Political Memes

As someone who bought an outdated house in 2013, I agree with you, in part.

The amount of money that my husband and I have sunk into this house between having the foundation leveled, having the entire house re-plumbed, updating the flooring, updating the siding, updating the windows, having the gutters re-done, new HVAC...among the various other things that my husband and I have done ourselves (some of the flooring, repainting, updating kitchen sink+hardware, updating both bathrooms, new Hot Water Heater etc), we've sunk ~$85K over the past decade. Fortunately all those hits didn't come all at once. Right now we're in the process of paying off financing for the siding, the flooring we had professionally done, and the plumbing. Only 2 of those things were planned and budgeted for. The plumbing issue occurred the same month we had the siding and flooring done 😮‍💨.

That being said, on the other hand, I do see the value of being a property owner. When I look at the appreciation on the property and know that I have that money if shit ever goes super sideways for me, I'll be able to survive long enough to figure shit out, its comforting. Seeing my mortgage go down and knowing that if I ever need to sell, I'll get a large lump sum, is also comforting. Or, if I have to live in this house forever for some reason, at least it won't be mortgaged anymore, so that will be a relief in my old age.

Then again, you're right about the property taxes too. I'm paying about $460 a month in property taxes, but I'm only 10 years into my mortgage. Who knows how much I'll be paying a month in 20 years as housing appreciates and taxes go up? It's not inconceivable that it would get to $1K a month or more. That's essentially a rent anyhow. Plus I'm still on the hook for all the stuff that will need updating 20 years from now.

I agree that people think that home ownership is some easy ticket to wealth without taking into account how expensive maintenance is. I also agree it can be valuable just by virtue of security (your principle and interest remains stagnant, and you never have to worry about your lease not being renewed.)

And before people are like "You just spent so much because you bought a lemon house. Being a home owner isn't that expensive when it comes to house maintenance."

No. My house was never unlivable, and all my maintenance issues occurred at different times over the course of my decade of home ownership. My house was built in 1995. The HVAC went out in 2017. It was 22 years old. That was ~$6K. The foundation needed leveling and the gutters needed replacing in 2021, that was another $12K between the two. Getting all the windows updated to a thicker more efficient glass with better sealing occurred in 2022, 5 windows and a back door was $20K. Started noticing the rear siding looking janky in 2022, and didn't want to defer maintenance so had that replaced, that was $20K. The plumbing went out in 2022, and it was a leak under the foundation. They offered to patch the plumbing but would only warranty the work for 3 years, or they could replumb the house and warranty for 30 years. That was again, just under $20K.

The house is nearly 30 years old. You can't defer maintenance like foundation leveling and siding if you want your house standing when your mortgage is paid off.

All of this was a suuuuuuuuper long winded way to just say: Yes I'm a home owner. I plan on selling the moment I'm allowed to escape this state, and no I never plan on owning ever again. I actively want the flexibility of renting and being able to up and move the moment my lease is over if I don't like the place. And I never want to worry about major upkeep ever again.