Refi'd my 3.5% rate for a new deck and now I'm underwater on paper

Tbh I saw a before-and-after in my home equity drop from $80k to -$12k over 6 months because I cashed out to build a redwood deck that cost $22k. The deck looks great but my Zestimate nosedived when rates jumped. Anyone else regret pulling cash out at the worst possible time?

2 comments

2 Comments

jamienguyen3d ago

The deck looks great" - that's the part that really stings, isn't it? I did something similar, pulled out cash to put in a fancy paver patio that cost me $15k. Now my equity went from like $60k to basically nothing and I'm just sitting here staring at my pretty stones wondering if they're worth the mortgage I'm stuck with. At least you can have barbecues on your redwood deck while you cry about the numbers, right? Can't tell you how many times I've looked at my Zestimate and just sighed. It's like we paid a premium to be underwater in style or something.

noah_webb3d ago

Man, right? Nothing like a nice patio to distract you from the bank account. It's the prettiest anchor you'll ever own.