worth a read...not just for my urrea folks but like...everybody
thesis is why is the Black middle class struggling so hard when other people seem to be making the rebound?
a lot of variables, chief among which: - most of us work for someone else, other ethnicities have a stronger entrepreneur thing going - predominantly Black hoods are not considered good hoods by others, unless the property value is so low it can be bought cheap, fixed up and then becomes a "transistional" hood - a lot of people simply dont know how much goes into the upkeep of your house...besides the mortgage, you got to paint it, and landscape it and fix what breaks, or remodel to keep up w/ the trends...all have impact on the value of the property - bad credit (its terrible)
i mean i could go on
but i wont.
on another note tho...SNOW COMING!
almost guaranteed school will be closed tomorrow...get your groceries now folks!
1. "PG County IS the American Dream/ppl shop like fools wit snow coming" In response to Reply # 0
In PG County, you have pockets of affluent blacks. Probably at a higher concentration than anywhere within a 200 mile radius. A big part of the American Dream is financial and there is money in PG...
And shout out to the bamma i saw this morning with 3 gallons of milk and 4 loaves of bread next to the toilet paper in his cart. I get the TP, but why do fools buy up all the bread and milk?
Beside the fact that it aint like snowmeggeden is coming. Fools doing the most for what will likely be less than 4 inches of snow...
33. "Maryland slowed down the foreclosure process" In response to Reply # 5
>take two houses... >IDENTICAL houses... >1 in PG >1 in NOVA or Montgomery County... > >the one in PG gonna be worth less off the strength (or lack >of) of the large Black populace in PG county...
The move kept people off the streets but it's also retarded the rebound in prices because banks are STILL foreclosing houses that went into default back in 2008-2010.
VA didn't impede the correction... so their markets tanked and recovered pretty quickly. Markets in Maryland, particularly MD, have been slower to recover because there are still a good number of foreclosures coming onto the market at rock bottom prices.
I think the racial aspect also plays a big part, but this is partially a reflection of well meaning policies having unintended consequences.
6. "Boram & Atlas & Kanye Shrugged" In response to Reply # 0
Them folks got what was coming to them I read all three parts and like damn near every last one of the ppl who got foreclosed on just bit off more than they could chew How do you think you're going to make $5k mortgage payments on $160k income?
Why buy a $600k house on a $110k income?
They were being greedy thinking that real estate will ALWAYS go up.
So foolish.
One lady even worked in a bank in the mortgage dept and want wise.
They try to put it on the lenders like they did not understand what they were signing up for and all. I'm like who signs a document for $700k and don't know EXACTLY what is going on?
They just were irresponsible and got what they got.
Instead of a 5500 sq ft house at $4,500 A month they need a 700 sq ft apartment for $800 a month
And it is not only blacks but white ppl got caught up in this too.
9. "The series exposed a lot of financial illiteracy in our community" In response to Reply # 0
Like it or not, admit it or not, African Americans have been effectively legislated into being a lower class for decades.
We couldn't vote, we couldn't participate in minimum wage or social security programs when they were instituted in this country, we were denied GI Bill benefits and our communities were redlined by lenders and gentrified after the values were driven down.
A lot of our people know how to hustle and get money, but don't know how to flip that into true wealth.
A lot of the people outlined in the series made extremely poor decisions and then compounded their errors with more bad financial decisions. But when you have people whose previous family never had much, what can you expect?
In a way it's almost a miracle that only 1/3 of that neighborhood in the article fell victim to that. Maybe you can see it as progress that more of us didn't fall for the predatory lending scams. ______________________________________________________________________________
cscpov.blogspot.com
"There's a fine line between persistence and foolishness..." -unknown
18. "^^^^this is what im screaming." In response to Reply # 9
& im not remotely saying im a genius, im BARELY middle class but i think i got the gist @ this point & it came with VERY hard times & trials & errors
we dont know what we dont know. what we do know is mainly bullshit (ie payday loans, i wanna scream everytime i hear a commercial for them) we spend our money on shit that has no appreciation potential to impress people we dont GAF abt
etc
like right now...my floors are squeaky. it'll run me 6k to fix em. i dont have that shit. nor do i have the knowledge on how to do it myself. if i wanted to sell my house...that cost is gonna have to be built in to my homes asking price. i got a list of shit like that.
15. "it's just not for me." In response to Reply # 14
Bin is correct - home ownership involves lots of maintenance and all that jazz. i'm not into it.
i have been to Home Depot like 4x in my whole life. i love that. i don't want to spend every weekend in some home improvement store. i have no interest in gardening. painting. plumbing. i grew up doing all that work w/my parents. i have some exposure. i'm not about that life. thankfully i grew up in houses w/responsible parents who are great home owners and they showed me how to do it right.
i don't want to do it. i see how they live and they love it so i love it for them. it ain't for me.
21. "Consider yourself lucky" In response to Reply # 15
I think I kind of bought into it, but at the same time I love my house and we NEED the space. I can't see myself raising a child in an apt. I hate the home maintenance and my goddamn neighbors, but I love the amount of room I have to spread out. If the HOAs weren't insane, I would have preferred a condo.
blkprinceMD05 Member since Nov 29th 2004 41323 posts
Wed Jan-28-15 09:20 AM
25. "but homeownership could also be a condo/non rental apartment" In response to Reply # 15
where for the most part u wont be having to paint and yard work and this and that like in a single family home
im not challenging the notion that homeownership aint for everybody but i do think it can be wealth builder if managed correctly and doesnt have to include the things ur describing
prototype
stand ur ground, believe in urself, believe in love, prepare urself for love, remove the negativity from ur life, and accept the love u kno u deserve
27. "In 2005, my wife (then girlfriend) made just under 45k" In response to Reply # 20
she went in to get pre-approved for a mortgage and they told her she could borrow 320k. THREE HUNDRED TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS on a 45k salary. They were setting people up to fail. Caveat Emptor and all, but that doesn't exonnerate financial professionals who intentionally misguide their clients
28. "Same for my co-worker in 2001" In response to Reply # 27
We made 45k I was slumming it in grad school She was newly divorced with two kids She decides to cop a 6br mansion on Osage for 350k Seven times her salary But even not being a financial guru I felt that was weird Last I checked the house is still in her name But that don't mean she owns it or lives there. Her baby daddy is/was some big time internationally sought after scientist tho I'm sure his child support payments is on fleek
But yeah, if your housing payment is 75 percent of your net income maybe you should rethink how you going to make those payments. Read them stories from wapo and you will see them ppl just flat out ran thru all kinds of red lights to get the house of their dreams
MrThomas43423 Member since Jul 03rd 2002 67613 posts
Wed Jan-28-15 09:25 AM
26. "filet mignon with my food stamp, car in the name of my mama..." In response to Reply # 0
medical card from Obama.....background check for a chopper.
that's the new American Dream. or a means to reach that dream. --------------------------------------- it's true what they say...people are strange, when you're strangers.
30. "Black personal finances. A physician I know." In response to Reply # 0 Wed Jan-28-15 11:46 AM by deejboram
The mods should be able to combine posts This should be combined with Bins other Black finances post as I think they are both interesting
Anyhow My boy is a physician here in Houston Lives in a big ass house on Lake Houston 3,600 sqft feet single level rancher He gave like 360 for it two years ago Prolly worth 560 now In the city put a 1. in front of that
So he be asking me when me and the wife going to buy our place I keep telling him my wife's wants don't match our budget so we will continue to rent until the two numbers align My wife wants his house but in the city so it will be 1.5M at least
He says I should just buy whatever house without my wife's input and tell her to deal with it I tell him we both flying planes but he on a AirBus and I'm flying a Boeing so shit don't work the same So then we keep talking and I tell him I see stuff I like it's just over priced from my perspective So we cruise har.com I show him a nice house for 420k and tell him I think it is worth no more than 350k to me He says "just buy it! You know eventually you will get your money back out of it anyway"
And then wapo articles made me think of his comments Dude is very smart when it comes to medicine But personal finances he is a dunce Let's say in fifteen years that 420k house is worth 550k That's a 130k increase, right But if I would buy at 350k that is 200k A 70k diff That's like two years tuition for my daughter in college The doctor don't think like that He only sees the 550k at the end
He also is not factoring what if after ten years I have to sale because my job is moving me and at that time the house is only worth 400k A 20k deficit But if I would buy at 350k that would still be a 50k increase
I think many blacks need a two-part simple course in personal finance 1. Pay your bills on time and the effects of credit scores 2. More detailed info on how auto/home loans work and their effects of interest rates
Also his wife is some hot shot lawyer in oil+gas and probably makes more than me and my wife combined
31. "Yeah, the just buy it, you can afford it mindset has been harmful." In response to Reply # 30
But some people just don't have that generational knowledge being passed down to them.
Like with affordability- you gotta know what afford really means.
My folks always taught me for example, never negotiate the payment on a car, negotiate the price. You go into a car dealership around here, they ask you "so what type of payment do you want?"
Man, these mofos around here will put you in a top of the line Mercedes with a $250 car note, but the loan terms will be like 13yrs at 5%+. Sheeeeeit. Give me the total price on the car, and let me worry about the damn payment. If I get the price I want, the payment will be fine.
And with houses, traditional advice works best. An affordable mortgage is usually one that is about three times your income, maybe a little more. You make 150k a year? you can look at a 450-500k house. Gotta figure in upkeep, utilities, HOA fees and other associated costs. Buy what you are comfortable with. And what you can sell it for shouldn't be the only consideration. I'd look at can you sustain that lifestyle all other things being equal. ______________________________________________________________________________
cscpov.blogspot.com
"There's a fine line between persistence and foolishness..." -unknown
32. "They are also rich enough that they can weather some storms" In response to Reply # 30
Had a friend that lost like 200k on his house in Upper Malboro. His wife got into residency so they had to move. Didn't want to ruin their credit so they ate the 200k and kept it moving. That would have ruined my family. They just had to sell their cars and buy cheaper ones.
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