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Iowa | Thinking about buying a lake home about an hour from "home".
About us (husband and wife):
55 and 57 yrs old
Worked and put ourselves through college many moons ago (parents couldn't afford to help either of us)
Started from scratch 35 yrs ago. No farming parents. No inheritance, etc
Net worth 2 million w land at $3000, land worth probably 2X that now or close to it. Very low debt, mainly annual operating. No machinery debt. Under $70,000 land debt
Have put $1000/month in IRA for over 20 yrs
Wife has good job ($50,000/yr with GREAT retirement)
Kids raised and put through college
Never a new car or pickup or vehicle payments
Never a credit card payment
Never a new piece of machinery other than a new auger or something like that
Lots of livestock. Hired help but chores 365 days a year
Have always paid all obligations promptly
Some nagging, semi-serious health issues but manageable
Nice older 2 bedroom home in a nice town on a large lake about an hour away. Not a fishing cabin but a decent home usable year-round. $80,000. Can pay cash. Can get hired help to do Sunday morning chores. We think we could get away most Saturday evenings and come back home Sunday afternoon/evenings other than planting through mid June, and probably not for 6 weeks at harvest, but hopefully could get away the rest of the time. Maybe spend a full week there in July or August. Maybe getting away from everything here would be beneficial to health also. Work most Sundays now even if I have to look for something to do--it is just the way I have always been. There is always a stick to pick up or a board to paint even if nothing really has to be done, so I go out and do it.
Just can't pull the trigger. Never really just spent money "on us". No toys, etc. Too busy taking care of obligations (work and financial) to spend money on ourselves. Even most of our house furnishings we have bought used. Frugal lifestyle for sure, but have done very well financially living this way. Banker couldn't care less. Says none of his business as we can afford it--he says go for it if we want. Says probably a great investment and could sell it for a profit someday if we wanted.
Struggling with this--I know it is not a big deal in some ways as my combine cost more than this second home would, but it seems so extravagant we want to but just can't seem to pull the trigger and get it done.
Has anyone had a get-away place, and has it paid "benefits" to them?
What does everyone think?
Thanks so much in advance
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Thinking about buying a lake home
