Sunday, November 26, 2006
Happy (belated) Thanksgiving!!!
Greetings all, from the lovely CT Grand Hotel and Ballroom in Waterbury, CT. I'm here with my CWPF Scott, and we're taking in another AA conference. We've been here before, and I like both the hotel and the surroundings. That's not why I'm blogging, however. I'm writing at 1:13 AM on Sunday morning because I reviewed my SOBE trip entry, and realized a few things: 1) That was a great vacation. 2) The woman with whom I wished to couple has shown little to no interest. 3) Having realized this, I'm kicking myself for not making a move or at minimum the Russian chick, who was by far the most available of the ladies. I'm planning another trip down to Miami Beach for New Year's, and I'm pretty sure I'll go. I've even talked to Greg already, and although he's not working at the hostel any longer, he was enthused about me coming down.
All of this means I have a little lead time to prepare for an adventure, and although I don't expect to have quite the gonzo blast I did over the summer, I am looking for something that was not attained on my last trip: meaningful female companionship. I've lost a little weight since July, and I look better by comparison, but this is damning with faint praise. I'm still fat, merely less so. (Gee, ya think? I'm only in my mid 30's, single, and an active blogger... nah that kind of guy could never be fat.) Also, I have other attributes that could be considered unattractive. I can work on all of these, but what improvement I can expect is another matter. I have a little over a month to get ready, and I will use this space to establish a base line and chart my progress.
The weight is the most serious issue, and I have made a choice: I'm going back on Atkins until New Years. It may not be the most healthy way to lose weight, but it is both fast and effective. I'll keep this in mind when I shop for food later today. I'll also endeavor to hit the gym.
I am afraid of one thing: talking to females. I cannot explain why I was so chatty and flirty last time, and I don't know that I can recapture that magic. I'll ask some of the stunning baristas at Starbucks for help. They may never date me, but that doesn't mean they wouldn't help me.
All of this means I have a little lead time to prepare for an adventure, and although I don't expect to have quite the gonzo blast I did over the summer, I am looking for something that was not attained on my last trip: meaningful female companionship. I've lost a little weight since July, and I look better by comparison, but this is damning with faint praise. I'm still fat, merely less so. (Gee, ya think? I'm only in my mid 30's, single, and an active blogger... nah that kind of guy could never be fat.) Also, I have other attributes that could be considered unattractive. I can work on all of these, but what improvement I can expect is another matter. I have a little over a month to get ready, and I will use this space to establish a base line and chart my progress.
The weight is the most serious issue, and I have made a choice: I'm going back on Atkins until New Years. It may not be the most healthy way to lose weight, but it is both fast and effective. I'll keep this in mind when I shop for food later today. I'll also endeavor to hit the gym.
I am afraid of one thing: talking to females. I cannot explain why I was so chatty and flirty last time, and I don't know that I can recapture that magic. I'll ask some of the stunning baristas at Starbucks for help. They may never date me, but that doesn't mean they wouldn't help me.
Monday, November 13, 2006
Beware of...
Consulting experts. I say this because I had some friends read my most recent post on home buying and I'm more confused than before I wrote the post. Simply stated, one person said that those who bought homes in '82 are no better off and really made no money after inflation. Another one said the calculations of the first guy were off by a considerable amount and I should check the CPI tables. Fair enough, I thought, so here goes: http://www1.jsc.nasa.gov/buy/inflateCPI.html states that a purchase of a home in Croton at 160000 in 1990 would be 231200 in 2004. On this level people did make out by quite a bit, as 2004 was near the aforementioned peak. The highest price received for the 160,000 home was approx. 550,000. In terms of pure exchange, those who sold at market highs did make out quite well. Let's use the above figures and say someone made $390000. Stated in this way, the second opinion is by far the more correct one. Of course, that is not the whole story.
Living expenses, whether you buy or rent, are replete with "dead money", i.e. bills that are neither recoupable nor tax deductible. The rent on your primary residence is almost always dead money, although if you have a home office, you do get a small deduction. We'll go into that a little later. However, you are not normally responsible for most upkeep, and taxes are diffused to all renters in a particular location. Heat and hot water can also be included in one's rent, so this is covered as well.
Although home owners are, in a sense, paying themselves as they build equity; there is plenty of dead money here as well. The two most common examples (but by no means the only ones) are taxes and maintenance. Property taxes are a large concern here in Westchester, and that 500,000 home can come with a $7000 a year tax bill. This tax bill didn't begin at $7000, of course, instead steadily increasing over time. In case you wondered how Westchester had all these highly ranked schools, now you know. We bought them. Some of the costs can be lessened by New York's Star program, but you still pay quite a bit. Upkeep on the house is also quite pricey, with estimated costs for the aforementioned home and time hovering around 50K or so. Ergo, we'll say that the combined costs for both as 250K. As such, that nice $390,000 profit is now $140000. Because prices stayed low for some time, those who made out were the ones who bought in 90/91. If you bought earlier, you paid the same, but inflation lowered your profits.
Sometimes I wonder if the best solution is to buy a small cottage and invest the money into the stcok market or other investment vehicles. Actually, the best solution may be living in a tent. I'm not there yet though. Also, caring for kitty would be difficult.
The tax write-offs mentioned will lessen the impact of "dead money," but even this is deceiving. The 25K deduction is not a tax credit, but lowers you adjusted gross income (AGI) instead. E.g.: let's say I'm in the 31% tax bracket; the 25K dedution is then worth 7750 (25,000 x 0.31 = 7500).Even this is wrong on some levels, as it doesn't take into account income tax tiers and progressive income levels. You can strucutre your finances to take more deductions, but rarely do the additions add up to the standard deduction. Ergo, all those exspenses may not be dedcutable on any level. As usual, consult a tax professional.
The upshot to all of this new info is as follows: now is not the time for Karl and myself to buy a home unless something incredible drops into our laps. Otherwise, we wait. Another solution would be to buy something small like a co-op and rent it out after we buy or sell if prices haven't fallen that much. More in the eternal later.
Finally,
Living expenses, whether you buy or rent, are replete with "dead money", i.e. bills that are neither recoupable nor tax deductible. The rent on your primary residence is almost always dead money, although if you have a home office, you do get a small deduction. We'll go into that a little later. However, you are not normally responsible for most upkeep, and taxes are diffused to all renters in a particular location. Heat and hot water can also be included in one's rent, so this is covered as well.
Although home owners are, in a sense, paying themselves as they build equity; there is plenty of dead money here as well. The two most common examples (but by no means the only ones) are taxes and maintenance. Property taxes are a large concern here in Westchester, and that 500,000 home can come with a $7000 a year tax bill. This tax bill didn't begin at $7000, of course, instead steadily increasing over time. In case you wondered how Westchester had all these highly ranked schools, now you know. We bought them. Some of the costs can be lessened by New York's Star program, but you still pay quite a bit. Upkeep on the house is also quite pricey, with estimated costs for the aforementioned home and time hovering around 50K or so. Ergo, we'll say that the combined costs for both as 250K. As such, that nice $390,000 profit is now $140000. Because prices stayed low for some time, those who made out were the ones who bought in 90/91. If you bought earlier, you paid the same, but inflation lowered your profits.
Sometimes I wonder if the best solution is to buy a small cottage and invest the money into the stcok market or other investment vehicles. Actually, the best solution may be living in a tent. I'm not there yet though. Also, caring for kitty would be difficult.
The tax write-offs mentioned will lessen the impact of "dead money," but even this is deceiving. The 25K deduction is not a tax credit, but lowers you adjusted gross income (AGI) instead. E.g.: let's say I'm in the 31% tax bracket; the 25K dedution is then worth 7750 (25,000 x 0.31 = 7500).Even this is wrong on some levels, as it doesn't take into account income tax tiers and progressive income levels. You can strucutre your finances to take more deductions, but rarely do the additions add up to the standard deduction. Ergo, all those exspenses may not be dedcutable on any level. As usual, consult a tax professional.
The upshot to all of this new info is as follows: now is not the time for Karl and myself to buy a home unless something incredible drops into our laps. Otherwise, we wait. Another solution would be to buy something small like a co-op and rent it out after we buy or sell if prices haven't fallen that much. More in the eternal later.
Finally,
