Fortune telling

Remember earlier I mentioned I was going through all my photos? Well, I came across one that I’m not going to post because it has financial data on it, and this is a public blog, but I’m going to describe it because it’s sad and funny at the same time and why-does-life-have-to-be-so-complicated?

It’s from several years ago. It’s a huge whiteboard with blue dry erase scribbles and arrows all over it. It says things like:

“Basic Expenses – Pension? – Needed from Rentals – Plus any Mortgage – Equity Sources – Income Sources – Equity Required – Monthly Net Rent Estimated”

Then it says, “Places we could live in a $XXX,000 house: Sacramento (outskirts only), Central Valley, Sierra’s, Southern California Deserts, Reno, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Tucson, St. George, Albuquerque, Placitas, Austin (outskirts only),  Mexico”…Notice only hot & dry climates made the cut, lol.

Then it says,

Scenario 1: Pay off El Padro and move to cheaper house, sell Hampton, income from El Padro, live in Placitas or NM replacement.

Scenario 2: Sell El Padro, pay mortgage down, stay in Hampton, income from Placitas. $$$ per month short. Doesn’t work.

Scenario 3: Two small rentals and move to cheaper house, sell Hampton, sell El Padro, buy 2 plus Placitas, live in 1, rent the other 2.

Scenario 4: Rent Hampton and move to cheaper house, sell El Padro, live in Placitas or replacement.

Scenario 5: Both work full-time for x-years, stay in CA, pay off Hampton and El Padro, sell Kristina’s 401k, sell Placitas.

Scenario 6: Sell Hampton, pay off El Padro, move to Sacramento, rent Placitas.

Funny, but nowhere does it say the actual real scenario: Sell Hampton, move to a rental in Placitas, plan a huge remodel of the house in Placitas, realize it’s going to cost too much, try to buy a different house Placitas, back out of that, undertake a less ambitious remodel of the house in Placitas, sell El Padro, buy three rentals in Albuquerque, get really frustrated with the remodel, accept a job in Santa Fe, rent a casita in Santa Fe, buy a townhome in Santa Fe, move part-time into the townhome in Santa Fe and part-time into the Placitas house with the remodel half-done. And then, come spring, miss California!