There is a MM thread where posters are saying that not having to pay rent/mortgage would not be that big of a deal to their "financial picture".
As in - their mortgage/rent is so little compared to their salary that it would not change their spending habits. Except that they could put more in savings.
I mean, dh and I aren't poor, but not writing that check each month would be huge for us. Because, no matter how much we make, IT'S STILL LOTS OF MONEY IN THE FIRST PLACE.
Post by PeonyParty on Apr 28, 2013 22:09:12 GMT -5
I was about dying when GOMI was talking about Verona's combined family income and how they wouldn't be able to spend much money with a combined family income of like 160k! Umm, whut? I iz poor.
Our mortgage is so small; 550 a month. When we first bought our house in 1989, it was a fair chunk of our salaries, to come up with that money. Now it's de minimus, but its still got to be paid.
I get this. But I do not think this is the what 95% of the posters over there are referencing.
I was one of the people in that post who said it wouldn't change our financial picture very much.
We live in a tiny crappy house in the Midwest. It's so small and crappy that when I give someone directions I'm like "it's the ugly yellow house on the right" and they're like "oh, that one...."
It's not that I have shit loads of money, I just have a low rent payment.
I answered that it wouldn't be a game changer. Our mortgage (not including insurance and taxes), is only around $500 per month. Not having to pay it would allow flexibility in our budget, but I couldn't quit my job or anything like that. That said, I did side eye the post a little.
I think it's quite obvious that the income levels on these boards run the gamut. H and I live in NorCal, very close to San Francisco, and our mortgage is crazy on a national comparative yet normal by local standards. The idea of paying $500 or even $1000/month is beyond my comprehension. However, I'm certain that there are people on these boards that live in places that aren't as real-estate-ridiculous as California and that for them, a triple digit mortgage is normal or even high, considering cost of living. It's all relative.
Sometimes, I get the "show-offy" vibe from some of the posts on MM but I've learned to ignore it and move on. Just because I'm reading it that way doesn't absolutely mean that's how it was intended. I'd rather assume the intentions are good...
It would definitely be a big deal for me if I didn't have to pay my mortgage. I mean, we are doing well, but it would still be a lot of extra money to have a month.