Debt Dumpers - 2018

Jen, that's a great way to buy the DVC Gold APs - I need to buy four before May. I know there is a way to put the total of the gift cards onto one card but I have never tried it.
 
Getting ready to head out on a quick vacation to visit family. Should be about $200 for gas and we'll have about $400 for spending on whatever, but I highly doubt we'll come near that.

When we get back, we're planning a nice dinner at our favorite restaurant, Texas de Brazil, to celebrate my birthday and our 5 year anniversary (of being together). Last time we went we got dinner, drinks and their specialty desert, which cost us about $150. This time I'll probably skip desert and keep eating the meat and I got a $20 off offer, so I'm anticipating closer to $100. We don't normally get to do this, so I'm pretty excited.
 
We paid off all our debt and our subfloors needed to be replaced so now we are about $45,000 in debt. Thankfully, I decided to take a travel job as a nurse and will bring home almost $1800 a week net. Our goal for 2019, is to be debt free again so we can save for retirement in 5 years.
 
We found out that our house-mate will not be moving out as of right now, which we are totally ok with. He didn't end up getting the position that would have required him to move. So for now at least we can still count on the rent that he pays me and we can hopefully pay down/off more of our credit card debt. We're also going to Disneyland in 3 weeks for my birthday and we will be getting AP's again. We will have enough money to cover the full cost of one AP, plus the down payment and first month's payment on the second AP, and we will do the monthly payment plan for the other. We're going with the cheapest AP's so our monthly payment will only be about $50. I have two work trips in/near Anaheim next year so it made the most sense to just get AP's again instead of buying park tickets each trip.
 


I got the quote from the other builder and it came in at $52k, but that didn't include several things that should have been reflected in there including HVAC, painting and some of the plumbing. It also left many of the material costs out as well, including flooring and bathroom fixtures. If the revised quote comes in over $60k then I am not sure what we will do. My mom suggested that we could get some kind of 0% financing for the flooring so that we could pay that over time above the cost of the HELOC. This is a possibility, but I hate the idea of opening a credit card for something like that. I think I would just have to look into what options there are and work from there. *sigh*
 
I got the quote from the other builder and it came in at $52k, but that didn't include several things that should have been reflected in there including HVAC, painting and some of the plumbing. It also left many of the material costs out as well, including flooring and bathroom fixtures. If the revised quote comes in over $60k then I am not sure what we will do. My mom suggested that we could get some kind of 0% financing for the flooring so that we could pay that over time above the cost of the HELOC. This is a possibility, but I hate the idea of opening a credit card for something like that. I think I would just have to look into what options there are and work from there. *sigh*

I'm just stunned at how much your quotes are coming in for... We renovated our upstairs before we moved into our current house. Granted, we have a small house and the upstairs is about 550 square feet. But we knocked out a wall, built in a new closet, took all of the walls and ceilings down to the studs, including in the bathroom, and then had all new sheetrock/drywall/painting/trim done. While we didn't purchase new floors, the laminate hardwood flooring had to be reconfigured from where we knocked one wall out, so basically the flooring had to be pulled up and then placed back into the correct positions. We spent about $8000 cash...
 
I'm just stunned at how much your quotes are coming in for... We renovated our upstairs before we moved into our current house. Granted, we have a small house and the upstairs is about 550 square feet. But we knocked out a wall, built in a new closet, took all of the walls and ceilings down to the studs, including in the bathroom, and then had all new sheetrock/drywall/painting/trim done. While we didn't purchase new floors, the laminate hardwood flooring had to be reconfigured from where we knocked one wall out, so basically the flooring had to be pulled up and then placed back into the correct positions. We spent about $8000 cash...

Our space is large. About 1000 sq. ft. And we are wanting the space partitioned into 5 regular rooms plus a bathroom. But we aren't looking for anything really fancy, just basic finished drywall walls and ceiling, simple bathroom with sink, toilet and standup shower. But we need to pay for lots of things that a renovation might be able to avoid because we are starting from a completely blank space. No existing electrical, no plumbing, limited HVAC, etc.
 


Our space is large. About 1000 sq. ft. And we are wanting the space partitioned into 5 regular rooms plus a bathroom. But we aren't looking for anything really fancy, just basic finished drywall walls and ceiling, simple bathroom with sink, toilet and standup shower. But we need to pay for lots of things that a renovation might be able to avoid because we are starting from a completely blank space. No existing electrical, no plumbing, limited HVAC, etc.

Sounds like it would probably be cheaper to sell your house and buy a new one with a finished basement. Geez. Those quotes are insane! I might seriously be tempted to do that in your shoes. When your existing space isn't working for you, it might be time to find a house that is more conducive to your needs. You will never get the money back that you put into a basement renovation, trust me. My mother spent $85K to finish a basement into an apartment, and when the house sold, it didn't add any value at all.
 
Sounds like it would probably be cheaper to sell your house and buy a new one with a finished basement. Geez. Those quotes are insane! I might seriously be tempted to do that in your shoes. When your existing space isn't working for you, it might be time to find a house that is more conducive to your needs. You will never get the money back that you put into a basement renovation, trust me. My mother spent $85K to finish a basement into an apartment, and when the house sold, it didn't add any value at all.

It would definitely not be cheaper to sell our house and buy a new one. Housing prices have increased dramatically in my area since I bought our house in 2012. The equity gain already more than covers the cost of the basement project and I anticipate that the basement will add at least 50% of the cost of the project to the value of our house. Finishing a basement into an apartment is often considered less desirable than having a basement that is finished with family use in mind, but that could vary by area. Where I live, a basement apartment isn't likely to be rentable, so it would not be considered all that highly here.
 
We paid off all our debt and our subfloors needed to be replaced so now we are about $45,000 in debt. Thankfully, I decided to take a travel job as a nurse and will bring home almost $1800 a week net. Our goal for 2019, is to be debt free again so we can save for retirement in 5 years.

Without any savings at all right now, I do not believe retirement in 5 years is a realistic scenario. In order to maintain any reasonable quality of life you'll need to continue working and defer drawing on social security for as long as possible. I know this is not a "feel good" post, but I think having realistic expectations is important when it comes to finances.
 
We paid off all our debt and our subfloors needed to be replaced so now we are about $45,000 in debt. Thankfully, I decided to take a travel job as a nurse and will bring home almost $1800 a week net. Our goal for 2019, is to be debt free again so we can save for retirement in 5 years.

Welcome! Sorry to hear about the subfloors :(

Do you mean you will retire in five years? Do you have any money saved currently? How much will you try to save once the floors are paid off?
 
But we need to pay for lots of things that a renovation might be able to avoid because we are starting from a completely blank space. No existing electrical, no plumbing, limited HVAC, etc.
Maybe that's the reason of the high costs it's blank space. Just throwing some ideas out there, what about finding builders that work with realtors, or talking to a realtor that knows a builder? My realtor when we owned, her husband was a builder and they knew other builders and could advise. Smaller area though, everyone knew everyone. Have you tried to separate the work jobs, to different contractors? Or, do you have any home and garden shows coming up, sometimes those have some contractors advertising? Maybe counter the lowest bid you got and say, would you be willing to hear my counter bid, and then ask for less?
I still haven't heard back about the promotion.
any news?
I have two work trips in/near Anaheim next year so it made the most sense to just get AP's again instead of buying park tickets each trip.
That makes sense. We don't go enough to get AP's. Once, every other year.
 
Maybe that's the reason of the high costs it's blank space. Just throwing some ideas out there, what about finding builders that work with realtors, or talking to a realtor that knows a builder? My realtor when we owned, her husband was a builder and they knew other builders and could advise. Smaller area though, everyone knew everyone. Have you tried to separate the work jobs, to different contractors? Or, do you have any home and garden shows coming up, sometimes those have some contractors advertising? Maybe counter the lowest bid you got and say, would you be willing to hear my counter bid, and then ask for less?

We did all of these things. We worked with the architect to source builders. I also originally wanted to act as general contractor and spent the entire summer getting individual bids for the different parts, but the bids were also expensive and it was like pulling teeth to get anyone to get back to me, which is why I decided to just look into hiring a builder to manage the entire project. Our search all started this past February by attending the home show in our area. Most of the contractors weren't for the kinds of things that we needed and the ones that I did talk to weren't very helpful.
 
I am new around here and just need a spot to vent a bit and get fresh eyes on things.

Remaining debts-
House
Wife's student loan

Big problem-
Foundation repair

This spring when having a window installed we found a crack in the foundation. Did research and determined it was more than a cosmetic problem. Three estimates later and a lot of tears (and prayers) things have sorted out for the most part. For my wife it was a feelings problem, for me it was a math problem.

I crunched numbers and found we will be able to pay off the student loan with my bonus this week. The foundation repair will have to be financed unfortunately. By paying off the student loan the foundation repair payment will be neutral to the budget. That will allows us to snowball it and pay it off on the same time line as the wife's student loan would have been on. We will cash flow a basement renovation since we are having to demo a finished room. It will be slow going but even if we have to buy a couple sheets of drywall to make progress I'll be more than happy.
 
I am new around here and just need a spot to vent a bit and get fresh eyes on things.

Remaining debts-
House
Wife's student loan

Big problem-
Foundation repair

This spring when having a window installed we found a crack in the foundation. Did research and determined it was more than a cosmetic problem. Three estimates later and a lot of tears (and prayers) things have sorted out for the most part. For my wife it was a feelings problem, for me it was a math problem.

I crunched numbers and found we will be able to pay off the student loan with my bonus this week. The foundation repair will have to be financed unfortunately. By paying off the student loan the foundation repair payment will be neutral to the budget. That will allows us to snowball it and pay it off on the same time line as the wife's student loan would have been on. We will cash flow a basement renovation since we are having to demo a finished room. It will be slow going but even if we have to buy a couple sheets of drywall to make progress I'll be more than happy.

:welcome: It sounds like you have a pretty solid plan. You'll find this thread to be the perfect place to vent your frustrations and to gain encouragement.
 
@Jen and Ashwin, since every bid is coming in so incredibly high, what are you thinking of doing about this project? Here is an idea: what if you do the renovations in smaller steps? Like, you wanted five rooms and a bathroom. What if you just did the bathroom this year? Pay that off and then do another small step, like a playroom, etc. etc. That will only work if you plan on being in the house for a long time, of course. If you are forced to either move or pay for that huge remodeling bid, what are you thinking is the better option? Maybe it is staying put for now and giving up the idea of a fully realized basement (but that sounds very disappointing to do)! That is why I thought that small steps toward the finished basement might be a compromise.

It is definitely discouraging to hear that these are the prices you're being given. I guess that is why I haven't gotten into needed renovations in all the years I have been in my house. Too overwhelming. Too much money. :-(

Good luck with your decision-making!
 
@Jen and Ashwin, since every bid is coming in so incredibly high, what are you thinking of doing about this project? Here is an idea: what if you do the renovations in smaller steps? Like, you wanted five rooms and a bathroom. What if you just did the bathroom this year? Pay that off and then do another small step, like a playroom, etc. etc. That will only work if you plan on being in the house for a long time, of course. If you are forced to either move or pay for that huge remodeling bid, what are you thinking is the better option? Maybe it is staying put for now and giving up the idea of a fully realized basement (but that sounds very disappointing to do)! That is why I thought that small steps toward the finished basement might be a compromise.

It is definitely discouraging to hear that these are the prices you're being given. I guess that is why I haven't gotten into needed renovations in all the years I have been in my house. Too overwhelming. Too much money. :-(

Good luck with your decision-making!

I have considered this. We originally wanted to install a wet bar but have decided to compromise to just have the plumbing trenched so that we could do it later down the line. And I was willing to hold off on some spaces but financially and logistically that probably would be more disruptive and more expensive over the long haul to have people come in later to finish.

I am thinking that the compromises are doing the painting ourselves, picking cheaper carpet, cheaper bathroom fixtures and tile and skipping the rubber flooring in the fitness room. We don’t really want to go over $60k since that is what we have available in HELOC. I think we will just have to see how things pan out with the revised quote.
 

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