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Thread: What Would You Do?

  1. #31
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    Jul 2012
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    The wooden stake has been driven through the heart. We just got the "real" price quote on the flood insurance - $6,300. That takes out of qualifying for the loan. Mentally, I was already moved in. We worked out all the other issues but this one knocked us out of the game. The killer is the elevation. And every house built around that time has the same problem. Oh well...
    “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness..." - Mark Twain

  2. #32
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    Jan 2011
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    Sorry to hear that. Perhaps you could look else where in the US, or even outside the country? Could you find a similar setup on a lake?

  3. #33
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    Dec 2005
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bruce Page View Post
    I have never complained about an opportunity taken, only about opportunities missed.
    The house has been standing for 51 years.
    Can't argue with the first part of that...

    But the second sentence has been echoed by a few people on this thread, and I think you're overlooking something.
    Sure the house has stayed put for 50 years, but the ocean hasn't. How much has the sea level risen since 1960? What is the forecast for the next 20+ years? How much elevation is the city/county requiring for new construction? There is a reason for those regulations, and there is a reason that insurance companies charge what they do for insurance. They pay a lot of very smart people a lot of money to figure out stats and probabilities that are way over my head.

    Sorry things didn't work out for you, Julie! Hope you find another house that suits!
    "It's Not About You."

  4. #34
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    Art, I'm not saying that you can't improve your odds, you could buy a missile silo in Wyoming if you wanted to. I am saying that it's OK (IMO) to live the dream because there are no guarantees in this life.
    Please help support the Creek.


    "It's paradoxical that the idea of living a long life appeals to everyone, but the idea of getting old doesn't appeal to anyone."
    Andy Rooney



  5. #35
    Sorry to hear about the difficulties.

    In-laws have done Galveston Island for years. Common saying for them has always been, "Buy a house two streets back (from beach). It'll be beachfront before you know it!." Time always seems to prove them right. It's easy to ignore the risks because generally they are rare - - 30-yr flood, 100-yr storm, or a barrier island that has the audacity to MOVE! ...right out from under someone's house. (A 360-deg ocean view is sometimes sort of not always practical.) I'll spare you the boat-in-storm stories as everybody's heard them or got three of their own.

    Something to consider, in case you haven't (but bet you have), is that $6300 will buy a fairly nice long stay in someone else's flood-prone, storm-exposed, high-risk, money pit. Every year! Maybe twice!!

    Hope things work out.
    Last edited by Malcolm McLeod; 09-24-2015 at 4:40 PM. Reason: typo

  6. #36
    Not that you need to state it here, but what’s your “plan B”? I’m intrigued by your pursuits and travails, because you sound like an amalgamation of many people I know. And the advice given here has been likewise interesting, because of it’s branched realities.

    Following your dream is always nice. But, when you’re young and following your dream, you can screw up, and have time to come up with a different dream. When you’re retiring, there is a different reality. Think of the day we live in. Elder wisdom is a thing of the past. Social Security is a joke. If you don’t have the means to give the world the finger, you are going to be dependent on something or someone, in the off chance that your dreams don’t work out.

    I worry about you. Because I think you’ve been caught between what used to be possible and what’s real now. And I feel like I can comment, at least a little bit, on your plans.

    I know liveaboards. My wife and I were part of the community years ago. I LOVE sailboats, and I love sailing. The capitals are for a reason. I have studied sailboat design for years. I have a very good feel for what’s what, regardless of the advertising hype. But let’s put this aside.

    I have many friends who are liveaboards. But there’s a distinction. Retirees are pretty much exclusively on trawlers and cruisers. There comes a point where going up the mast in a bosun’s chair loses it’s appeal. Younger—let’s say the 30 to 60 year old group, are happy to live on sailboats. But…….and this is a BIG but, they are driven; they have a passion; they could not think of doing anything else. And this does NOT sound like you.
    If it was you, you’d already be there.

    Again, much of this thread has been “follow your dream”. You know what? I don’t want to pay for your dream. You may be the best person on the planet. You may make Mother Theresa look like a street walker. You may be the most wonderful person who has ever lived. But I don’t want to pay for your mistake.

    Here in the USA, we do a crappy job of informing and teaching our young people what it means to be self-sufficient. They are very versed in taking “selfies”. But this is a new rant.

    Social security was created for a reason. And it’s essentially insolvent. So, if you want to “follow your dream” you have to do it AT YOUR OWN RISK. If you’re willing to take that risk, and not make anyone else pay for your untoward eventuality, OK. If you’re going to take a risk at retirement, and count on someone else being a safety net, I view that as truly POOR advice, and a truly ridiculous strategy.

    I LOVE sailboats. If you pick the right boat, and you’re any kind of sailor, you can weather the most unbelievable storms. The flipside is, if you lack the ability to go aloft in truly adverse conditions, there are a variety of trawlers that you can live aboard comfortably and safely. But I still come back to this: The liveaboard people that I know KNEW that this was what they wanted to do. They didn’t “back into it” because some other option didn’t pan out.

    I hope you find your freedom. I hope you realize what you were looking for. But, you sound lost. And I’m sorry for that.

  7. #37
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    Oct 2008
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    Scottsdale, Arizona
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    Alan,

    Did you read her question? Here it is.

    "What would YOU do? This is not advice for me. I just want to know what
    YOUwould do if faced with this dream realized or dream dead scenario".

    I personally don't see why she merited such a demeaning lecture?

  8. #38
    Yeah, I don't understand Alan's rant either.

    Julie, sorry to hear about the steep quote for flood insurance. I'm not sure what it costs to elevate a home in your neck of the woods but around here $30,000 is a rough start. Could you qualify for the loan if you raise the home up front and spread that construction cost over the life of your loan? That would eliminate the need for flood insurance (or drastically reduce the cost if you still want it). Just a thought. I hope you you are able to make it work, or if not, fulfill your dream another way. Good luck to you.
    Last edited by Shawn Christ; 09-24-2015 at 9:59 PM.

  9. #39
    Yes, I DID read the question. And you can see that I did from my previous response. And most of my "rant" was geared toward other posters who say to someone who is retiring, but having a seemingly difficult time financing her dream, to "go ahead, follow your dream". And I think, you know, all of you who say that, if what you're saying is you're willing to underwrite her dream, then that seems good advice. And if you're not willing to underwrite her dream then that seems ridiculous advice. This is the kind of advice you give to a 23 year old who lives in Armpit Iowa and is asking whether she should take her 23 dollars and move to New York or California. The OP considered living aboard. I know something about it. Do you? In a Trawler, or a Cruiser, OK. In a sailboat it's a young persons game. So fine, she didn't ask for advice. And yet plenty of people gave it to her, and a lot of it was irresponsible, in my opinion. Go back, start at the beginning, and read the whole thread. If you still feel I'm wrong, fine, I'm a shmuck. I apologize for being concerned. I'll show myself out and ban myself to the land of the mute. Ciao.

  10. #40
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    Jul 2007
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    Quote Originally Posted by Alan Hick View Post
    Yes, I DID read the question. And you can see that I did from my previous response. And most of my "rant" was geared toward other posters who say to someone who is retiring, but having a seemingly difficult time financing her dream, to "go ahead, follow your dream". And I think, you know, all of you who say that, if what you're saying is you're willing to underwrite her dream, then that seems good advice. And if you're not willing to underwrite her dream then that seems ridiculous advice. This is the kind of advice you give to a 23 year old who lives in Armpit Iowa and is asking whether she should take her 23 dollars and move to New York or California. The OP considered living aboard. I know something about it. Do you? In a Trawler, or a Cruiser, OK. In a sailboat it's a young persons game. So fine, she didn't ask for advice. And yet plenty of people gave it to her, and a lot of it was irresponsible, in my opinion. Go back, start at the beginning, and read the whole thread. If you still feel I'm wrong, fine, I'm a shmuck. I apologize for being concerned. I'll show myself out and ban myself to the land of the mute. Ciao.
    You put it in perspective here. I wasnt totally understanding your first post but you did nail it. So many people are brave when its not their money or risk
    Sent from the bathtub on my Samsung Galaxy(C)S5 with waterproof Lifeproof Case(C), and spell check turned off!

  11. #41
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    Jul 2012
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    Punta Gorda, FL
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    This is going to sound like I'm crazy but it's only a small part of our reality in trying to become sufficiently knowledgeable in the realities of nailing down the facts.

    The insurance agent came back to us yesterday and gave us a flood quote 1/3 the previous one that knocked us out of the game. (insert head smack) That previous quote was based on the absolutely worst scenario. She just failed to tell us that. But I have no idea where it came from because when we ran all the worst case numbers, she couldn't even come close to that.

    My SO owned an insurance agency for 25 years and has been asking all the right questions. The people in the insurance office have remarked how impressed they are, based on these questions. (2nd head smack) And no, it's not just this agency. The three priors were worse.

    So we spend the rest of the day making certain what we hear over the phone and what we see in the contracts is the real thing and isn't going to change... again. We locked in the contracts and are moving forward. Then the agent said, "This has been such a great learning experience for us all. It's the talk of the office!" (is your forehead starting to hurt?)

    To give you a more complete idea of what we've been dealing with... Our realtor calls and asks me to educate her on the law and ordinance issues we've been talking about. (forget the head smack and go straight to the bar) I spent 35 minutes giving her a class and offered to give a lecture to her entire office.

    We close in two weeks.
    “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness..." - Mark Twain

  12. #42
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    Sep 2006
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    Quote Originally Posted by Greg R Bradley View Post
    Depends on where. Slip fees on a friends 65' are just about $120,000 per year.
    WOW!! They are being screwed BIG TIME! The nicest marinas on the east cost end up at 18-20 thousand a year for that size boat.

  13. #43
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    Mar 2003
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    Quote Originally Posted by Julie Moriarty View Post
    We close in two weeks.
    Congratulations!

    Anyone else think Julie should host a SMC party in January?


  14. #44
    Quote Originally Posted by Matt Meiser View Post
    Congratulations!

    Anyone else think Julie should host a SMC party in January?
    +1 congrats.

    The 'Glowforge' release and resulting argument has been inspiring ....I think you should crowd fund the house, boat, and party!

  15. #45
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    Congratulations! that's wonderful news to see another live their dream. Best of luck and happiness.

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