If your mortgage is only 1/6 of your income, and you bought a house in glover park (which I'm assuming had to have cost at least $600k), then I don't see why you can't save $100k in the next year and start it then without a mortgage, and have another $50k saved 6 months later to finish.

Anonymous wrote:Is everything functional? If not I would start with repairs to whatever isn't first. I think it would make more sense to do this in stages (even if you get a HELOC for $150,000). Start with the kitchen since that is well defined (I don't know about you but I really get a lot of utility from having a finished kitchen). Then I would do the walls and lastly the bathrooms (all at the same time if you can).You could spread this out over three years (give yourself a year to save first). That way as you live in the house you'll have a better idea of what it is you want to do. You really don't want to do renovations and then regret the renovations!

I totally agree with this and that had been our plan. We are getting overwhelmed with how interwoven everything seems. We don't want to do any work that precludes or makes more expensive future work. Does that make sense? But I am still leaning towards this kind of plan. If we do the kitchen now, maybe we would just plumb for the upstairs bathroom (plumbing would come up through the kitchen) without finishing it? I don't know. This is hard!

PP here. With so much work to do, it gets exponentially more difficult making dozens of decisions and managing all of these projects. Hence the spread it out reasoning. Plus that allows you to pay as you go.

Is everything functional? If not I would start with repairs to whatever isn't first. I think it would make more sense to do this in stages (even if you get a HELOC for $150,000). Start with the kitchen since that is well defined (I don't know about you but I really get a lot of utility from having a finished kitchen). Then I would do the walls and lastly the bathrooms (all at the same time if you can).You could spread this out over three years (give yourself a year to save first). That way as you live in the house you'll have a better idea of what it is you want to do. You really don't want to do renovations and then regret the renovations!

Anonymous wrote:How is 6-7 years forever?
The cheaper your house the more buyers and less for the agent.
Right now you are talking yourself into doing it while others are trying to talk you out of it. Save the $1300 til children go to school and revisit if you want to do the reno.
Ours need updating too but unlike you, I have no interest in living in a construction zone. Besides, it's not our forever home.

We hope it's forever, but if we do choose to move, we recognize that we have to suck it up and wait several more years. I don't think I've written anything to indicate I am trying to talk myself into it. There seems to be pretty evenly mixed opinions here.

How is 6-7 years forever?
The cheaper your house the more buyers and less for the agent.
Right now you are talking yourself into doing it while others are trying to talk you out of it. Save the $1300 til children go to school and revisit if you want to do the reno.
Ours need updating too but unlike you, I have no interest in living in a construction zone. Besides, it's not our forever home.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Okay guys relax. We have plenty of retirement savings and college savings. Our mortgage payment is <1/6 of our total income. I like to compare to one salary in the event that one of us loses our job (we have similar salaries). Yes, we thought we could live with it and piecemeal fix over the years. Maybe we will do that, that's the decision I'm facing.

I re-read my OP, it was unclear re: retirement savings. We have plenty of retirement savings and college savings. The $20k is cash.

Oh, okay that makes more sense now. I'm the PP who was aghast and horrified

In that case, I would pretend that the cost of my mortgage and the new loan for the home reno was actually just my mortgage and ask myself if I would be comfortable with that number as my mortgage and why I didn't just mortgage that amount in the first place.

That is essentially what you would be doing: instead of taking out a higher mortgage and getting a house with the renovation already done, you are using that same amount to do it yourselves, and "mortgaging" your renovation costs.

Why didn't you just look in a $150-200k higher price range?

We had cash for 20% down on this price range. But I agree with the philosophy. Thanks.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Okay guys relax. We have plenty of retirement savings and college savings. Our mortgage payment is <1/6 of our total income. I like to compare to one salary in the event that one of us loses our job (we have similar salaries). Yes, we thought we could live with it and piecemeal fix over the years. Maybe we will do that, that's the decision I'm facing.

I re-read my OP, it was unclear re: retirement savings. We have plenty of retirement savings and college savings. The $20k is cash.

Oh, okay that makes more sense now. I'm the PP who was aghast and horrified

In that case, I would pretend that the cost of my mortgage and the new loan for the home reno was actually just my mortgage and ask myself if I would be comfortable with that number as my mortgage and why I didn't just mortgage that amount in the first place.

That is essentially what you would be doing: instead of taking out a higher mortgage and getting a house with the renovation already done, you are using that same amount to do it yourselves, and "mortgaging" your renovation costs.

Why didn't you just look in a $150-200k higher price range?

Anonymous wrote:Okay guys relax. We have plenty of retirement savings and college savings. Our mortgage payment is <1/6 of our total income. I like to compare to one salary in the event that one of us loses our job (we have similar salaries). Yes, we thought we could live with it and piecemeal fix over the years. Maybe we will do that, that's the decision I'm facing.

I re-read my OP, it was unclear re: retirement savings. We have plenty of retirement savings and college savings. The $20k is cash.

Anonymous wrote:I can't read past that you only have $20k in total retirement savings and nest egg (please tell me that is not combined, but you have $20k in each) but want to sink $150-200k into your home.
That is crazy.
Did you buy the house thinking you would be okay with living in it "as is" but now can't stand it?
You say the mortgage is affordable but now would be adding $1k on top of that, that you ahold be saving.

In a few decades when you retire you sell the house which has money in it much more than the 150-200

Okay guys relax. We have plenty of retirement savings and college savings. Our mortgage payment is <1/6 of our total income. I like to compare to one salary in the event that one of us loses our job (we have similar salaries). Yes, we thought we could live with it and piecemeal fix over the years. Maybe we will do that, that's the decision I'm facing.

I can't read past that you only have $20k in total retirement savings and nest egg (please tell me that is not combined, but you have $20k in each) but want to sink $150-200k into your home.
That is crazy.
Did you buy the house thinking you would be okay with living in it "as is" but now can't stand it?
You say the mortgage is affordable but now would be adding $1k on top of that, that you ahold be saving.

OP - can you clarify: You said your mortgage payment is 1/3 of each of your salaries. Do you mean 1/3 of your combined income? Or that you and DH have identical salaries, and that it's 1/6 of your combined income?

Ouch - so you're saying if you spend $150k to $200k (and just count on spending $200k and above - it will never come in at the low end of budget) that your house will be comparable to others in the neighborhood that sell for $150k more than what you paid? But here's what I'm going to tell you about your renovation: Since money is tight and you have a shit shack that really needs a $300k reno but you'll just be doing the piece meal, your $200k improvement will not be as nice as the improved houses in your neighborhood. Don't count on that value unless you plan to fully gut and do it right.

In other words, this is a terrible financial decision.

And you don't even have any money socked away!!!

Anonymous wrote:I would save more and do it slower. If you can pay down the loan at $1300 a month, why not save that? $1300 a month for 20 years is a lot.

This is what I would do, too. I would make a listto prioritize what needs to be done and in what order and start saving for it. I would also closely examine any and all things you could DIY.