mortgages

How homeowners can go back into debt, lose their home, and pay for the privilege

I’ve long said that if they are advertising something, you don’t need it. This was one of my very first blog posts from years ago, and I stick by it. Now “need” is different from “want”, of course. You may … Read MoreRead More

Ceiling Circles

Financial Cage Match: Paying down a mortgage versus investing

This is another entry in the Financial Cage Match series, where I look at two competing financial priorities and see which one comes out on top. Here’s another entry: Paying off student loans versus investing for retirement. WARNING: This post … Read MoreRead More

Man lying down

Just making sure: Mortgage interest isn’t a reason to hold on to a mortgage

WARNING: This post contains math. “When you have a mortgage, you get a tax deduction for all the mortgage interest you pay. So you shouldn’t pay down your mortgage early, because you’ll lose the tax deduction.” This is one of the … Read MoreRead More

My mortgage principle that I broke (sort of)

  Finances and emotions. They go together like one explosively codependent couple. Don’t be fooled by my focus in the numbers side of the situation; I’m not immune to fear and anxiety either. I’m going through the process of becoming … Read MoreRead More

Why not pay cash for a home?

  WARNING: This post contains math. There is definitely something compelling to owning your own home, from both a psychological standpoint but also a financial standpoint. But I’m not a fan of debt. You know this by now. And in … Read MoreRead More

Five reasons why you can’t afford to buy a home

  It seems like lots of people I talk to these days are thinking about buying a home. Perhaps it’s the season, or the particular intersection of age and socio-economic background in the circles I travel in. Perhaps it’s coincidence. … Read MoreRead More

Forget your credit score (but learn from it)

  I consider myself pretty hard to incite, but our collective focus on our “credit score” can be very frustrating. I think we focus way too much on our credit score, and it leads us to make decisions for the … Read MoreRead More

Pay what you owe (and take the high road)

  Last time I talked about how I automate all my bills, and recommend that you do the same. But during the course of my argument, I dropped in this statement: …most of all, your record will say that you … Read MoreRead More

Is there such a thing as good debt?

  I said it for years: “…but it’s good debt.” More specifically: “I have [a stupid amount] in student loan debt, but it’s okay, because it’s good debt. I mean, at least it’s not credit card debt.” One day, though, … Read MoreRead More