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Thread: What is a healthy debt/ income ratio?

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    Default What is a healthy debt/ income ratio?

    Desh actually brought up a good point in another thread: some national debt is good as it helps the nation build infrastructure. Makes sense, as permanent improvements can be financed easily, since the improvement creates wealth and the ability of citizens to function more efficiently and effectively. "You have to spend money to make money: is an applicable statement. The analogy with personal finance to buy a home is likewise a good analogy.

    What she fails at though is that the massive federal debt is not due to spending on infrastructure, but spending on entitlements. These entitlements are not improvements that allow us to function more effectively. Plus they are ongoing- unlike infrastructure which creates a permanent feature from a one-time payment, entitlement spending is ongoing.

    The other massive Desh-fail is that she doesn't consider federal dept as a percentage of federal income. Some politicians may sweat about our high debt/ GDP levels, but this number is really useless, since FedCo doesn't have access to all the money made in the country. A useful number to gauge the financial health of a country is the debt/ income ratio.

    Again the household analogy is applicable.
    For a family, debt that exceeds three times your annual earnings is starting to become quite worrisome.
    While the US is well over that, and
    has a debt to income measure of 408 percent.
    "Quite worrisome" has turned to "potential disaster".

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    people are also part of what we invest in



    education is part of the ingredients to make a healthy economy

    health also


    to make life decent for all people is the best way to make our economy hummmm


    its all about people dude.


    that is the whole reason our country exists

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    Education isn't what's growing the national debt.
    Quote Originally Posted by wanderingbear View Post
    In the end who doesn't want freedom from responsibility?
    Quote Originally Posted by poet View Post
    They better convict Zimmy, or I may riot, and break up some shit.
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    I have always fantasized about murdering Massa while he slept.
    Quote Originally Posted by Topspin View Post
    Jefferson was a racist piece of dogshit as were most founding fathers.
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    I just bought a nice bottle of wine that DY's taxes paid for.
    Quote Originally Posted by blackascoal View Post
    ...you think we're just niggers.

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    Zero debt for a household is the way to be. That is how I live. Having business debt makes sense but for reasons Desh wouldn't understand.

    People who claim that the government has to have debt to run properly are the same economic illiterates who say you can't run the government like a business.

    Anyone who says you should buy a house for "the deduction" is a fool who has never looked at amortization table. 30 year mortgages subsidized by taxpayers were the biggest boons to the bankstas there ever was.


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    Quote Originally Posted by evince View Post
    people are also part of what we invest in



    education is part of the ingredients to make a healthy economy

    health also


    to make life decent for all people is the best way to make our economy hummmm


    its all about people dude.


    that is the whole reason our country exists
    You can have free health insurance.

    Work out and eat right. It's free

    Don't smoke crack

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    Quote Originally Posted by Alice in Liberaland View Post
    Zero debt for a household is the way to be. That is how I live. Having business debt makes sense but for reasons Desh wouldn't understand.

    People who claim that the government has to have debt to run properly are the same economic illiterates who say you can't run the government like a business.

    Anyone who says you should buy a house for "the deduction" is a fool who has never looked at amortization table. 30 year mortgages subsidized by taxpayers were the biggest boons to the bankstas there ever was.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
    I've had several long discussions with my paid financial advisor and he is adamant that I need to have a 30 year mortgage. It's at 4.25% fixed. Since my investments are growing at least twice that rate his arguments are hard to beat.

    The other way I justify it is that I should have more debt than cash and liquid assets, is the hyper-inflation scenario. With FedCo playing chicken with its huge debt hyper-inflation is a very real possibility. If that happens I'll simply use my liquid assets to pay my debts.
    Quote Originally Posted by wanderingbear View Post
    In the end who doesn't want freedom from responsibility?
    Quote Originally Posted by poet View Post
    They better convict Zimmy, or I may riot, and break up some shit.
    Quote Originally Posted by poet View Post
    I have always fantasized about murdering Massa while he slept.
    Quote Originally Posted by Topspin View Post
    Jefferson was a racist piece of dogshit as were most founding fathers.
    Quote Originally Posted by Howey View Post
    I just bought a nice bottle of wine that DY's taxes paid for.
    Quote Originally Posted by blackascoal View Post
    ...you think we're just niggers.

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    Quote Originally Posted by DamnYankee View Post
    I've had several long discussions with my paid financial advisor and he is adamant that I need to have a 30 year mortgage. It's at 4.25% fixed. Since my investments are growing at least twice that rate his arguments are hard to beat.

    The other way I justify it is that I should have more debt than cash and liquid assets, is the hyper-inflation scenario. With FedCo playing chicken with its huge debt hyper-inflation is a very real possibility. If that happens I'll simply use my liquid assets to pay my debts.
    Look at the amortization table. Refinance to a 15 if you can afford it. The tax break loses its oomph over time.

    I am sure your financial guy is a good guy. But I suspect he reads the same books every financial advisor follows.

    I love the freedom of being debt free

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    Quote Originally Posted by Alice in Liberaland View Post
    Look at the amortization table. Refinance to a 15 if you can afford it. The tax break loses its oomph over time.

    I am sure your financial guy is a good guy. But I suspect he reads the same books every financial advisor follows.

    I love the freedom of being debt free
    I have two homes, a big ark that I raised my kids in and a smaller vacation home in the mountains, both about 24 years left on the mortgages. Both are in a trust since it will make dispersion of my estate according to my will much easier. Banks won't finance a trust, although they have no problem with it after the closing. So to refi means taking out of the trust, refi, then putting back in. Too much money to lawyers, too much hassle.

    Right now for me refi doesn't make sense for another reason as well. I'm going to retire in 8 years. When I do, I'll sell the big house and use the equity to pay off the mortgage on my second, smaller home. My wife and I checked the math on this the other day and the whole deal should zero-out out near-perfectly. Then my vacation home becomes my debt-free retirement home.
    Quote Originally Posted by wanderingbear View Post
    In the end who doesn't want freedom from responsibility?
    Quote Originally Posted by poet View Post
    They better convict Zimmy, or I may riot, and break up some shit.
    Quote Originally Posted by poet View Post
    I have always fantasized about murdering Massa while he slept.
    Quote Originally Posted by Topspin View Post
    Jefferson was a racist piece of dogshit as were most founding fathers.
    Quote Originally Posted by Howey View Post
    I just bought a nice bottle of wine that DY's taxes paid for.
    Quote Originally Posted by blackascoal View Post
    ...you think we're just niggers.

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    Quote Originally Posted by evince View Post
    people are also part of what we invest in



    education is part of the ingredients to make a healthy economy

    health also


    to make life decent for all people is the best way to make our economy hummmm


    its all about people dude.


    that is the whole reason our country exists
    I do invest in people when it comes to education. MY children. When it comes to someone else's child, if that child's parent doesn't think their own child is worth providing an education, that says it's not a good investment for me either.

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    all debt is bad. infrastructure and investment can be made, effectively, without debt. it's a simple matter of conscience and will power to recognize that the money government is using comes from the people. it's not government debt, it's OUR debt. all debt is bad.
    A sad commentary on we, as a people, and our viewpoint of our freedom can be summed up like this. We have liberals and conservatives, Democrats and Republicans, yet those very people look at Constitutionalists as radical and extreme.................so those liberals and conservatives, Democrats and Republicans must believe that the constitution is radical and extreme.

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    Quote Originally Posted by CFM View Post
    I do invest in people when it comes to education. MY children. When it comes to someone else's child, if that child's parent doesn't think their own child is worth providing an education, that says it's not a good investment for me either.



    they are your future

    you are short sighted

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    Quote Originally Posted by SmarterthanYou View Post
    all debt is bad. infrastructure and investment can be made, effectively, without debt. it's a simple matter of conscience and will power to recognize that the money government is using comes from the people. it's not government debt, it's OUR debt. all debt is bad.
    you are just wrong


    debt was how I built my life


    car loans and house loans


    without them I would still be poor


    someone sold you a bag of shit

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    Quote Originally Posted by DamnYankee View Post
    I have two homes, a big ark that I raised my kids in and a smaller vacation home in the mountains, both about 24 years left on the mortgages. Both are in a trust since it will make dispersion of my estate according to my will much easier. Banks won't finance a trust, although they have no problem with it after the closing. So to refi means taking out of the trust, refi, then putting back in. Too much money to lawyers, too much hassle.

    Right now for me refi doesn't make sense for another reason as well. I'm going to retire in 8 years. When I do, I'll sell the big house and use the equity to pay off the mortgage on my second, smaller home. My wife and I checked the math on this the other day and the whole deal should zero-out out near-perfectly. Then my vacation home becomes my debt-free retirement home.
    That sounds like a good plan. I am speaking in generalities. 30 years mortgages are a new thing. Debt was frowned upon to in the past. I would rather collect interest than pay it.

    The so called income tax deduction is a scam. Let's assume a 25% tax bracket. It is like paying me a dollar so you get a quarter back. It makes no financial sense.

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    Quote Originally Posted by evince View Post
    you are just wrong


    debt was how I built my life


    car loans and house loans


    without them I would still be poor


    someone sold you a bag of shit
    You are saying debt made you rich? What a novel concept. You should write a book

    Now I know you are saying that going into debt to buy rental properties is how you made money and that is a completely different prospect and not comparable to ones personal life.

    All of my rental properties were financed with tremendous amounts of debt with very little down. It increased my ROI.

    All of my personal finances are debt free.

    Two different concepts and they should not be confused.

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