Rickets,

Very sorry to hear your problem. I've never been placed in a position like yours so I'm not about to start giving advice.

-but to put it out there-

You may consider getting a place of your own. When I first graduated college I was planning on renting for at least 4 years to save up a down payment. I worked 2 jobs throughout my senior year (Pizza Delivery and Insurance Claims Call Center) which get me about $15k and I was able to buy a $79,000 house with a mortgage of $505 per month (decent starter house with 3/4 acre in a very upscale county). Renting my own place would have cost me at least $800 p/m. 4 years later I sold that house for $139,000 so as you can tell it was a wise investment.

good luck.

 

Rickets,

Like macmonkey, I haven't been in a situation like that, but if you want my .02, here it is:

1) Get your own place, it sounds like there are a lot of things in this situation that will make living in that environment insecure at best.

2) See if you can find a house to buy instead of a place to rent if you can afford it.

3) I worked full-time and went to college at night. It worked out well for me. I graduate with my BS in Engineering and had a great resume to boot as it took me nearly eight years to get my degree, but I had experience too.

4) Stay positive, attitude makes all of the difference. Hard-work never hurts either.

Good luck.

 

15 years ago, I was living in an apartment building. It was okay but expensive and I was building up no equity. My dad said to get a manufactured home in a park. A brand new one became available and I bought it for around $21,000. It's turned out to be the best investment I made, as I have had a place to live all this time, it's almost paid off now, and the lot rent is way cheaper than any apartment in this area. Once it's paid off, my monthly expense will be around $300 a month. You can't even get a room for that.

The good thing about a manufactured home is that you can have pets, ( I have a small dog), you have your own yard, you can have a garden, you have some level of privacy way above that in an apartment building. I would never go back to an apartment.

The newer manufactured homes are better built than the old style mobile homes, so please don't get them confused. The old homes have poor insulation, poor plumbing, old wiring ect, so they don't hold their value. A good quality manufactured home is built to today's standards, and they retain their value. Mine has actually gone up in value.

My mother is even considering getting one as her house is getting to be too expensive to keep up, taxes insurance maintenance, repairs.....

Dad was right. This worked out really good for me. At least I'm not saddled with a monthly house payment that's way out of my budget.

My neighbors consist of mostly older residents, and it's a very quiet place most of the time. Don't believe the stereotype of white trash. My neighbors are all very nice people, and their homes and lots are very well maintained.

Just my .02 cents.

 

Sorry to hear about your situation.

Do you have a time line? With the first time home buyer $8000 incentive, it might be a good time to buy a house. My sister just put in an offer on a house. The first time home buyer incentive can be applies to your 2008 taxes and you can get your money back in 10 weeks or so.

It might be worth talking to a realtor

 

Check your PM.

Hang in there lil brother

 

I agree with the above...with the $8,000 first time credit and a possible VA loan, it might be a decent option to buy. If you do, don't do what many advocate...'buy the most expensive house you can afford'. That's hogwash.

If you do go that route, send me a PM if you want any tips for looking and buying. I have a decent amount of experience...good AND bad.

Best of luck!

 

Hey, be careful with that $8,000 tax break thing. If you move within three years you have to pay it back. Maybe you don't think you'll move, but if you lose your job, etc you may be forced to move. Something to keep in mind...

 

hint-Realtor's hate manufactured homes because they can't make a big commission on them. I know, I used to be one.

:

 

So if I understand correctly - Your mom, your sister and yourself are all going to be living in your Mom's house. Why not you all pitch in to pay your Mom's mortgage so you all have a place to live?

 

Finally some decent advice!

Sorry to hear about your situation. I suggest sitting down with your mum and seeing what the options are. Given that you have a personal interest in the hosue and a personal relationship (she's your mom), see if you can contribute.

 

a moble home idea isnt bad, but i wouldnt get it in a trailer park . if possible to find one on some land and buy the land as well as the trailer . even 1 acre would be better than a park :thumb:

if you can get a loan. 1 cheap way to get a house (talk to the bank about it) is to buy one that is being auctioned off sometimes you can get them for alot cheaper than they are worth

 

I used to own a house with two acres of land, but it was a lot of work to maintain it, plus I had to pay extra taxes on it. At first I wasn't so sure I'd like living in a park, but now that I have actually done it, I like it for several reasons, first off you have a community of friends, we have all the utilities supplied, water, sewer, electricity, garbage pick up, snow removal, and certain rules that keep the park well maintained for everyone. Another big benefit is that we are walking distance to grocery stores, hospital, gas station, restaurants, Lowe's, pools, amoung other things. Getting an acre of land around here means you have to live out in the country far away from basic conviences. Zoning laws around here don't allow for manufactured houses on a single lot.

Another great thing is I can mow my lawn in just a few minutes, instead of hours. This is good for me as I have a bad back, and can only do so much. This will really mean a lot when I get older.

Another big advatage is I don't have to pay property taxes on the land, which around here can be very expensive.

 

Give your mum a cuddle. She must be having a hellish time, with kids, money, & family worries. Mums are only human and need cuddles . Then look at the excellent advice from all these good people on here

 

Wow Rickets, sorry you have been getting such horrible advice so far in your thread, but I'll help you out.
To all the people that suggest his buying a house...you are the problem. It turns out you are the people that have put the US into this financial mess.
Advise a 21 year old college freshman to buy a home? Some even rightfully point out that you'll get $8000 back at tax time if you buy an $80000 home. Did you really counsel a young returning soldier - who is unemployed and a student - to take on an $80000 debt?

Rickets, if you feel you have an obligation to help take care of your family then that's your decision. If your mother and sister can bring in an income, then it might be the best option for all of you to stick together. Your school should be a priority of yours, so if you think you can get it done with the kids running around and family fight nights then try it out. Otherwise, if you're on your own, I've survived my college years by...


Living with a girlfriend
Living with family
Living with roommates
Living on campus
Living in my car (hotel room twice a week)

If you're able to pull of work and full time school at the same time, then any university will have a schedule that will fit. Then with any small income on top of your GI Bill and guaranteed student loans, you'll be fine.

 

Wow Rickets, sorry you have been getting such horrible advice so far in your thread, but I'll help you out.
To all the people that suggest his buying a house...you are the problem. It turns out you are the people that have put the US into this financial mess.
Advise a 21 year old college freshman to buy a home? Some even rightfully point out that you'll get $8000 back at tax time if you buy an $80000 home. Did you really counsel a young returning soldier - who is unemployed and a student - to take on an $80000 debt?
.

Wow...you sure to read a lot into the posts here. Funny, but when I returned from the desert some years ago I bought a home. I was early 20's and in college. It was the best thing I ever did.

Horrible advice? I think people with attitides like yours are what's wrong with America...not people advising home ownership.

 

How about a storage locker for preps?

 

http://www.articlealley.com/article_752738_18.html

 

sorry about your situation, and afraid I'm gunna have to pry a little bit

1) your just home from deployment are you active duty or reserve?
2) is there a pending deployment in your future?

 

I'm reserve, and no, no pending deployments, though it's possible.

 

Your mother may be best off filing for bankruptcy rather than struggling with that debt. I'm not well up on the laws in the US, but can't she just hand back the keys and the mortgage is forgiven? My sister in California did something like that recently. I'm not sure if there were any other financial penalties, but it wasn't anything too hefty if there were.

 

Oh... and it's probably not what you want to hear, but the guy advising against taking on a big mortgage is correct. Things are bad and they're going to get a lot worse.

 

I am in a similar situation right now. It's hard for alot of people right now, if you havn't noticed.

Times are alot different now than say.... the 50's.

Back then, only one person had to work to support a family. And could afford to buy a house.

Mothers actually stayed at home and took care of the household, and cooked dinner, and raised thier kids, not daycare or babysitters.

Kids were able to leave home at 18 and actually buy thier own homes, etc.

Times definatly have changed. Now you need 2 or more incomes to just pay the bills.

Many people I know including me, age 20-30 are staying with thier parents to help out, and because it's impossible to buy a house, make car paymet, bills etc. and be out on your own period.

Beleive me Iv'e tried it. My wife and I got married at 22, had pretty good jobs, and thought "we'll get married, buy a house, start a family, live the AMERICAN DREAM.

After 2 years of renting, and getting nowhere except into debt, (hospital bills) and barely affording to eat. And my Dad having a stroke and becoming disabled, my Mom asked me and my wife, and my sister to move back home to help her out because she couldn't afford it on her own.

I believe that the best way to survive is to STICK TOGETHER. Family is always first. Thats just my opinion.

 

As a parent, this is a hard post to write. It doesn't appear that you have a major problem with a place to live or a place to store stuff. Both are easily solved. A house is easily bought; an apartment is easily rented. The situation only becomes a problem when family relationships enter into the equation. Our household rule #1 is:

"Not all problems are my problem."

If the problem is my problem, then I will hit it head on, work it over, and solve it. But we have avoided considerable angst and extensive drama by deciding which problems were ours and which belonged to someone else.

You seem surrounded by family with problems. To what extent are their problems also your problem? Do you have a plan to address your part of the problem? Do your family members agree with your action plan? If not, maybe they don't think this is your problem to solve. Maybe they don't want the problem solved at all.

You sound like a stable person emotionally and financially. Take the lead in putting yourself on a sustainable action plan. Bring your family along, but only if they will agree on the action plan.

If this doesn't make any sense to you, please ignore it. Not everyone thinks the same way. All the best to you in your adventures in life!

 

why not help your mom out so she doesnt lose her house

 

you could buy a travel trailer to live in and store your preps, i did this after my divorce and loved it. You can move it to another area if you have to and can get a nice camper for cheap.

 

I think you should look at your V.A. Loan dept. I was 21 when I got my first house. i was even in college and broke. Igot a small house on 3 ac. that nobody wanted and fixed that little jewel up. made $20,000 on resale. I am older and broker and health wise broken, but I will encourage you to hug mom, look into for sale at the courthouse deals and lastly dream big.
Thanks Soldier.

 

sounds like the mother isn't thinking ahead and if the sister has already lost two kids and her house she is worthless.

trailer on an acre sounds best. low cost, easy payments, permanency and the most important thing is to not let any freeloaders live with you, related or not.

 

With a cheap trailer on an acre of land, you'll have to have a zoning permit, a well, a septic tank, a drive way, some means of garbage pickup, electricity hook ups, and either a gas or oil hook up for heating, plus you have to pay for the land..... all this stuff costs money, and can be very expensive. You have to look at this on a case by case basis.

 

Depending on the dynamics and future outlook that your mom and sister have, I think the idea of a VA loan is good, with your mom as a cosigner. You could possibly refinance the home she is in (if you all like it there) with a MUCH lower rate and with today's rates probably not going to get lower only get up. You would have a vested interest in the house, she can keep up the payments and your part time work could contribute as if you were renting.

Also with inflation coming, locking in a payment now is great, ensure you get a fixed rate don't let anyone talk you into an ARM (Adjusted Rate Mortgage). It will balloon and you will be in the same situation. The VA loan can be financed 100% with money down and probably only have a small closing which in most states can wrap BACK into the loan.

Hope it all works out for you. And once again, the above scenario relies on the dynamic in the family.