Recently, I wrote about the house in my neighborhood that was on the market as a ‘short sale’, and shared my frustration that people who can fully afford their mortgage payments are allowed to just abandon their homes.

When I wrote about this house previously, it had originally been offered ‘for sale’ normally at $299,000.  Over the course of  less than 6 months, it became a bank owned property and the price had dropped to $238,000.  Shortly after that, the house did indeed sell, but for $208,000.

I recognize that most of you do not know where I live or have an understanding of housing prices in my area, but a 2800 square foot house in a city with an excellent school district selling for $208,000 is an incredible bargain (for the buyer). Of course, this sale will kill the comparables in our neighborhood, and my home’s assessment did go down dramatically.  I have no way of knowing how much this short sale affected my assessment, but I assume it had at least some impact.  Since we are not moving anytime soon, it only helps my tax situation.  However, for those that plan on moving, this house being sold at such a bargain-basement price can not be good news.

For Some, A Great Deal Is Still Not Enough

The other day, our new neighbor was outside doing some yard work.  Thankfully, they have been spending a lot of time fixing up the inside of the house, and they are now tackling the outside.  The house never had much curb appeal even when it was occupied, but after sitting all those months, the outside of the house is a mess.

While talking with the new homeowner, he was very frustrated- he was almost disgusted with the state of the yard.  I empathized with the guy, but then I thought “well what did these new homeowners expect?”.  This house was purchased at such a low price because it needed work inside and looked rather unkempt on the outside.  You can’t expect to get a deal on something and then then be frustrated when it is not perfect.

This conversation took me back to my point in another previous post where I figured that if banks (or whoever owns a property) put just a little bit of money into a house (and yard) that is for sale, the payback would be more than worth it.  Had a landscaper spent five hundred dollars just sprucing up the yard and made some minor changes to the outside, how much would the sale price of the home increased?  I am guessing by quite a bit more than 500 dollars.

The Lesson When Buying and Selling:

Next time you are selling ANYTHING, make sure it shines.  Do not let emotions rule you decisions, but use your common sense and possibly involve a third party to get an impartial opinion.  If you are looking to buy something, consider items that have cosmetic problems and appear to be undervalued for that very reason!

Disclaimer:  Keep in mind while you read this post that I am referring to people that can afford their mortgage payments, they just don’t like that their homes are underwater, so they choose to walk away.

In a previous post, I discussed a home in our neighborhood that was basically abandoned by the previous owners.  (They up and moved out of state, leaving the home to languish.  They were not in any financial distress by any means.)

In a nutshell, the home was put on the market in August of 2011 for $299,000 and when I last looked about 6 weeks ago, it was being offered as a short sale for $235,000.  I then noticed a lot of activity going on at the house, and I found out the house did indeed sell in February of 2012- for $208,000.

Yikes.

I have to say, that sale price is not good for anyone that is putting their house up for sale in the neighborhood, or wants to refinance.

At this point, I do not know if the new owners plan on staying in the house or flipping it.  For the sake of home prices, I hope it is a flip so that a new sale price can go on the record.

Strategic Defaults Do NOT Just Affect The Bank And The Homeowner

Now, I know that a lot of people feel that ‘strategically defaulting’ is perfectly A-OK because a mortgage is an agreement between a homeowner and the lending financial institution.  When the bank loans money, they assume a certain level of risk.  If a homeowner decides to walk away (or in the case of my neighbor, run away) from their mortgage commitment, the bank has to suck it up because no contract is air tight and risk free.

However, as a homeowner, I don’t want to have to suck it up when I can’t refinance because my home’s value is now too low because of the ridiculous price this home sold at.  (In reality, I don’t need to refinance, I already did that.)

I wonder though.  These strategic defaulters justify their actions by pinning it on it just being a broken contract between themselves and the bank.  Well, there are a lot of other people involved too, the defaulters just don’t see it.  What would be great is if each person that defaulted was forced to go to the closing of every house in the neighborhood that was affected by their bargain-basement priced home.  There could be an original sale price based on factors that do not include the defaulter’s home.  Then another price could be assigned factoring in the low price of the defaulter’s home.  I would like the defaulters to sit and face those sellers and see how much money they are truly costing other people.

Anyway, I don’t plan on moving or refinancing, so my neighbor’s house will not impact me.  However, I feel bad for all the people in the neighborhood that it will affect, and it makes me angry.

(Keep in mind, I do recognize there are two parts to the equation.  For every unhappy seller, there is a very happy buyer, which very well could justify the defaulter’s actions.  However, I think it would be very difficult to watch your (former) neighbors lose money.)

What do you think?  Do you think it is easier for people to walk away from their mortgage because they don’t actually SEE the financial impact on the neighborhood?  

I was born at the wrong time, at least when it comes to housing.

When my husband and I got married in 1991, there was no way we could afford a house.  I had student loan debt, we had wedding debt, and I had credit card debt from my last 2 years in graduate school.  So, we rented an apartment for the first two years of marriage.  Apartment living really wasn’t that bad, but when I became pregnant, we decided to start our search for a home.

Our first house cost $95,000, and it was a 1200 square foot, 3 bedroom ‘starter’ home.  I believed that due to FHA rules, we could not purchase a home that cost greater than $104,000 (may not be remembering the exact dollar amount). So, we were really happy with the home we were able to find that fell within FHA guidelines.  We were also happy with the interest rate, which was around 8 percent way back in 1993.

Happy with 8 percent?

Why yes!   Just three years prior, mortgage rates exceeded 10 percent on average, and two percent made a big difference in your monthly payment.

Now, fast forward to today where interest rates are less than half of what they were when we bought our house in 1993.

According to my mortgage calculator, our $95,000 loan at 8 percent resulted in a monthly payment of $697 for a 30 year loan.  That same loan amount today would only be $453.  That extra $244 would have covered our car payment back in 1993!

Now, couple historically low interest rates with low home prices, and this economy can be a homebuyer’s dream!!  As a matter of fact, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index, home ‘affordability’ is at record levels.

So, why isn’t the housing market just taking off?

Part of the reason is the restrictions on mortgage loans.  Apparently, the days of offering huge mortgage loans to those that really have no business buying an expensive home are over, at least for now.  Also, the employment rate is still not stellar, and you just can’t buy a home if you are not employed.

How Affordability Is Measured

The NAHB considers a home affordable if it can be purchased by people earning the average median income, which is $64,200.  The percentage of homes that can be purchased based on the median income is then determined, based on recent home sales.  Right now, nationwide, 75.9% of all new and existing homes are affordable to those who earn at least $64,200, which is the highest percentage since the inception of the Housing Opportunity Index (HOI), which was more than 20 years ago.  Obviously, some markets have a higher percent and are more affordable than others.  For example, only 29 percent of the  homes in the New York metro area were considered affordable by those that earn the  median income for that area of $67,400. On the other hand, Kokomo, Indiana homes were very affordable, with 99.2 percent of homes being deemed affordable according to the median income of that area of $59,100.   (If you are curious of how different areas in the nation rank in terms of affordability, check out the NAHB Reference List.)

It is amazing to think about how much easier the process of finding a home is now than it was back in 1993.  Twenty years ago, you almost solely relied on a realtor to give you information on homes that were available.  For financing, you might call a few mortgage brokers or go with your realtor’s recommendation for getting a decent mortgage rate. Today, you can search for a home, compare mortgage rates, and check out affordability indexes all online- 24 hours a day.

So, I wonder, for those readers out there that have some disposable income, what keeps you from either buying a larger home, or perhaps investing in rental property?  According to this info, there may not have ever been a better time in history to purchase a home, so are people crazy for NOT investing in real estate now?   Does this information make you think about your own situation, or are you totally set with the house you live in?  Thoughts?

Recently, I wrote about how we had refinanced our home through ING Direct. In our case, we had enough equity in our home to do a standard refinance.  (Unfortunately, not everyone does.)

Those that do not have 20 percent equity in their homes may still be able to refinance though through the federal  Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP).  The catch is, the mortgage must be backed by Sallie Mae or Freddie Mac.  However, not everyone knows if their mortgage is backed by Fannie or Freddie, and probably assume it is not.  (Bad assumption.)

How To Find Out if Sallie Mae or Freddie Mac Back Your Mortgage

You can either call or check online to see if your home is guaranteed by Fannie or Freddie.  It is really easy to check, and you don’t even need your account number:

Fannie Mae: 1-800-7-FANNIE or www.fanniemae.com/loanlookup
Freddie Mac: 1-800-FREDDIE or www.freddiemac.com/mymortgage

If your mortgage is owned by one of the agencies, there are still other qualifications that must be met.  A few examples are as follows:

*Home must have been sold to Fannie or Freddie on or before October 31, 2009.
*Timely payments must have been made on the property for the last 12 months.
*Your mortgage servicer must participate in the HARP program.

Additional Notes About Refinancing Through HARP

*Fees may still apply when refinancing.  However, it is possible that you will not need an appraisal.

*At this time, the program is only available until December, 2013.

*If you do decide to refinance, really think about the loan term you want to agree to.  Maybe consider taking a 15 year loan instead of 30 year if your monthly payment will be dropping because of the reduced interest rate.

*If you find that your mortgage is guaranteed by Fannie or Freddie, call your mortgage servicer to get more details and possibly initiate the process.

So, if you are frustrated with how high your interest rate is and wish you could lower it, click on the links above and see if maybe your mortgage is actually backed by Freddie/Fannie.  It only takes a minute to check, and it may just end up saving you hundreds of dollars a month if you actually are eligible for the program.

If you have actually refinanced or tried to finance through HARP (or want to discuss refinancing in general), please leave a comment!

We bought our house 10 years ago, at a price and interest rate that seemed incredibly reasonable.

A few years later, we refinanced our mortgage from a 30 year to 15 year term, and got what we thought was an incredibly low rate of 4.75 percent.

A few months ago, I started looking in to refinancing yet again, even though it was something I thought I would never have to do since my previous rate seemed so low at the time.  After a lot of research, we decided to refinance with ING Direct.  We chose a 7 year ARM at 3.125 percent.

The process was incredibly easy.  Most of it was done over the phone and internet, and the closing costs were reasonable.  (Yes, I do know there are no-cost refinancing options available, but from what I saw, the higher interest rate that came with the no closing cost options more than made up for what I would pay in closing costs.  Proved the point that not much in life is truly free.)   We didn’t even have to go anywhere to sign the final paperwork – a representative came to our house for that!

Refinancing took about a month, and the most stressful part was waiting for the final appraisal value on our home.  I wasn’t worried that our home was underwater or anything, I was just afraid it was way below what we paid for it since housing prices have dropped so much in our area.  Unfortunately, our house appraised out at $20,000 less than we paid for it 10 years ago, even though we have spent quite a bit of money in home renovations.  It could have been worse though.. but it does drive home the fact that a house is not an investment, but a place to live.

We didn’t just refinance what we owed.  We took out some extra money for various other reasons.  After all, when else will I ever have the opportunity to borrow money at just over 3 percent?  Keep in mind, we still plan on paying off our house within 6 years or so.  However, this extra money will provide some flexibility and we also invested some of the money in the kid’s college funds. (Considering we can deduct up to $10,000 in college plan contributions from our Michigan state income taxes, we are already coming out ahead since the interest rate on the borrowed money is so low.)  However, we still did not borrow the entire amount that we qualified for, as we wanted to keep our monthly payment below a certain amount.

My Biggest Tip When Refinancing Your Home

When you start the refinancing process, you are asked how much you want to refinance (meaning the amount owed or amount owed + cash back), and how long you would like the loan term to be.

Know the answers to those questions before you even initiate the process!!!

Mortgage companies want you to borrow as much money as possible and for as long a term as possible.  Don’t be influenced by what you can have, only take out what you can afford.  In our case, the increased payment is easily affordable and our payoff date will be no different after the refinance than it was before.  (Based on the payoff plan we created for ourselves.)  We are very disciplined when it comes to money, so we are trying to optimize the money available to us.  However, if you do not have a set amount in mind ahead of time, it might be tempting to just borrow the maximum amount allowed.   (Which can lead to disaster down the road.)

Overall, I found the entire refinancing process easy, and it was also interesting to know the market value of our home. (Even if it wasn’t the amount I wanted it to be.)  The real test will be how responsive ING Direct will be if any issues arise down the road.

Have you refinanced lately?  What was your experience?

I hope everyone is all ready for Thanksgiving.  This will be a great Thanksgiving for me as my whole family will be together, and some are traveling from as far away as California (to Michigan).

So, I will be taking a little break from my website for a few days while I enjoy time with my visitors!

However, I will leave you with a couple Thanksgiving cooking thoughts:  If you are looking for a side dish to serve this holiday season, try this recipe for Sweet Potato Casserole.   You will swear you are eating pumpkin pie strangely enough.  Also, if you are stressed out about making homemade gravy, read this post containing tips for making gravy.  Once you master the art of gravy making, you may never go back to store bought gravy again.

I hope everyone has a wonderful and safe holiday, and as always, thank you for reading!

I watch quite a few home shows, and I have to say I love them.  Watching these shows gives me an opportunity to briefly live in another part of the country, or even the world.

One thing that many people on the show have in common  is this:  They want to upgrade to a bigger home.  Maybe a second child is on the way, or a tax credit becomes available and people feel like they must move now to take advantage.

But Do These People Really Have To Move?

Obviously, I do not live in the people’s shoes that are on these shows, but often when I watch, I wonder “why are they leaving”?  Quite often, prospective ‘movers’ walk through a new home and say “well these countertops aren’t  granite, waaaaahhhhh”.  They want a massive amount of amenities in a new home but at a low, low price.  In the end, they buy a more expensive house and then spill a bunch of money into the upgrades.  (In other words, the new home may be in even worse condition than their current home, but maybe a little bigger.)

Instead of deciding to up and move the minute a house feels a little cramped or outdated, why not really take a close look at your existing living space instead?  You can even involve a friend you trust that has an aptitude for design or just has good home ‘vision’. (Obviously if your neighborhood has suddenly become a crime zone or you need to relocate for work, your focus needs to shift from following these steps to make your home more sellable than to decide if you need to move or not.)

10 Steps To Take Before Putting Up The FOR SALE Sign:

1. Identify A Third Party That Can Help You With the Process.  If you and/or your spouse evaluate your living space, you may just see things a certain way to justify a decision to move.  Walk through the house with your ‘home helper’ and list everything you don’t like about the house and why you need to move.
2. Declutter.  Maybe the reason you feel like you are outgrowing your space is because of all the excess toys/books/knick knacks laying around.  I know I feel very unsettled when the family rooms seems ‘out of control’.  Don’t know if it is a lack of feng shui or what, but I know I am not calm and serene when books are stacking up and mail is strewn across the table.  Also, be ruthless about what goes into the donation or trash pile.  Is the shelf full of Precious Moments figurines really still appreciated? Are there some bikes in the garage that are no longer used?  Are there other children out there that could benefit from some of the toys that are strewn everywhere in the basement?
3. Create Usable Storage Space.  Once all the extra stuff is gone, look around and see how what is left could be properly stored.  I have this issue with photos and mementos from the kids.  I have boxes that are falling apart and are crammed with old drawings, reports cards, etc from the kids.  I want to keep these items, but I don’t want them sitting in a collapsed box in my bedroom.  Actually, just seeing that box is frustrating for me, and I see it every single day.  Look at how you are storing mementos and such.  Are random boxes of ‘stuff’ taking up usable space in your home?  Is there a way instead to store important items that are not accessed much in a different way that would not make you feel closed in?
4. Clean and Polish.  Once everything has its own place in your home and the clutter has been donated or thrown away, look at your home and make the most of what you have.   Make those kitchen cabinets and counter tops sparkle.  Clean out the refrigerator inside and out (and behind).  Have the carpets professionally cleaned.  Vacuum the blinds and wash the windows.  In other words, clean your house like it actually is going on the market, and you know you want top dollar for the house!   Clean to impress, not to just get it done.
5. Evaluate Each Room.  Now that each room is cleaned and organized to perfection, sit and think about how you use each room.  Does the dining room sit there empty 360 days of the year?  If so, then maybe that room needs a different purpose.  Does one of the bedrooms act as a catchall for leftover stuff?  Then you need to change your habits and not bring things into the house that are just going to sit in a spare room, never to be seen from again.  You can rearrange furniture, do whatever you like to try and get the most out of each and every room in your home.
6. Decorate!  Now that your rooms are nearly perfect as they are, see if there is an extra touch that can be added to make the room more aesthetically pleasing.  Maybe it is a nice centerpiece on the table or a new painting on the wall.  Design the room in a way you like and can appreciate.
7. Walk Outside.  Stand at the sidewalk and see what you do and do not like about the look of your home.  Do you hate the color of the front door?  Have the plants gotten overgrown?  Have you always wanted a little bench underneath the giant maple tree that you could sit at and read a book?  Making inexpensive changes to your yard can make a big difference about how you feel when you pull up in your driveway each day.
8. Take Some Time To Think and Then Walk Through the Home Again.  Now that your home is spotless and clutter free, live in it a little bit.  See if there is a new paint color you would like on the wall, or maybe there are other ways rooms could be repurposed.   Do you still feel cramped?  Do you still have a negative feeling about the house?  Make a list of things you still do not like.  Is the Formica countertop really wearing on your nerves?  Is the pink tile in the bathroom an eyesore?   Do you still have legitimate complaints about the house?
9. Think Renovation Instead of Relocation.  Every home has some areas that need improvement, and maybe it is the countertop.  Instead of picking up and moving to find that perfect kitchen, could a few changes be made to your own kitchen instead?  Remember, moving is an expensive endeavor, and you will spend thousands of dollars in closing costs, realtor fees, and more if you do move.  Not to mention that the new house will not be perfect either and will most likely need some improvements.  Add up just what the ‘sunk costs’ would be for moving such as the closing/realtor/mover fees.  What if you spent that amount of money renovating your current home intead, would that bring you closer to owning a dream home?
10. Think About Why You Want To Move.  Is it because there are so many ‘deals’ out there in the market and you can now buy a huge house for the money?  If that is the case, then disregard that thought.  There is never a guarantee that your house will not go down in value, and there are huge costs that accompany a huge house.   Buying more space than you need just because you can is still a waste of money, and totally unnecessary.  Sit down an evaluate why you think you need such a big house instead.  Maybe you need to evaluate your spending habits in general.

Moving Is Not A Party, No Matter How Much Pizza You Buy

I love Halloween, and always have.  The fall is such a wonderful time of year, and when you combine falling leaves, cider and trick or treating, it is perfect!

I was watching the news the other day, and the newscaster was providing all kinds of Halloween safety tips.  The news story made me stop and think about how Halloween has changed over the years.  The general theme has obviously remained the same, but there are some differences.

Halloween In The 1970s

When I was a kid, costumes were not elaborate.  We bought a plastic mask, some cheap costume, and marched up and down the streets with a pillowcase.

Fun-size  candy bars were more the exception than the rule.  Dum dum suckers, Mary Janes, Black Jacks, Smarties and Good N Plenty were much more common.  Now that I think about it, I didn’t even like much of the candy I received, but it sure was special to go out trick or treating.

Devil’s Night (I believe it is called ‘Mischief Night’ in some parts of the country) was almost exciting.  I used to hide on our front porch to try and catch someone egging or soaping our car.  (We all parked in the street.)  I never did catch anyone, but the thought of seeing such vandalism was intriguing.

Pumpkins were carved traditionally.  Triangle eyes and a mouth with some missing teeth.  Pumpkins were great.

Nobody wore reflective bands or carried glow sticks.   Kids just ran door to door (although they still looked both ways before crossing the street).  The streets were packed with trick or treaters!

Halloween in the 2000s

The majority of my kid’s candy now seems to be fun-sized and regular sized candy bars.  I would have been ecstatic  if candy bars had been so popular in my youth, and probably pretty sick too.

According to that news story I watched, masks should not be worn because they are just not safe enough, and kids should all wear something reflective on their costume.   No masks?  Well I should have been arrested when my son was 8 and wore a Darth Vader costume, which was all black, and had a mask AND  a helmet.  Although a light saber might have appeased the child safety experts… but would it also be considered a weapon?  Hard to say.  (I will say though that I would have never let him trick or treat alone in that costume…)

Pumpkins can be considered a work of art.  I have seen some very elaborate scenes carved out of pumpkins, and it looks very labor intensive.  I thought the fancy pumpkins were interesting the first year I saw them, but then they lost their novelty for me- and I prefer the standard pumpkin. (Although I still think the vomiting pumpkin is funny, where the  ’guts’ are strewn in front of the mouth.)

Speaking of pumpkin guts, I also saw a news story the other day about how a major road was closed because of  ’pumpkin debris’.  That was a first for me.

Detroit took Devil’s Night to an all new level where fires  were set all over the city.  I believe it is now called ‘Angel’s Night’ and there is extra effort to prevent arson.  (The wide spread fires in Detroit actually started in the 1990s.)

Kids in our area now start trick or treating in the daylight since the clocks ‘fall back’ in November now. I just cannot get used to daylight trick or treating!

There are Halloween stores all over the place.  Right now, many of the out-of-business Borders stores have become ‘Spirit Halloween’.  I have to admit though, I love going in these stores…

If You Live In Southeast Michigan…

Even though things are a little different now than when I was growing up, Halloween is still a great holiday.  If anything, people seem to decorate more now than they did when I was a kid.  What else is great is that it isn’t even a Hallmark Holiday!

Speaking of decorations, I don’t know how many of you readers live in the Metro Detroit area, but if you do, head out to Tillson Street in Romeo and see the best Halloween decorations I have ever seen.  The street is made up of older homes, and the way homeowners have decorated their homes and yards is amazing.  You can park your car and take a stroll up and down the street and at the end, stop at the Dairy Queen that is right there.  I am not affiliated with this ‘presentation’ in any way, I just enjoy going there every year and wanted to spread the word.  If you want more information, go to TerrorOnTillson.com.

What are your Halloween plans?

So President Obama has another plan to help out the housing industry.

In synopsis, this revision to the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) will allow ‘struggling homeowners’ with good credit history, no late payments in the last 6 months, and have a mortgage backed by Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac to refinance without a credit check or home appraisal.  (Other exceptions do apply.)   One article said that the purpose was to alleviate the pressure on ‘homeowners who are underwater’.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I totally sympathize with those that bought their home at a high price and the house is now worth 50 percent of the original purchase price.

However, why is there pressure on these under water homeowners, and why do they need to be rescued?

Don’t Hate Me Because Of My Opinion

When we bought our home, we paid what the market would bear at that point in time.  The market soared after we bought our house, and we could have made a lot of money on our home had we sold it about 2 years after we moved in.  But, we didn’t view our home as an investment, we viewed it as a place to live and raise our family, so we stayed put.

Flash forward 8 more years, and the value of our home has dropped to below what we paid for it.  We are not under water because we aggressively paid down our mortgage, and we did not do a cash-out refinance when our home was worth a lot during the housing boom. What we did do was bought a home that we could afford on one income, and we paid our bills responsibly.

That should not be a novel idea!

So Why Do People Who Are Under Water Need Bail Outs??

Paper gains and paper losses occur all the time.  Why are mortgages treated differently than stocks?  Does anyone care that my 401k was down 10 percent for the third quarter of this year?  After all, my retirement account is now worth less than it was in June, shouldn’t someone be worried about my retirement and be willing to provide a special program for me?  Nobody promises when you buy a house that it will appreciate in value.  Buying a house can be a risky proposition, and should be treated as such.  That is why you should not buy more home than you can afford.

Keep in mind, in theory I think it is just fine that homeowners that qualify will be able to refinance and lower their overall mortgage bill. I just don’t understand why so much attention is paid to under water homes when really, the value of a home does not really matter unless you absolutely have to move.   Also, if you purchase only what you can truly afford, then being ‘under water’ shouldn’t affect you at all. (Exception given to those who are forced to relocate.)  Whether my house is worth half a million or a hundred thousand really doesn’t affect my monthly cash flow. My mortgage payment is static for the term of the mortgage, and the revised ‘value’ of the home does not matter.  As a matter of fact, if people did not know what their house was currently worth and just went about paying their bills, would the housing crisis be as bad?  Is the mere fact that people KNOW that they owe more than their house than the house is worth causing panic and encouraging people to walk away from their mortgages?  Just because your home is worth less than you paid for it doesn’t mean you are suddenly in financial distress!

So, is a lot of the housing crisis really just on paper?  Really, this new mortgage program is aimed at people that do not have much equity in their home, and are not in foreclosure or dire straits.   In other words, it is designed to help those that have a ‘paper loss’ on their home but are not at risk of default.  Is that any different than having poor returns in your 401k?  What do you think?

I am so mad at myself.

I just finished cleaning out my refrigerator, and I am embarrassed to say that I threw out a LOT of food.

Why My Family Ends Up Wasting Food

1. Life gets busy and meal planning becomes haphazard
2. My refrigerator is not organized
3. I am buying things that I forget about and do not use before expiration
4. Some leftovers are just being forgotten, especially from restaurants