Pity the government official coping with budget crises and all the demands on shrinking resources. Their decisions can have ripple effects with unintended consequences. For instance, a decision to reduce benefits when individuals are sharing housing. Of course, from one perspective the beneficiary may not need as much money as when they weren’t sharing housing. [...]
Posts Tagged ‘Affordability’
Avoiding Foreclosure
Has your house become too expensive for you? If so, you are hardly alone. According to RealtyTrak, in 2010 between 3 million and 3.5 million foreclosure warnings will be issued. This is up from 2009’s record of 2.8 million. (USA Today, Feb. 11 2010) That’s a lot of houses, that’s a lot of unhappy people.
If [...]
Calculating Housing Costs
The general rule of thumb for a reasonable amount to spend on housing is now 30% of gross income. It used to be 27%. The three percent increase probably represents a creep upward as everyone copes with higher housing costs. So what is 30% actually? Here’s a quick look.
Income $25,000, housing $625 a month.
Income $35,000, [...]