talk me down off the doggy rescue sites!

formerlyGDaisy09 · March 2015

so I'm a total bleeding heart when it comes to animals...like I had to give-up volunteering at the humane society and give them money instead because otherwise I'd have a house full of cats and dogs (and maybe bunnies) because I'd just start falling in love with every animals there...this is how we got our two cats.

H and I have talked about the possibility of adding another dog to our family to give our dog a playmate, and so he and I can go off and do fun things like skijoring together without one person leaving the other behind. (seriously he refused to come out skiing with me and the dog this winter because he didn't want to be playing keep-up). However the discussion always gets back to if we have the money for two dogs or not. Anyone here have 2 dogs? does adding a second double your expenses? We have several friends who have two dogs, and they seem to love it.

I bring it up because I've stumbled onto a rescue near us that has a dalmatian-mix that looks like she'd fit right in with our crew.

I'm the crazy animal lady...like I've said before, my dream retirement is to buy a farm and rescue animals.

hoffse · March 2015

Sorry, I'm no help - my H doesn't let me volunteer at the humane society for the same reasons! We just give them money now.

formerlyGDaisy09 · March 2015

I texted H her picture, he said "sorry babe, I wish we could, but no...I'll pour you a guinness when you get home"

the only time he's ever the more rational one about money is when furry creatures are involved.

hoffse · March 2015

Ha! Last time I was at the Humane Society, I texted H a picture of a cat they had named "nacho." He had this splotch on his face in the shape of a tortilla chip - it was so ridiculous, I fell in love immediately.

I was THIS close to adopting him, and H had to intervene.

Xstatic3333 · March 2015

It's so funny you bring this up today! I am just wandering over here from Petfinder. We are in no way ready for a second dog yet-Baxter is still so new and we are actually going to need to work with a trainer to even get him to be polite with other dogs. But, since getting him I've turned into a full-on weird dog lady and am glued to the site for our rescue. I just wish I could help all of the dogs that need good homes. It breaks my heart that at many shelters my wonderful dog would have been put down because he is heart worm positive. I'm so grateful that didn't happen. We just heard that a distant family member is putting down their otherwise healthy dog because they don't want to pay for surgery for a broken leg and I just about cried.

The expense would be a big concern if we got another dog. I can't believe how expensive Baxter has been already. I'm not sure we could swing it and still be comfortable with TTC pretty soon. It is good initiative to be financially responsible so hopefully I could have more dogs or foster later in my life when our debts are gone.

Edit: WAS heartworm positive; hopefully won't be anymore at his 6-month test in June

lifeonthehill · March 2015

H and I have three shelter cats right now and I have to hold myself back every time we drive past the shelter. I know they are loved and cared for there but it still breaks my heart.

As for two dogs, from personal friends, the biggest money issue came from putting them both into a doggy daycare. For me the money hardly counts when it comes to our cats. We can't bear to drop $25 on a meal out on ourselves but don't mind grabbing a $25 bag of cat food. They are completely worth it!

vlagrl29 · March 2015

We've only ever had 1 dog. I got Gabby before I met DH and I wanted to get a 2nd one but at the time I didn't make enough money to take on 2 at one time. I wish I had because DH has pet dander allergies so we will never have more than 1 dog at a time

My parents have 2 dogs and they do say at the annual vet visit it is double and also on food.

Erikan73 · March 2015

I have 3 dogs, on a daily basis, there isn't much of a price difference between 1 and 3. We have 3 mini dauchunds, they only go through about 2 cups of food a day. Now if we only had one, we would only go through 1/2-3/4 cup of food a day. Now if we only had one dog, it probably would be easier to find someone to take one dog for a few days when we go away. But to find someone or multiple people to take the dogs, that won't happen. The cost to board 3 dogs is crazy so we have to have someone that comes to the house. And then when it comes to vet visits & dog license, obviously that does cost us more money.

On the social side, they do keep each other company and love to play with each other. We have a fenced in yard so in spring & summer when I'm doing yard work, they play with each other for hours. They cuddle together. And you know that feeling you get when you come home from a bad day at work and you see your dogs face just so happy to see you and wants to love you, when you have more then one dog, you get to multiple that love.

Xstatic3333 · March 2015

Erikan73 said:
I have 3 dogs, on a daily basis, there isn't much of a price difference between 1 and 3. We have 3 mini dauchunds, they only go through about 2 cups of food a day. Now if we only had one, we would only go through 1/2-3/4 cup of food a day. Now if we only had one dog, it probably would be easier to find someone to take one dog for a few days when we go away. But to find someone or multiple people to take the dogs, that won't happen. The cost to board 3 dogs is crazy so we have to have someone that comes to the house. And then when it comes to vet visits & dog license, obviously that does cost us more money.
On the social side, they do keep each other company and love to play with each other. We have a fenced in yard so in spring & summer when I'm doing yard work, they play with each other for hours. They cuddle together. And you know that feeling you get when you come home from a bad day at work and you see your dogs face just so happy to see you and wants to love you, when you have more then one dog, you get to multiple that love.

Mini dachsunds are so cute! Can I ask what you pay your dog sitter? We just found one and she said she's going to give us a "friends' rate," but I'd really rather pay her market value to keep her happy. I used to get $30 a night when I'd dogsit, is that still standard?

formerlyGDaisy09 · March 2015

Xstatic3333 said:

Erikan73 said:
I have 3 dogs, on a daily basis, there isn't much of a price difference between 1 and 3. We have 3 mini dauchunds, they only go through about 2 cups of food a day. Now if we only had one, we would only go through 1/2-3/4 cup of food a day. Now if we only had one dog, it probably would be easier to find someone to take one dog for a few days when we go away. But to find someone or multiple people to take the dogs, that won't happen. The cost to board 3 dogs is crazy so we have to have someone that comes to the house. And then when it comes to vet visits & dog license, obviously that does cost us more money.
On the social side, they do keep each other company and love to play with each other. We have a fenced in yard so in spring & summer when I'm doing yard work, they play with each other for hours. They cuddle together. And you know that feeling you get when you come home from a bad day at work and you see your dogs face just so happy to see you and wants to love you, when you have more then one dog, you get to multiple that love.
Mini dachsunds are so cute! Can I ask what you pay your dog sitter? We just found one and she said she's going to give us a "friends' rate," but I'd really rather pay her market value to keep her happy. I used to get $30 a night when I'd dogsit, is that still standard?

Xstatic3333 said:
**STUCK IN BOX**

Xstatic3333 said:
boarding isn't a huge concern for me, we've decided that we'd rather pay a house sitter if we go away than send the dog to a kennel and pay someone to come in to feed the cats. we have one cat with anxiety issues who tends to chew areas of her fur off if she's left alone for a weekend, so it seems paying someone to stay at the house kills two birds, so to speak. I've been hiring one of my students (senior in high school, really responsible) and paying her $10 a day if it's just the cats and she doesn't stay at the house and $25 a night if it's all 3 and she's staying at the house. local kennels charge at least $30/night, and drop-off/pick-up is on their schedule.

Xstatic3333 said:
I just think about all the money we've spent (eh em, are spending) at the vet, and I know not all animals have so many bills, but that is definitely our biggest expense for each of the animals.

Xstatic3333 · March 2015

Vet costs are definitely crazy. One small thing can be hundreds of dollars if a few visits are required. We just had Lyme shots done since we plan to hike a lot, and that was $100 for the first round. I wish there was a pet equivalent to human health insurance that really worked. I've heard most plans are money losers in the long run.

formerlyGDaisy09 · March 2015

Xstatic3333 said:
Vet costs are definitely crazy. One small thing can be hundreds of dollars if a few visits are required. We just had Lyme shots done since we plan to hike a lot, and that was $100 for the first round. I wish there was a pet equivalent to human health insurance that really worked. I've heard most plans are money losers in the long run.

we looked into it...one month after we had a couple visits for the dog and a dental proceedure for the cat. all the plans I found are crap. anything more than emergency coverage was going to cost us at least $100 a month for premiums. all the plans had a deductible of $25-50 on most things and $200-500 on emergency care. and most excluded "pre-existing conditions" i.e. since both cats had documentation of bad teeth (both have had tooth extractions for abcessed teeth) any dental care for them wouldn't be covered. and the dog already had documentation of allergies so any testing, allergy shots, consults for diet, etc. would not be covered. so we'd be shelling out $1200 a year to cover isses we may not know about and extremely expensive emergency care.

Ultimately we signed up for Care Credit with our vet, any charges over $200 are interest free for 6 months after the charge posts to your account. this has been great, small things we just pay out of pocket and any visits that are getting too expensive we charge to the card, we have a $100/month budgeted for vet expenses, so unless we have a $500+ month at the vet (or several really expensive months in a row) we just charge big things to that card and make monthly payments interest free. our vet and the emergency clinic in town are both very good about working with people to set-up a payment plan for catastrophic events, so I feel pretty good we can manage most non-emergent care and hope we could set-up a payment plan if we were to have a really expensive event.

our recent Holistic consults have not been cheap (the run-down of the dog's visit was $185-90 minute holistic diet consult, $35-probiotic, $70-custom chinese herb concoction) the hope is that eventually this will cut-down on the number of ear infections and other manifestations of allergy we're treating plus getting her of meds (prednisone) that could lead to long-term problems (seriously in the last year we've had 3 vet visits ($55 ea) for ear infection, 1 visit ($55) for dog rubbing all the fur off her eye, plus the cost of the meds) so I'm hoping our 1 expensive visit will result in savings later. We're taking the cat for the same consult on friday, in the last 18 months she's had 5 problem visits ($55 ea), a dental proceedure ($300), plus all the meds/interventions we've tried (prozac, feliway, prednisone, benydryl, Rx food, antibiotics (x2)) and the cat is still naked from the hips down!

fortunately the only problem the other cat has had are really bad teeth *knocks on wood*.

Erikan73 · March 2015

@xstatic3333

In the past we paid $25.00 a night, but our dog sitter was the 18 year old son of my husbands best friend. He didn't drive so we also had to stock up the house with food so he would be ok. Unfortuantely the last time he was here there was an issue and we now have to find a new dog sitter. I know my sister pays $300.00 a week for her dog sitter for her 3 dogs (2 of which are large) but she doesn't have to provide any food for the sitter and the sitter does stay at the house.

When I was pet sitting I charged $25-35 a night for dogs and for cats (I didn't have to do overnights for cats & only one visit per day) $10-15 depending on location. The range on the dogs was for depending on if it was weekend or weekdays & the location to work. If it would cause me a longer commute to work during the week, I charged towards the higher end $35.00

short+sassy · March 2015

Like some of you, I REALLY want a second dog also, but my husband has put his foot down about it. Not so much because of the cost, but because of the room. Plus our dog is really energetic and, when she is with another dog, she is even more energetic. It wears me out just watching her play with other dogs, lol.

We house-sat for a co-worker's dog for two weeks. They were having crazy fun with each other for hours on the first couple nights. Wrestling, wrestling, wrestling. Chasing each other up and down the house. We thought they would mellow out after the newness wore off. Nope. They were exactly the same crazy energy and playtime on night 14, lol.

But that's why I want to get her a friend dog! She would love it so much (and so would we).

I especially want a French Bulldog puppy (rescue). I'm blaming Stella on Modern Family, for those familiar with the show. She's an adult Frenchie and ridiculously cute.

short+sassy · March 2015

So now my analogy about pet shelters. I don't remember where I read this, but it makes me feel better when I start to feel sad about ALL the poor dogs, cats, and other pets that live in shelters. Both my dog and my cat are rescues. Here's the analogy:

A boy and his grandfather were walking along the beach. It was that time of year when there were hundreds of small fish that would wash up onto the shore and then die. The boy grew concerned and asked his grandfather what they could do to help the fish. The grandfather told him that, unfortunately, there was nothing they could do because there were too many of them.

The boy thought about that for a moment and then ran over to the closest fish, picked it up, and threw it as far as he could into the water. The grandfather said, "Why did you do that? It doesn't even matter." To which the boy replied, "It mattered to that ONE."

blessed81 · March 2015

I know the feeling, I use to work at a Veterinarian hospital and i couldn't take it. I wanted to take home every pet that came in that had been mistreated.

lifeonthehill · March 2015

short+sassy said:
So now my analogy about pet shelters. I don't remember where I read this, but it makes me feel better when I start to feel sad about ALL the poor dogs, cats, and other pets that live in shelters. Both my dog and my cat are rescues. Here's the analogy:
A boy and his grandfather were walking along the beach. It was that time of year when there were hundreds of small fish that would wash up onto the shore and then die. The boy grew concerned and asked his grandfather what they could do to help the fish. The grandfather told him that, unfortunately, there was nothing they could do because there were too many of them.
The boy thought about that for a moment and then ran over to the closest fish, picked it up, and threw it as far as he could into the water. The grandfather said, "Why did you do that? It doesn't even matter." To which the boy replied, "It mattered to that ONE."

So sweet! Thank you for sharing this.

juliebeannn · March 2015

We've been going back and forth about adopting a furry friend for our rescue pit, also. I follow a million rescue sites on fb so those sad puppy eyes kill me all day. We'd probably want another pit mix or med/big shelter dog and that would definitely increase costs for us. Plus, in the 8 months we've had our fur baby (Moose!), he's had a number of trips to the vet, so I know how quickly $$ can add up.

So, we've decided to wait. I'm thinking we'll TTC and hopefully have a human baby before adding another furbaby. Haha.

formerlyGDaisy09 · March 2015

Uh Oh! I think I've gotten H on the "rescue a spotty" train! we talked money (we'd have to double food, flea/tick, and vaccination expenses, and then have a few hundred for potential vet expenses and some inital equipment set-up (crate, leash, etc., and skijoring stuff in the winter)). We can budget the money in with out risking throwing anything drastically off plan.

we discussed advantages and disadvantages to a second dog now versus later, we're both in agreement that eventually we want a second dog. It seemed we agreed it would be easier to train/acclimate a dog before we start a family, while if we waited we wouldn't have as much time to give to training/transitioning. I think our dog will be happier with a friend, and H and I can do more dog-things together.

so now i'm perusing rescue sites for young adults...we do feel strongly that we want another Dal, pickings are slim, so it might still take a while to find a match.

life seems to be getting busy, I'm feeling a little crazy for thinking about this right now, but as H and I talked last night it seemed like now might be as good a time as any. We're also planning our basement renovation, and decided windows in our house need replacing, and we're hoping to jump on our town's Solarize project, electric rates have hit an all-time high in the area making it more and more economical to solarize (seriously our march bill that was historically in the $45-50 range was $138, we had bills in the $180s this winter, historically $120 was a bad month for us). The solarize project will get even deeper discounts as all the solar companies in the area are bidding to get all the homes in the solarize project (like 120 homes, so the incentive is there for them to bid competatively).

We are going to have to finance some of the house projects, we have a good amount of cash to throw at it up front, but especially the windows, need to be done this year. The basement renovation should push us over the edge from "maybe our house will appraise high enough to drop PMI" to "our house will definitely appraise high enough to drop PMI" so thats $150 that could be applied to a new loan, and in the summer (even with AC) we shoud generate enough electricity with solar to eliminate the electric bill (which based on recent increases even reducing AC use we'll probably see $200/month bills) in the winter we can probably expect to generate 70-80% of what we need (our roof faces due-south with limited tree-cover).

I really hope we aren't being crazy!

Xstatic3333 · March 2015

I don't think you're crazy! Perhaps just ambitious.

One think I've been pondering with getting a second dog is that 1) rescuing is very important to me, and 2) many rescues WILL NOT adopt to a family with children under the age of 5. These types of blanket rules drive me bonkers when there are so many dogs that need a home. Sure, some dogs aren't a good fit to live with kids, but I feel like they assume you're leaving dog and kid alone all the time without supervision, which would not happen in our house. It's the same way I feel about fenced in yards; great to have, yes, but shouldn't be considered mandatory to adopt if you are an active family. I'll step off my soap box now, but it is an advantage to adopting again now if that is what you want to do.

If you do the math and all the other stuff works out, then go for it! It does seem like an awful lot going on for you guys however, so make sure to keep your sanity a priority. Is the solar a lease, lease to own, or purchase/finance situation? There's lots of different views about whether it ends up making sense economically if you're purchasing the panels, and it really depends on tax breaks. My boss just solarized and said her break-even point is 7 years, taking advantage of lots of state and federal tax breaks. At the same time, the panels don't last forever. Even from the environmental standpoint, there are pros and cons. I've heard the energy to make the panels my wash out the energy saved in their usage. I'm not anti-solar at all! I would like it once we can afford it. Just playing devil's advocate

formerlyGDaisy09 · March 2015

Glad you think I'm at least not being a crazy person!

the solar panels would be a purchase/finance situation. the organization behind the solarize movement helps get the tax rebates, which work out to about 50% of the purchase price (rmost rebates expire in 2016). we had our house analyzed last spring, they did recommend removing a couple trees, but without the removal of trees their estimate on our break-even point was 8 years. that analysis was done before electric rates skyrocketed and that was without the group-buying power offered by this solarize project. so I'm hoping we can get our break-even point down to 5 or 6 years. we'll probably remove the trees on our property and sell the wood.

The way I was working my math on what we'd need to finance doing just the basement and windows versus incorporating solar into that project, doing the former our budget breaks about $15/month less than now (based on dropping PMI) adding the solar in and assuming an average $100/month savings on electricity (using our solar estimate from last spring) we're right back to where we are now, if that makes sense. we do have several thousand dollars to throw at the work to minimize what we'd need to borrow. we did a critical analysis of the house over the weekend, and while there can always be surprises, the windows are really the only thing in the house in desperate need of repair, since we took care of putting a new roof on last year.

short+sassy · March 2015

@formerlyGDaisy09, oh no! What are you doing? You are stepping CLOSER to the edge, lol .

But seriously, it sound like you and your DH are at least giving it a lot of thought before making a commitment to another pet.

On a different note, I'm assuming the Solarize project you are talking about is in regards to putting solar panels on your roof? I already have some on mine. They were installed about 18 months ago. Although, in my area, they are done more as a lease than actually buying the panels outright.

There was no down payment at all and they cost me $35/month, plus the company insures the panels since they still own them. The rate won't change for 20 years and, after 20 years, I own the panels. Of course, that is a long time away and the life of the panels is only 25 years. I am contractually obligated to pay the $35/month for 6 years, though. However, if I were to sell the house before then, I could transfer the contract to the new buyer (if they were so inclined).

At any rate, that is the basic gist of how it works where I live. And I love, love, love my solar panels! Even including the $35/month fee, I save so much money with them. There are no trees or anything else that block my panels at all. Over the last 12 months, I have produced 69% of my own electricity.

During the day, I produce more than I use. The excess is actually routed back through the electrical grid. For every one KwH I provide to the grid, I get one KwH back as a "credit" for the energy I use at night (when the panels are not generating electricity).

I live in the South. Summer used to be the harsh time of year for electrical usage. Ironically, for me, now winter is the rough time because my house is primarily heated with gas...not electricity....but they come on the same bill.

I also replaced all my windows about one year ago. That helps with electricity costs as well, but it is hard for me to say how much because the windows were done only a few months after the solar panels were installed.

formerlyGDaisy09 · March 2015

there isn't anywhere that offers a lease option. my grandfather installed solar at his home 15 years ago, in the summer he actually gets a check from the electric company every month because he makes more than he uses, he says his biggest bill in the winter has been in the $20 range (again before rates jumped).

I'm hoping the windows will yield some electric savings for the AC and propane for our heat. but I don't dare try to estimate what that savings might be.

Xstatic3333 · March 2015

formerlyGDaisy09 said:
Glad you think I'm at least not being a crazy person!

the solar panels would be a purchase/finance situation. the organization behind the solarize movement helps get the tax rebates, which work out to about 50% of the purchase price (rmost rebates expire in 2016). we had our house analyzed last spring, they did recommend removing a couple trees, but without the removal of trees their estimate on our break-even point was 8 years. that analysis was done before electric rates skyrocketed and that was without the group-buying power offered by this solarize project. so I'm hoping we can get our break-even point down to 5 or 6 years. we'll probably remove the trees on our property and sell the wood.

The way I was working my math on what we'd need to finance doing just the basement and windows versus incorporating solar into that project, doing the former our budget breaks about $15/month less than now (based on dropping PMI) adding the solar in and assuming an average $100/month savings on electricity (using our solar estimate from last spring) we're right back to where we are now, if that makes sense. we do have several thousand dollars to throw at the work to minimize what we'd need to borrow. we did a critical analysis of the house over the weekend, and while there can always be surprises, the windows are really the only thing in the house in desperate need of repair, since we took care of putting a new roof on last year.

I had to think about that one for a bit, but I think it makes sense. If I understand you're basically swapping PMI for a loan? As long as you can cash flow the in-between months where you're paying PMI AND the loan AND electric AND the panel payments before all of the paper work comes through, and keep to your other goals and lifestyle, that sounds doable. I don't love home improvement loans myself, but that's just personal preference. I get that they are a very valid method of making improvements to your home.

One other question (may be silly) is whether you have financing lined up. I'm assuming the a HELOC would mess with your ability to drop PMI, or am I wrong about that?

Another thought on the dog front is that I'd recommend keeping about $500 aside for start up vet costs with a rescue. I think you said your first pup was from a reputable breeder, and may have been a bit healthier. $500 is about what our whole tapeworm fiasco came to when all was said and done after the follow up visits, parasite screenings, medications, and prescription food (which he's finally off of! hooray!)

formerlyGDaisy09 · March 2015

Xstatic3333 said:

formerlyGDaisy09 said:
Glad you think I'm at least not being a crazy person!

the solar panels would be a purchase/finance situation. the organization behind the solarize movement helps get the tax rebates, which work out to about 50% of the purchase price (rmost rebates expire in 2016). we had our house analyzed last spring, they did recommend removing a couple trees, but without the removal of trees their estimate on our break-even point was 8 years. that analysis was done before electric rates skyrocketed and that was without the group-buying power offered by this solarize project. so I'm hoping we can get our break-even point down to 5 or 6 years. we'll probably remove the trees on our property and sell the wood.

The way I was working my math on what we'd need to finance doing just the basement and windows versus incorporating solar into that project, doing the former our budget breaks about $15/month less than now (based on dropping PMI) adding the solar in and assuming an average $100/month savings on electricity (using our solar estimate from last spring) we're right back to where we are now, if that makes sense. we do have several thousand dollars to throw at the work to minimize what we'd need to borrow. we did a critical analysis of the house over the weekend, and while there can always be surprises, the windows are really the only thing in the house in desperate need of repair, since we took care of putting a new roof on last year.
I had to think about that one for a bit, but I think it makes sense. If I understand you're basically swapping PMI for a loan? As long as you can cash flow the in-between months where you're paying PMI AND the loan AND electric AND the panel payments before all of the paper work comes through, and keep to your other goals and lifestyle, that sounds doable. I don't love home improvement loans myself, but that's just personal preference. I get that they are a very valid method of making improvements to your home.

One other question (may be silly) is whether you have financing lined up. I'm assuming the a HELOC would mess with your ability to drop PMI, or am I wrong about that?

Another thought on the dog front is that I'd recommend keeping about $500 aside for start up vet costs with a rescue. I think you said your first pup was from a reputable breeder, and may have been a bit healthier. $500 is about what our whole tapeworm fiasco came to when all was said and done after the follow up visits, parasite screenings, medications, and prescription food (which he's finally off of! hooray!)

good point about the vet in the beginning.

yes we would be swapping PMI for the loan, not ideal, but the windows need to be done and we'd almost have to drain all our savings to replace them with the cheapest windows we can find. Math wise it seems we can get better (more efficient and nice looking) windows, finish the basement, and explore solar as a real possibility through financing.

we do not have financing lined-up yet (so not a silly question) we've been gathering quotes so we know aproximately how much money we're looking at. before the rebate the solar is in the $15-18K range, windows are falling out around $8-9K, and our contractor is still drawing up his quote for the basement and window install (hopefully in the $4K arena, since he laughed when H guessed $5K and he said that would be more than enough). we'd apply our rebate directly to the loan, or some companies ask you to pay the difference of the cost minus the rebate and send them your rebate when you get it...so we're looking at a final loan of $14K-17K for all 3 jobs.

H is setting up a meeting with a loan officer at the bank our mortgage is through so we know exactly what we can and can't do.

the back-up plan is that we don't do solar and we look at replacing the windows in waves...replace the worst offenders this year, and maybe the rest next year (or divide it into 3 separate projects). many of the window retailers offer 0% for 24 months, which would be workable if we did it in waves.

formerlyGDaisy09 · March 2015

Xstatic3333 said:

formerlyGDaisy09 said:
Glad you think I'm at least not being a crazy person!

the solar panels would be a purchase/finance situation. the organization behind the solarize movement helps get the tax rebates, which work out to about 50% of the purchase price (rmost rebates expire in 2016). we had our house analyzed last spring, they did recommend removing a couple trees, but without the removal of trees their estimate on our break-even point was 8 years. that analysis was done before electric rates skyrocketed and that was without the group-buying power offered by this solarize project. so I'm hoping we can get our break-even point down to 5 or 6 years. we'll probably remove the trees on our property and sell the wood.

The way I was working my math on what we'd need to finance doing just the basement and windows versus incorporating solar into that project, doing the former our budget breaks about $15/month less than now (based on dropping PMI) adding the solar in and assuming an average $100/month savings on electricity (using our solar estimate from last spring) we're right back to where we are now, if that makes sense. we do have several thousand dollars to throw at the work to minimize what we'd need to borrow. we did a critical analysis of the house over the weekend, and while there can always be surprises, the windows are really the only thing in the house in desperate need of repair, since we took care of putting a new roof on last year.
I had to think about that one for a bit, but I think it makes sense. If I understand you're basically swapping PMI for a loan? As long as you can cash flow the in-between months where you're paying PMI AND the loan AND electric AND the panel payments before all of the paper work comes through, and keep to your other goals and lifestyle, that sounds doable. I don't love home improvement loans myself, but that's just personal preference. I get that they are a very valid method of making improvements to your home.

One other question (may be silly) is whether you have financing lined up. I'm assuming the a HELOC would mess with your ability to drop PMI, or am I wrong about that?

Another thought on the dog front is that I'd recommend keeping about $500 aside for start up vet costs with a rescue. I think you said your first pup was from a reputable breeder, and may have been a bit healthier. $500 is about what our whole tapeworm fiasco came to when all was said and done after the follow up visits, parasite screenings, medications, and prescription food (which he's finally off of! hooray!)

oh, and as far as the HELOC messing with our ability to drop PMI, yes, it might...or we might not qualify for a HELOC and may have to go with a different type of loan. I think to get a HELOC you need to have at least 20% equity...i don't know if that's before or after borrowing. like if we have 22% equity are we only qualified to borrow 2% the value of the house?

either way, everything we're doing should be raising the value of the house so between the cash we have, and the rebate from the solar we should be back to at least close to being able to drop PMI again.

we do have the room in our budget to afford both loan payments and a new dog's needs (even with PMI and corrent electric rates). what we do not have room for is child care...we'd fall just short there, and we are TTC.

short+sassy · March 2015

@formerlyGDaisy09, I got a HELOC last year. Depending on the bank, you can usually get a HELOC up to 70-80% of strictly your equity. So, in your example, yes you would only be eligible to get a HELOC for up to 2% of the value of the home.

When you're ready, definitely shop around. I was surprised at how many differences there were between banks. Some charged fees to open a HELOC, some didn't. Some charged an annual fee, some didn't. All of them had similar interest rates, thought not the same, and almost all of them had some kind of introductory interest rate.

You need an appraisal for a HELOC and all of them charged the borrower for that, except one (Whitney).

And that was the one I chose. They were pretty awesome. They didn't charge me anything at all, except the parish's (county) filing fee. Which was $250.

Two-hundred and fifty dollars!?! To file a 12-page document. I'm sure it was many, many hours of grueling work for a City Hall employee (sarcasm).

talk me down off the doggy rescue sites!

Re: talk me down off the doggy rescue sites!

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