Recently I was in the position of being able to download the latest of Suze's books-Action Plan 2009.Although I was hopeful that it would be an amazing new take on money for the current economic enviornment, it was not the case. Personal finance stays the same over time and Suze's advice is fairly standard for those who are interested and are following personal finance. I suppose that the upside is that I am not in a position to worry. One nice feature of the book is that much of it is in question and answer format.
Despite all of the back and forth about sub-prime mortgages and the housing bubble, I am feeling just fine. The reason is that when purchasing, I followed some old advice: Don't expect to flip. In general, I've been told by many people that you shouldn't buy a home unless you plan to hold on to it for 7 years or longer. If the market does well and you decide to sell, fine. But if you want to be sure not to lose money, don't buy something that you only want for a year or two. I've been in my current location for more than 3 years. I like it. And I have no intention of leaving in the short or medium term. It seems to me, that real estate, like any asset class, has its ups and downs. But as a practical point, I don't look at my home as an asset per se. Rather, I consider it to be a fixed expense that I need to survive, much like food and water. Therefore, as long as the payment is reasonable and it functions to keep me warm and sheltered and comfortable, that is a...
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