Owning two houses in retirement

[check6]

So I'm interested in zero monthly maintenance,
Can you explain what is zero monthly maintenance ?

Do you mean you are paying someone to do the work, and repairs ? Or you just ignore it.

I was thinking in terms of yard maintenance but little house maintenance as well. One is a condo in the upper Midwest the other is a townhome in the SW with a rock yard. We do have a monthly HOA in both places. Both homes are small but have great views. MSP home:

 

[Sunset]

Nobody got the second house to "reside" in a no income tax state?

That has been my thought for a while, but right now fairly trapped by circumstances.

 

[pb4uski]

Just be careful to evaluate everything in making the decision to change state tax residency. We recently bought a winter condo in Florida and people commonly ask me if we plan to become residents there. While we would indeed save on income taxes, we would lose a property tax exemption in our home state and more importantly, our health insurance would be substantially higher and both of those would more than wipe out any income tax savings.

 

[Sunset]

Just be careful to evaluate everything in making the decision to change state tax residency. We recently bought a winter condo in Florida and people commonly ask me if we plan to become residents there. While we would indeed save on income taxes, we would lose a property tax exemption in our home state and more importantly, our health insurance would be substantially higher and both of those would more than wipe out any income tax savings.

Good points, especially the health care one. Initially I had this nice big list of States to move to, after about a year of searching. I realized our health plan won't cover us in various States..

 

[haha]

Plenty of people own 2 or more homes. OTOH, many who could likely afford this own only one.

It is largely a personal preference.

Ha

 

[Dd852]

Having just been notified that the house I'm not currently in - and which is thousands of miles away - has a toilet that's leaked into the apartment below ... just after our rental property (also far away) had a boiler leak that went into the downstairs flat in that building... I'm feeling frustrated, irritated and voting for simplicity! When everything is right, it's great. But the moment something goes wrong, the distance intensifies the hassle. I'm sure I will feel ok in the morning but do be aware that there are added costs and hassles to being far away from your property.


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[EastWest Gal]

A couple of thoughts:

If you have a second home in a desirable area you could rent it out through AirBNB when you're not using it and it could pay for itself.

Or, you could use AirBNB yourself to find a rental near your kids or rent a corporate condo for yourself for a month near your kids when you visit.

There will always be monthly maintenance in any place you own. If it's a house, there's yard and upkeep, if it's a condo there's HOA fees. I think the cost and hassle of that may outweigh the benefits vs. utilizing short term rentals.

And as others have pointed out, what if your kids move?


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[Danmar]

Plenty of people own 2 or more homes. OTOH, many who could likely afford this own only one.

It is largely a personal preference.

Ha

Yes, agree. We would be an extreme example of multiple ownership and it's really because we enjoy it. Can certainly understand why others wouldn't, and agree the costs are probably not justified. The big thing for me is control. I hate being told what to do and would not want the hassle of finding new places every year to rent. Would be bored at one place I think.

At some point we all get older and want to simplify things though. Not there yet.

 

[MichaelB]

You are right with a couple of caveats.

1. If you can tell me where I can earn 5% relatively risk free let me know ;-).
2. If only makes sense if we can rent it out part of the year (say 6 months @ 2,000 per month).
3. Capital appreciation - maybe 2-3% per annum?
4. Rent of vacation home (also c. 2000 per month)

Means the maths are less straightforward.

A second home really isn't about the math, and to be honest, if you need math to justify having one, it's probably not a good idea. Add to that, if you've never been a landlord, learning to be one by renting your own home for short periods during the year is going to be tough.

If you can lease a flat for $2k a month then you are ahead leasing rather than buying. YMMV.

I agree with this and would also suggest renting instead of buying, at least in the beginning, just to see if the here - there lifestyle fits.

One additional point. A second home is a new source of worry in your retired life. Upkeep and maintenance are more difficult and more expensive than with your primary residence, and security is always a concern. Insurance may also be an issue. As HaHa pointed out, it is a personal choice, and works well for many. We have a second home enjoy it - it's a critical part of our lifestyle, but it is a PITA.

 

[hesperus]

Our second 'home', is a cabin I designed and built in the foothills of the san juan mountains, about 35 min away from our primary home in Durango. With 5+ acres of irrigatible land around it, and an additional 5+ of wooded canyon and ponds, the maintenance is definitely not zero. There are ALWAYS issues to take care of, much of which revolves around keeping the place from growing over, and keeping wildlife (woodpeckers, bears, gophers, insects, etc) from damaging the buildings and landscape. Without the big green tractor & the heavy implements I purchased a few years ago, it would be near impossible to keep up with the pasture and other maintenance work. That tractor was the best tool I ever bought for that place.

My DW and I still love going over there, but we're doing it less frequently now, as we travel more. When we come back to it, the chores that require our attention usually eat up all of our time, and we hardly ever 'relax and chill' over there. We're considering selling the place and buying a historic home up in silverton, co, (for summers and winter skiing) which would still require some work, but it would be less than trying to maintain horse property. I'm not a condo guy, preferring to have space around me, so finding a home with a modest sized parcel of land around it would be the direction we're heading. I want to be able to close it up and when I return it's more or less the way we left it.

We love the place, but as we get older, the physical demands of that sort of property upkeep outweigh the benefits somewhat. Really, you kind of have to live there to keep up with it.

 

[kcowan]

I'm feeling frustrated, irritated and voting for simplicity! When everything is right, it's great. But the moment something goes wrong, the distance intensifies the hassle. I'm sure I will feel ok in the morning but do be aware that there are added costs and hassles to being far away from your property.

I always have a property manager for the places when we are away. It is well worth the peace of mind.

 

[Danmar]

I always have a property manager for the places when we are away. It is well worth the peace of mind.

Agree. Us as well. Well worth the modest extra expense.

 

[W2R]

Plenty of people own 2 or more homes. OTOH, many who could likely afford this own only one.

It is largely a personal preference.

Yes, I could probably afford a second home but since we are happy right here, and have no desire to travel, I would have to be crazy to do this. The hassle and worry of owning a home far away would be a complete nightmare to me as well.

Many people here have a second home in a more protected location, to use in case their New Orleans home is hit by a hurricane and not habitable for some time. Hopefully that will not happen to us, but if it does then I guess we'll be forced to find a rental up north until repairs can be made.

 

[jabbahop]

Our second 'home', is a cabin I designed and built in the foothills of the san juan mountains, about 35 min away from our primary home in Durango. With 5+ acres of irrigatible land around it, and an additional 5+ of wooded canyon and ponds, the maintenance is definitely not zero. There are ALWAYS issues to take care of, much of which revolves around keeping the place from growing over, and keeping wildlife (woodpeckers, bears, gophers, insects, etc) from damaging the buildings and landscape. Without the big green tractor & the heavy implements I purchased a few years ago, it would be near impossible to keep up with the pasture and other maintenance work. That tractor was the best tool I ever bought for that place.

My DW and I still love going over there, but we're doing it less frequently now, as we travel more. When we come back to it, the chores that require our attention usually eat up all of our time, and we hardly ever 'relax and chill' over there. We're considering selling the place and buying a historic home up in silverton, co, (for summers and winter skiing) which would still require some work, but it would be less than trying to maintain horse property. I'm not a condo guy, preferring to have space around me, so finding a home with a modest sized parcel of land around it would be the direction we're heading. I want to be able to close it up and when I return it's more or less the way we left it.

We love the place, but as we get older, the physical demands of that sort of property upkeep outweigh the benefits somewhat. Really, you kind of have to live there to keep up with it.



View attachment 24733

View attachment 24734

Beautiful. Love the san juan's!

 

[eta2020]

We love the place, but as we get older, the physical demands of that sort of property upkeep outweigh the benefits somewhat. Really, you kind of have to live there to keep up with it.



View attachment 24733

View attachment 24734

God's Country. This is spectacular.

 

[Dd852]

Agree. Us as well. Well worth the modest extra expense.

And I do! But as a control freak by nature it is hard simply to sit back and say "the manager and the insurance company will make it right ". I know they will. And I know my costs will be contained. But I don't like the feeling of not being there to see it for myself. Definitely my problem but wanted to throw this into the mix - your own psychology is as important as the $ calculation to figuring out if it is for you!


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[hesperus]

jabbahop, eta2020,

We fell in love with the area when we first laid eyes on it 20 years ago

 

[jabbahop]

jabbahop, eta2020,



We fell in love with the area when we first laid eyes on it 20 years ago

I have fond memories of my Outward bound 30 trek through those mountains 25 years ago.