Put money in house Reno or in the market

[Anonymous]

$290k pre tax is not going to get you a huge reno. It might get you a kitchen and bathroom. I’d put it in the market and move.

[Anonymous]

Op here. DH says I’m leaving out key facts. The reno is a full basement reno. We just found out I’m pregnant. He thinks this will give us more space as a family. The sentiment is very sweet of him. The basement also has some water damage we need to fix anyways. Not inclined to move since we have a 3% mortgage.

[Anonymous]

290K into a basement you will never get that back. Such a stupid decision.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:$290k pre tax is not going to get you a huge reno. It might get you a kitchen and bathroom. I’d put it in the market and move.

That’s what I was thinking. $290 could disappear very quickly and leave you with a slightly fancier kitchen and bathroom. If there’s something about the house that could be renovated to provide a lot of additional personal value then that might make sense. Like going from 1 bath to 2; or adding a screened-in porch or deck; or renovating a kitchen if you are big cooks. But just to have nicer fixtures? Nah.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. DH says I’m leaving out key facts. The reno is a full basement reno. We just found out I’m pregnant. He thinks this will give us more space as a family. The sentiment is very sweet of him. The basement also has some water damage we need to fix anyways. Not inclined to move since we have a 3% mortgage.

Need more info. How big is the house now? How is the school district? Is this a full basement dig-out - like to add a sleeping area and full bath?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:290K into a basement you will never get that back. Such a stupid decision.

Finished basements do add value in Capitol Hill and also add a lot of utility if the house is small.

[Anonymous]

OP-basement is finished but pretty old. It’s a refresh of the whole space which includes better bedroom space for guests/better family gathering space. Biggest reason why we’d renovate is to fix the water damage

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP-basement is finished but pretty old. It’s a refresh of the whole space which includes better bedroom space for guests/better family gathering space. Biggest reason why we’d renovate is to fix the water damage

I think renovating a basement to make it more useable is really a good investment in your lives. Fixing water damage also just seems like responsible maintenance. Make sure there’s no lead paint involved though.

That said - if you’re not in a good school district, you should sell and move now. The low mortgage isn’t worth bad schools. Even if the elementary is OK moving in middle school or late elementary is painful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. DH says I’m leaving out key facts. The reno is a full basement reno. We just found out I’m pregnant. He thinks this will give us more space as a family. The sentiment is very sweet of him. The basement also has some water damage we need to fix anyways. Not inclined to move since we have a 3% mortgage.

Height and sqft of your basement? I got a quote for my reno and it’s $40k that includes a kitchenette, bathroom, closet and egress windows

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP-basement is finished but pretty old. It’s a refresh of the whole space which includes better bedroom space for guests/better family gathering space. Biggest reason why we’d renovate is to fix the water damage

That is a value added reno. If you make the space more of a liveable area, you will use it more and your kid(s) will be able to have a play area. The added guest area in a basement makes a huge difference when hosting. Get estimates, split the money so you get the basement done and some investments in the market.

[Anonymous]

Agreeing with splitting the difference and along with front loading a 529 plan. We sold two rental properties to buy a fixer upper in our dream neighborhood in 2015. At the time, we were 36/39 living in a new build in a transitioning neighborhood with three kids (5, 3 and 1). We put 3/4 of the profits into the renovation (primary home now has $1.2 mil in equity) and about $40k in each 529 plan (each has about $160k now with minimal contributions since the primary boost). Our total net worth was similar to yours and is now over $4 mil, 9 years later. Plus, we have the added enjoyment of living in a beautiful home. HHI at the time was $200k and is only $370k now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP-basement is finished but pretty old. It’s a refresh of the whole space which includes better bedroom space for guests/better family gathering space. Biggest reason why we’d renovate is to fix the water damage

That is a value added reno. If you make the space more of a liveable area, you will use it more and your kid(s) will be able to have a play area. The added guest area in a basement makes a huge difference when hosting. Get estimates, split the money so you get the basement done and some investments in the market.

I agree about hosting esp if you don’t live close to family and you want them to help. We have three kids and live six hours from family. We put the baby in our room when family visits/helps but when the baby is around 2 that will stop making sense. Our basement is not big enough for a bedroom but if I could add a bedroom in the basement for guests I would.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here-yes, I would like to at least retire early (maybe 55) but DH anticipates he won’t want to, which is fine. We are leaning towards putting some in investment/some in house renovation which neither of us is completely happy about but I guess that means it’s a fair solution/good compromise. Also, never moving to Reno!

At 35, DH and I thought we'd want to keep working into our 60s. But by 50 or so, we were both burnt out and glad we had enough saved to retire early. As much as I love a good home reno, the option to retire early is priceless.

[Anonymous]

PP, we plan to retire in our 50s. Again, OP has enough to split between brokerage, renovation and front loading a 529.

Don’t forget you owe for depreciation in addition to long term capital gains on the rental. Talk to your accountant before allocating the remaining $$.