But, yes, selling is no option. I was trying to look into an equity loan to consolidate all of this debt we've had since the pandemic kicked off, with no luck. I've had to remind my wife over and over again how bad of an idea it is right now when she whines about our house being too small. We would be ripped off completely. Our friends just bought their first home for almost $400k, but when I looked it up, the home was built for less than $200k. It's a nice, roomy home, but they got ripped off and have to deal with an HOA.

I've been wanting to sell/move since 2019 but when covid hit I knew I needed to wait.  Now you have the housing market on steroids but we are very close to the peak.  Interest rates are rising and many of the similar signs are showing up, just like in 2005-2008.  All the economists and real estate guys I follow say that this housing bubble is about to burst.  Higher oil prices (in the history of the US) have led to a recession in 100% of the cases.  It's just a matter of time. 


When the recession hits, big companies will start to lay off people (i'm already hearing this at some Fortune 500 companies) and then housing sales will further tank.  Plus all the foreclosures from the Covid stimulus haven't hit the market yet...we're about to see a BIG amount of inventory/supply in the next 6 months.  This will drive down prices.  And then, whenever the stock market tanks, this will implode the housing market (but it will also implode many other markets...it won't be pretty).  Point is, be patient.  We're at the peak of housing prices and it's only coming down (due to a variety of factors...gas, food, energy prices and layoffs).

My family business  took me all  over the Caribbean, Central and South America for nearly 25 years. My clients and suppliers all lived there. I've seen first hand how to handle real hyperinflation to a degree that will never happen here and they lived through it. The answer is simple, you have to have a business that people need or have work in a company the people need, or have any business or job. If anyone wants to prepare, make themselves bulletproof, start becoming valuable to employers, learn new things, become a jack of all trades.

In South America, the people that survived no matter what, are the people who invented work for themselves. That is what Americans will have to do to survive. Anyone thinking of retirement on a fixed income, is in for a big shock. 

Been there, seen that.

And now that we've brought up the subject, I go and start browsing zillow and find this when I am not in any position to get a house

We could legitimately homestead with that kind of property. The house is rough, but I don't care.

No doxx, not near my actual home lol
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/8815-County-Road-G-Mount-Horeb-WI-53572/2070833717_zpid/?

Zillow invested 100s of millions of dollars, thinking they could flip houses.  They lost.  Don't trust their valuations.

Oh, I don't. I checked and they "zestimate" my home's value at around $220k. That's ridiculous.

In southern Ontario Canada this property would be valued at about 1.5 Million.Our house prices have more than doubled since 2019 because of immigration.  A house that sold in 2019 for $400.00 (3 bedroom 1100 sq ft plus finished basement is now selling for $800,000. to $900,000..

That's why I'm astounded at the price. The home must be in pretty rough shape to include 4 acres, a horse paddock and stable for $250k. An empty lot around here goes for around 85-99k per half acre.

 The penalty would be from the pension for taking out before I retired. 

Take it out NOW.  The entire house of cards could (i.e., will) come down at any time.  If you wait, your entire pension will vanish.  Take it out and use it wisely.  Crypto (Bitcoin, Pirate Chain, Monero, etc) is a good move, but so are food, silver, ammo, etc.

This post may not be the advice you were looking for but....

I believe the same as the others, that the crash will be catastrophic. We do not know now when that will happen, but as the OP exemplifies, the signs are obvious enough that it's not too far off.

It's out of our hands, and to be overly concerned about something evil that we know is coming but can do nothing about does not help the situation at all, which is to say it is best to leave it in the hands of God and let Him take care of you and your family. He will help you, and wants to!

Here is a wonderful short prayer that has helped me and others. Whether or not you are now in poverty, pray it daily, and pray it often throughout the day every day - put your concerns in God's care, then watch what happens.....

"Either free me from poverty, or make it so pleasant for me that I would not exchange it for all the wealth in the world."

You keep praying this and before too long, if anything, you will be doing what needs to be done with your finances. Which ever way it ends up, "you will be satisfied whatever happens."




From this post:

From: Trustful Surrender to Divine Providence
(Wow, what a fantastic little book)

Nothing happens in the universe without God willing and allowing it. This statement must he taken absolutely of everything with the exception of sin. 'Nothing occurs by chance in the whole course of our lives' is the unanimous teaching of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, 'and God intervenes everywhere.'

From Part 2:

We do not ask enough

It is clear then that we do not receive anything because we do not ask enough. God could not give us little, He could not restrict His liberality to small things without doing us grave harm. Do not misunderstand me. I am not saying that we offend God if we ask for temporal benefits or to be freed from misfortune. Obviously prayers of this kind can rightly be addressed to Him by making the condition that they are not contrary to His glory or our eternal salvation. But as it is hardly likely that it would redound to His glory for Him to answer them, or to our advantage to have them answered if our wishes end there, it must be repeated that as long as we are content with little we run the risk of obtaining nothing.

Let me show you a good way to ask for happiness even in this world. It is a way that will oblige God to listen to you. Say to him earnestly:  Either give me so much money that my heart will be satisfied, or inspire me with such contempt for it that I no longer want it.

Either free me from poverty, or make it so pleasant for me that I would not exchange it for all the wealth in the world. Either take away my suffering, or -- which would be to your greater glory -- change it into delight for me, and instead of causing me affliction, let it become a source of joy. You can take away the burden of my cross, or you can leave it with me without my feeling its weight. You can extinguish the fire that burns me, or you can let it burn in such a way that it refreshes me as it did the three youths in the fiery furnace. I ask you for either one thing or the other. What does it matter in what way I am happy? If I am happy through the possession of worldly goods, it is you I have to thank. If I am happy when deprived of them, it gives you greater glory and my thanks are all the greater.


This is the kind of prayer worthy of being offered to God by a true Christian. When you pray in this way, do you know what the effect of your prayers will be? First, you will be satisfied whatever happens; and what else do those who most desire this world's goods want except to be satisfied? Secondly, you will not only obtain without fail one of the two things you have asked for but, as a rule, you will obtain both of them. God will give you the enjoyment of wealth, and so that you may possess it without the danger of becoming attached to it, He will inspire you at the same time with contempt for it. He will put an end to your sufferings and even more He will leave you with a desire for them which will give you all the merit of patience without having to suffer. In a word He will make you happy here and now, and lest your happiness should do you harm, He will let you know and feel the emptiness of it. Can one ask for anything better? But if such a great blessing is well worth being asked for, remember that still more is it worth being asked for with insistence. For the reason why we obtain little is not only because we ask for little but still more because, whether we ask a little or we ask a lot, we do not ask often enough.

If you have a 401k, cash it out NOW and pay off debt, buy long-term food, ammo, and silver.

If you cash out a 401k, you’ll pay a 10% penalty, plus the normal tax rate on earnings (stock gains + employer contribution). 

So, 10% + 30% (estimate) = 40% taxes.  Factor in state taxes, and it’s basically 50%.

Ok, you might say, “Wow, 50% is a lot. “.  But the stock market is manipulated and could drop 50% any day now. I’d rather have the cash now vs wait and see if things “get better”.  All signs point towards the world getting crazier and crazier.  I say, cash out now. 

PM me if you want.  I’ll help if I can.  I’ve done this before.

Thank you Sir!