CarpenterJK07

I agree completely ^^^ needs over wants and functionality over looks. I got thay preached to me and taking that advice. Maybe you know exactly what you need but at this point I don't so I'm hanging on to what I have before I waste more money than need be. Good luck. I do like Planman build though

Trevo

We plan on living in an Apartment full time, or possibly a rent house in the future maybe. We owned a decent 1500sqft home in South Texas outright and sold it and moved to Colorado....we aren't interested in home ownership after dealing with issues for the last 20yrs.

It's cheaper to rent than own a home in my opinion....of course opinions may vary. I just enjoy sitting back and letting the complex take care of business if something goes out, and I am not financially responsible for replacing a $8k A/C system, getting ducts cleaned, mowing the yard twice a week, lawn mower maintenance, weedeater maintenance, foundation corrections if shifts should ever occur (usually a minimum of about $10k to correct), Roof repairs/replacement ($8-14k depending). On top of that, its even worse if you have a mortgage. There are a plethora of other things that go with home ownership as well.

Paying the tax man, fighting tax increases every year, wasting my precious time at a court house arguing how this tax hike isn't justified, etc etc....I can go on and on and write an essay on home ownership lol.


That being said, we traded in the 2007 JK for a 2015 Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon 4dr, it put us in a nice position because I no longer need to buy all the rubicon parts, and can just lift it and put bigger tires on it in the future now. So this thread is kinda null and void. I really appreciate everyones help though, especially planmans!



*Edit: I actually thought about it, and it's not actually home "ownership", this had me laughing after I typed all that....you'll never own the home, the government owns it, and you rent it from them. Try not paying those property taxes.

Rmiller31

I'd see if I couldn't find some like minded jeep people who enjoy working on jeeps get together and have a wrench day. Would make for a fun day and save you a good amount of $$

DJ1

One of the smartest posts I've read here in a long ass time...

planman

Thank you.

Regarding home ownership vs renting, consider:

-In the end, the rental income from tenants covers all the costs of those property taxes, repairs and improvements over time--plus a margin for return on investment. So, renters end up spending more over time to cover all costs, plus a margin for investment return for the landlord.

-Home owners need to save a monthly amount every month to put into reserves for repairs and insurance deductibles. Landlords do the same thing.

-Homeowners can hire out maintenance and repairs, just like landlords.

-Tentants absorb nearly 100% of inflation. Owners and landlords benefit from inflation and rising home prices.

-Alternatively, if you move more frequently than one out of five years, it usually doesn't make sense to own because of the transaction and financing costs of being an owner. Frequent movers should rent.

-There certainly is something to be said for being mobile, debt free, and not being tied down to a house. It allows you to take advantage of work and business opportunities without geographic limitations.

Rent vs own isn't always a cut and dry decision. There are many factors to consider.

Property taxes tend to primarily fund education and local infrastructure that increase the value of real estate over time due to a better workforce and community. So, there is or should be a return on those dollars over time.

DJ1

Well they are definitely not funding education. 36th in the world for what is supposed to be a First World country? That's a damn disgrace.

New survey ranks U.S. students 36th in the world - How do we improve?
New survey ranks U.S. students 36th in the world - How do we improve? : News : CNYcentral.com

lkjk

well, didn't mean to stir up that much debate! That being said, I agree it isn't a black and white decision, but it's a hedge on inflation, interest is written off, local property taxes are a write off, lots of basic maint. is a write off, etc...you're reasons are valid, and I wouldn't consider home ownership an investment, but renting long term makes you a slave to inflation, landlords, rent increases (which can occur from higher home prices as well as low vacancy, which in denver both are currently happening), so for me if you plan on staying in the same town a while, say 5-10 years minimum, the tax benefits alone are worth it. Even if you sell your house for the same amount you paid for it, you will have some equity and have taken tax benefits.

Back on jeeps - I suggest you look into metalcloak. I have their arms and coils (their 6 pack shocks are a little pricey for my taste) and I don't think their duroflex joints can be beat. Synergy's new joints seem pretty similiar, however i'm not sure if they are on both ends of the arms, which MCs are, and I'm a fan of MC since they were the first ones to try something besides a JJ or poly bushing. if you watch videos of their JKU it will flex just as much as any non-custom long arm kit, if not more, and the joints require no grease and are going to last a really long time.

IMO, you can get some pretty amazing shock/spring combos for way cheaper than coilovers, and unless you want the adjustability or you're going to be doing fast desert stuff (even then, just get remote res. shocks) coilovers are crazy expensive. With dual rate coils the advantages of coilovers are much less than they used to be.

I'd do a MC lift, sans 6-pak shocks, go OME or something, track bars, brake lines, sleeves, gussets, skids, sliders, bumpers, 35s, then see what breaks and what else you need (driveshaft, steering crap, or bjs). That is exactly what I did, and regardless of finances I'd do that route again. Although that might be $8k or more, not really sure ha!

planman

Those surveys are very skewed because the U.S. includes all tested students and most other countries are selective in their sample size.

That being said, we do need education reform in the U.S. that does away with seasonal school years, covers K through 1-2 years post high school to include technical and trade schools, charter schools, etc., etc.

At least here in the Western U.S., educational results are based primarily on socio-economic class and parent participation.

The long term solution is to have a stronger trades and technical educational system to compete globally for middle class wage type work, which in turn would reduce poverty and the interrelated educational results.

irongate

This is going against everything said here, save your money $2000 in cash and use the rest to buy Silver for the coming crash! Don't spend it all on Jeep parts.

DJ1

Glad to see someone here is awake although that's assuming you're able to live/survive through the transition period.

Beans. Bullets. Band-aids.