We bought at the absolute bottom in 2010 and got the 8k first time home buyers credit as well. Between rock bottom interest rates, low home values, couldn't have timed the purchase any better when looking back, and all we were doing was looking for a house. I would guess the value has doubled since then.
What's the best home purchase you've ever made?
- Thread starter DirtyJohns97
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Probably in bang for your buck it was a high end Dyson vacuum cleaner that my wife and I got as a wedding present from my in laws. Over ten years later the thing works perfectly, is incredibly easy to clean and has never had an issue (knock on wood). But that’s not something I bought, it was bought for me.
As far as things I’ve bought….either the new Kitchenaid fridge which has great storage and has really helped us organize stuff better over the ten year old Samsung side by side it replaced.
Or maybe the Tfal fryer I got that self-filters and stores the frying oil when done, comes apart easily, is easy to clean and keeps it on the target temperature pretty accurately. Because of it, I honestly fry much better than most restaurants, I just don’t use it that often as I try not to fry at home very often and save fried foods for nights out. But it is a fantastic fryer I highly rec.
So jealous, I live those tabletop shuffleboards but I can’t justify the cost or the area it will require.Obvious answer is something like a washing machine or dryer, but for something off the beaten path I would go with our shuffleboard table in the basement. I have a sophomore in college and a junior in high school, and we play it all of the time as a family. As the kids have gotten older and are doing their own things, that family time that they actually want to spend together is pretty priceless.*
*edited to add that if anyone is in the market we are happy with this one:
York Shuffleboard - Olhausen Billiards
Olhausen doesn't just manufacture game tables, we make dreams come truewww.olhausenbilliards.com
For me a very inexpensive item that gets a lot of use is our air fryer. We were late to the party on them but glad we finally got one. Also my smoker is something that I’m very glad we have now.
Yep. People’s Republic of Southern Johnson County-for now. There are rumors circulating around Casey’s of Liberty Township seceding and joining our southern brethren in Washington County. Renaming Johnson County Johnson County may have been the last straw…
Big ice cubes are better as they don’t melt so quickly and dilute the drink.
And why on earth would anyone want to chew on ice?
It was a splurge but part of a basement reno that was long overdue, so we saved up for a rainy 6 months.
Another one that is super cheap is a bidet attachment for a toilet. They are like $40 on amazon and are game Game changer. Got one during the great toilet paper crisis during the pandemic and haven’t looked back.
What OS is on your 2009 laptop? Windows 7, 8, 10, 11? That's always the hard part of upgrading those systems. The OS quits making drivers for your old hardware the more recent it gets or your OS goes EoL. Bravo running it this long.
I used to do a Roku/Plex type of streaming solution throughout the old house. Have a friend who has some storage in I think Croatia that he hosts a ton of movies. He gives me access to that. I don't miss hitting Pirate Bay to find a movie
Theatre room, Sonos, in-ground pool in the backyard with a pool house that is a full on kitchen/living room with golf simulator. Don’t have to leave the house on the weekends.
One of those $4,000 coffee machines. 15 years ago. I’m way ahead and it’s not even close.
Windows 10 (it's a desktop). Runs pretty much perfect, I got the free download home edition a few years back. The OEM hard drive was crapping out last winter - that's when I bought and installed the new SSD (Crucial MX500 I believe) and I used a free cloning tool to migrate everything over. Believe I used Acronis cloning software (note - it's no longer free) - worked trouble free.
I'm thinking seriously of going to a Plex rig myself. My cabin PC (a 2012 Dell) died on me just a couple weeks ago and I bought a GMKtec mini PC to replace it that is the damndest piece of technology I've ever owned. Valid digital licensed W11 Pro, 8 gigs RAM, 256 gig SSD - all in a case that isn't 5 inches square - all in for $130! The video quality, without messing with the settings to hot rod it (yet) - is better than anything I've ever had before. 4k is absolutely stunning, and this is the entry level unit they sell!
I've read people use these gizmos as HTPC's and Plex servers. Right now I do my video recording on an even older PC than the Dell I described above (Hauppauge HD PVR, also fairly ancient) and a networked ATSC tuner using Windows Media Center (hence why I still keep W7 on it) - but given that PC is W7 (!) and a 2008 model, its days are indeed numbered.
So...
My main "managing my life" desktop (HP Intel quad core desktop, 3 yrs old now - a really nice yet inexpensive PC)
A/V editor/creator desktop (Dell 2009 described above, "Old Faithful")
Desktop PVR (you'll laugh...2008 Compaq, W7, Hauppauge Colossus + WMC - all this PC does is record video)
"Server/bedroom desktop" (small form factor Dell Inspiron from roughly 2013 - W10, SSD, does very little but serves a purpose)
Cabin PC (the W11 Pro GMKtec mini desktop from above)
Then a not very powerful ASUS laptop roughly 2014 vintage (W10, new recent SSD) in reserve (comes in handy when I travel)
I know, crazy - but they all have a specific use for me currently and only the Compaq PVR doesn't have an SSD. Then two 8 gig WD HDD's for "master storage" and I have a few older external HDD's as "unplugged backup copies of everything". It's been 20 years of putting this all together a piece at a time with all this. I did all this because I simply got tired of having formats change on me constantly - CD to mp3/FLAC, DVD to BD, and SDTV to HDTV and the cost/limitations of subscription DVR's triggered it, and I simply hated the concept of paying for someone else (online streaming subscriptions) to house media I already own.
The smoker, a Greenwerks pole saw, good kitchen knives (don't buy a block... buy 3-5 good knives instead and take care of them), cocktail smoker. I was gifted a decent drill/impact driver set for Xmas. That thing is a work horse and has made lots of projects much easier.
There are 3 things you never go cheap on-beer, toilet paper, and a mattress.
Bosch dishwasher to replace the crap one that came with the house. I fought that old SOB for a good 6+ years. It's nice not rinsing dishes beforehand and still finding crap on them after the cycle.
Should have had the installer leave it behind, so I could go throw it off a bridge. Or go "Office Space" on it.
Should have had the installer leave it behind, so I could go throw it off a bridge. Or go "Office Space" on it.
Vacuum that prevents pet hair from getting caught up in the brush rollers.
With long hair German shepherds I would have to remove it constantly and went through multiple expensive units when the motors would burn out or stopped working.
Best 150.00 I've ever spent.
With long hair German shepherds I would have to remove it constantly and went through multiple expensive units when the motors would burn out or stopped working.
Best 150.00 I've ever spent.
No can do, on blood thinners there Dr. Sprocket…
Bummer. Vitamin I is way better for the pain and inflammation of old concrete dudes.
Wife (no pics) bought a vacuum called the Shark or something like that to vacuum hardwood floors and rugs...thing is a life saver. love it.
Also, the shuffleboard we purchased about 4 years ago is a massive hit with the adults, teens, their friends, college kids...its a magnet. Super fun, best purchase for the fam.
For me thought...hands down has to be the fireplace insert we bought in 2019...OMG....the damn thing can heat the whole house, has fans built in it...its awesome.....I fire that thing up on a January Saturday morning...by 1pm the wife is turning the furnace heat down, by night time she has windows open upstairs cause its so hot...lol
Also, the shuffleboard we purchased about 4 years ago is a massive hit with the adults, teens, their friends, college kids...its a magnet. Super fun, best purchase for the fam.
For me thought...hands down has to be the fireplace insert we bought in 2019...OMG....the damn thing can heat the whole house, has fans built in it...its awesome.....I fire that thing up on a January Saturday morning...by 1pm the wife is turning the furnace heat down, by night time she has windows open upstairs cause its so hot...lol
The first day that mall over in Williamsburg off I-80 opened, whenever that was, I bought a $5 white plastic coffee maker for the shop. It has churned out thousands of pots of coffee since then. I don't think I have ever washed the glass pot either.
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