08/12/2026
It's August, which means I'm hearing a version of this several times a week: "We're keeping the house so the kids don't have to change schools."
I want to be clear that this is a completely reasonable thing to want. Stability matters, and a school district is a real consideration, not a sentimental one. I'm not in the business of telling people that keeping the house is the wrong call.
What I do want is for it to be a decision rather than a default. Which means answering three things first:
• Can one income carry the payment, taxes, insurance and upkeep, not just this year, but through the years the school district actually matters?
• Does the equity math still work once the true costs of accessing that equity are accounted for?
• Is the refinance timeline written into the agreement realistic for this particular file?
Sometimes all three answers come back clean, and the family keeps the house with confidence instead of hope. Sometimes one of them doesn't, and it's far better to learn that in August than in the middle of a school year, under pressure, with fewer options.
Either way, the numbers should come before the decision, not after it.
Happy to run them for anyone weighing this right now.
