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Cake day: June 11th, 2023

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  • Rivalarrival@lemmy.todaytoLemmy Shitpost@lemmy.worldHorror
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    24 days ago

    Hot air balloon pilot here: We do, indeed.

    This is a “Cloudhopper”. It’s a hot air balloon with no basket: The pilot straps a propane tank to his back and wears a climbing harness. As you can see, the pilot is, effectively, walking on water with the assistance of the balloon.

    Cloudhoppers are about 20,000 to 35,000 cubic feet, 40-50 feet in diameter. They are about 1/3 to 1/2 the size of most of the balloons you might see at a fair or festival.







  • To the occupant, “Land Contracts” are probably the most rent-like alternatives to actual rent.

    I would draw a big target on institutional investors, by jacking property taxes through the roof, while issuing “homestead” exemptions to owner occupants. As soon as we do that, every landlord (who doesn’t live on the property) is going to get hit with a massive tax bill…

    OR

    … they are going to find some way to make their “tenant” qualify as the “owner”.

    Here’s where “Land Contracts” come in. These are a form of seller financing. They are recorded by the county, much like a deed. The “buyer” is considered the owner.

    With a land contract, you pay a fixed monthly payment, much like a mortgage. That payment normally doesn’t change for the life of the contract: You aren’t going to face a steep rent hike every year.

    For the first three years, you are free to walk away from the property, just like leaving a rental. Ownership simply reverts to the seller.

    After three years, your previous payments are considered the “down payment” on the property. The contract converts to a traditional mortgage. You continue to make the same payments, but now, you have equity in the home.

    So, you can get the short-term flexibility of renting, but if you realize you’ve settled down, you’re already well on your way to ownership.

    Landlords get a way to claim that the property is occupied by the “owner”, and avoid the massive tax hike.

    Adopting this, the only properties that will remain “for rent” will be the spare units in duplexes, triplexes, and quadplexes, where the landlord occupies one of the units.