Current Events > Why is owning a home seen as an accomplishment?

(+) Yeah! (+)

Odds are, your mortgage is higher than rent in the area.

You're still technically renting because the bank owns the house, and you aren't paying it off until you're in your 50s or 60s.

Have to do all maintenance and upkeep yourself.

Very difficult to sell if you do want to move.

It just doesn't seem like a step up above renting from a decent apartment complex.

It shows you made the right choices in life and met an important milestone

few people can achieve such debt and property taxes

Spiritlittle posted...

You're still technically renting because the bank owns the house, and you aren't paying it off until you're in your 50s or 60s.

Paid mine off in my 30s

Spiritlittle posted...

Have to do all maintenance and upkeep yourself.

i pay people to do a lot of it

Spiritlittle posted...

It just doesn't seem like a step up above renting from a decent apartment complex.

It depends on what you value

If you are ready to settle down in an area, a home is a good investment and an exciting life milestone traditionally associated with things like marriage and raising kids

Spiritlittle posted...

Odds are, your mortgage is higher than rent in the area.

Maybe sometimes, but also you are building equity with your mortgage

Spiritlittle posted...

you aren't paying it off until you're in your 50s or 60s.

At which point you own it.

Spiritlittle posted...

renting from a decent apartment complex.

Then you're in your 50s or 60s and you spent the same to own nothing.

I inherited my house.

How to say I dont know anything about home equity without saying I dont know anything about home equitythe topic in TCs post

Because if you buy a home early enough, you can have it paid off by the time you retire. And then you're set. No rent, just utilities and you can pass the home on to your kid(s).

And if you save up a large enough down payment, the mortgage can be cheaper than rent

Spiritlittle posted...

Odds are, your mortgage is higher than rent in the area.

You're still technically renting because the bank owns the house, and you aren't paying it off until you're in your 50s or 60s.

Have to do all maintenance and upkeep yourself.

Very difficult to sell if you do want to move.

It just doesn't seem like a step up above renting from a decent apartment complex.

When I owned a house the mortgage was significantly cheaper than renting the same house would have been.

Instead of lining a landlord's pockets you eventually have a property that you can sell and make all of the money back, potentially way more depending on where the market goes.

No sharing walls with strangers

Free to make whatever changes you want, and can add equity to the home

Just a few benefits off the top of my head

Oh yeah and rent is getting so out of hand that monthly mortgage payments really aren't that bad

Spiritlittle posted...

Odds are, your mortgage is higher than rent in the area.

where is that true?

Best parts of owning a home to me

Pay way less than rent costs here ($1600/mo vs $2300/mo for something equivalent).

Upgraded appliances instead of being stuck with the basic shit that most apartments are equipped with

Attached garage so my car doesn't get dirty/worn from environmental exposure and wankers don't come along damaging it or stealing stuff out of it.

Because its yours. You n maybe someone else worked and saved hard to buy it and make it your own.

Solid_Sonic posted...

I inherited my house.

Nothing wrong with that.

Hey, if you really want a house and you work up enough to afford one, especially in today's insane market, you deserve at least a little praise.

Supersex420 posted...

It shows you made the right choices in life and met an important milestone

As someone who will never likely be able to afford a house damn.

Boy did it suck buying in 2005 right before the big crash and bear market in 2008-12. But Im eternally grateful that I held onto it through all that time.

Spiritlittle posted...

Odds are, your mortgage is higher than rent in the area.

Not true, I was paying $1300 a month for a 4-bedroom house, while people in the area were paying $1500+ for a 2-bedroom apartment. All the money wasted on rent you will never see again in life. I don't want to sell my house now that it's paid off, but the value has increased by 130k from when I purchased.

g980 posted...

Paid mine off in my 30s

Same, my house was paid off by 34. It's not a difficult thing to do if you prioritize expenses and it also helps that I don't have children to support.

Lil_Bit83 posted...

Nothing wrong with that.

Inherited wealth makes society less of a meritocracy.

home ownership is the best indicator of future wealth and assets and financial security

Glob posted...

Inherited wealth makes society less of a meritocracy.

Nothing wrong with leaving something for your loved ones.

thronedfire2 posted...

where is that true?

In Seattle. Nearly every house is $700,000 and above. In the east side area, its about a $1,000,000

Fair points in this topic, for sure.

But I don't see how many people can afford a house in my area. The cheapest houses are close to $500,000, while my rent is only $850.

I'm a teacher with a pretty low income ceiling and it caps after 15 years of service, and you have to have 30 years complete to retire with full pension.

I definitely could afford a house at some point. I'm pretty good at saving money. I'm 28 and have around $45,000 in savings and $9000 in checking. But I also HATE the area and city I live in right now so I mentally would just feel awful if I was chained to this place.

Definitely good points though if you really like the area you live in. (I'm also gay and not gonna have biological children, so having a house and then retiring and selling it and moving to wherever is definitely appealing.)

Bought a house when I was 25, had to sell it when I got laid off from the pandemic.

Much accomplishment.

Spiritlittle posted...

Fair points in this topic, for sure.

But I don't see how many people can afford a house in my area. The cheapest houses are close to $500,000, while my rent is only $850.

I'm a teacher with a pretty low income ceiling and it caps after 15 years of service, and you have to have 30 years complete to retire with full pension.

I definitely could afford a house at some point. I'm pretty good at saving money. I'm 28 and have around $45,000 in savings and $9000 in checking. But I also HATE the area and city I live in right now so I mentally would just feel awful if I was chained to this place.

Definitely good points though if you really like the area you live in. (I'm also gay and not gonna have biological children, so having a house and then retiring and selling it and moving to wherever is definitely appealing.)

I was a teacher also when I purchased my house. The thing for me is that I saved up to purchase a house, but I couldn't afford anything decent living in California. I moved to Nevada, where houses were much cheaper. I was able to get a low interest loan through a Nevada teacher home buying program, and they even gave me an extra $7500 to use toward the down payment/closing costs that wasn't required to be paid back as long as you live in the home for 5 years.

Gamingsince1989 posted...

I was a teacher also when I purchased my house. The thing for me is that I saved up to purchase a house, but I couldn't afford anything decent living in California. I moved to Nevada, where houses were much cheaper. I was able to get a low interest loan through a Nevada teacher home buying program, and they even gave me an extra $7500 to use toward the down payment/closing costs that wasn't required to be paid back as long as you live in the home for 5 years.

Wow. That's a sweet deal.

NC treats teachers like shit. :( We don't even have Masters pay anymore and no retirement if you started after 2020.

Lil_Bit83 posted...

Nothing wrong with leaving something for your loved ones.

Yes there is, when it creates a more unfair world for future generations.

I have one but I felt no excitement about it

I get why people enjoy owning homes, but I don't particularly care about any of those reasons for myself. And the negatives of owning a home are more impactful to me.

Gamingsince1989 posted...

Same, my house was paid off by 34. It's not a difficult thing to do if you prioritize expenses and it also helps that I don't have children to support.

Lol.
I'm glad you paid off your house, it's a big expense to be done with. But bro, how you gonna throw out that "it's not a difficult thing to do" by mid 30's, when houses are in the 250k+ range for most people.

Kinda blows my mind that there are people whove paid off a house in their 30s. Im either a (way too) late bloomer, unlucky, or straight up defective lmfao

Spiritlittle posted...

Fair points in this topic, for sure.

But I don't see how many people can afford a house in my area. The cheapest houses are close to $500,000, while my rent is only $850.

I'm a teacher with a pretty low income ceiling and it caps after 15 years of service, and you have to have 30 years complete to retire with full pension.

I definitely could afford a house at some point. I'm pretty good at saving money. I'm 28 and have around $45,000 in savings and $9000 in checking. But I also HATE the area and city I live in right now so I mentally would just feel awful if I was chained to this place.

Definitely good points though if you really like the area you live in. (I'm also gay and not gonna have biological children, so having a house and then retiring and selling it and moving to wherever is definitely appealing.)

That also depends on your area. You have really cheap rent compared to some places.

Look at some numbers for my city, Los Angeles: 3 Bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment for $2500 a month, with a high chance that the landlord ups the price after the 12 month lease is over.

Versus a $500,000 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment. With a down payment, you could be looking at $3000 a month for a 30 year fixed rate mortgage.

rexcrk posted...

Kinda blows my mind that there are people whove paid off a house in their 30s. Im either a (way too) late bloomer, unlucky, or straight up defective lmfao

Nah, fully paying off a house in your 30's is being ahead of the curve by quite a bit. You're not a late bloomer just because you're not there yet lol.

What if I don't wanna have kids and I am never home? Is a house still good for me?

People who rent will probably help other people pay off 3-5 houses when they retire