Jean-Yves Rico could turn the situation around in all directions, he did not see how to get there. In 2020, with $70,000 in mortgages still to pay and a monthly income that would soon drop by $1,000, this 63-year-old retiree had to admit that he simply couldn’t afford to keep his house anymore. on one level in Saint-Basile-le-Grand, in Montérégie.
Moving into a condo, smaller and cheaper? No thanks ! This handyman needs space for his hobbies. What’s more, after a life in the suburbs of Montreal, he “craved the countryside”.
Since her grown children lived in the metropolitan area, parts of the country like Bas-Saint-Laurent or Lac-Saint-Jean seemed too far away. Jean-Yves Rico has therefore set his sights on Centre-du-Québec. In August 2020, he moved to Parisville, east of Bécancour, a village where he had never set foot before.
He bought an equivalent but newer house there, offering all the space he needed, for 185,000 dollars. The sale of his Saint-Basile-le-Grand residence, above the asking price and without a broker, allowed him to acquire the property without borrowing, to erase the mortgage balance of 70,000 dollars and to free up a cushion financial amount of a few tens of thousands of dollars.
In two years in Parisville, Jean-Yves Rico has built a social network. He regularly plays hockey on the village ice rink, and magnificent hikes are available to him a few minutes from the house.
Admittedly, he has to drive a little longer to do his shopping – the only grocery store nearby is too expensive for his liking – but he sees this as an advantage. Since the shops are less accessible than in the suburbs, he goes there infrequently… and spends less!
Spend less on the house
Foraging from one company to another does not only pay for your insurance. Shopping around for your landscaping company or your mortgage will net you some great—and usually cheaper—offers only for new customers.
Before throwing away a damaged item, call a specialist. Contrary to what one might think, repairing is often more advantageous than buying. And if you can’t find the necessary service near you, why not try to restore the object in good condition yourself, with the help of the Web?
More than 100 municipalities have issued a new assessment roll recently, and many have been startled by the new assessment of their home. If this estimate seems higher than the market value, you have until April 30, 2023 to file a request for review.
Find out from your agglomeration about the products and services it subsidizes. Cloth diapers, composters, swimming lessons and menstrual cups are just a few examples. Some cities even lend bicycles and electric cars.
According to the advertisement, we always need a faster Internet connection. In fact, a modest 15 Mbps is enough for many people, including watching Netflix in 4K. Use the internet plan comparison in the section Dollars and cents of News to find the speed that’s right for you — and the cheapest provider.
Install low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators. It will cost a few tens of dollars, but will save about $100 a year on the electricity bill of a family of four. This is, according to the Ecohabitation organization, the most cost-effective energy efficiency measure there is.
Many cellular and Internet providers have a referral program that pays you a bonus each time you recruit a new customer. You can use platforms like invitation.codes and super-parrain.com to publish your “referral” codes, effortlessly. Some people manage to reduce their mobile phone bill to less than $40 a year.
Fixed or variable rate mortgage? Historically, the variable rate has proven to be more advantageous than the fixed rate. The average savings for a $100,000 mortgage amortized over 15 years is $22,000! Before choosing the variable rate, however, make sure you are able to absorb a significant increase in your monthly payments, as many households experienced in 2022 with the rise in rates.
This article originally appeared in the March 2023 issue of Newsunder the title “31 Ways to Beat Inflation”.
