Houses

As I’ve talked about recently I’m currently at my holiday home but strangely I’m thinking about my other house. I wanted to share something that’s been on my mind a lot lately, a kind of internal debate, I’m good at them! My wife, Suzie and I are in our late 50s, and we’ve reached a point where we feel it’s starting to feel important to get ahead of the curve and plan for our future living situation,

I’m excited this morning! Why the excitement, you may ask? It stems from the fact that, for the very first time, my wife Suzie and I are decamping to our holiday home in Portballintrae, a small coastal village on the North Coast of Ireland, for the next three months. This is only possible because we’re now both retired, allowing us to fully utilize the home we purchased six years ago. As we’ve been organizing for departure,

I’m standing on my garden deck this morning, a definite slump in the middle causing me slight dismay. I know the cause for a fact: a main structural beam has failed. I built that decking over twenty years ago just after my brother passed away. Looking back, I now realize I started the project as a way to keep busy and cope with grief.
Yet, here and now, the question resurfaces: should I spend money to have someone fix it,

Hi,
I was encouraged to post here by my cousin, and HumbleDollar columnist, Ed Marsh so here goes – I’m considering a reverse 1031 exchange.  I’d have preferred it be a straight 1031 exchange but timing hasn’t worked in my favor in that my wife and I found the replacement property unexpectedly and had not intended on selling the relinquished property so quickly.  My question is twofold.  First – can the QI take title to the relinquished property instead of the replacement property ahead of the sale of said property so that I don’t have title to both properties?

We live in a small town in NJ, population 6,600. The median household income is $203,000, the median home value is $1,358,400 and the median property tax is $29,600. I feel like we live in a bubble and given these numbers are much higher than our state averages, which are third highest in the Country, I guess we do.
Between property taxes and HOA fees the minimum annual cost to live in our condo is $24,900.

At age 74, I like to think our retirement is pretty much set in stone. Most of the big health and financial decisions—Medicare, Social Security, Roth conversions—have already been made. But there’s one concern I’ve been thinking about a lot lately: how will Rachel and I get the help we need if we can no longer take care of ourselves?
Our family is spread out across the country, and we have no plans to move closer to them.

There have been many discussions about assisted living and CCRC in HD. As I learn about how they staff and manage these facilities, there are many unanswered questions.
Currently, about 65% of elderly are cared for by their families at home. For 13% of those who aren’t living with family, the gap is partially filled by assisted living establishments. The median cost of care is $5,900/month, but ancillary services are extra. That can bring that cost over $15,000/month.

Last year I wrote a couple of HD articles called “When and Where?” about my upcoming retirement decisions. The “when” is settled: I’m retiring on July 1 (checks countdown app: 1 month & 28 days!). The “where,” I thought was also settled: We’d stay in the college town (Davis, CA) where we’ve lived for over 30 years, raised our kids, and built a life.
We’re now rethinking the “where,” but in two different ways: (1) Do we stay in Davis,

A couple of days ago I chanced on this following very detailed and very lengthy article from the SF Chronicle:
https://www.sfchronicle.com/california/article/underinsured-home-what-to-do-20250824.php
This is behind a paywall, but if you haven’t been to the newspaper website recently you can probably read it. I am going to try to summarize some of the content.
Let me begin by putting a personal spin on this topic. I spent 30 years in the property and casualty insurance world. But, like you I have to insure my own home.

My son is 30 something working in Silicon Valley paying outlandish rents and looking at expensive housing. Is it still a good option to purchase in this market? I was burned on real estate as a young adult and don’t want to advise him If it is not a good idea.

My wife & I are 80 years old and planning to move into an over 55 age community.
We will sell our current home to purchase a home in the new community, however, the difference between selling and purchasing will leave us with about $200,000 shortfall.
Our combined total investments are:
$2.5 million in our IRA
$1.4 million in our Roth accounts
$2.1 million in our taxable brokerage accounts
Which would be the best source(s) for us to take the money for our new home purchase concerning taxes and additional financial points you are aware of?

I don’t believe I’ve ever enjoyed life more than I do now. What is there not to like about my life? I have my health, financial stability, plenty of free time to do the things I want, and I have a companion to share my journey with. I wish this stage of my life was never-ending.
But at age 73, I know my life could be turned upside down tomorrow. Lately, I’ve been thinking about what Rachel and I should do if we can’t take care of ourselves.

During his final months, my husband Jonathan worked tirelessly to complete his last book, Money and Me.  The book is now available for pre-order and will be released in May 2026.
What’s so special about this book?  This book features Jonathan’s best and most personal HumbleDollar articles.  The articles are curated in such a way to teach everyone about personal finance through Jonathan’s own money journey.  And sadly, his terminal cancer diagnosis is part of this journey about which he candidly writes.

I just returned from a six-day silent retreat. What in the world could that have to do with retirement and financial life?  Maybe nothing or maybe a lot.  I’ve been going on silent retreats for more than 20 years, ever since I became a minister and they were part of my spiritual and professional development. These days in my semi-retired lifestyle they are still part of both.
One of my goals for the retreat was to write a draft article about moving to California for Humble Dollar.

Just starting to look as we are 81 and I’m nearly 75.  As we struggle with fire insurance in California and hassle with Comcast – they took away our local sports and baseball season is imminent, and other house and neighborhood activities are time consuming and complex.  We are Firewise neighborhood leaders and the responsibility is a challenge.
Our health is excellent for our age but cancer treatment and a chance of Alzheimer’s for me,  lots of experience taking care of our elders,