the next 10 years.  That's 80k I could be traveling with. I could probably do an Airbnb for around $1500 and have utilities included.

I'd like to start traveling after covid is up. jumping from place to place would freak me out a little, so I'd probably do the US for a few years.  Did travel to Italy for 60 days last year. Due to some stresses and not being able to sleep, I was done by about the 50th day and by day 60 went home.

There is a rental pool which I'm about 16 months out. I did try renting it out on craigslist and only got one response, again maybe covid related.

Thanks for reading and your opinion in advance

2

Travel hacking / amex and chase points-should i sell?

« on: August 25, 2019, 02:13:22 PM »

I'll be traveling around italy in a little bit...So tried to book a hotel and car via amex points and see my points devalued to like .7c each...my chase points are 1 to 1 when booking a hotel. I have 184k amex and about 150k chase...should I consider selling a portion to offset the cost of hotels if I can get 1.1c each cash?

I'm seeing my best value in booking flights....i'm considering spending money on airbnbs instead of booking hotels thru points...

Evidently I've got too many inquiries/outstanding open cards...I've gotten denied on multiple occasions except for a chase biz card (scored 80k points on that one)

any suggestions from the pros out there?

3

General Discussion / credit card living?

« on: October 16, 2018, 10:49:44 AM »

Hi all,

So I have a lot of money open on credit cards. Most if not all have the option of writing a check for 3%.

Here's the question.....in event of when the market tanks, would you consider living off your credit cards for a few years til the market comes back. This would be instead of cashing out stocks/bonds.

Any opinions would be appreciated!

4

General Discussion / Rental while traveling

« on: October 07, 2018, 12:43:27 AM »

Hi

Wondering how ppl handle their rental property while traveling?

Any advice would be much appreciated!

5

General Discussion / Asset allocation?

« on: October 01, 2018, 08:12:32 AM »

So I tend to over analyze everything when it comes to investing. here's my current allocation.

6% emerging markets
7% international
51% large US
8% mid cap
20% small cap
Reti 5%
3% misc

Within the allocations are a breakdown of about 60/40 growth/value

I'm in all index etf funds.

As compared to the S and P, I've been lagging the market between 2-5% a year which is becoming a big deal. It's also very frustrating since I've been scaling out of value and international over the last couple years as they've been getting killed. i don't feel I'm being rewarded for the risk I'm taking.

After listening to JL Collins, I'm considering pulling the plug and just going to the total stock market index fund. This is my long term money I wont be touching for about 12  years.

I also have about 3 years of expenses in cash (to cover the average bear market) earning around 3%+

Any feedback would be most welcomed!

6

General Discussion / one more year syndrome

« on: October 01, 2018, 07:51:57 AM »

Hi,
So I'm going through "one more year syndrome" as well as "I'm screwed if the market tanks syndrome"

A little background...own my own condo (can't rent as there is a rental cap...I'm due up sometime next year" value is around 275-300k.

I have about 23x my annual expenses in an ideal lifestyle. Additionally, 125k tied up in a rental that I'm breaking even...I'm partners with family and I really can't get out for 5 years.

I have about 3 years of cash earning about 3%, and 90k is tied up in a note earning 4% which should end in the next 5-7 years.

Propeller heads of finance say 3-3.5 is the new 4% rule. The last Forbes article I read said the market has a 80% of being negative over the next 5 years given the returns of the last 10.

Am I cutting things too close or just take the leap and live life now while I have my health.(seem to have longevity in my family)

Thanks to all in advance