As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.
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Here's the sitch: We've been in a bad financial place for a long time. Years of erratic income from self-employment wreaked havoc on the credit scores. This year, we are finally getting some monkeys off our back as far as credit card and loan debt. Hubby lives in a jointly owned home in Ohio. I live in a $$ rental in Florida. I have a real job with benefits now and I don't see myself going back to Ohio any time soon. The market in the area here is very depressed, so if my credit were good, I could get a steal on a house, like, yesterday. However, I need a year or so to let the dust settle and let the credit bounce back up to where it needs to be to qualify for a mortgage on my own.
I hate writing the check to the landlord every month. It galls me, esp when I see how much house I could have around here for a lot less, insurance and taxes included. I'd really like to look into a house next year. However, I am still on the mortgage in Ohio, so it would be as though I were buying a "second" home. I also have a hefty car payment that will be left. Part of me thinks I should use what I was planning to save for a down payment to pay off my car and focus hubby's extra on paying off the Ohio house, THEN start thinking about my own home ownership. That would delay me to 2013, but would give me an extra year of distance from the bad ju-ju on the credit. It would cost me probably $3600 in "wasted" money in the rental, plus who knows what the housing market will be like then?
I would pay down your current debt, as it will increase your credit score and make it easier to get a loan in the future. Good luck, I was looking into buying a house here and I just don't have the ability to get that kind of loan right now.
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Your debt is accruing interest faster than any savings plan possible would.
IOW, $1,000 of debt will grow faster than $1,000 of savings.
So in the long run, you're better off paying down an existing debt, than you are putting those exact same dollars into savings. Even the best savings account nowadays will make, what, 2%/year? 3%/year, maybe?
Meanwhile, credit cards and mortgages are, what, 15%/year? More?
IOW: 15% of $1000 is $150. 3% of $1000 is $30. By paying the debt off, you "earn" an extra $120 you wouldn't have had, if you'd saved those dollars instead.
...
Always pay off your debts, first. If you have money you can afford to save ... DON'T SAVE, pay your debts with it instead! Aim for 0 debt, THEN start saving!
I agree with everyone. DH and I have been doing the same for quite some time and are almost debt free, I can just taste it! Once that's done, then we'll start the savings! Good luck!
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Thanks for the responses so far. Does it change anything if the interest rate on both the car and the mortgage is 5%?
How does the $3600 in extra rent money over the year of paying mortgage/car debt rather than saving for the down payment play into the calculation? And...should my goal really be to be debt-free before even starting to save the down payment to buy a house? (I still have 3 years left on the car). I won't have any CC debt, just the car/mortgage.
Thanks for the responses so far. Does it change anything if the interest rate on both the car and the mortgage is 5%?
The car is probably a lower payment. Finish it ASAP, so you can roll the WHOLE thing into the mortgage.
When making extra payments, by the way? DO NOT just make a larger-than-normal payment. Make a second, separate payment, and make sure it is labelled "APPLY TO PRINCIPLE". ^_^ That's what you want to do, reduce the principle portion of the loan ASAP ... as that's what the interest is calculated on.
If you pay an extra $1,000 to a mortgage, and allow the bank to "assume" it's intended to go towards the interest? Then you pay yourself off $100 faster.
OTOH, if you pay that extra $1,000 directly to the principle? Then you may be paid off $2,000 or$ 5,000 sooner!! That's because that particular chunk of principle won't be generating that 5% interest for 5, 10, 15, or however-many years ...!
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I agree with everyone - pay off debt first. However, if you're feeling the need to save, why not do both? Pay off the debt, but also put something away each month in savings. It needn't be much, but it will help you feel better about where you're going and what you're doing with your life.
Think of it as not throwing away that money on rent . . . keep in mind, with home ownership comes lots of unexpected costs from repairs. Be glad that while you're saving for your home and paying down debt - you can rely on the lanlord to pay for any emergencies. I know it's not the same, but I think remembering that helps.
You'll be financially sound and in your own home soon!
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