i'm a Canadian, and as i understand Americans can write off mortgage interest (we can't in Canada). my advise to you would be seek the advice of an actuary (they are people that do long term math based on all your wishes and wants, in in a simple explanation, to give you your probabilities and your possibilities. My wife and i consult with ours every 2 years to determine when we can stop working. the last consultation told us that based on our needs and wants that based on all recorded data since (and including) the depression in the '30's, we have a 75% chance of not going broke before we are 90 years old. how you individually interpret the results is based on your belief of the probability of the future. ). i'm an admirer of the permaculture way, and try to integrate as much as i can into our urban living situation, and am always looking for advantages to change having to work for a living into wanting to work for a living.
i have always found that if you have a personal connection/ relationship with anyone you deal with (ie: bank employees in particular loans officers), you are more likely to get favourable treatment from them versus a "stranger".
make me envious of you by being successful, then let us know how you did it!
good luck!
greg
