by Tricia
I have had bangs all of my life up until a few years ago. I decided that I was going to tough out the awkward stage and finally have long hair across the board. Bangs were not in-style so it seemed like a perfect time to try to grow them out just to do something different (I’ve had pretty much the same hairstyle since high school).
I grow them out, and what comes back? Bangs. I’m not big on style, but the whole thing makes me chuckle. I seem to have horrible timing sometimes.
It spans over to our finances too. Right now if you have the money, you have some great bargaining power when it comes to real estate. I still regularly check real estate in the area even though we can’t buy anything right now. Wouldn’t you know it…there is a house that has many of the things we are looking for. It’s small, has a nice open layout and has a nice yard for a big garden. Alas, we aren’t in a financial position to pursue the purchase of that home.
We also can’t afford to buy stocks right now. When the markets dip like they have, some say it’s time to buy. I don’t know a lot about the stock market yet, but part of me feels like we are missing out on this.
I try to look on the bright side of things so deep down I know that even though it seems like our timing is off sometimes – things will work themselves out. There will be other opportunities and at some point we will be in a better position to be able to take advantage of them. I just need to have patience (which is tough sometimes!).
Timing isn’t right for us to buy either. *Maybe* we’ll be ready in 2 years…maybe. It’s possible we could still get a good deal then, but right now, yeah, I feel like we are really missing out. For us it’s not just about finances, but also that we are not sure where my job will be located in 1 year, so we definitely need to wait for that.
PS-I have curly hair and the first thing I did when I moved out of my mother’s house as a teen (in with my grandparents) was grow out my bangs! She made me have them. Curly hair + bangs = dreadful!! And they were those really short bangs too. ::Shudder:: I briefly contemplated bangs recently and thankfully tossed that idea right out the window.
I can’t relate to the the bangs phenomenon as I am a guy who keeps his hair short and blended together.
Although, with everything else life seems to say up and I am going down, turn right and I turn left, the perfect opportunities seems to come at the worst time possible.
Where we live a small grocery store has this crazy meat bonanza sale twice a year where the meat is crazy cheap. $1.39 a pound for chicken breasts, $1.49 pound for hamburger, etc. Wouldn’t you know it that is this coming weekend and our grocery budget has already been spent……aaarrrggghhh!
Yea well, when you see the real estate prices, part of you saying you are missing something, my other part telling me to stay out of it.
Heh – Isn’t it always that way? When I bought my condo three years ago I thought it was a good time. Mortgage had just started to edge up but not too far, and real estate had started to come down. Little did I know what things would be like now. But, on the other hand, by buying three years ago I no longer had to worry about rent increases, my new place is more energy efficient (heating bill dropped by half!), and getting a mortgage was easier then than now.
My new “problem” is that I bought out in the suburbs, because I thought that was where I wanted to be, but now I am thinking I might be happier in the city… But with the economy the way it is I’m not in a position to sell and buy a new place. Plus, I refinanced late last year and to break even I need to stay put for 2 years.
However, I can begin to prepare for a possible move. I can start doing some of the little projects around the condo that I haven’t gotten around to yet, and I can start saving more. My goal for this year: increase my emergency fund to 6 months’ worth of take home pay (easier to calculate than expenses). Once I have that, I’m maxing out my 401(k) contributions. Any cash I have left over after paying each month’s bills I will split between adding to my savings (for a down payment, moving costs, or a new car since mine is over 12 years old) and paying down the mortgage. The way I figure it, doing these things means a few years from now I’ll be in a better position to buy a new place if I decide that’s what I want do. If I want to stay put, then at least I will have made choices that are good not only in the short-term but also the long-term. And I can leisurely check out the real estate market in the city and get a better sense of where I would want to live.
So, my point is this: even if you miss the current opportunity, you can always prepare for the next one 🙂 Plus, you will drive yourself crazy if you try to time the market. After all, if buying now would mean taking on debt you can’t handle, or locking yourself in to a home that you may end up leaving in 1-2 years, then it isn’t the right time for YOU, and that is what’s really important.
I’m with Jen, the way to expend that energy toward wanting to move is to work toward getting your current house fixed up for sale. If you are like me you will be grateful for being able to spread that project out, to bargain hunt for materials and find more time to invest your own labor.
I’m back at it again after a hiatus, but for a few months there, I honestly thought, geez I can leave all this stuff alone and enjoy myself if I decide to just stay put.
There will be other opportunities – like you said ;). We could buy a house right now and we aren’t. I’m happy to wait because the market constantly fluctuates so why stress out about getting a house NOW. Isn’t that how everyone else got in trouble a few years ago? Just wait until you’re in a better position. You’re not missing out on anything ;).
You’ll always find an even better house (or whatever the item is) when it’s actually the right time to take action. And our economy goes in cycles – there will always be other downturns for you to invest when the time is right. Best of all, you’re avoiding the panic that comes from putting yourself back in a dumb financial position.
I know the feeling! I have been wanting to move for two years to something slightly larger. Our house isn’t in shape to be put on the market and truthfully we don’t have the money to move up anyway! I keep reminding myself to be thankful we have our cute little house and appreciate it for what it is. (despite wanting my own bathroom in the worst way!) It’s a great time to buy, it ‘s a great time to build, everything is on sale…when that’s all you hear it makes it really hard to sit tight and keep going. Like someone above already said, it might not be the right time for YOU.
You have no idea how I wish I had money now to purchase a home but I think everything happens in due time. Jumping into the home buying market when people THOUGHT that they were ready because the market was hot is what got us into this recession mess in the first place.
This time I think it’s great that you are waiting for the time that is right for you and not the time that is right for the market to make your decision.
I buy the really cheap stocks like Ford, Sirius, Citibank, Dell, Sprint etc. My goal is to buy a lot of shares, the plan is long term, hopefully the price of Ford in 10 years is $101, that will be a great time to cash out.
If you had bought $10,000 worth of Apple stock 10-11 years ago, today you would have over $100,000 dollars… that’s my goal.
HS
I think I’m going to do that Orange ING thing, where they tell you that you can have stocks for $100.
I’m in the position to buy and I’m absolutely terrified to do it because I’m half convinced that the minute I close on it I’ll end up laid off. And my father keeps saying, are you sure you have enough job security to make such a big purchase right now?
Who in their right mind really feels secure in anything right now? I keep trying to decide what would be worse, passing the opportunity by or taking the risk and running into my worst economic fear.
I made the effort to get out of debt and take control of my finances exactly so that I COULD buy my own home. Now I’m afraid to do it. Life is crazy.
And I agree, curly hair with bangs = yikes! 🙂
While I would agree that it seems like a great time to start dabbling in the market, I also agree that if it isn’t the right time for you, there will be other opportunities. Getting your other finances in order, emergency fund and paying off debt except for your home is the best investment one can make.