Financing at the house bank - Offer evaluation

Regarding the other point, I would also like to question today's parent generation to see if maybe they are making things unnecessarily difficult for themselves. Perhaps times have changed. But in my elementary school days, there was no parent taxi. We walked to school alone or with friends for 15-20 minutes in wind, weather, snow, and cold. The same applies to all leisure activities. We would come home briefly at noon for lunch and then head back out into nature alone. Since the high school was also in town, that basically did not change afterward; only the circle of friendships grew larger, and sometimes the bus was used.

I find such statements extremely amusing. "Back then, we had…" But your children live in today's society. Your child will be pretty lonely wandering "through nature" if you push them out the door after lunch. Today's children's leisure activities are no longer spontaneous like "back then." Even at a friend's house three doors down, there is no spontaneous ringing the bell like "are you coming out to play," but an appointment is made first. You may find that annoying or not, but that's the society the offspring have to find their way in. If your child roams around the neighborhood in the afternoon like a lonely wolf, they will probably be bullied badly soon.

However, one has to be clear that currently, less than 2,000 rate per month simply doesn't work.

But all those people with rates of 13-1500€ don’t understand that. In 10-15 years, a rate of 2000€ adjusted for purchasing power will only be about 1300€. If the inflation firework strikes again (which many assume with falling interest rates), the debts will devalue themselves.

It is not a question of whether one is a low or high earner. That does not matter at all. As is known here, I am probably one of the few low earners or minimum wage workers.

But I enjoy my quality of life. I pay no wage or income tax and thus do not waste a considerable part of my earnings on the state. I also have no stress at work, no overtime. I do not stand in traffic jams for hours on the way to work.

I also had a 4-day workweek for 15 years. That was quite nice too.

I currently have no loans. I have always paid for my house construction out of ongoing and saved equity. Sure, there were probably a few years with a tight financial situation.

But it is true that the more wealth you have built up, the greater the fear of loss becomes. If I enter into dependence on a bank, then by signing the loan agreement I lose my personal freedom. That is just the way it is.

Also, my employer can dismiss me tomorrow morning. No problem. I would receive 20 months of unemployment benefits (ALG I) and would manage well with that.
As I said, in summer I sit predictably at around 3:50 p.m. in my garden by the pool and enjoy coffee with my wife.

And when I read the net family incomes here in relation to the saved equity, it makes one feel sick.

Finally, one more remark. What use is the most beautiful house if you cannot enjoy it because of work and stress?

Yes, it used to be like that. But there was also significantly less traffic on the roads back then.

And the rest are just stupid prejudices. On weekends, school friends of my 6-year-old daughter often stand unannounced at the door and want to either pick her up for cycling or come inside to play.

She goes alone to the neighbors 10 houses away, I don’t take her there.
It also depends on oneself to bring the children to where you want them to be ;)

All those people with installments of €13-1500 just don’t understand. In 10-15 years, an installment of €2000 adjusted for purchasing power is also only about €1300. If the inflation fireworks strike again (which many expect despite falling interest rates), the debts will devalue themselves.

Only if salaries rise accordingly. But that won’t happen, the big gulp from the bottle (8.5% IG Metall) has to last for quite a while. This can’t go on forever and prices will remain high. We are now so absurdly expensive that compared to other companies from Eastern Europe you can no longer sell even with good quality and reliability.

On the other hand, in 10 or 15 years my installment of €1,200 will then also be only €700.

Yes, you can also earn 4300 net elsewhere in Ingolstadt. But not nearly in the numbers as at Audi and certainly not as an engineer reachable as a simple clerk with a 35-hour week. Can an engineer earn that money as a doctor? No. Can he earn it as a lawyer? No. Can he earn it as a banker? No. Can he earn it as a teacher? Maybe in individual cases. As a long-time corporate official with children in a higher position moving into consulting? Questionable, also rather individual cases. If a few hundred positions at Audi are cut (why always bring up the extreme of bankruptcy?), then good luck as an engineer searching for a job in Ingolstadt (moving isn’t because of the house). Yes, so far the severance programs have always been socially acceptable and sometimes one was royally compensated. At Mercedes, for example, it feels like there is always a severance program. From one to the next. Mostly, people who wanted to quit or young people who could/wanted to move on accepted them. But only a few former employees made big leaps afterward. Of course, you can also try to sit it out. But if you are told you are no longer needed and they strangle you with some job creation measures (and that does happen in reality), then it is a long, frustrating path until your loan is paid off. Then you would celebrate a life and a job that yields 1k net less but brings you daily joy. The crucial point is yet to come: all these generous severances are voluntary and there is no legal entitlement to them. They will probably still exist in the big corporations in 3-4 years. But will it still be like that in 10 years and you then simply be gone for operational reasons without any bonus? But I know, here everyone is a super performer for whom such a scenario is no problem. Yes, they always exist. They are even more successful elsewhere. Others are hit to the core. Here in the forum, of course, only the first type is represented.