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B-Nasty posted:Have you run the numbers on Google's Sunroof site: https://www.google.com/get/sunroof Interesting site - unfortunately doesn't look like it works for my address. Some of the other solar mapping sites work though. I put in a request for some quotes here - https://www.energysage.com. It seems like all the installers figure out all your federal/state/county/city financial incentives and take that back in the form of install costs which is a turn off.
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Nov 24, 2019 19:01
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This may be an easy refinance question, idk. Bought a condo last September 2018 for 158k, currently owe 119k. Original interest rate 4.875%. Checked with my credit union and they pre-qualified me for 3.5% with 2k closing costs rolled into the loan. I plan on being here at least 3 more years, likely 5-7. Worth it? All the calculators I checked look like the break even is within about 15 months, and over 10 years the difference is substantial.
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Nov 30, 2019 08:30
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Highbrow Slick posted:This may be an easy refinance question, idk. Yes, I basically just did this with my mortgage just slightly different dates and numbers! I worked with my original loan officer who explained you basically need to check off 3 boxes (like full percent change like 4.5% ->3.5%) so a refinance isn't predatory as well. Now I have a cheaper payment thanks to a no-cash out refinance!
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Nov 30, 2019 13:37
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mattfl posted:So I did a thing this past week, working on it a few hours after work each day and finishing it up today. 
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Nov 30, 2019 15:08
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eig posted:Yes, I basically just did this with my mortgage just slightly different dates and numbers! I worked with my original loan officer who explained you basically need to check off 3 boxes (like full percent change like 4.5% ->3.5%) so a refinance isn't predatory as well. Now I have a cheaper payment thanks to a no-cash out refinance! What were the other two boxes?
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Nov 30, 2019 15:20
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Highbrow Slick posted:This may be an easy refinance question, idk. Do it. Especially since you have, I assume 29 years left on your term or maybe 19, check on what happens to your payment if you go to a shorter term (20 or 15 years) as well. Pays down the principal a lot faster and when you're dropping interest so far the payment can be equal or a slight increase. I've done it twice in my life now on two houses, my only regret was not doing it sooner on the first one. My current mortgage has me owning $25k more of my house in 5 years time while paying $140 more or so per month, which only makes up like $8,500 and I think that's a pretty good return.
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Nov 30, 2019 15:23
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Does anyone have heat tape/cord installed on their roofs and gutters? Arguments for or against? I’m getting massive ice dams this year, which means I ultimately need to improve my insulation. But I have vaulted ceilings so that’s gonna be a bitch.
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Nov 30, 2019 19:30
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I want to have a few of my fixed-glass windows replaced with simple windows that can open. It's a basic stucco house in the southwest so the windows just kind of sit inside a stucco frame like the picture below, and they would need to be a synthetic material because of the weather. What's the best way to find someone to do this? There are window stores in town, or there are contractors on Yelp, or I could decide what brand I want and try to find someone through a specific manufacturer. Are there any brands to avoid or specifically try to get? I want something really quiet/good quality/well insulated, and just a simple so I can get some more fresh air in here when I want. 
Droo fucked around with this message at 19:47 on Nov 30, 2019 |
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Nov 30, 2019 19:40
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Dango Bango posted:What were the other two boxes? These are the 2 I can't remember haha! I would talk to your loan officer, it can't hurt to find out info and if it's actually worth the refinance (most likely is).
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Dec 1, 2019 01:07
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Highbrow Slick posted:Bought a condo last September 2018 for 158k This hurts me somehow. Is choosing to live in one of the nicest parts of the country a mistake?
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Dec 1, 2019 05:50
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eig posted:These are the 2 I can't remember haha! I would talk to your loan officer, it can't hurt to find out info and if it's actually worth the refinance (most likely is). I assume your state has a "tangible net benefit disclosure" like Colorado. I also found it interesting, here's the boxes: quote:efinance Transaction:
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Dec 1, 2019 15:46
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StormDrain posted:Do it. Especially since you have, I assume 29 years left on your term or maybe 19, check on what happens to your payment if you go to a shorter term (20 or 15 years) as well. Pays down the principal a lot faster and when you're dropping interest so far the payment can be equal or a slight increase. I've done it twice in my life now on two houses, my only regret was not doing it sooner on the first one. Thank you. My original loan was 15yr, and I plan on keeping it the same. I let the loan officer know on Friday to proceed with the paperwork for 3.5% no-cashout refi. Today I got about a zillion calls from what seems to be a telemarketer number from my area code that rang every 20 minutes or so but never left a message. I never answered. I wonder if it's related 
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Dec 3, 2019 03:26
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ixo posted:Does anyone have heat tape/cord installed on their roofs and gutters? Arguments for or against? I’m getting massive ice dams this year, which means I ultimately need to improve my insulation. But I have vaulted ceilings so that’s gonna be a bitch. My parents had this done and they swear by it. Previous ice damming issues led to all kinds of roofing problems. Not sure if there are different types, but they got the kind that installs on top of the shingles. Refi question. We bought our house in 2011 and refi'd in 2012 - PNC hosed up our credit by running the report so many times, driving a 4.5% original rate up to 5%. The 2012 refi was for 4%, which we're still on. Original mortgage amount was I think $232k, the refi was for $228k. We've made extra principal payments over time, originally like $60/mo and presently at $300/mo. Present mortgage balance is $172k. I saw a few posts up that someone was looking at a condo refi at 3.5% and I did some quick Bankrate checks and calculations. I could get something like 3.499% on a 15-year mortgage. Going for 30 years isn't enough of a change to the 4% rate. A few quick number crunches on extra-payment calculators shows that if I keep at the current 30-year 4% mortgage with $300/mo I'd pay it off in 16.2 years. If I refi, and if I start out at $200 monthly principal payments, I'd pay off in 12.3. We intend to stay here forever. Would it be wise for me to pursue a refi? We're about to renovate our kitchen on a separate HELOC or home equity loan, which would run anywhere north of like $30k plus. I'm not sure what those many credit inquiries would do to the rate or if we should take a higher balance on the refi for cash-out purposes. I'm very new to this line of thinking so forgive any weird omissions. Edit: hmm, apparently I can get 3.12%, no points, if I take out a $206k 15-year fixed loan to cover the refi and the kitchen renovation. That beats the heck out of HELOC and home equity loan rates. MJP fucked around with this message at 15:06 on Dec 3, 2019 |
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Dec 3, 2019 15:01
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I was going to say, 3.5% for a 15 year seemed a little high, but I don't track rates too carefully. I recently did mine at 2.875.
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Dec 3, 2019 19:16
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I got one quote from Sebonic at 3.375%, 15 years, $40k cash-out refi. No fees other than appraisal, title, and escrow. Another quote from another company at 3.125%, a $995 application fee, $480 appraisal fee, $75 "warehouse fee", $85 tax service fee, $1800 title (I might go with another agency but they said they'd try to price-match, and $250 recording fee. They mentioned 2.99% for a $1995 origination fee, same other fees as the 3.125. Given fees coming out of the total mortgage, I'm inclined to go for the 2.99% - over time it seems like it'd pay off the difference in short order, even if I don't make extra principal payments. Factoring in slightly higher total amounts financed to cover costs doesn't really make deadly changes in the monthly payments. Is there really any reason for me to NOT do cash-out refi here? I mean, some quick number-crunching says that if I get a 20-year home equity loan for $40k at 5.8%-6%, I'd be paying around $27,000 in interest. The cash-out refi comes out to like $55k in interest. From a pure how-much-do-I-pay-to-borrow standpoint, it doesn't make sense to refi. I could always just continue with extra payments. MJP fucked around with this message at 19:42 on Dec 4, 2019 |
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Dec 4, 2019 19:16
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Has anyone done a kitchen remodel and did you get a lawyer to review the contract? I'm trying to get a high level idea of the steps I need to take before hiring on a contractor.
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Dec 9, 2019 22:03
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So, what exactly should I do about this: What you are looking at is the conduit with all the goop coming out of it. This is a conduit from my basement to my detached garage about 50 feet away. It starts about 6 feet underground here, passes under my attached garage, under my ground level porch, and then across the yard and into the detached garage. What is running through it is 2 metal water pipes to the garage bathroom. It has recently become apparently that groundwater is getting into the conduit and leaking into my basement. This has almost assuredly been going on for a long time, but actually had not been a significant problem because the area around that sewage pipe was open to a lovely drainage system. So when it rained, the conduit would leak onto that pipe, and just run straight down into the drainage and not build up anywhere. For other reasons, we had a new full french drain put in, and they sealed up the area around the pipe. So, now when it rains, as I discovered yesterday, the water just runs down the pipe and all over the basement. When I was discussing this possibility with the contractors who were putting the new system in, they completely dismissed it as a concern, saying they would seal up the conduit and it wouldn't be a problem. Hence the goop. Well, the goop didn't work, and it's a good thing I didn't seal up the walls again yet. According to the contractors they are not responsible for any water that comes out of a pipe or conduit, despite the fact that they eliminated the existing drainage that was accounting for this. So... what do I do about this?
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Dec 11, 2019 19:23
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Just came in here to complain. I had a guy come out to blow insulation into my hollow brick walls, and it looks like he realized half way through that he wasn't going to be done by quitting time, so he didn't insulate my gable at attic level, expressly against what I agreed on with the company owner. Problem is I can't see if they've filled up the rest of the wall from my external attic access. One of his colleagues came out and helped with the East-facing wall, but now I don't know that I can trust that they've done a proper job there. It's also too drat dark to see anything by the time I get home, so I won't be able to assess before the weekend.
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Dec 11, 2019 20:23
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Go rent a thermal imaging camera. That's likely the only way you can verify the work.
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Dec 11, 2019 20:30
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Agreed, we went through a state program that subsidizes insulation work, and part of it was having someone come out to inspect the work - the guy had a thermal imager so he could just walk around imaging the walls and pinpoint any spots that weren't properly filled, and flagged those for the company to come back out and remedy. Not sure what a rental would cost, but I would definitely go that way.
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Dec 11, 2019 21:13
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If you have super awesome libraries in your area, they might have one available to borrow.
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Dec 11, 2019 21:47
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So glad I complained in this thread. Wouldn't have thought of it myself.
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Dec 11, 2019 21:47
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Huh, just learned that Home Depot rents out thermal cameras: https://www.homedepot.com/tool-truck-rental/Thermal-Camera/FLIR-i7/ $75 for a day, or $53 for a 4-hour rental. Might be able to find a better/cheaper source, but looks like it's pretty common.
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Dec 11, 2019 22:01
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Weren't we talking dishwashers a few weeks ago? What's the thread consensus? Mine smelled like it was on fire after a load today. I just pulled it and the main motor smells like poo poo. It might just be the pump motor. But I don't care: it's 13 years old - I'm not gonna throw parts at this.
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Dec 11, 2019 23:53
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Motronic posted:Weren't we talking dishwashers a few weeks ago? What's the thread consensus? I like Bosch "European" style dishwashers because they don't use heat to dry stuff off so I can put plastic anywhere I want and nothing ever warps or melts. The cons are that they don't grind up food residue so it's generally not great to throw a bunch of disgusting dishes in there, and it's better to open up the dishwasher right away and shake the water off certain dishes that tend to pool water on them if you want it to dry off. https://blog.yaleappliance.com/american-vs-european-dishwashers
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Dec 12, 2019 00:15
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Oh yeah, should have mentioned, I'm only considering Euro style. That's what in there now (an old LG). Now that I search around I think the Bosch 500/800 series were mentioned quite a bit.
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Dec 12, 2019 00:19
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Motronic posted:Oh yeah, should have mentioned, I'm only considering Euro style. That's what in there now (an old LG). I have a Bosch SHX87PW55N which seems to be an 800 series, it's nice. I think I set the jet-dry setting to max, and I always run it with the "sanitize" option and stuff is mostly dry at the end. I have to add jet-dry every few weeks and it doesn't seem to hold very much, that's about my only complaint.
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Dec 12, 2019 01:28
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Droo posted:I have a Bosch SHX87PW55N which seems to be an 800 series, it's nice. I think I set the jet-dry setting to max, and I always run it with the "sanitize" option and stuff is mostly dry at the end. Okay, nice. I think I could live with that - I've always heard with Bosches people complain about the drying. Looks like as of recently some of the higher end ones have a new drying feature that people are saying is really good. Might be in the 800 series, definitely in the Benchmark series. As much as it would be cool to have a countdown timer projected onto the floor and LEDs inside I'm not sure it's really worth what they're asking. Maybe I can find a holiday deal.
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Dec 12, 2019 02:07
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It's only in Benchmark - they took the zoolite stuff they got from Thermador and have stated placing them into Bosch.
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Dec 12, 2019 02:52
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Pulling up the thermal imaging mention - if you have forced air heating/central air, is it a good idea to insulate your ducts? During the summer when the AC is on, the ducts are really cold and condensating, with a lot of cool air going into the basement. We had someone looking at another HVAC issue and they showed us with a thermal imager how much heat was radiating from the ducts, and wanted to quote us on insulation.
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Dec 12, 2019 17:09
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Motronic posted:Okay, nice. I think I could live with that - I've always heard with Bosches people complain about the drying. Looks like as of recently some of the higher end ones have a new drying feature that people are saying is really good. Might be in the 800 series, definitely in the Benchmark series. As much as it would be cool to have a countdown timer projected onto the floor and LEDs inside I'm not sure it's really worth what they're asking. Maybe I can find a holiday deal. Third rack is king. Who knows if they sell them without but they shouldn't. It's amazing how much more crap fits when you don't take up 1/4 of your lower basket with silverware and random spatulas. Get top buttons not front buttons. Expect it to have superior german adhesives problems with the little plastic buttons on the front if you do.
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Dec 12, 2019 17:50
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We had our refrigerator break a few days ago. Guy came out to diagnose/fix it. It ended up being $390+labor for a new inverter board, which I later found for $150 online. Is that a reasonable markup for an at home repair?
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Dec 12, 2019 18:29
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Residency Evil posted:We had our refrigerator break a few days ago. Guy came out to diagnose/fix it. It ended up being $390+labor for a new inverter board, which I later found for $150 online. Is that a reasonable markup for an at home repair? What are you going to do? Have him come take it out?
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Dec 12, 2019 18:32
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TheWevel posted:What are you going to do? Have him come take it out? ?? It's already done.
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Dec 12, 2019 18:33
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Residency Evil posted:?? It's already done. I think that is his point. The work is done, why sweat it! I always expect things like that to cost three times as much as the parts, so I wouldn't worry about it even if you could have saved a buck by getting multiple quotes
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Dec 12, 2019 18:36
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To me, it'd also depend on how much he charged for labor. But at the end of the day, it may be that you got an OEM board and what you found was aftermarket/3rd party (or maybe not). But if that's the case then the guy could have just been at the "mercy" of the OEM.
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Dec 12, 2019 18:37
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You already paid him and he replaced the part, what does looking for cheaper alternatives solve? Just don't use them again and move on
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Dec 12, 2019 18:37
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There's nothing wrong with wanting to know after the fact whether a repair cost was reasonable. You've already sunk the money, yes, but it's data you can use to inform your choices the next time something goes kerblooey.
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Dec 12, 2019 18:41
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TheWevel posted:You already paid him and he replaced the part, what does looking for cheaper alternatives solve? Just don't use them again and move on I’m happy with his work and the fridge is working. I just want to figure out if that’s a “normal” upcharge on a repair, so I can figure out if I should use someone else next time. Edit: yeah exactly what he said
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Dec 12, 2019 18:42
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How long did it take him to replace it?
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Dec 12, 2019 18:48
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