Okay. So now we’ve recovered (somewhat) from our sticker shock on our beautiful house in Scottsdale. The next questions we have is: What can I do to get myself into this house using the Payment + Interest + Taxes + Insurance formula?

Well, there’s good news and bad news here.

The good news is Read more »

How to Determine How Much House You Can Afford

Notice I didn’t say how much house you can buy. There are all kinds of vehicles that will let you buy as big a house as you want. But, buying that big house and keeping that big house are two completely different things. Lots of people bought big houses. Lots of people are being foreclosed on. Because they bought more house than they could afford.

So, how do you figure out how much house you can afford? Read more »

This is the first of a series of posts designed to help keep you from driving off the cliff as you navigate the treacherous road to first time home ownership. I decided to write this because so many people got burned by all of the scam and sham mortgages that were (and still are) out there. I have been a homeowner for 20 years. I have bought 4 houses and sold 3. I have lived in my current home for 15 years, and refinanced my mortgage on this home 3 times.

That said, I don’t pretend to be an expert. I am definitely not the end-all and be-all of home buying and home ownership. But, there are certain things that don’t change. These are the fundamentals. I learned them through experience, and I want to share them with you for what they’re worth.

If you find anything in this series to be helpful, I would appreciate it if you would send me a comment and let me know. Now, let’s get started. Read more »