All Forum Posts by: Aaron Bry

Hey guys!

So I actually came to my senses since I posted this. I have moved within 2 miles of my work and now have the luxury of driving very little. My gas bill is now $20 a month! Now that the weather is nice I will ride a bicycle to work.

So, I'm keeping the Honda for as long as I can at this point. When I wrote this I was commuting/driving roughly 25K miles a year so a newer car would've been nice, but I do not need it.

Dylan: I am a home owner but have since rented that house out to be closer to work. I bought it in March of 2016 with 3.5% down, and now rent it for a little over what my mortgage payment is. I'm playing the appreciation game as it's risen 25K since I purchased.

Mike: Exactly why I wanted it....I do not want the water bill for grass!

Don: We have neighbor kids who are very....careless. So far, so good though. It's been a little over a month. So far, no weeds have came through. Did several applications of round up and pre emergent before laying the rock down.

First off, I have to admit that the majority of this work was done by a family friend with a bobcat. I did not want to hand dig this big of a front yard.

I did help in part of the process/all of the design though, so I thought I'd post it!
I bought a 3 bed/2 bath roughly a year ago and the "lawn" was ugly looking and all weeds.

Wanting to switch it to a drought tolerant, more eye-friendly design I saved up the $3000 to have the whole frontyard done in a rock landscape with stepping stones leading up to the front door from the side of the house (can't see it in this picture).

I'm very happy with how it turned out - no more maintenance! Quotes from real landscape companies were 5K-10K, so for 3K all in I feel it was a good deal and adds a good amount of value to the home. The backyard was done at the same time with a similar design for 2K.

Before:

After:

well that's good news for me!

Just completed my first goal for 2017. Became a landlord.

 Good to know, thanks!

This is my primary residence for now with the intent to either sell or rent out. Haven't came to a conclusion on that yet.

But the front yard is driving me nuts and I figure if it comes time to sell, I should get a decent return for the yard being done as opposed to the eyesore that it is now.

Thanks for the input Matt!

Hi guys. Just had my front yard torn up (it was all weeds and overgrown) - now I'm at a loss. It is a corner lot and a very large area. Would like a simple set up I could do myself but do not know what to do or where to begin, and also don't have a lot of free time. A local landscape company quoted me at $5500 for the project - drought tolerant set up with a mix of rocks, bark, and plants/bushes. Anyone have any ideas for what I can do with the front yard on a budget?

 Hey Dylan,

I definitely agree whole heartedly with your comment!

The commute and only having 50% ownership is the huge drawback for me and where I think I went wrong with my purchase.

If I had these same exact numbers closer to work and 100% mine, I would be inclined to say I made a good buy.

 Haha! Yep, 136 hours in two weeks. 118 is my highest with commuting.

Me and coworkers joked about putting inflatable mattresses in the break room.

We've discussed that, but I would have to make up the difference between what the roommate pays and what I would normally pay for half ownership. I don't really want to pay rent somewhere else plus partial rent here, and deal with finding a roommate. This decision should come quickly (early-mid 2017) so I don't mind putting up with it, for now.

Which is a huge reason why I want my next investment to be 100% mine - so I can call all the shots without leaving someone high and dry.

One week I stayed with a friend in Davis and was able to clock 136 hours in a two week pay period. That extra income can definitely help save for my 20% down on a duplex!