All Forum Posts by: Pat D.

Absolutely get the company match; you will not regret the compounding you'll see on that money since you're starting early. This will also bolster your mortgage applications as you'll have 'reserves' from the bank's perspective. 

As for the cash part, I'd recommend figuring out 'your number' by determining when (how many years) you want to house hack, then what's your budget going to be for the house (check current listings and add some buffer for appreciation to adjust for when you'll be ready to buy). From there, determine what financing you'll use -- since you'll be in an 'owner occupied' you likely won't need a very big down payment at all... bounce all this information against your take home pay less expenses, and 401k contributions and see how long it will be until you'll be able to have a big enough chunk for that first house hack. If that timeline is too long for you, then maybe consider alternatives... but my guess is, even with the 401k contributions, if you can control your spending then it won't take you very long to have enough cash to get in the game. 

Spot on @Whitney Hill! Came here to say this. Backdoor Roth is an easy way around that! 

Admittedly I don't have a great answer for you on that one -- but @Alice Huang  mentions above that her appraisal will come in 15K higher due to the refinish, so you may want to do what she did and reach out to someone in your area to get an estimate! 

I agree with @Mark Faustrum and @Gary L Wallman

You can only sand and refinish the hardwood a few times, so if it were me, I would put the tenant-proof LVP in today. Then down the road when it comes time to sell the property, I would likely refinish the natural hardwood and aim to sell the property at top dollar. I've heard this point mentioned by Brandon Turner in a few of his books and it seems like the long-term move that fits my investment strategy -- but, does it fit yours? Good luck with the decision.

Check out the cost vs value report talked about on episode 399 with contractor Jeff Thorman. You can drill down to your region or just look at national trends.

https://www.remodeling.hw.net/...

Unpopular opinion: throw some wood/floor colored caulk in the spaces and call it good. 

@Erik B.  Yup, I agree. I threw the copy-paste transcript of the episode in my post because I really thought those figures sounded crazy. Judging by the fact that no one else has commented, I think it's safe to say those numbers were a bit out of touch.

Thanks @Curtis Bidwell -- I'll start with a few contractor conversations and go from there. Appreciate the input!

On Episode 399 Jeff Thorman talks about getting contractor pricing on siding and windows (see transcript below). Does anyone have experience with getting this type of pricing for windows and Hardie Board siding in Western Washington? If so, can you point me in the right direction? 

Transcript:

"Jeff: That’s the million dollar question. If you’re a do-it-yourself and you’re doing new siding and windows on your house, yes. Go spend 20 minutes, sit in a chair, answer a couple of questions, open a cash account because your windows are 70% off retail price as a contractor. Your siding is 60% off retail price as a contractor, all right? So instead of spending 30,000 on material, you’re down to eight, seven. That’s money in the bank"

@Canesha Edwards thanks! I'll start there