Tried to make this post last night and it went to blipdom. Trying again!
How much does it cost to stay the night in the Hotel de'Frugalis? Or put another way, how much does it cost to live here each day? $13.68.
Mortgage $000.00 (pd. off 9/21/09)
Insurance $001.59
Taxes $001.66
Utilities $010.43
____________________
Daily Rate $013.68*
Monthly Rate $410.40
Yearly Rate $4924.80
I am not unhappy with this figure.
Cheaper than most hotels I can think of.
And, we just lowered our rates when we reshopped our house insurance. And costs may go down further this year as my heating bill just came in way under last year's balanced payment plan figures.
However, it does go to show you how much even a paid for home can cost you.
"You paid off your house! AWESOME - now you're on easy street baby!!!"
It might blow somebody's mind to think it still costs to live here if they don't consider true costs. The actual rate above would be higher still if I'd of managed to figure in upkeep, repair and maintenance dollars.
It's here where I get to thinking of something many of us ofteN overlook or just gloss over:
Cost vs. price.
Figuring out the true cost of home ownership.
And then I get into thinking about Use Value vs. Exchange Value.
In many countries a home isn't thought of for it's dollar value like it often is here in the US, but more for the tradition or use value as a home to flourish in that is purchased for generational use, rather than flipping potential or investment potential.
That being considered, here's a nice calculator on the buy vs. rent debate.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/10/business/2007_BUYRENT_GRAP...
This gentleman's article goes on to help you figure out, if you're in the shopping conundrum of rent vs. buy, how to understand the Rent Ratio. A way to effectively compare apples to oranges. Yes, the article is a bit dated, but the ratio will still work.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/28/business/28leonhardt.html?...
Okay, so now that begs the question, how much does it cost you to stay in the Hotel of YouAndYours-dom?
December 1st, 2009 at 12:55 pm 1259672144
December 1st, 2009 at 01:20 pm 1259673608
December 1st, 2009 at 02:54 pm 1259679259
Thanks for making me feel better about my upcoming hotel reservations (its cheaper than my house, lol). Can you tell I bought a fixer upper?
December 1st, 2009 at 04:03 pm 1259683422
We haven't done a lot of major upgrading to our home. Windows is the only really big expense we've incurred. And we spent getting it painted a couple of years ago, so yes, once you include in repairs and maintenance, the price per night will go up. I just didn't have those figures handy.
We do have a lot of sweat into this one as well.
December 1st, 2009 at 04:16 pm 1259684190
of course my rate is for a 100 sq feet or so ....
December 1st, 2009 at 05:20 pm 1259688039
$20.49/day for me. Mortgage, small though it may be, is still the biggest part.
December 1st, 2009 at 05:39 pm 1259689167
I had fun with the rent vs buy calculator. With our original 7.0% mortgage, the break even was 8 years. Since several rounds of refinancing have brought us down to 4.75%, the break-even would only be 5 years. Our rent ratio is still around 22 -- I wonder what the historical average for southern CA would be?
December 1st, 2009 at 07:06 pm 1259694384
December 1st, 2009 at 08:08 pm 1259698098
December 1st, 2009 at 08:55 pm 1259700953
December 1st, 2009 at 11:03 pm 1259708622
December 4th, 2009 at 06:37 pm 1259951870
124.57 Gas & Electric
64.10 Water & Waste
16,556.04 per year (Yikes)
1,379.67 per month
45.989 per day
Really makes me realize I cant afford the house I am living in if I want to reduce my work load.