With great regret, The tractor must be sold.

[lilranch2001]

I do not think he is broken, he sounds more broke...... thus selling his tractor to facilitate getting in better financial condition

 

[Gale Hawkins]

That痴 great they are in a house at 22, i was 24 when I bought my house and I just barely got it bought. Conventional 20 year.

I didn稚 find Dave till after I bought my house. My mortgage payment was close to, one year was over 50% of my take home, on top of other bills and expenses the house needed I started to get really bummed out. So I bought a tractor and got into cattle, chickens etc. it really helped me stay positive. It was mostly funded by rent from a room mate at the time and side jobs.

I got to the point where I felt like I was drowning, I was scared to death to lose my job because I didn稚 have any money to get me by. Depression kicked in, the future looked really bleak scratching and clawing for every penny. I had been sick and tired of being sick and tired long before I found Dave at that point.

Him taking about what it痴 like to be debt free and have a fully funded emergency fund, sounded like a dream. The question that really hit home for me was when he asked (Dave Ramsey youtube video rant) 妬f you would work at the same place you work now if you were out of debt? I only planned to be at my job for 2-3 years and move on doing what I do now for more money somewhere else. I have been so scared to leave, because I don稚 have an emergency fund, this March will be 7 years lol.

I eventually said screw it and started selling everything, including the tractor. It took almost two years of making payments on the tractor to build up enough equity to knock out most of the debt I had. Not having the tractor payment and being so close to paying off other debts relieved so much stress already.

My biggest mistake was buying a house with debt and being house poor. According to Dave痴 rule: 15 year mortgage, no more than 1/4 take home pay. I tech don稚 make enough for the house I live in. Lol
Now that the market is inflated, not a chance I could buy my house today, I bought when the market was just beginning to recover from the great recession.

Buying a house today would be 5x harder than even what I went threw, it would demand me to have a second income to do it. Kudos to the young folks that get it done in this market.

Unfortunately it will be the better part of this year to be fully out of debt not including my house, but then I値l start looking for another job most likely. I have had 3 offers for jobs making 5-6 bucks an hour more than I make now. I played it safe and stayed where I am, where I know I have job security and get the bills paid. Well I haven稚 fully decided if I値l stay here for 10 years or not, I have 38 years before I can draw social security so what痴 the rush? Lol

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/rural-living/410059-21-year-old-son-fiancee.html

I am proud of my son and his new wife. The house in some ways should have been better dozed down and buried and a new one built but that was out of the question. I wanted access to shop and he was about to finish a two year diesel mechanic two year degree at a local community college but I think that is covered in the link above.

I got a time frame to be shown the place and his and her families came and looked at the place. I was expecting NO WAY from his girl friend but she said YES, I already have a vision for this house. I mean there was a pile of loaded diapers in the drive and edge of carport. The house and shop were full of stuff (about 10 small dumpsters) that had to go before we could get started on the tear out of the house. Even if the son had an over the top credit score no bank would have loaned money on the place. The wife and I talked and decided it was worth the $26K purchase price and the cost of the building materials needed to make the house good enough for potential grand kids.

Her family are builders so there has been no labor costs to date for any services and required inspections have been passed. The new metal for the back slope of the roof had been on pallets for years and was undamaged and her father and brother with my son knocked that out from 6am to noon last summer. The septic system was my main concern so I got the backhoe over there. It turned out to be a large high quality septic tank and unlike I thought the seep field was not near any trees and it worked when I tested it with the well that I had to replace the pressure switch to get it working correctly without daily human intervention.

No this was not a starter home for the masses but my son has been there every step of the way and can do this again someday. Both have relative good jobs and are working on making it their place.

Now the inside is nice with all new wiring from the pole with the 200 amp service, new plumbing, insulation and drywall. The kitchen is all new as the bath.

Over the years I have talked to a lot of older guys with kids that are now more my age and retired. Often they helped their kids in their first house I learned so they were making house payments and not rent payments. While I think things will work out for the son and daughter in law the wife and I thought it would be better to stretch now to help them then when we die. Not all kids have help yet still make it work. Their goal is to have this place in the clear in a few years as they build their credit record and that it will be the down payment on their next place.

I was actually about bankrupt when the kids came 22 years ago. Someone told me about Dave Ramsey at that time and it took many years to get out of debt. If we had not done that we would not have had fast access to $26K to close this deal within a week. Where it works out long term is not known today but life is a gamble where one tries or does nothing. Trying and failing is light years ahead of just failing by doing NOTHING in my book.

You are on the right path today and over time the speed bumps should become less bumpy I expect.

Renting can be awesome IF you are the owner of the rental property.

 

[BrokeFarmerJohn]

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/rural-living/410059-21-year-old-son-fiancee.html

I am proud of my son and his new wife. The house in some ways should have been better dozed down and buried and a new one built but that was out of the question. I wanted access to shop and he was about to finish a two year diesel mechanic two year degree at a local community college but I think that is covered in the link above.

I got a time frame to be shown the place and his and her families came and looked at the place. I was expecting NO WAY from his girl friend but she said YES, I already have a vision for this house. I mean there was a pile of loaded diapers in the drive and edge of carport. The house and shop were full of stuff (about 10 small dumpsters) that had to go before we could get started on the tear out of the house. Even if the son had an over the top credit score no bank would have loaned money on the place. The wife and I talked and decided it was worth the $26K purchase price and the cost of the building materials needed to make the house good enough for potential grand kids.

Her family are builders so there has been no labor costs to date for any services and required inspections have been passed. The new metal for the back slope of the roof had been on pallets for years and was undamaged and her father and brother with my son knocked that out from 6am to noon last summer. The septic system was my main concern so I got the backhoe over there. It turned out to be a large high quality septic tank and unlike I thought the seep field was not near any trees and it worked when I tested it with the well that I had to replace the pressure switch to get it working correctly without daily human intervention.

No this was not a starter home for the masses but my son has been there every step of the way and can do this again someday. Both have relative good jobs and are working on making it their place.

Now the inside is nice with all new wiring from the pole with the 200 amp service, new plumbing, insulation and drywall. The kitchen is all new as the bath.

Over the years I have talked to a lot of older guys with kids that are now more my age and retired. Often they helped their kids in their first house I learned so they were making house payments and not rent payments. While I think things will work out for the son and daughter in law the wife and I thought it would be better to stretch now to help them then when we die. Not all kids have help yet still make it work. Their goal is to have this place in the clear in a few years as they build their credit record and that it will be the down payment on their next place.

I was actually about bankrupt when the kids came 22 years ago. Someone told me about Dave Ramsey at that time and it took many years to get out of debt. If we had not done that we would not have had fast access to $26K to close this deal within a week. Where it works out long term is not known today but life is a gamble where one tries or does nothing. Trying and failing is light years ahead of just failing by doing NOTHING in my book.

You are on the right path today and over time the speed bumps should become less bumpy I expect.

Renting can be awesome IF you are the owner of the rental property.

They have done a fantastic job, it’s great to hear her family and you guys were involved in the house. They have a great start to life, I would LOVE to be able to have the place paid off as fast as they will have it paid off.

The knowledge gained fixing that house up was worth more than the building itself. An education is expensive, they just got a pretty cheap one.

 

[BrokeFarmerJohn]

BrokenFarmerJohn

I might of missed it, assuming you aren't married with no kids?

I only ask because you would probably fall over dead if you knew what braces run for two teens a month.

No not married, don’t have kids. I prob wouldn’t want to know lol. I know kids are expensive, past that have no knowledge on that kinda stuff outside of what I remember growing up.

 

[BrokeFarmerJohn]

You recognize that you aren't bad off. A lot are worse off.

The early years you described are past and you have a house which is probably worth more than you thought it would be. Lucky that you didn't spend money on rent for years and years while trying to save up for a down payment. You seem to be entrepreneurial. So you can probably come up with a side business that will help out, you may have already.

I was always lucky enough to be able to have non-conflicting businesses on my own time along with my paying jobs. Rent property was a very profitable endeavor. It provides cash income as well as the depreciation was always deductible from regular income.

You're doing things right so keep on!

I’m not a salesman, I’m not great with people. I fix some stuff lol. I went to vocational school for HVAC, did that for almost two years and because of hours and slow times moved to apartment maintenance. Learned a ton there while getting paid to learn it. I only did that for 5 month until I was called up kinda out of the blue by my boss asking if I was still looking for a job lol.

I have done stuff to make side money, sold eggs from chickens, sold beef from cattle I raised, bought and sold golf carts, lawn mowers, tractors, tillers, anything I could get a really good deal on, put a little work into, flip and make money. All that was outside of HVAC side work. I repair and install HVAC systems, I also did maintenance type side work before I bought the house, those didn’t pay as good though but better than if I stayed at home lol.

A project I really enjoyed was converting a golf cart to 12v batteries. I bought a cart for $200 with bad batteries, I get these 4D batteries from work for free every 3 years so I still had a couple sitting around, I also had a older car battery around that tested good just weak which I kept instead of turning in for core awhile back. Did a little research, devised a plan and went to the store, bought 3 sets of battery terminals, a toggle switch to replace key switch I had no key for. Wire was too dang expensive so I bought 4 or 2 gauge wire jumper cables and cut to length my wire.

When I pulled the old batteries out, most of the frame that holds the batteries was rusted away, I had some sheet metal and S-Lock left over from a side job so I made pans for the two largest batteries. I was pleased when it was all said and done, I didn’t make a lot of money off that cart, maybe $300-$400 but it was something to do that I made money on.



Outside of dabbling with stuff I find on CL or FB, the cattle and side jobs, I haven’t really found consistent work I could do to make money outside of my full time job.

My goal with things I buy is to buy cheap, make money off it and upgrade. So my personal stuff was being rotated out quite a bit. For example I bought a Husqvarna lawn mower for $800, used it for two seasons, sold it for $1100 and bought a newer Husqvarna with the K66 trans GT52XLS for $1900 with under 200 hours. I used it for a season and found a 455 JD on CL for $2300 with 60in deck, fixing little stuff I’m into it more than I want so I’m gonna sell it for around what I have in it. I picked up a GT52XLSi about a month ago with 350 hours on it for $1000 which I’m gonna mow with. It’s k66 trans and has deff lock which the other husqvarna didn’t.

Trucks are the same way, I buy kinda neglected trucks, fix them up and when I need something diff, sell for profit and buy a diff truck. Started with 81 F150 with 4.9, then 1990 F350 with 351, now I have a 95 F350 dually with 460, I gave $1800 for the 95, but prob have under $1000 in it and have had a truck to use for 5 years.

Tractor I gave 24k for, sold it for 25k, lost a little money there but wasn’t too bad, used the tractor for over 2 years.

I also buy and sell seasonal stuff, like bought a cub RT-65 tiller in the fall for $300, sold it in the spring for $475. Lots of stuff like that out there, pretty easy money.

Out of necessity had to make my dollars stretch, I don’t mind sharing what I have learned with people, I have a couple buddies that do what I do at diff levels and we are in almost daily communication price checking a tractor or lawn mower etc. or when we get something one wants will sell it to each other at cost. I sold a tiller for a JD 318 for $400, those are super hard to come by and I sold it cheap! He wanted it for personal use. Things changed in his life and I think he sold it for around $800. I still made money off the haul that tiller was in so all is good.

 

[Doofy]

Sounds like you are on the right track. Clawing yourself up and out of debt takes time. Slow and steady wins the race.

I am retired and could afford new vehicles but I choose to buy "Throw-away" vehicles. I can spend $3-5K on a decent vehicle and drive it 10 or more years with minimal maintenance expense. Basic Liability insurance instead of full coverage. AAA is always good to have and is very cheap in case of a breakdown away from home (never had to use it).

There are a thousand ways to save money and to make money. Find your calling and let 'er rip! Be kind, be honest and be a good friend.

 

[ultrarunner]

Had one new car in my life and it was too good to pass up... and it is still my good car even though it is a 2002 model...

For 20 years my daily driver was the $800 Plymouth I bought in school... still have that too.

Never bought new appliances, TV or much new... just too much stuff out there for little or nothing.

The Kenmore/Washer Dryer was mine for hauling away... the new owners wanted Neptune Energy Saver Front Loader paid a couple of thousand for them... the avocado green Kenmores just keep running... I am guessing they must be 40 years old but the widow that owned them probably did one load a week.

I work with Doctors that make hundreds of thousands each year and still finance everything... for some 250k still would not be enough yet a lot of my senior neighbors make do on 30k a year... and are happy people...

 

[Carl_NH]

BrokeFarmerJohn,

You have a great attitude and a wealth of education built not by traditional means but by experience. Since you have HVAC training/skills have you considered getting into a side occupation on the installation of mini-split heat pumps?

Here in the NE these are becoming the choice for homes that want to replace window AC units and supplemental heat in older homes and the primary source of heat and A/C for new builds. Some contractors here charge $5K for a 12K single mini-spllt system, and the equipment total is $2K. A friend of mine started 5 years ago doing installs on the side for a heating contractor, now has his own business doing 2-3 installs a week, netting $800 each roughly after insurance and operational expenses (truck/tools/overheard). He gets business via referrals and by offering good service at a reasonable cost.

There are lots of ways to make some extra $ and point is if you can find a niche and offer good service, you will never have to "sell" anything but good service at a reasonable cost, as people will find you.

 

[BrokeFarmerJohn]

BrokeFarmerJohn,

You have a great attitude and a wealth of education built not by traditional means but by experience. Since you have HVAC training/skills have you considered getting into a side occupation on the installation of mini-split heat pumps?

Here in the NE these are becoming the choice for homes that want to replace window AC units and supplemental heat in older homes and the primary source of heat and A/C for new builds. Some contractors here charge $5K for a 12K single mini-spllt system, and the equipment total is $2K. A friend of mine started 5 years ago doing installs on the side for a heating contractor, now has his own business doing 2-3 installs a week, netting $800 each roughly after insurance and operational expenses (truck/tools/overheard). He gets business via referrals and by offering good service at a reasonable cost.

There are lots of ways to make some extra $ and point is if you can find a niche and offer good service, you will never have to "sell" anything but good service at a reasonable cost, as people will find you.

The company I work for, we have a HVAC contractor I have become buddies with one of those guys. That dude talks all the time that I need to up my HVAC game. He suggests I quite my job and join a union specializing in commercial/ industrial chillers and become a chiller man. He said after I become a journeyman I could make way more than I do now, double or triple.

But like I said I was drowning for awhile and scared to make any move, maybe when I’m out of debt I will look into a diff job.

I just like a steady paycheck and working at the same building everyday. My dad wanted to start a business with me for awhile, I did some side work with him and it didn’t end well, we just don’t agree on so much we end up fighting. Things I do that he says I’m being **** or a perfectionist ext. I like to do a good job no matter how long it takes, residential guys just slap a unit in and go. I make sure mine is as close to perfect, neat and I try to do a clean install. I have an attention to detail most people don’t.

My jobs come out looking great, people brag about my work regularly. Now I don’t really have the access to equipment I used to, I really need to get my state HVAC contractors license and get my own accounts at supply houses.

The prob with that kind of hustle, sure you make good money but at 50 years old your ready for knee replacement, shoulder etc. get out of a chair and don’t fully straiten up lol. It’s a lot more wear and tear on the body. There’s pros and cons to both sides. That level of hustle is in me, I love real estate, owning rentals etc, I haven’t had enough money yet to buy rentals but that’s deff on the list. I would love to have a 10 apartment building on top of anything else I have going. I have apartment maintenance and HVAC experience, I could run apartments cheap so my profit margin would be higher not having to pay for a management or maintenance contractor.

I guess I can say that doing the same work everyday all day gets boring, ideally I could multiple types of jobs at the same time, like HVAC, apartment maintenance, working on tractors and mowers, farming etc. but there isn’t just one career I could go into and do all that lmao. Unless I just quit and bought up land, buildings, ran a small HVAC company etc.

If I won the lottery, that’s what my life would look like lol. 25-50 head of cattle on 150 acres. 10-20 apartments, HVAC work with a helper etc. I like to work, work has always been fun for me, as in if a buddy calls me and says his A/C is broke I’m there within an hour, if I get invited to a party, I’m busy that night lmfao. I was broke in HS, during the great recession, working 25-45 hours a week at Olive Garden for $8 an hour and going to HS, living on my own. I found that doing jobs gave me something to do and put money in my pocket so it was fun. Often times though I charge people cost because I had fun and got more experience. That drives my dad crazy, he asked me many time “What do you have against making money”? I’m like I still made money and helped them out at the same time. Even know I was broke at the time, still carrying debt. I hate chasing people for money, I feel like I charge too much when I’m actually 1/2 what a company is. Idk flaw in my personality I guess. I don’t chase or care about money like some people do. If I have enough to pay my bills I’m content, I don’t need to be rich. My time on this planet is limited, it’s gonna go way too fast no matter what I do, I need money to live but I don’t live to make money.

If I had the ability, I would install HVAC equipment and not charge people. Most of the people’s house I am in, they don’t have money, everyone in the world has their hands out trying to take their money, I don’t need to make it worse. I enjoy helping people.

Sorry about the little rant lol. I kinda got off topic lmfao.

 

[mark02tj]

You sound like a fine young man, BrokeFarmerJohn!! Your folks must be pretty proud of you!!

Don't be afraid of changing jobs. As long as you have a month or two saved up, you'll be OK. In this economy, businesses are searching hard for guys like you - hard workers, honest, ethical, dependable and (I'm assuming) drug-free. You shouldn't have any trouble finding something new that you might enjoy more.

I'd also encourage you to up your HVAC skills so you can strike out on your own. I had my own mower repair business while I was in college and then started my own accounting/consulting firm when I was 28. I haven't had a "real job" in close to 30 years. Over the years I've had clients that I was able to charge a lot of money for my services and others - nonprofits mostly - that couldn't come close to paying me what I was charging other customers. So I did a lot of their work at a reduced fee if I liked their "mission". Kind of my way of charitable contributions. I did also have a couple of nonprofits that had huge amounts of cash (directors driving Mercedes, etc.) that I charged my full rates. My point is that you can have your own business and make money, but still help out those that might need some help.

If you do strike out on your own, I'd highly encourage you to read a book called "The E-Myth Revisited" by a guy named Michael Gerber. The point of the book is that most small businesses fail because they're owned/operated by a guy that's a good tech, but a crappy businessman (usually thinking he can do it better than the boss of the job he quit). Gerber's book encourages you to look at business in a systemic way so that you're running a business and not the business running you. It's a good, short read that's probably available at your library for free.

Good luck to you!! Stay on the right path!