Is owning a home all it's cracked up to be?

The people we bought our house from were big-time DIYers, who basically “fixed” everything that went wrong themselves, over the course of the 45 years they were here.

I find shit that makes my head hurt on a daily basis. My favorite was when I took out a cabinet, and found it was covering a hole in the ceiling that they patched with duct tape, which they then painted white.

They also installed their own gas line to the stove and never bothered to replace the drywall behind it. So there was a big hole in the wall with exposed pipes and hoses.

I know enough to do some pretty big jobs, like redoing most of my kitchen. But it’s always better to just admit it if you don’t know anything.

 

Wife doesn't gamble. I likes me some blackjack.

 

Worst I've seen in a long time doing major renovations: Bought an old house and was told the first floor had been rewired, the old knob-and-tube replaced with white. Pull off the switch plates and sure enough, new wiring to every plug and switch. Great. The nice, very old couple who owned the house showed me the electrician's considerable bill as further evidence.

Buy the house, tear out the old lath and plaster. And... Electrician, rather than running new wire throughout, just put a foot of new wire inside every plug and switch and tied it into the knob-and-tube—thereby making the already sketchy knob-and-tube way more dangerous. There were black scorch marks in a number of places. That house was from the 1880s. The lath was dryer than a popcorn fart. That electrician could have incinerated that old couple so easily, it still makes my heart hurt to think about.

I tried to find him but couldn't. Apparently out of the business. I hope he's at the bottom of a lake.

I always had to gut the houses I bought, because I couldn't stand the idea of shit like that being hidden in the walls. I'd rather buy a dump and fix it than buy a "done" house that was slapped together by donkeys. When I was looking for a new place this time around, I realized that I didn't have the life-time to dedicate to a full renovation. I had to find something turnkey that wouldn't cripple me with mind chatter. My house, the best contractor in town did for his mother.

I'm assuming he loved her. I'm hoping he did.

 

Watch either of two television shows, "First-Time Flippers" or "Renovation Realities," and you'll never buy a house if you're not the first owner. I'm watching these complete idiots think they can redo their '60s-style kitchen and they don't know which end of a screwdriver to use.

"Honey, we need to disconnect the electricity from the old microwave."
"OK, let me get something to cut it with."
"Do you know if the power is still on?"
"I don't know. Let me cut it and we'll find out."

 

YouTube is a lifesaver. All the stuff that you used to need special knowledge to do can be figured out on your phone as you do it at the same time.

 

Don’t put your money in a house, says a new report

The report is a snapshot of various metro areas and not a definitive answer.

 

I think home ownership is important not because it makes you a ton of money, but because it's good for society for everyone on a block or in a neighborhood to have a long-term stake in it.

 

I've rented my apartment longer than any of the owners here have even been able to buy in. Yet they still don't think I'm invested.

That's an inaccurate generalization on their part -- and yours.

 

And if your landlord wants to demolish your apartment after your lease is up after your lease runs out, there isn't a thing you can do about it and your dedication to that building means squat.

 

Perhaps, but any neighborhood or condo building with an abnormally high number of renters is a huge red flag to lenders --- and should be to prospective buyers.

 

My dad always told me "location, location, location" and "there's only so much real estate". Admittedly, I live in the SF Bay Area, so the market has been, in the long run, a steady appreciation market for 50 years.

I've owned 2 homes now (wish it was more) and they've both been great homes and seen very real significant appreciation. Understandably that doesn't work for every house and every market.

My view is that if you can get into a house, do it because (1) if you take say 5 years and add up the rents vs. mortgage payments and insurance costs and maintenance costs (remember to subtract mortgage interest deduction) you'll come out ahead in the house probably and (2) there's the promise of potential appreciation in the home. There's no appreciation in a rental (obviously).

Home repairs though can be costly, I remember we had to put $15,000 for earthquake retrofitting, hard pill to swallow, but hey "its beautiful to see if you crawl underneath the house and admire all that work!" Paint job about 5 years ago, landscaping costs, irrigation system, etc. Those are all distinct possibilities.

But damn, it feels good to go home to YOUR home. I look at my home sometimes and I think to myself I never thought I would be able to enjoy that kind of home.

My caution is that don't over extend yourself immediately (or ever); be realistic with what you can afford, make that a priority in your life, then choose an area wisely. The choice will likely be "larger home" in a less desirable neighborhood (farther out from town, newer, less established), or smaller home in a more desirable area, more stable in terms of appreciation/depreciation. At one time I actually considered a 5000-6000 sq ft home but it meant an extra 40 mins each way; would have been a fantastic home to entertain, game room, huge backyard, etc. but wife reminded me "when are you going to be home?" Well after 2009, that area tanked and I would have lost my a**. Thankfully, we never did that and we are the better for it; we chose an area that was very stable and only lost 10% at the bottom of the market which has come roaring back.

Think long run, not short run, that's what owning a home is IMHO. Good luck!

 

I disagree, your living situation is still at the mercy of someone else.