Pay more on house or upgrades?

**rachelj** · 02-25-2008, 12:48 PM

So, here is the thing we are debt free besides our home. Currently we pay minimum on it but only have like 16 years left on the mortgage (have only "owned" it 5 years). We save $ every month that goes to yearly expenses (insurance, property tax etc) and purchase of new vehicle (thanks Dave R!) and a small amount for vacation. Dh and I both do free lance type jobs for extra money (I am mainly a SAHM). We currently have MORE than 6 months living expenses saved for our FULL emergency fund and then we also have about 18K in our ING (yearly expenses/car fund/vacation) and more in another savings account.

We have done a TON of remodeling on our home and we are planning to do more - I say we but it is mostly dh with the help of his dad. Our home will need a new roof (dh keeps preventing leaks with roof tar), siding (our home is 30 years old and has the original wood siding that wasn't kept well by original owners), we need to do some work on the landscaping as water leaks into our basement as our yard is sloped toward the house and dh wants a new deck.

Most of these are "needs" not "wants" and we would pay cash for them and dh would do most of the labor on the projects himself to save $$. I just wish sometimes that we could put more towards the principal on our mortgage.

What do you suggest? Put more on mortgage and not on fixing the house? Or do the fixes on the house and keep paying minimums?

**M55FF** · 02-25-2008, 12:54 PM

Originally Posted by rachelj

So, here is the thing we are debt free besides our home. Currently we pay minimum on it but only have like 16 years left on the mortgage (have only "owned" it 5 years). We save $ every month that goes to yearly expenses (insurance, property tax etc) and purchase of new vehicle (thanks Dave R!) and a small amount for vacation. Dh and I both do free lance type jobs for extra money (I am mainly a SAHM). We currently have MORE than 6 months living expenses saved for our FULL emergency fund and then we also have about 18K in our ING (yearly expenses/car fund/vacation) and more in another savings account.

We have done a TON of remodeling on our home and we are planning to do more - I say we but it is mostly dh with the help of his dad. Our home will need a new roof (dh keeps preventing leaks with roof tar), siding (our home is 30 years old and has the original wood siding that wasn't kept well by original owners), we need to do some work on the landscaping as water leaks into our basement as our yard is sloped toward the house and dh wants a new deck.

Most of these are "needs" not "wants" and we would pay cash for them and dh would do most of the labor on the projects himself to save $$. I just wish sometimes that we could put more towards the principal on our mortgage.

What do you suggest? Put more on mortgage and not on fixing the house? Or do the fixes on the house and keep paying minimums?

Pay in more on your houeses principal and when you do, write a seperate check that clearly states what the extra money is for: APPLY TO PRINCIPAL...
You can send in extra money every month on the PRINCIPAL, I did this and paid my house off in 7 years vs. 15 ( had a 15 year mortgage)...
It is very important you keep track of the principal you pay in and make sure the money you send in is applied to principal, not the house payments.
In a house payment, you have PRINCIPAL and INTEREST...
in the first years you are paying mostly interest... its too bad you hadn't been doing this sooner but at this point...
you will still save yourself some money as the housepaymets go mostly for interest until the last years of the note.

**suki** · 02-25-2008, 01:02 PM

As you stated, these repairs are needs not wants and if neglected could cost you much more. Fix the house, when that's complete then pay more on the house.

**Samigirl** · 02-25-2008, 02:22 PM

I say continue paying your regular house payment, and use the extra money to fix up the house. If you continue to put off repairs, it may cost you more in the long run.

**rachelj** · 02-25-2008, 04:09 PM

I guess I struggle with knowing if all of it is a need "right now" especially the deck...

**PAVallygrl** · 02-25-2008, 04:36 PM

Do you plan on selling anytime soon? If not I'd put it into the house payments to get that mortgage (or get more equity in the home) faster. Do you Really Really need a new deck? Roof is something else of course, but I would budget for that.

**Neeley** · 02-25-2008, 04:43 PM

If it were me, I would be making the repairs first.

**sdrjeolsen** · 02-25-2008, 04:59 PM

I would make only the repairs that are absolutely necessary to prevent further damage or degrading of the home and the rest of the extra money I would put on the mortgage. You mentioned the ground slopes toward the house, eventually you will have foundation problems if that is let go for long. I would guess it is a relatively in expensive repair requiring downspouts and a few loads of dirt. If you had in mind to do something more extensive, I'd do what can be done inexpensively and then upgraded later on. Same with the roof, can some shingles be replaced for now and the entire roof done later? I'm all for paying extra on the mortgage.

**itlw8** · 02-25-2008, 05:46 PM

repairs have to be done and if a roof is leaking then this is they year you have to do it. done one at a time many of those things can be done without breaking the budget.

If possible do both... even $25 extra on the mortage makes a difference.

I went online and got my amoritzation schedual and can see what the extra does each month

repairs not done will lower the value of the house. and if you want a deck save for it

**happimommi** · 02-26-2008, 05:09 PM

I would say that the roof, siding and fixing the water issue are definite needs. Maybe take the money you would use for the deck and put it towards the mortgage.