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Hi! Im New Here

October 29th, 2013 at 03:15 pm

Hello. I'm going to use this blog to keep a record of my finances and savings as I go along.

I make substantially less than most of the people on SavingAdvice, so I thought it would be good for other people to see that not everyone lives off of a big salary and has a lot to work with.

Combined my husband and I make about $27,000 a year after taxes.

A year ago we got married and bought a 100 year old farmhouse sitting on 4.5 acres. We got it for a steal because the owner was a farmer who only wanted the land and was going to bulldoze the house. But upon inspection we found it had very good potential.

We've spent the last 17 months completely gutting and remodeling the house, and have done so debt free by saving and doing things slowly.

Everything was replaced including plumbing, electric, insulation, roof, drywall, and some of the floors. We are slowly overtime replacing the 26 over sized windows, and one day will replace the siding.



Here is what the house looked like 1.5 years ago the day we bought it. Whew it's ugly. I don't have any more recent pictures. Sorry.

Our big financial goals right now are to begin saving for retirement, save at least $30,000 for an addition to the house, and pay down our mortgage.

11 Responses to “Hi! Im New Here”

  1. Petunia 100 Says:
    1383060239

    Hi Klarose. Glad to see you started your own blog. I don't think your house looks ugly. It looks plain, but it has good lines. I see lots of potential.

    Best of luck to you with your goals. Smile

  2. momcents Says:
    1383060805

    Welcome! I love the looks of your farmhouse! My grandfather was born and raised in a house that looks very similar. It was in Michigan and I have fond memories of my summer there as a kid! I look forward to following your journey.

  3. Wino Says:
    1383060852

    Looks pretty good to me, too. I'd be wanting to check level, but it appears to be pier and beam or similar, so leveling is not a huge undertaking. If it were slab, you'd be better off tearing it down if it isn't level.

    How's the wiring and plumbing?

  4. klarose Says:
    1383061923

    Oh it's not level at all! But it is stable and sturdy. It has a crawlspace foundation that is hidden by the siding. The foundation will be addressed as part of the addition/remodel we'd like to do, that we are saving for.

    Wiring and plumbing has been replaced. It had 60 amp service when we bought it.

    In other news I had another LONG post typed out and it somehow deleted it. Embarrassment

  5. creditcardfree Says:
    1383063074

    Welcome to SA! Although some of us may have higher incomes, we many of us started out with much lower salaries. I think the home looks beautiful! Most of us have found that it is good to copy and paste our posts BEFORE hitting save, just in case. Saving Advice is aware of the problem, but can't seem to address the site timing out during our longs posts. Hope that helps!

  6. klarose Says:
    1383063519

    I will be copying and pasting any future posts. Thanks!

    The house is not my ideal layout. We are doing the best we can with it, but there is a lot of things I do not like about it. The land though is beautiful! No neighbors, 4 sheds, a pond... It is picture perfect. I am a outdoors girl. So I can deal with the house.

  7. MonkeyMama Says:
    1383064741

    Welcome to the blogs!

  8. Kiki Says:
    1383067988

    Welcome!!

  9. Joan.of.the.Arch Says:
    1383096597

    Ah! With all those maples (eh?), I bet you are surrounded with color right now. Smile

  10. LuckyRobin Says:
    1383174970

    Welcome. When my husband and I first started out we were only making about $22K a year. Those days are behind us now, but I still remember how hard it was to scrimp and save. Sounds like you guys are doing a great job working with what you do have.

  11. klarose Says:
    1383242481

    The maples are horrible. They are almost completely rotten and hollow inside. We would like to cut them down and replant something else but for now we are keeping them for the shade. We did cut one down and when it fell it actually took out our power line with it. That wasn't one of Father-in-laws greatest moments.

    I haven't noticed color yet, but I might just be oblivious. lol

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