EBOLA Can you AFFORD to Shelter In Place? (Mortgage/rent/bills etc.)

R

R.Tist

Membership Revoked
I'm wondering how many of us can AFFORD to shelter in place, and for how long.

Not so long ago we had a paid-for house, lots of preps, and were pretty much set up to stay there until we were planted.

Then our circumstances radically changed and we now live in a rented house, have minimal preps, and NEED at least a modest paycheck. (We're no longer healthy.)

Can YOU afford to SIP, and if so, for how long?


Artie.
 
helen

helen

Panic Sex Lady
No.

I may be able to earn enough to shelter the rest of my loved ones. I am about to build a small shed in the yard. I could quarantine there at home, and maintain employment with the public.

Panic Sex Lady has been in the doghouse before...
 
ainitfunny

ainitfunny

Saved, to glorify God.
Yes.
And the county classifies me "lowest income bracket."

THAT THERE IS THE BEST ARGUMENT FOR GETTING A PAID OFF HOUSE (even a less than desirable one)THAT THERE IS.

Once you achieve a paid off house (even a little one br, one bath old one) YOU ARE IN A POSITION TO use THE $500-$1,000+ a month you once paid in mortgage or rent to pay off all your other debt.

Then you can start saving for a somewhat BETTER place with your current paid off home as a BIG downpayment.
Pay that off ASAP and you are debt free and ready to buy your final place with an even bigger downpayment (and still no debt)

and the final home will cost you no more a month than your first junk home did, if you do it right, ALL ON AVERY VERY LOW WAGE JOB!!

Then pay the final home off quick with double mortage payments or more.
You end up retiring with no rent or mortgage payment, no debt, only utilities to pay each month in spite of being "low income" you have more discretionary funds monthly than upper middle class people!!

After about a year of saving those monthly discretionary funds, you can use your saved discretionary funds to pay cash for a pretty new car.
 
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R

R.Tist

Membership Revoked
helen said:
No.

I may be able to earn enough to shelter the rest of my loved ones. I am about to build a small shed in the yard. I could quarantine there at home, and maintain employment with the public.

Panic Sex Lady has been in the doghouse before...
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Hmm. We have seven-month-long winters here in Canada's mountains, or else we could park our RV anywhere and just ride it out. We tried winter camping (once) but it's just too cold to survive here. (We could never afford the gas to keep the furnace going, even if gas were available, which I doubt it would be.) Probably should have bought a native-style tee pee instead. Some folks around here still live in those.

FWIW,

Artie.
 
Hacker

Hacker

Computer Hacking Pirate
R.Tist said:
I'm wondering how many of us can AFFORD to shelter in place, and for how long.

Not so long ago we had a paid-for house, lots of preps, and were pretty much set up to stay there until we were planted.

Then our circumstances radically changed and we now live in a rented house, have minimal preps, and NEED at least a modest paycheck. (We're no longer healthy.)

Can YOU afford to SIP, and if so, for how long?


Artie.
Click to expand...

I think there's no way to know for many people - and that's because we don't know how economic circumstances will unfold.

For example, if most people shelter in place, the economy will tank. This could in turn cause social security and other payments to tank, causing a substantial rate of poverty. It could even cause the government to fold, or dramatically contract.

If a lot of people miss house payments, I'm guessing the government may declare that the outstanding principle on mortgages be reduced by some proportional amount.

Or it could be that there's a dollar crisis and the dollar becomes worthless.

Personally, I don't think there's any way to know how it will play out . . . but there's certainly lots of possibilities.

JMHO . . . YMMV . . .
 
Freeholder

Freeholder

This too shall pass.
Yes, as long as the economy doesn't collapse entirely. This house isn't paid for (about five years to go on it, but it wasn't expensive to start with), but even if we lost it I have some other property -- with an artesian well -- that is paid for, and we could live there. There's no house, but I could build something fairly quickly -- if things collapse that badly, I don't think the county is going to be watching the rural areas too closely for building permits.

Kathleen

ETA: if the economy tanks completely and SSI payments stop going out, that's where we'd end up having to move to the other property. We actually have three streams of income, but two are from government agencies and one is payments on my Grandmother's house that I inherited. If everything collapses I can't see the buyers of the house being able to make their payments, either. But we will manage, one way or another.

Tipis are a good choice, but also consider earthbag construction, or cob construction, or stone, or log -- whatever you can find to build with. The Indians near here built huts out of tules (hence the name of the town of Tulelake, in Northern California, to the south of us). The Indians in the desert to the east of us built brush windbreaks with a small fire in the middle, open to the stars, even in the winter. You can make some kind of shelter anyplace.
 
N

nana2boys

Contributing Member
yes,, Our home is paid for and we have no property taxes. Hubby is a disabled vet. Even if we had no utilities, we at least have a place to lay our head and keep the rain off our face.
 
R

R.Tist

Membership Revoked
Hacker said:
I think there's no way to know for many people - and that's because we don't know how economic circumstances will unfold.

For example, if most people shelter in place, the economy will tank. This could in turn cause social security and other payments to tank, causing a substantial rate of poverty. It could even cause the government to fold, or dramatically contract.

If a lot of people miss house payments, I'm guessing the government may declare that the outstanding principle on mortgages be reduced by some proportional amount.

Or it could be that there's a dollar crisis and the dollar becomes worthless.

Personally, I don't think there's any way to know how it will play out . . . but there's certainly lots of possibilities.

JMHO . . . YMMV . . .
Click to expand...


Thanks, Hacker.

I've thought about a number of variables. I read in one post a couple of days ago that said if we (the U.S.) have 1,000 infected people, the economy will tank.

Depending on one's definition of 'tank,' it changes the variables.

If you lived in a rented house and had Ebola in your vicinity (whatever that means to you), would you chance owing the landlord the rent until after the dust settles, or would you expect the police to come and escort you... elsewhere?

Artie.
 
Mulder

Mulder

Contributing Member
I supposed that I could afford it for a few months before my saving is depleted. But I'd be effectively quitting my job to do it, and that is something which I do not want to do unless there is no other choice.

However I'm not sure what we'd be expected to do with the kids though. Isn't it illegal to just pull them out of school indefinitely?
 
Homesteader

Homesteader

Contributing Member
Yes. We could probably manage up to 2-3 years. The only problem is burning bridges.

DH works at a job he likes and if he quit, they couldn't hold the job for him. And in a small town, it's not like there are lots of jobs to choose from.

We also have 3 kids in public school. We homeschooled for a while but living out in the backwoods with no close neighbors, the kids like going to school to have fun with their friends.

But your can bet the farm if Ebola (or anything else for that matter) goes Pandemic in the country, we'll all be staying home.
 
R

R.Tist

Membership Revoked
Mulder said:
I supposed that I could afford it for a few months before my saving is depleted. But I'd be effectively quitting my job to do it, and that is something which I do not want to do unless there is no other choice.

However I'm not sure what we'd be expected to do with the kids though. Isn't it illegal to just pull them out of school indefinitely?
Click to expand...

Absolutely not! We home schooled our kids and didn't bother to ask for permission. After a few years, courtesy of a nosy neighbor, we were asked to submit a curriculum, which we did. The curriculum was approved. The school board Nazi's then wanted to test our kids. They didn't bother us again after that - ever.

Artie.
 
T

TerryK

TB Fanatic
Yes.
Home paid off, car paid off, no debt at all and investments and savings to last for years even with no further income at all.
This is why i have constantly preached that in today's world, financial preps are even more important than food, water and weapons. Money will buy those physical things, but without money, in today's society, you will eventually lose everything else.

Also, one of the few things more important than having your financial house in order, is maintaining your good health. However, money helps in this area too. It enables you to have better food, better environment, better insurance and health care, which all goes to improve your health, quality of life and survival. Even in the event of a serious illness or injury, being financially prepared can make all the difference between a family being wiped out and maintaining their standard of living.

Aint's post was very good. I agree entirely with her philosophy when it comes to acquiring and owning a home.
You don't have to make a lot of money each month. You just have to be smart and persistent in the way you spend it.
The hard working, methodical and frugal ant beets the lazy, bigger grasshopper every time. Once you have your financial house in order, it isn't that expensive to live.

In today's world, having no debts, a paid for home, good savings and a frugal outlook on spending is more important than having 10,000 rounds of ammo, or a retreat in the mountains that you will lose if you miss a mortgage payment.
 
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Hognutz

Hognutz

Has No Life - Lives on TB
I could prolly last a good 6 months before I ventured out the house, as 6 months is when the likker would run out.:p

Seriously 6 months though. As everything is paid for. But , I have to interject some doom. If your house is paid for do we really own it in Amerika? Try not paying taxes and see what happens.

Of course in a TEOTWAWKI event the taxman will be the last of our worries....
 
R

R.Tist

Membership Revoked
Hognutz said:
I could prolly last a good 6 months before I ventured out the house, as 6 months is when the likker would run out.:p

Seriously 6 months though. As everything is paid for. But , I have to interject some doom. If your house is paid for do we really own it in Amerika? Try not paying taxes and see what happens.

Of course in a TEOTWAWKI event the taxman will be the last of our worries....
Click to expand...

Hognutz: I think TWAWKI has already ended.


Artie.
 
Hfcomms

Hfcomms

EN66iq
blueridge said:
Put a slightly different way - we couldn't afford to NOT shelter in place.
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I was thinking the exact same thing. I wouldn't quarantine myself for one or two cases within 100 miles but if it's obvious that things are starting to spiral downwards there is no way I would carry on as usual. My place is paid for but even if I was renting or had a mortgage if things are getting that bad who is going to come around to kick you out of your place? Court system has to be up and running for that to happen and they'll be shut down for civil actions for the duration I'm sure.
 
R

R.Tist

Membership Revoked
For everyone who answered "No," what would you do then? If Ebola becomes a concern in your location, what are the options you have considered - if any? Tenting? RV-ing? Moving in with a relative? What?


Artie.
 
TxGal

TxGal

Day by day
Yes, we're retired on a fixed income (retirement house is paid for, we planned that for 30 yrs), and what bills we do have are manageable with careful planning and a frugal lifestyle. We have a small herd of cattle by Texas standards, and while we have expenses with them (hay prices vary depending on drought conditions), we also look at them as a 'walking property tax payment' if need be. We are ag exempt because of the cattle, but the house and 1 acre are taxed as residential. We intentionally built a small house on our land for retirement.

I've always wondered if we ever get to a major collapse event if property taxes and house payments would be temporarily suspended, as in Alas Babylon. I also wondered if we were in that type of event, what would happen to farmers and ranchers. We have a needed skill set, but also a crop resource that would be needed and could be seized by the Govt to feed the masses (those left anyhow). Interesting thoughts.....
 
changed

changed

Preferred pronouns: dude/bro
nana2boys said:
yes,, Our home is paid for and we have no property taxes. Hubby is a disabled vet. Even if we had no utilities, we at least have a place to lay our head and keep the rain off our face.
Click to expand...

Where do you live where you don't have property taxes? I didn't think there was such a place.
 
changed

changed

Preferred pronouns: dude/bro
Mulder said:
I supposed that I could afford it for a few months before my saving is depleted. But I'd be effectively quitting my job to do it, and that is something which I do not want to do unless there is no other choice.

However I'm not sure what we'd be expected to do with the kids though. Isn't it illegal to just pull them out of school indefinitely?
Click to expand...


Homeschool. Even if it was illegal, the safety of your children is always more important.
 
Kathy in WV

Kathy in WV

Down on the Farm...
Yes, we can do it here. Been working toward being able to for several years by having a paid for, remote place.
 
TerriHaute

TerriHaute

Hoosier Gardener
I think so, but it depends. If it's just DH and I, we could SIP for a long time, especially if it extends across a summer growing season. If family members end up staying with us, it would be a lot harder to feed everyone and probably pretty tough for all of us to get along together. We do have a camper that could provide some living accommodation and separate space, so that would help.
 
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