Is your disposable income going down?

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jared2 @ May 19 2006, 08:54 AM) [snapback]258064[/snapback]</div>

Actually, I do! I want to know what a house like mine would cost in Manhattan, so I can feel all warm and fuzzy about what a good deal I got.

2,300 sq ft "rancher" on 4,000 sq ft lot in Spokane Valley (suburb of Spokane, about 20 minutes from downtown). Full finished basement (area of basement included in total sq footage). 12 years old, in a gated community. Tiny patch of grass and some flowers out front, small but nice back yard. Technically a condo -- my house is attached to the one next to it, which is the middle one of three. Paid $168,000 last fall. Probably worth a little more, but it was priced to sell as they wanted the money right away.

So what would this cost in Manhattan? Ten million? A hundred million?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Godiva @ May 19 2006, 07:38 PM) [snapback]258324[/snapback]</div>

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Volkswagen-...sspagenameZWDVW

 

godiva: i'd hate to see you give up. why not take out some student loans? they can be paid at as low as $50 a month last time i looked, then once your car is paid off you can pay more on them.

you've put in all that work already... why stop now when you're so close?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jared2 @ May 19 2006, 03:15 PM) [snapback]258190[/snapback]</div>

LOL, noooo it did sound like a sales pitch didnt it ? lol B)

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(galaxee @ May 19 2006, 07:01 PM) [snapback]258335[/snapback]</div>

Because the second masters is vanity. It won't "pay for itself."

I have a masters degree already and I am on the top of the salary schedule. A second masters doesn't change anything. I won't make any more money with the second masters. All I needed was the LMT credential to be "highly qualified" to work as a school librarian. I'll have that end of August upon completing this last class.

The only thing the MLIS would be good for is *if* I decide to work as a librarian after I retire. That "if" isn't big enough to justify the $3,100 expense. And because they waited until mid May to announce this, it's too late to apply for any grants I might conceivably qualify for. CSLA had one....the deadline was March 30. I didn't apply because at the time I didn't *need* to. I could afford my classes. Better it go to someone that really needed it.

I'm not going the student loan route. I've heard horror stories. If I can't pay for this, I'm not doing it. And now....I can't. So I'm not.

I make $70,000 a year and I never thought the day would come where I couldn't afford my own education.

So...there's the answer to the question. My disposable income has gone down and continues to descend.

And am I better off now than I was 6 years ago? Well.......no.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(dbermanmd @ May 19 2006, 10:35 AM) [snapback]258135[/snapback]</div>

Nowhere in your post did you address the fundamental issue raised by Mr. Krugman's post, that America is running huge deficits and pretending they do not matter. Did you even bother to read the article?

 

well it's a shame to hear that education is continuing on the "prohibitively expensive" path... could you go back in the future and finish up? if you do end up deciding to work as a librarian after retirement it would be worth it. if not, i can see where financially it would be a good idea to take what you have and walk.

my student loans have given me no worries. of course, i haven't been paying on them or anything... but they took the grad school deferment paperwork well and offered financial assistance for my graduate education, which fortunately i didn't need.

----

back to topic... our income isn't huge, honestly... (yep that's grad school for ya) but somehow we manage alright. our disposable income has been a pretty small number for ages, small fluctuations but pretty stable overall in the last couple of years. before that, i was in college and we had no disposable income, so i won't count that.

i think people's definitions of "comfortable and happy" change with time, with increased income. the more you make, the more you spend, whether it's on a new car, a house, a big stereo system, an expensive hobby, whatever. that's probably a big factor in what people consider "disposable income"...

 

Housing prices are high here, but not like on either coast. Property on Lake Michigan starts at over $1 million for an empty lot, if you can find one. On the other hand, if you get away from the water, you can buy a nice house with 5 acres of land for $260,000. The down side is lack of work. There really are no jobs in this area; at least not good paying jobs. Most of the jobs are seasonal and related to the tourist industry.

Tom

 

Here in San Luis Obispo the median home price is $575,000. That $575,000 will get you a small one to two bedroom house (less than 1000 sq feet). *sigh*...that reminds me...rent is due next week.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Godiva @ May 19 2006, 08:54 PM) [snapback]258374[/snapback]</div>

No offense, but it almost sounds like you're miserable (from this and other posts). Granted, I don't know you or your situation, but who knows, maybe it's time to "cash in" on your home, and go live somewhere else? I'm sure you've thought about that, but what's the alternative, live on the "edge" for the rest of your life? :huh:

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Mystery Squid @ May 19 2006, 09:58 PM) [snapback]258437[/snapback]</div>

Yes. I will live on the edge for the rest of my life. Because I love my home. I will never sell it. And I will give up vacations, going to the movies, eating out in a nice restaurant, buying nice, new clothes and other frills so I can keep my home. But I see a future economy in which I may not be able to keep my home because I'll reach the limit of what I can give up. I see a future in which I may not be able to retire despite the fact that I *have* been contributing to my own TSA since I was 30. Because the cost of living will increase so much and so fast even *I* can't keep up. And I am *NOT* one of the working poor.

I'll say it again. I am worse off now than I was 6 years ago. And I don't consider it *MY* doing.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(dbermanmd @ May 19 2006, 01:35 PM) [snapback]258135[/snapback]</div>

Quite a bit more than that, actually. But I am willing to guess there is quite a bit you are unaware of. Limbaugh is an inadequate diet for most people.

 

Its been long forecasted that in 2Q 2006/3Q 2006 we would see a drop in real estate (area dependent) of 20% to 30 % much like in the early '90s.

The effect of that drop in real estate valuation as Krugman and many, many others have forecasted (e.g. New York Times - Rude Awakening) is that people will cease to use their homes as ATM machines. Which will in turn decrease consumer spending and confidence. That coupled with the rising interest rates will slow the growth of the insane borrowing and the economy. So most people will feel they have less disposable income now.

The chart quality of the first poster was poor. The facts are that as of today May 25th 2006 all market indicies are up year to date :

DOW Year to date : + 4.55 % (near the all time high)
NASDAQ : + 5.74 %
Since 9/11 and the aftershocks until July 2002, the DOW is up + 53.0 %

It is amazing that the economy didn't go into a depression after 9/11, the dot.com bubble burst, the biotech bubble pop, the Bali bombing, then more recently after Katrina and Rita.

Food for thought, could the rebound be due to the tax cuts ? If not what ?

Federal Tax Revenue has grown rapidly the last few years and is now the highest in history. If we could keep the Bush Adminstration and Congress from spending like drunken sailors maybe we could reign in the deficit.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Godiva @ May 19 2006, 07:54 PM) [snapback]258374[/snapback]</div>

Godiva -- Where were you in library school? I got my MLS back in 1983, worked for 21 years, and am now on disability.

Have you checked with your state library about grants or scholarships? In KY we are short on qualified public librarians, so the state library offers scholarships for public library employees who are working on MLS. Might be an avenue for you in the future.

Peace --

Marjorie.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Karnac @ May 25 2006, 02:17 PM) [snapback]260973[/snapback]</div>

I just bought a house... I'm hoping I don't end up regretting it. I moved about 20 miles from where I lived before, which dropped the price of the house over 100k... 240k for a 2100sqft townhouse...

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Godiva @ May 19 2006, 07:38 PM) [snapback]258324[/snapback]</div>

I am a teacher. This is the only job I've ever had that pays me for working 39 weeks a year. The pay is very good compared to many other positions requiring degrees and working 49 or 50 weeks a year. I am a 1st year teacher and I never had it so good on any other job. The way I see it is teachers usually get an annual raise in pay. If you want to earn extra money summer school is always an option. You could have it much worse if you were a sub teacher. Here they only make $77/day with no benefits. I subbed for a while. There wouldn't be such a financial problem for many of us if gas prices were back to $2.00 or so. One more observation I've noticed about teachers in general. The ones who are at the top of the pay scale are the biggest complainers about how bad they have it. I make $33,830.00 as a 1st year teacher. The top of the scale with a Bachelor's degree is $65,000. What's to complain about?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Godiva @ May 19 2006, 07:38 PM) [snapback]258324[/snapback]</div>

Am I reading correctly ?
That you started out with a mortgage of not more than $80k twenty years ago, and now you owe over $350K ?