Is Owning A Home A Right?
It has been a long time since my wife and I owned a home. We bought our first home about 2 years after we were married. It is was a great first home (3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms). We put int a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to make it our own. Many family members and friends helped us paint walls, refinish cabinets, and update the bathrooms.
We had no idea what we were doing, but we enjoyed the process.
Getting A Loan
We choose to buy a house that we could afford, not the dream house that we might want someday. The mortgage company tried to offer us a larger loan, but we choose a smaller loan based on my salary at the time. We were using most of my wife's salary to pay off school loans.
We applied a very basic, yet often overlooked financial principle. Don't get something that you can't afford! We still try to live by the principle. Most days we do well. Somedays we have to fight off the urge to overspend. Materialism is a real threat to contentment and financial stability.
Buyers' Remorse
The first night we slept in our new home, our stomachs hurt. We ached because we realized the size of our decision. We just made the largest purchase of our lives. We just committed to making payments for the next 30 years.
We woke up the next morning feeling better, but the idea of spending 10's of thousands of dollars was never a small deal for us.
Now Back in the United States
We have rented for the last 10 years or so. While living overseas, buying a house was never an option. Since moving back we have bounced around from house to house. I would love to settle down and provide some stability for my family.
I notice the urge to own a home is creeping back in. I have been watching a lot of DIY shows lately. I have been checking out properties on Zillow and Trulia (these sites did not exist during our first house buying rodeo).
A lot of things have changed in the last 10 years. It seems like the American dream (owning a house) is not considered as a simple dream any longer. People seem to be moving towards the idea that owning a home is a right and in the most extreme cases a right that governments should help fulfill.
I do not believe this is the case. I believe that certain "rights" (owning a home in this case) should only be granted when we can meet the responsibilities associated with the right.
Homeownership requires ...
- a certain level of financial capacity
- the ability to manage and maintain the property
- disciple and forward thinking
Owning a home is not a simple task, so if you are not prepared for the task then you should wait.
I would love to own a home, but right now there are challenges that prevent this type of purchase. I want a home, but I am not ready for a home. Owning a home is still a dream of mine, but in my opinion, it is not a right.
Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness? YES. And when I am ready to own a home and all of the financials line up, I will make it apart of my pursuit of happiness. But until then, I choose to be content. I will let the dream grow, but for now, I will not let it sink my current financial stability,
Financial Thoughts
I would love to hear your thoughts on this topic.
- Is owning a home a right?
- Do you own your own home or do you rent?
- What should people prepare for in order to buy a home?
Thanks for stopping by. I will be sure to reply to your comments.
@SumatraNate
Image Source: https://pixabay.com/en/kitchen-home-house-interior-modern-2165756/
I own my house. I wouldn't say it's a 'right'. It's just an investment in a piece of tangible property.
People should prepare to set aside enough money to cover a 25% downpayment, fees, repairs, and the upkeep of the house. They should know what the taxes are and how to accelerate their mortgage so they pay it off sooner.
Buying a house for emotional reasons is a big mistake. When the house is sold it has to make enough money to justify its ownership.
Completely agree with your perspective. Financial preparation is key. I hear that you should at least put down 15%. You need 20% if you want to avoid loan insurance. So glad that you are talking about even higher down payments and paying off the loan sooner than later.
Owning a home is a dream of mine as well. Is it my right? The right I have is according to the USA government is education, jury by peers, and righteousness. Other than that, my rights are irrelevant to owning a home.
I do have a responsibility to live debt free and help others. Will owning a home accomplish that or hinder it? That is how I view any life choose. Ultimately if it only aids me what good am I actually doing?
You should have dreams that scare you. You should work hard to achieve those dreams and you will.
Agree with you. Owning a home can be a way to serve others (but only if we choose to do so). We can have a simple, small home or even rent and server others well.
It is all about how we choose to live life. Keep dreaming @kubbyelizabeth!
Menurut saya memiliki rumah sendiri lebih baik walaupun sedikit kecil dan tidak mewah. Sehingga setiap tahun kita tidak perlu memikirkan uang untuk sewa rumah. Uang tersebut bisa kita alokasikan untuk merenovasi rumah yang kecil tadi sedikit demi sedikit menjadi besar dan mewah. Jika ingin membeli rumah pertama pastikan dulu rumah yang anda tempati berlokasi aman, nyaman dan tidak terlalu jauh dari tempat kita bekerja. Selanjutnya pilihlah rumah yang sesuai dengan kondisi keuangan kita. Pilihlah rumah yang terbebas dari polusi, lingkungan dan udaranya bersih demi menjaga kesehatan.
peluklah mimpi anda dengan segenap keyakinan, suatu saat dia akan berubah menjadi kenyataan yang sangat indah,
kami tinggal di lingkungan menengah kebawah, saya dapat merasakan beban seperti yang anda rasakan, karena kami juga seperti anda sahabatku
saya bisa merasakan bagaimana selalu dalam impian memiliki sebuah rumah, karena kami juga sedang bermimpi seperti anda @sumatranate, sekarang kami hanya menumpang pada rumah keluarga, hidup akan terus berputar, itulah kayakinan saya...;))
3)They need to prepare a lot.. Especially in the area of finance!
Your house is very beautiful and lovely. In which Sister-in-law will be very happy.
The house in the photo is not mine. I used a photo from pixabay.com. It was used with permission.
Personally I would've preferred to rent, but my chinese parents disagreed. In fact they "threatened" to fund my house purchase many years back when I floated the idea of renting lol. It's a chinese thing, parents want to see their kids do well and house ownership is like a rite of passage in adulthood.
Renting frees me from a lot of the commitment associated with home ownership. But since the birth of my son I decided that stability is more important for my family.